How to Fix Spotify Error 4: No Internet Connection Detected

By FixMyError · Updated October 15, 2026 · 8 min read

What Spotify error 4 means

Spotify error 4 shows up as a full-screen message inside the app: "No internet connection detected. Spotify will automatically try reconnecting when it detects an internet connection (error code: 4)." Streaming, radio, and downloads stop dead. And the infuriating part is that your internet usually works perfectly — you can open web pages, watch videos, and use every other app on the same device.

That contradiction is actually the biggest clue. Your browser reaches the internet just fine, so the failure is specific to how Spotify connects. The app has its own proxy configuration, its own way of resolving server addresses, and its own network permissions through your firewall and antivirus. If any one of those is misconfigured, Spotify concludes it has no connection at all — even when the rest of the device is online.

Error 4 is overwhelmingly a Windows desktop problem, though it can appear on other platforms. On phones it is much rarer, because mobile apps route through the system's own networking. On desktop, the usual suspects are a stale DNS cache, an ISP DNS server that quietly mishandles Spotify's domains, a bad proxy setting (inside Spotify or from a VPN), or a firewall rule silently blocking the app. All of these are settings problems, not hardware problems, and none of them require touching your Spotify account.

Common causes

• Stale or corrupted DNS cache: Windows stores recent DNS lookups locally. If the cached entry for Spotify's servers goes bad, the app cannot resolve them — while your browser, using fresher entries, keeps working.
• ISP DNS servers that mishandle Spotify's domains: some providers' DNS servers respond slowly or incorrectly to Spotify's server addresses. The app never gets a clean answer and reports no connection.
• Misconfigured proxy settings in Spotify: the app's built-in proxy type setting can reroute its traffic through a path that fails. Auto-detect, in particular, picks up broken proxy information on some networks.
• VPN or firewall interference: a VPN changes the connection path Spotify expects, and firewalls or antivirus suites can block the app's traffic without showing you a clear warning.
• Corrupt cache or a damaged installation: occasionally the app's own cached data or program files are damaged enough to break networking, and the failure surfaces as error 4. Genuine Spotify outages can also trigger it, though that is the least common cause.

How to fix Spotify error 4 — step by step

Work through these fixes in order. Most error 4 cases are fixed by step 3 or 4.

1. Verify your connection is actually working. Open a browser and load a couple of pages, then run a quick speed test. If pages load fine but Spotify still reports error 4, the problem is not your internet — it is how Spotify reaches the network on your device. Also try restarting your router or modem, and switch from Wi-Fi to mobile data or vice versa to see whether the error follows the connection.
2. Flush the DNS cache. A stale DNS cache can stop Spotify from resolving its servers even while browsing works. On Windows, press Win+R, type cmd, right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator, then type ipconfig /flushdns and press Enter. You should see a message confirming the cache was flushed. Restart Spotify and check whether error 4 is gone.
3. Switch Spotify's proxy type to HTTP. Spotify's built-in proxy settings are a frequent cause of error 4. Open Spotify, click your profile name at the top, and choose Settings. Find the Proxy type drop-down menu and change it to HTTP. Click Restart App to apply the change. If HTTP does not work, try No Proxy instead. If you run a system VPN, disable it temporarily and test again.
4. Change your DNS server to Google DNS. Some ISP DNS servers do not resolve Spotify's domains reliably. Press Win+R and type ncpa.cpl to open Network Connections, right-click your active connection, choose Properties, double-click Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4), select Use the following DNS server addresses, and enter 8.8.8.8 as the preferred DNS server and 8.8.4.4 as the alternate. Click OK on every dialog, restart your computer, and reopen Spotify.
5. Allow Spotify through your firewall and antivirus. Security software can silently block Spotify's network access. On Windows, open Windows Security, go to Firewall & network protection, click Allow an app through firewall, click Change settings, find Spotify in the list, and make sure both the Private and Public checkboxes are ticked. If you use third-party antivirus, add Spotify to its exceptions or allowed-apps list, then restart the app.
6. Clear the cache and clean-reinstall Spotify. Corrupt cached data or a damaged install can keep error 4 stuck. First try clearing the cache: in Spotify, go to Settings, scroll to Storage, and click Clear Cache. If that fails, uninstall Spotify completely, restart your device, then download a fresh copy from the official Spotify website or your app store. Sign in and test playback.
7. Rule out a Spotify outage. If none of the above works, the problem may not be on your side. Check Spotify's server status on X (formerly Twitter) at @SpotifyStatus or in the Spotify community forums. During a genuine outage, error 4 can appear for many users at once and no local setting will fix it — waiting for Spotify to restore service is the only option.

Did this fix it? Quick checklist

• Spotify signs in and the home screen loads your playlists and mixes
• Music streams without the "No internet connection detected" message returning
• The error stays gone after fully closing and reopening the app
• Playback works the same on another network, such as mobile data

If error 4 only appears on one network — for example an office, school, or public Wi-Fi — that network may be blocking or filtering Spotify's traffic outright, and no setting on your device will get around it. Test with your phone's mobile data to confirm; if Spotify connects there, the network's filtering is the cause and only the network's administrator can change it. One more tip for the long run: after changing your DNS server, keep a note of the change. If you ever reinstall Windows or change networks, the setting reverts to automatic and error 4 can quietly return.