Does DistroKid submit your music to Spotify playlists?
No. DistroKid delivers your music to Spotify, but it does not pitch it to Spotify's editors or to independent curators. DistroKid's own page says it "never promises playlist placement". The pitch to Spotify's editors happens in Spotify for Artists, which you get access to as a DistroKid member. DistroKid adds three tools of its own: Playlist Spotlight and Wheel of Playlist, which put songs on DistroKid's own Spotify playlists, and Playlister, a contact search for playlist curators on the Ultimate plan.
This guide covers each of those, what they can and cannot do, and what DistroKid says about paid playlist services. Details were checked on DistroKid's and Spotify's own pages on 9 November 2026.
Spotify's editorial playlists: pitch in Spotify for Artists
Spotify's editors only take pitches through Spotify for Artists. Spotify states that it is "the only way to submit new music for playlisting". DistroKid lists Spotify for Artists Instant Access among the extras for its members, so you can claim your artist profile there.
The rules come from Spotify, not DistroKid:
- Pitch one unreleased song, at least 7 days before release.
- Once a song is live, it can no longer be pitched.
- A pitched song goes into your followers' Release Radar.
Because the pitch needs an unreleased song with time to spare, upload your release to DistroKid well before the release date. DistroKid's help center advises uploading at least 3 weeks ahead of the planned release date if you want the song to be considered for editorial playlists. The guide on the editorial pitch and independent curators explains the pitch step by step.
Playlist Spotlight: votes for DistroKid's genre playlists
Playlist Spotlight is a free contest for DistroKid members. According to DistroKid's help center:
- You can submit one song per artist on your account, and only songs that are live on Spotify.
- Songs are put in matchups, and anyone can vote, not only DistroKid members. Each fan can vote once per matchup.
- Songs with the most votes are added to a DistroKid Spotify playlist.
- Playlists update each week and votes reset to zero. If you lose, you get a new matchup the next week.
It is a way to get a placement by mobilizing your own fans. The listeners are those of DistroKid's playlists, so treat it as a bonus rather than a release plan.
Wheel of Playlist: a spin for a spot
Wheel of Playlist is another free DistroKid tool. You pick one of your songs at distrokid.com/wheel, connect your Spotify account and spin three times. Your best spin decides the song's position on DistroKid's Wheel of Playlist on Spotify. The song stays there until someone else spins the same number; then you can spin again.
It costs nothing and does no harm, but placement is decided by chance, not by fit. It does not put your song in front of listeners of your genre the way a placement on a genre playlist does.
Playlister: curator contacts on the Ultimate plan
Playlister is DistroKid's "search engine for finding the email addresses and Instagram handles of people who run playlists". It is only included in the Ultimate plan, which costs $89.99 per year ($7.50 per month billed yearly) on DistroKid's pricing page. Musician ($24.99 per year) and Musician Plus ($44.99 per year) do not include it.
If you already pay for Ultimate, Playlister is a reasonable place to start finding curators. If you are on a cheaper plan, upgrading only for Playlister is one option; a separate contact tool is another. The comparison of PlaylistLookup and DistroKid Playlister sets the two side by side.
What DistroKid says about paid playlist services
DistroKid is blunt about this. Its help center says: "never pay for any service that 'guarantees' streams, followers, or playlist placements". Using such a service may lead to withheld earnings and to your music being removed from streaming services.
Two points from DistroKid's article on artificial streaming are easy to miss:
- It also applies when you did not pay. Some playlist owners grow their playlists through streaming fraud. If your song lands on such a playlist, the artificial streams can lead to the release being removed.
- The consequences reach your account. If most of a release's streams are found to be artificial, the music will likely be removed, royalties from those streams will not be paid, and DistroKid may warn you or close your account.
Writing to independent curators yourself is not the same as paying for placement. A curator who adds your song because it fits, with no money involved, is how playlists are meant to work. The risk is the playlist itself: check it before you pitch. The guide on telling whether a Spotify playlist is botted lists five checks, and a playlist health check estimates whether a playlist has real listeners.
If Spotify has already flagged a song, DistroKid's help center explains what to do, including re-uploading with the same ISRC when you were not using promotional services.
A release plan with DistroKid
- Three weeks or more before release: upload the release to DistroKid with a release date in the future.
- At least 7 days before release: pitch one song to Spotify's editors in Spotify for Artists.
- Before release: build a list of active independent playlists in your genre and check each one. The guide to submitting music to Spotify playlists covers how.
- Release day: enter the song in Playlist Spotlight and spin the Wheel of Playlist if you like; ask fans to follow you and vote.
- First two weeks: write to the curators on your list. The playlist pitching guide has email and DM templates.