Key takeaway: To burn a CD from Spotify, convert your desired tracks to MP3 or WAV using a Spotify music converter, then use CD burning software like Windows Media Player or iTunes to burn the files onto a CD.
In an era dominated by streaming, burning a CD from your favorite Spotify playlists remains a cherished option for music lovers. Whether you want a physical backup, a custom mix for your car, or a heartfelt gift, CDs offer permanence, compatibility, and a tangible connection to your music. However, Spotify’s DRM (Digital Rights Management) and licensing restrictions mean you can’t simply burn a CD directly from the app.
This comprehensive guide is designed for both Spotify Free and Premium users, providing a legal, practical, and beginner-friendly solution to burn a CD from Spotify for personal use.
Can you burn a CD from Spotify?
You can’t directly burn (copy) Spotify music onto a CD using the Spotify app, even if you’re paying for Spotify. But yes, you can still put Spotify songs on a CD!
In the next parts, I’ll show you how to do this step by step. Let’s break it down into two main steps.
How to burn Spotify playlist to CD?
Preparation & Requirements
- A computer with a CD/DVD drive (external drives are fine for laptops)
- Blank CD-R discs (recommended for best compatibility)
- A stable internet connection
- A Spotify account (Free or Premium)
- DRM removal software (For example Cinch Audio Recorder)
- CD burning software (Windows Media Player, iTunes/Apple Music, VLC, BurnAware, Burn, etc.)
- Spotify MP3 or WAV
Audio Formats for CD Burning
| Format | Quality | Compatibility | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| WAV | Lossless | All CD Players | Audiophiles, Car Stereos |
| MP3 | Compressed | Modern Players | Extended Playlists |
How to Choose the Right MP3 Bitrate
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320kbps: Near CD quality, suitable for high-quality audio systems and headphones, larger file size. -
256kbps: High quality, difficult for most people to distinguish from CD quality, good balance of size and quality. -
192kbps: Good quality, suitable for most portable devices and headphones. -
128kbps or lower: Only recommended for situations with extremely limited space, noticeable decrease in quality.
How to convert Spotify to MP3 or WAV?
The first and essential step is converting Spotify music to standard MP3 or WAV music files with a Spotify music converter before you can burn CDs from Spotify.
Why the WAV format is better than MP3 for burning to CD
The WAV format ensures high-quality audio playback when burned CD from a Spotify playlist. MP3 files are typically compressed to save space, resulting in lower-quality audio. Additionally, some CD players may not be able to read MP3 files. WAV files are less likely to experience these issues.
Spotify advertised taking your music everywhere. However, that is NOT exactly what you think of “everywhere.” if you ask how to download Spotify songs in Spotify’s community forum, the answer is that you have to buy a song to get its MP3 version, even if you are a subscriber user. At least you can’t play it in your Car with a CD.
I will not talk too much about why Spotify doesn’t allow you to make a CD from a Spotify playlist, which is not this post’s point. You can check here for why Spotify can’t burn a CD.
How to convert Spotify playlist to MP3 with Cinch audio recorder
If you want to download Spotify songs with or without a premium account, here are three steps to get it done.
We only need a Spotify to mp3 converter that converts Spotify songs with original sound quality. In the following guide, we have chosen the Cinch audio recorder to record/download Spotify music files.
Step 1: Download, and install the Cinch audio recorder here.
Step 2: Launch the Cinch on your desktop and then click the recording button in upper-left
Step 3: Play a Spotify song or playlist that you want to download on your computer.
Once you’ve set it up, the software handles everything else. As soon as the songs finish playing, you’ll have your MP3 file ready. Alternatively, you can click the stop button located in the upper-left corner, right where the recording button is, to halt the recording process.
To swiftly reach the output folder, simply click on the folder icon at the lower right.
Tips:
- Close other apps to avoid background noise
- Check your output folder and disk space
- Only use for personal, non-commercial purposes
Alternative Methods to Burn Spotify Music to CD
While Cinch Audio Recorder is a reliable tool, several other methods can help you burn Spotify music to a CD:
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ViWizard Spotify Music Converter: Converts Spotify tracks to MP3 or WAV, preserving original sound quality and ID3 tags.
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NoteBurner Spotify Music Converter: Offers high-speed conversion and supports multiple output formats.
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TuneFab Spotify Music Converter: Supports batch conversion and maintains lossless audio quality.
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AudFree Spotify Music Converter: Provides a user-friendly interface with customizable output settings.
After converting your Spotify music using any of these tools, you can use CD burning software like Windows Media Player, iTunes, or VLC to burn the tracks onto a CD.
How to burn CDs from converted Spotify WAV or MP3?
With DRM-free files ready, you can now burn your CD. If You already know how to burn CDs from MP3 files with your favorite CD-burning software, you could leave this post to start making your CD.
For those new to CD burning, I would like to show you the basic steps to use Windows Media Play and iTunes to burn Spotify playlists to CD for free.
Burning Converted Spotify Music to CD on Windows and Mac
For Windows Users using Windows Media Player:
Windows media player is a built-in media managing software of Microsoft. You can find it at start>all programs> Windows Media Player. It can help burn music to CD or rip CD to MP3.
- Insert a blank CD into the disc drive of your computer.
- Open the WMP.
- Press the ‘Burn’ button on the right.
- Add Spotify music to the burn list.
- Click the menu in the Burn panel.
- Press the ‘Start Burn’ button.
That it. You have burned Spotify playlist to CD with a Windows media player for free
For Mac Users using iTunes:
iTunes is a famous music player on Apple OS. You could launch it in the dock if you have a Mac computer.
- Open iTunes.
- Go to ‘File > New > Playlist’ and create a playlist.
- Insert a blank CD into the disc drive.
- Open the ‘File’ menu and select Burn Playlist to Disc.
- Select the ‘Audio CD‘ in the format list.
- Press the ‘Burn’ button.
How to Copy Spotify playlist to CD using VLC
I’m going to show you how to use the VLC player to copy your Spotify playlist to CD. This process is very simple and only takes a few minutes.
1. Launch the VLC player on your computer and create a new playlist for saving Spotify songs to burn Spotify music to CD with ease.
2. Once Spotify songs have been added to the VLC player, click the Media menu, then choose the Convert/Save option.
3. Click the Disc button and then insert a blank CD or DVD into the disc drive of your computer.
4. Once your VLC player detects the inserted CD, click Audio CD and Browse, then select the inserted CD and click the Convert/Save button.
5. After appearing on the Convert screen, click the Browse button to choose the location where you want VLC to save Spotify songs, and then finally click the Convert/Save button to start burning Spotify songs into a CD.
Other Tools
BurnAware, Burn, CDBurner XP, AnyBurn: Offer advanced options and support for various formats.
BurnAware Guide for Windows
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Install BurnAware Free. -
Select Audio CD > Drag converted Spotify files. -
Adjust track order via drag-and-drop. -
Burn at ≤4x speed for error-free discs.
Tips:
- Limit your playlist to 80 minutes for standard audio CDs
- Always finalize the disc for use in car and home players
Step 3: Test and Troubleshoot
After burning, test your CD in different devices:
- Car stereo
- Home CD player
- Computer
Troubleshooting
- CD won’t play: Ensure you used CD-R, selected Audio CD, and burned at a low speed
- Skipping tracks: Clean the disc and drive, try a different disc brand
- Audio issues: Use WAV format, check converter settings, avoid normalization
- Label and store CDs in a cool, dry place to prevent damage
Audio Quality & Compatibility Tips
- Always use WAV (16-bit/44.1kHz) for best results on audio CDs
- Set your converter to the highest available quality
- Burn at low speed (≤4x) to minimize errors
- Disable normalization for consistent volume
- Use reputable discs and a reliable drive
Legal & Ethical Considerations
Is Burning Spotify Songs Legal?
Under U.S. Copyright Act § 117, converting DRM-protected tracks for personal archival use is permitted if you own a legal Spotify subscription. However, sharing burned CDs violates Spotify’s Terms of Service (Section 4.3).
- Burning CDs from Spotify is only legal for personal use
- Do not distribute, sell, or share burned CDs
- Respect copyright and Spotify’s terms of service
- Misuse may result in account ban or legal action
How to import CD to Spotify for Playing
With Cinch Spotify Music Converter, you can download songs from Spotify to MP3 regardless of your user type (Free or Premium). You will then be able to burn the music from Spotify onto a CD. Also, some users want to know how to import CDs into Spotify for playback. Here’s how you can do it.
1. open Windows Media Player on your computer and insert an audio CD into the PC’s CD drive.
2. Click the Rip CD button to start ripping music from the desired CD.
3. Go onto Spotify and select your profile photo which shall then take you to Settings
4. Within Settings, scroll down until you see Local Files–switch Show Local Files “on” so that local files may be added to Spotify at will
4. Click Add Source to add a source (folder) where converted Spotify music files are saved
FAQs
Q: Why doesn’t Spotify Inc. allow people to burn CDs from Spotify?
A: Spotify doesn’t allow burning CDs from playlists because it loses control over the music. Once burned, songs are stored locally, bypassing subscriptions and ads, violating agreements with record labels and hurting Spotify’s revenue.
Q: Can I burn a CD from Spotify?
A: Yes, you can burn a CD from Spotify, but first download the songs, then use Windows Media Player to burn them by selecting File > Export > Create CD and following the prompts.
Q: How long does it take to burn a CD from Spotify?
A: It usually takes around 10 minutes to burn a CD from Spotify. However, this may vary depending on the type of disc that you’re burning and the speed of your disc burner.
Q: Is it legal to burn Spotify music to a CD?
A: It’s legal for personal use. Distributing or selling burned CDs may violate copyright laws.
Q: What types of discs can I burn from Spotify?
A: You can burn standard audio CDs, MP3 CDs, or data discs using Spotify.
Q: Is CD quality better than Spotify?
A: Yes. Audio CDs use 1411kbps (WAV, uncompressed), while Spotify Premium maxes out at 320kbps (compressed).
Q: Can I burn a 3-hour Spotify playlist to one CD?
A: Standard CDs hold 80 mins. Split long playlists via Cinch’s Batch Split tool before burning.
Q: What disc types are supported?
A: Audio CD (for most players), MP3 CD (for newer players), Data CD (not recommended for music).
Q: How to import CD tracks back to Spotify?
A: Rip the CD using iTunes, Windows Media Player, or other software, then add local files in Spotify settings.
Q: Can you use Spotify HiFi?
A: If available, Spotify HiFi offers lossless streaming, but you still need to convert tracks for CD burning.
Summary
Burning a CD from Spotify in 2025 is a rewarding process that combines the best of digital convenience and physical media. By following these steps, you can create a high-quality, personalized CD for your car, home, or as a thoughtful gift. As streaming and DRM continue to evolve, CDs remain a reliable and nostalgic way to enjoy and share your favorite playlists. Take care to respect copyright and use these methods responsibly—happy listening!
