Strava is without doubt one of the world’s hottest exercise apps, and now it is added a much-needed function that might give your exercise motivation an additional enhance – in-app Spotify integration.
Till now, health followers who use each Strava and Spotify have needed to clunkily swap between the apps throughout exercises. However the brand new integration between the providers, which is rolling out now, will allow you to browse and choose Spotify songs and playlists from inside Strava’s iOS and Android apps.
The additional excellent news is that you’re going to get this performance even when you’re on the free tiers for each Strava and Spotify, which suggests no subscription is required. Whereas Strava hiked the pricing for its paid model final yr, the free tier nonetheless enables you to report and share your exercises.
So what does Strava’s new Spotify integration seem like? As you possibly can see under, you get extra than simply primary playback controls. The Spotify integration seems in Strava’s Document part – when you faucet that to begin a exercise, you may see a brand new music icon that permits you to join your Spotify account and select your music, podcast or audiobook.
As soon as you’ve got linked your Spotify account, you may get a brand new menu within the Strava Document part displaying a few of the hottest exercise mixes or your most just lately performed tracks.
Under that menu you may additionally get the choice to play, pause, resume or skip songs, which theoretically means it is best to hardly ever have to delve into the Spotify smartphone app when you’re figuring out.
This new integration is of course geared toward Strava customers who primarily depend on the service’s iOS or Android app. Many Strava customers as a substitute sync their information to the service from a few of the greatest health trackers, whereas we additionally price Strava as being among the finest Apple Watch apps round.
Nonetheless, whereas utilizing Spotify with Strava on a smartwatch will stay a extra fiddly expertise, this new smartphone app integration shall be a great quality-of-life enhance for anybody who repeatedly makes use of each on their iOS or Android telephone.
Evaluation: Spotify works onerous on its social sport
Spotify’s new Strava integration exhibits that it is persevering with to invoice itself as an audio all-rounder that desires to reside wherever you take heed to music, podcasts or audiobooks. And whereas there’s sadly no integration with Strava’s Apple Watch app but, it is a useful (if barely belated) new function for followers of Strava’s smartphone app.
Spotify’s extra music-focused followers could want the streaming service to concentrate on options just like the long-awaited Spotify HiFi, however that high-res tier stays a great distance off – even when Spotify did just lately counsel that Spotify HiFi continues to be within the works.
Nonetheless, we have just lately argued that even when Spotify HiFi is rarely coming, that is simply wonderful, as a result of it is clearly now a special sort of music service. Its latest homepage redesign delivered robust hints of TikTok, whereas the brand new Spotify Area of interest Mixes function is one other instance of its need to maneuver in the direction of extra social-friendly options.
That is additionally the case for Strava, which hit over 100 million active users last year (opens in new tab) and has constructed a robust following because of options like its Neighborhood Hub, which is sort of a discussion board for followers to debate new options and concepts. Even when we have argued that Garmin Join is no less than the equal of Strava Premium, the addition of options like Spotify integration to its free tier will solely assist enhance Strava’s recognition.