As an independent artist, playlisting can make or break your reach on Spotify, but with so many scams, bots, and shady services promising “guaranteed streams,” how do you find playlist campaigns that actually connect your music with real listeners?
The key is to focus on bot-free services that work with genuine playlist curators, so your streams translate into engaged fans, not inflated numbers that can get your account flagged.
Trusted, Bot-Free Spotify Playlisting Services
- SubmitHub
SubmitHub lets you pitch your music directly to vetted playlist curators, paying per submission rather than for guaranteed placement. Their team reviews playlists to ensure they use real followers, and curators must provide feedback, a great way to avoid suspicious activity. Click here for a 10% off coupon!
2. Groover
Similar to SubmitHub, but with a stronger network in Europe and Latin America. Groover connects you with playlist curators, blogs, radio stations, and music pros who must give detailed feedback on every submission, making it easier to spot and avoid fake curators.
3. Playlist Push
Playlist Push matches your track with relevant curators based on genre and mood. Unlike some services that sell streams, curators here only add songs they genuinely like. Playlist Push’s vetting process ensures placements go on playlists with active, authentic listeners.
4. Daily Playlists
This free platform lets you submit your songs directly to independent curators looking for new music. While Daily Playlists has less hands-on vetting than SubmitHub or Playlist Push, it remains a popular tool for indie artists hoping to get on real playlists without big budgets.
How to Spot Bot-Heavy or Scam Playlisting Services
Stay away from services that:
- Promise guaranteed streams or set numbers of plays for a fixed fee (e.g., “10,000 streams for $50”).
- Won’t tell you which playlists they’ll pitch your song to, transparency is essential.
- Gets angry when you ask for information to prove that the playlist is organic.
- Show playlists with suspiciously high follower counts but little to no listener engagement.
- Use Submithub’s Playlist Checker to run any playlist and check for bots! https://www.submithub.com/playlist-checker
- NOTE: Avoid realplaylists.com as many artists report that their songs have been removed from Spotify after botted streams from a “real playlists” campaign. The curator will blame Distrokid for song removal instead of his botted playlists.
After a Campaign: How to Check for Bot Activity
Keep an eye on your Spotify for Artists stats:
- Look for geographic diversity in your streams. Real listeners come from a range of locations — not just a sudden flood from one obscure place.
- Watch your Listener-to-Stream ratio. Bots often produce huge stream counts with very few unique listeners.
- Monitor playlists for sudden disappearance or big drops in follower count, which can signal suspicious activity.
Building an audience on Spotify takes time, but submitting your music through transparent, curator-driven services like SubmitHub, Groover, Playlist Push, and Daily Playlists is one of the best ways to reach real listeners and avoid the pitfalls of bots or shady streaming farms. By focusing on genuine engagement over empty metrics, you’ll give your songs the best chance of finding true fans.