What music shaped your world this year? Both Spotify Wrapped and Apple Music’s Replay dropped this week to show you your favorite tunes and what held your attention in 2025. Which songs did you obsess on? Which albums rocked your world?
Wait, why is Coldplay on there? And that one Ape Army song you clicked on once by mistake? Where’s the “Wicked” soundtrack that got you through November? Are these really the songs you listened to the most?
Not necessarily.
Some fans eager to see their music consumption in 2025 may be baffled to see that the “2025 Wrapped” may not line up very well with what they actually remembered listening to. The same thing happened in 2024,
“There can be many contributing factors as to why your Spotify Wrapped might feel ‘off’, even if the numbers are technically correct,” said ticket site SeatPick in an email. “Spotify most likely chooses the most fun narrative, and not the most complete data.
“Wrapped is designed for social sharing, not accuracy.”
Why are my 2025 Spotify Wrapped or Apple Replay results wrong?
“Spotify Wrapped is fun and intentionally dramatic, but isn’t necessarily a precise reflection of your musical identity,” said Gilad Zilberman, SeatPick CEO. “It’s a highlight reel built for social sharing, and not a comprehensive analytical report.”
The site took a look at the features last year and came up with several reasons why.
1. Cut off times might skew results
Spotify has not officially revealed the dates the Wrapped feature looks at, but unofficial estimates put it around late October to mid-November, so that Bad Bunny album you discovered a few weeks ago and blasted nonstop won’t show up.
Apple Replay looks back at January through November but doesn’t add December stats until later. “”Check back in early January,” the app says.
2. Short songs generate more plays
Songs and podcasts must last for at least 30 seconds to be counted, SeatPick said, and shorter songs tend to get more plays.
“For example, a 1:30 hyperpop track played 5 times trumps your 8-minute prog rock track played once,” SeatPick said.
3. Algorithmic playlists skew numbers
Do you ever listen to the playlists Spotify and Apple Music provide, with latest hits or specific themes or radio based on an artist? Those plays count too, even if you didn’t actively choose them. That can explain how your top list can include artists you’ve never heard of.
4. Background listening distorts your stats
If you like leaving background music on while you’re working or listening to ambient playlist while falling asleep, those choices can dominate your list and push down your actual favorites.
5. Spiked listening patterns
Remember that time you became obsessed with Sabrina Carpenter’s “Manchild” and listened to it for two days straight and then never again? Yep, that counts.
Those intense binges on KPop Demon Hunters, Taylor Swift or Kendrick Lamar all count and can skew your numbers.
6. Apple Music Replay tracking might not be turned on
If your listening stats in Apple Music Replay seem to be wonky or you can’t find Replay at all, you may have tracking turned off.
Apple Music Replay may not register playlists imported from other music apps using third-party transfer programs for its Top 5 Playlists section, although it should still count the songs played on them.
7. Spotify Wrapped is marketable
Spotify Wrapped was initially introduced as a marketing product, not a statistical report.
“Wrapped compresses a full year into a narrative Spotify thinks might look exciting on Instagram, even if it glosses over context, gets distorted by background listening, shared devices, or algorithmic playlists,” Zilberman said..
“If you are curious to uncover the real data on your listening habits, there are many third-party tools you can seek out that offer real data led stats.”
So take your 2025 music roundups with a hefty grain of salt, think back over the good music, rediscover some early faves you’ve forgotten about, chuckle over the embarrassing ones (seriously? Coldplay?) and share them with your friends. That’s what they’re for.
How to find your Spotify Wrapped
Make sure you’ve updated your Spotify to the latest version.
The “Spotify Wrapped” package should appear on the front page of the platform’s iOS and Android apps. Users can expect to see an invitation to view their Wrapped report when they open the app.
How to find your Apple Replay
Make sure you’ve updated your iOS to the latest version.
Open your Music app and go to the Home tab. Scroll down and look for the Listen Back section and tap on Replay. If this is the first time you’ve opened the app since the new Replay was added, it may appear on top.
After that, Apple Music users can check out their Replay ’25 throughout the year in the Playlists section of their library.
You can also find it online at replay.music.apple.com, just log in with your Apple account info.
(This story was updated with new information.)
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: My Spotify Wrapped is out! Why is it so wrong?
Reporting by C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
