Spotify Acknowledges Battery Drain Issues on iOS 14.8 and iOS 15, Promises Fix Soon

Following a flood of reports and complaints, Spotify has acknowledged that its app may be causing excessive battery drain and overheating issues on iOS 14.8 and the latest iOS 15 update, promising a fix in the not-so-distant future.

General Spotify Feature
In a long and ongoing support thread on its website, which started weeks ago, Spotify says it is aware of battery drain reports and that it has passed those reports onto its technical iOS team. Spotify doesn't state when a fix could be coming or whether it would be an app update or other troubleshooting steps.

Users reporting the issue on the thread state that Spotify is listed as a consumer of battery life due to background activity, with no clear reason why. While most of the reports are from users running iOS 14.8 and iOS 15.0, there are also other sporadic reports of battery drainage on older iOS versions. Those users are advised to update for a possible patch and improved security.

While Spotify is being held as the main culprit for the excessive drainage, it could also be a bug in iOS 15 for some users. iOS 15 has been littered with multiple bugs, including one limiting Apple Watch functionality with the just-released iPhone 13, issues with Apple Music, and other bugs that Apple has promised fixes for. Apple may be planning to release iOS 15.0.1 as soon as this week to patch those issues and others.

Tag: Spotify

Popular Stories

iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Intel Inside iPhone Feature

Apple's Return to Intel Rumored to Extend to iPhone

Friday December 5, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone. In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
ios 18 to ios 26 upgrade

Apple Pushes iPhone Users Still on iOS 18 to Upgrade to iOS 26

Tuesday December 2, 2025 11:09 am PST by
Apple is encouraging iPhone users who are still running iOS 18 to upgrade to iOS 26 by making the iOS 26 software upgrade option more prominent. Since iOS 26 launched in September, it has been displayed as an optional upgrade at the bottom of the Software Update interface in the Settings app. iOS 18 has been the default operating system option, and users running iOS 18 have seen iOS 18...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2 Release Candidates to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Wednesday December 3, 2025 10:33 am PST by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2 updates to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming two weeks after Apple seeded the third betas. The release candidates represent the final versions of iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found during this final week of testing....
Photos App Icon Liquid Glass

John Gruber Shares Scathing Commentary About Apple's Departing Software Design Chief

Thursday December 4, 2025 9:30 am PST by
In a statement shared with Bloomberg on Wednesday, Apple confirmed that its software design chief Alan Dye will be leaving. Apple said Dye will be succeeded by Stephen Lemay, who has been a software designer at the company since 1999. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that Dye will lead a new creative studio within the company's AR/VR division Reality Labs. On his blog Daring Fireball,...
iOS 26

When Will Apple Release iOS 26.2?

Monday December 1, 2025 4:37 pm PST by
We're getting closer to the launch of the final major iOS update of the year, with Apple set to release iOS 26.2 in December. We've had three betas so far and are expecting a fourth beta or a release candidate this week, so a launch could follow as soon as next week. Past Launch Dates Apple's past iOS x.2 updates from the last few years have all happened right around the middle of the...
maxresdefault

iPhone Fold: Launch, Pricing, and What to Expect From Apple's Foldable

Monday December 1, 2025 3:00 am PST by
Apple is expected to launch a new foldable iPhone next year, based on multiple rumors and credible sources. The long-awaited device has been rumored for years now, but signs increasingly suggest that 2026 could indeed be the year that Apple releases its first foldable device. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we've collated an updated set of key details that ...
ive and altman

Jony Ive's OpenAI Device Barred From Using 'io' Name

Friday December 5, 2025 6:22 am PST by
A U.S. appeals court has upheld a temporary restraining order that prevents OpenAI and Jony Ive's new hardware venture from using the name "io" for products similar to those planned by AI audio startup iyO, Bloomberg Law reports. iyO sued OpenAI earlier this year after the latter announced its partnership with Ive's new firm, arguing that OpenAI's planned "io" branding was too close to its...
iphone air camera

iPhone Air's Resale Value Has Dropped Dramatically, Data Shows

Thursday December 4, 2025 5:27 am PST by
The iPhone Air has recorded the steepest early resale value drop of any iPhone model in years, with new data showing that several configurations have lost almost 50% of their value within ten weeks of launch. According to a ten-week analysis published by SellCell, Apple's latest lineup is showing a pronounced split in resale performance between the iPhone 17 models and the iPhone Air....
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

iPhone 17 Pro Lost a Camera Feature Pro Models Have Had Since 2020

Thursday December 4, 2025 5:18 am PST by
iPhone 17 Pro models, it turns out, can't take photos in Night mode when Portrait mode is selected in the Camera app – a capability that's been available on Apple's Pro devices since the iPhone 12 Pro in 2020. If you're an iPhone 17 Pro or iPhone 17 Pro Max owner, try it for yourself: Open the Camera app with Photo selected in the carousel, then cover the rear lenses with your hand to...

Top Rated Comments

Rudy69 Avatar
55 months ago
My wife has been complaining her 12 Pro is dying before the afternoon, looked at her battery thing and it showed Spotify was draining pretty much all of it with Facebook a distant second. That's pretty bad when you drain more battery than Facebook
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ion-X Avatar
55 months ago
I gotta say, all things considered Spotify is a better app than Apple Music. And this is coming from someone with 4 HomePods / minis.

I was hoping for some big AM upgrades (better recommendations, faster and more responsive app, etc.) at the September event.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iBluetooth Avatar
55 months ago
This reminds me of when Facebook got cought playing silent music, to be able to be always running on after the user left the app. You had to force shut it by pushing it up to stop it from running, and of course draining the battery. The silent music was done, because Apple allowed apps playing music to stay on in the background, of-course because users usually want their music to continue playing, but FB decided to play silent music and then could stay on up/downloading in the background what the user was doing.
Spotify owes us an explanation why it was doing so much work in the background.

EDIT: As, commenters have been accusing me of making this up, here is a link for those that can't or won't google it. As an iOS programmer, their explanation did not make sense of forgetting playing silent sound on. https://techcrunch.com/2015/10/22/facebook-says-it-fixed-a-bug-that-caused-silent-audio-to-vampire-your-iphone-battery/?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAMkKx-BKcChkFoCz1YweAiEgfBVPQ5qmJDH63_aYP7uqC4tnMUKjEsbAfJy9HV7CtsG44SVbLifCgDZyp8zx-ksN0ZFXvHns25WovMmKzXcjOKiuhmkEGZtNc3NGiyBkcPXnorOuftOBbtJ2yQF0nVW87lZIECYDXhM8GOwgdC82
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
yellow8 Avatar
55 months ago
I'm a Spotify user, but frankly, I'd love a better app (more responsive, more iOS like). Same on macOS (*#!;# electron).
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Krizoitz Avatar
55 months ago

So much for Apple claiming they vigorously vet applications permitted into the App Store.
Apps consume battery, the App Store review process doesn’t include performance testing. If you’d like for App updates to take significantly longer you could try and convince Apple to do so but this is on Spotify not Apple.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
parfy Avatar
55 months ago

That sounds pretty made up. Any proof or references to it?
Didn't think so.
Pretty easy to find https://techcrunch.com/2015/10/22/facebook-says-it-fixed-a-bug-that-caused-silent-audio-to-vampire-your-iphone-battery/?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAAhE0PmiECYmKK47g0GleiggB_GVbwNav-ZK-yUaQz4X3fm-ahaaSxQCxamLUuBxB0pHaUuOGbMmPZKGJO65By6CXs5MokrAFrlxv3BlRoMfkDhLy8bvQgIDWvgb8Rtn5lXQe6EQwv0nzfiT9THvDuLhhfUM3f1RUs53XvOctiSn

I also recall it.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)