I’ve waited 15 years for this: Spotify is finally fixing this major mobile playlist headache

There are two types of Spotify users: Those with meticulously organized playlists and those who throw everything they listen to under "liked songs" and call it a day. I'm part of the first camp, and I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve opened my Spotify app, looked at my wall of playlists, and just... given up. It's like a digital junk drawer of tracks that I can never seem to find when I actually need them.

You can organize your library into Playlist folders, a feature added back in 2010, but it's exclusive to desktop and Spotify's web player. If you're listening on mobile and want to tweak things, you're SOL. That could soon change, though. According to a new leak, Spotify is reportedly bringing playlist folders to the mobile app, and honestly? It’s long overdue.

Code uncovered by Android Authority in the latest version of Spotify (9.1.34.12) suggests the company is finally laying the groundwork to fix this availability gap. The teardown showed off common menu items coming to the app, like the ability to create a new folder, give it a name or rename it, and move playlists between folders. Based on the language in the code, it looks like you'll have two ways to create a folder: with the standard Create button or from the Your Library tab is the Create button is hidden.

There is one catch: deleting a folder could wipe out all the playlists tucked inside. A warning prompt in the code asks if you're sure they really want to delete the folder and all the playlists therein. It’s not ideal, but at least Spotify adds a "Are you really sure?" warning to save us from our own clumsy thumbs.

There's no word yet on when we can expect Playlist folder customization options to roll out to mobile. Similarly unclear is whether Spotify will support nested folders on mobile at launch, another feature that's been exclusive to desktop thus far.

It's about time, Spotify

If you’re like me and rarely touch the desktop app, your library has probably been a disorganized mess for years. Having these tools directly on my phone means I can finally organize my playlists while I'm actually listening to them — on the bus, at the gym, or just lounging around the house.

I’m clearly not the only one who's been screaming into the void about this. With over 600 million monthly active users on Spotify — the bulk of sessions on phones — it’s wild that we’ve had to wait this long for basic playlist customization options to make the jump to iOS and Android. It’s consistently been one of the most upvoted features on Spotify’s forums for years. We've been heard, finally.

Not that Spotify's the only music streaming platform plagued by this particular annoyance. I’ve looked at the competition, and honestly, nobody is getting this right. Apple Music still makes you jump through hoops on the best iPhones, with creating and managing playlist folders being similarly exclusive to desktop.

Meanwhile, YouTube Music just wants you to search for everything or use filters instead of handing you the keys to actually organize your tunes. Playlist management on mobile may not be the most flashy upgrade, but for those of us who treat our playlists like a curated art gallery, it's a handy convenience that gives Spotify an edge over the competition.

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