Guide · Updated July 2026
How to export your Spotify Extended Streaming History
Spotify keeps a record of every song you've ever streamed — with timestamps — and you're entitled to a copy. This guide walks through requesting the extended export (the lifetime one), what's actually in the file, and the two mistakes that cost people weeks: ticking the wrong box and missing the confirmation email.
The five steps
- 1
Open Spotify's privacy page in a browser
Log in at spotify.com/account/privacy (the request tool lives on the web account page, not in the mobile app) and scroll to Download your data.
- 2
Tick ONLY "Extended streaming history"
You'll see three checkboxes: "Account data" (ticked by default), "Extended streaming history", and "Technical log information". Untick the others, tick Extended streaming history, and press "Request data". Account data's history only covers about the last year and has no track identifiers — the extended export is the lifetime one.
- 3
Click the confirmation email — or nothing happens
Spotify immediately sends a confirmation email, and preparation does not begin until you click it. If it isn't in your inbox within a few minutes, check spam.
- 4
Wait for the "ready to download" email
Spotify's official line is that it "shouldn't take longer than 30 days" (that's the GDPR ceiling, not the real speed). In practice most exports arrive within 1–5 days, sometimes within hours, occasionally up to two weeks.
- 5
Download the zip promptly
You'll get my_spotify_data.zip containing Streaming_History_Audio_YYYY_N.json files (plus separate video/podcast files and a Read Me First PDF explaining every field). Download it as soon as the email lands — users report the link stops working after roughly two weeks, and then you have to re-request.
Extended history vs. “Account data” — the trap
Both live on the same page, and the wrong one is pre-selected. The default Account data export gives you roughly one year of plays in StreamingHistory_music_*.json — no track URIs, no lifetime reach. The Extended streaming history export is the real one: every play since your account began, each with a timestamp (ts), how long you listened (ms_played), and the exact track (spotify_track_uri). If you already requested the wrong one, go back and request the extended export — the two are separate requests.
Before you upload it anywhere: what's sensitive in there
Something most guides skip: the extended export can include per-stream network and device details (like IP addresses and platform info), not just what you played. Treat the raw zip like personal data, because it is. For what it's worth: Cosign reads only the play records — timestamps, durations, and track/artist identifiers — to compute your score, and your results page is private-by-default from search engines.
Frequently asked
How long does the Spotify extended streaming history take?
Spotify officially quotes up to 30 days, which mirrors the GDPR deadline rather than actual processing speed. In practice most people get the download email within 1–5 days, some within hours. Remember: the clock doesn't start until you click the confirmation email.
What's the difference between "Account data" and "Extended streaming history"?
Account data includes roughly the last year of streaming (StreamingHistory_music_*.json) with no track URIs. Extended streaming history covers your entire account lifetime — every play with a timestamp (ts), listening duration (ms_played), and the exact spotify_track_uri. They're separate requests on the same page, and the wrong one is ticked by default.
How far back does the extended export go?
To the beginning of your account — your very first streams, even from over a decade ago. Note the opposite end: exports typically omit the most recent few days before the file was generated.
What is endsong.json?
The legacy file name for extended streaming history. Newer exports use Streaming_History_Audio_YYYY_N.json instead, but the contents are the same lifetime play-by-play records, and tools that read the export accept either naming.
What do the fields in the JSON mean?
The key ones: ts is the UTC timestamp when the stream ended, ms_played is how long you listened in milliseconds, master_metadata_track_name / album_artist_name identify the track, and spotify_track_uri is the exact track ID. There are also behavioral fields like reason_start, reason_end, shuffle, and skipped. The zip includes a Read Me First PDF documenting all of them.
Does it include podcasts and audiobooks?
Yes — podcast plays carry their own fields (episode_name, episode_show_name, spotify_episode_uri), and recent exports include audiobook listening too. Newer exports ship podcasts/video in separate files alongside the audio history.
My download link expired — what now?
Links stop working after roughly two weeks, and the old file can't be recovered — request the export again from the privacy page. If a link errors inside that window, an incognito tab or different browser usually fixes it.
Can I get someone else's history?
No. The export is tied to the signed-in account and gated by a confirmation email to the account owner's address. There's no legitimate way to pull another person's listening history.
Is this the same data Spotify Wrapped uses?
Same underlying play log, different windowing — Wrapped applies its own thresholds and roughly a January-to-November window, so totals rarely match exactly. With the raw export you can compute honest all-time stats for any date range.
Got your export? Find out how early you were.
Cosign reads your extended history and scores how early you found the artists who later blew up — then ranks you against other tastemakers.