Snapchat is giving Snap Map a musical makeover. The company has announced Now Playing, a new feature that lets users share the music they’re listening to in real time directly on Snap Map. Launching first with Spotify, the integration allows friends to discover each other’s favorite tracks, save songs, and jump straight into Spotify without leaving Snapchat. The feature is rolling out now in regions where both Snapchat and Spotify are available, with Canada set to receive it soon.
How Now Playing works
Once a Spotify account is linked to Snapchat, users can choose to display the song they’re currently listening to on Snap Map. Friends can tap the track to open it in Spotify, save it to their Liked Songs, or explore Snapchat Spotlight videos that use the same audio. Songs discovered through Spotlight and Snapchat’s Sound Pages can also be saved directly to Spotify, making the feature as much about music discovery as it is about sharing.
Snapchat is also giving users full control over who can see their listening activity. Music can be shared with all Snapchat friends, only friends who already have access to the user’s location on Snap Map, a custom list of selected friends, or no one at all. Listening activity isn’t permanent either—sharing automatically pauses if Snapchat hasn’t been opened for more than 24 hours, and users can manually pause sharing for three hours, 24 hours, or indefinitely.
Another step toward social music discovery
The feature builds on Snap Map’s growing role beyond simple location sharing. According to Snap, the map now attracts more than 450 million monthly users, and Now Playing adds another way for friends to connect through shared interests instead of just shared locations.
It’s also the latest example of music streaming becoming increasingly social. Instagram lets users display their Spotify activity through Notes, while TikTok has long enabled users to share and save songs from streaming services. By bringing real-time listening directly to Snap Map, Snapchat is betting that music recommendations from friends will feel more personal than those served up by an algorithm. Whether it becomes the next big discovery tool remains to be seen, but for Spotify users, it’s another seamless way to turn everyday listening into something worth sharing
