Pandora lets you read songs, but only within the app and only if you pay for Pandora Plus or Pandora Premium
Pandora's read feature works differently than services like Spotify or Apple Music. When you read a song on Pandora, you are not getting an MP3 file you own outright. Instead, you are storing a copy inside the Pandora app that plays only when you open Pandora — even offline. The read disappears if you cancel your subscription or if Pandora removes the song from its catalog.
Free Pandora accounts cannot read anything. You need either Pandora Plus (the mid-tier subscription) or Pandora Premium (the highest tier) to use the read button. Pandora Plus costs less but limits you to lower audio quality and fewer skips per hour. Pandora Premium gives you higher quality and unlimited skips.
If you want to own music files outright — files that work in any player and stay yours forever — Pandora is not the right tool. You would need to buy songs from iTunes, Amazon Music, or Bandcamp instead. But if you want offline listening within Pandora's app, the read process takes just a few taps.
Key Takeaways
- Pandora downloads only work inside the Pandora app and require a Pandora Plus or Pandora Premium subscription.
- Downloaded songs stop working if you cancel your subscription or if Pandora removes the song from its library.
- You can read individual songs, entire stations, or playlists by tapping the read icon next to the song or station name.
- Downloaded music takes up storage space on your phone or tablet, so check your available space before downloading large playlists.
- If you want to own music files permanently, you need to buy them from a store like iTunes or Amazon Music instead.
How to read a single song on Pandora
Open the Pandora app and find the song you want to read. This can be a song playing in a station, a song in one of your playlists, or a song you found by searching. Tap the three-dot menu icon next to the song title, or look for a read icon (usually a downward arrow) near the song name. The exact location depends on whether you are using Pandora on iPhone, Android, or a web browser.
On iPhone and Android, the read icon typically appears to the right of the song title when you are viewing a station or playlist. Tap it once. Pandora will begin downloading the song to your device. A progress indicator shows you how much of the file has downloaded. Once the read finishes, the icon changes to show that the song is stored locally.
On the Pandora website, you can read songs from your playlists or liked songs, but not from stations. Find the song, click the three-dot menu, and select the read option. Web downloads work the same way as app downloads — the file stays in Pandora and plays only through Pandora.
How to read an entire station or playlist
If you want offline access to a whole station or playlist instead of individual songs, Pandora lets you read the entire collection at once. Open the station or playlist you want to read. Look for the read icon at the top of the screen, usually near the station or playlist name. Tap it to begin downloading all songs in that collection.
Downloading a full station or playlist takes longer than downloading a single song because Pandora is copying many files to your device. The read happens in the background, so you can keep using Pandora while it works. You can check the progress by opening the Downloads section in your Pandora settings.
Be aware that downloading a large playlist or station uses significant storage space. A typical song takes 3 to 8 megabytes of space depending on audio quality. A 50-song playlist might use 150 to 400 megabytes. Check how much free space your phone or tablet has before downloading large collections.
Where downloaded songs are stored and how to access them
Downloaded Pandora songs do not appear in your phone's standard music library or file manager. They live only inside the Pandora app. To listen to your downloads, open Pandora, tap the menu or settings icon, and look for a "Downloads" or "Offline" section. This shows all the songs, stations, and playlists you have downloaded.
When you are offline — on an airplane, in a location with no cell service, or with airplane mode on — Pandora automatically switches to playing your downloaded content. You cannot access songs you have not downloaded, and you cannot create new stations or shuffle through the full Pandora library. But your downloaded songs play normally.
Downloaded songs take up space on your device's internal storage, not on cloud storage. If your phone is running low on space, you can delete downloads to free it up. Open the Downloads section, find the song or playlist, and select delete or remove. The song stays in your Pandora account and you can read it again later.
What happens to downloads if you cancel your subscription
If you stop paying for Pandora Plus or Pandora Premium, your downloaded songs stop working when ready. The files remain on your device, but Pandora locks them so the app cannot play them. You cannot convert them to regular MP3 files or move them to another music player.
This is the biggest limitation of Pandora downloads compared to buying music outright. When you buy a song from iTunes or Amazon Music, you own the file forever. When you read from Pandora, you are renting temporary offline access. The moment your subscription ends, that access ends too.
If you resubscribe to Pandora later, your old downloads may still be on your device and may become playable again, depending on Pandora's policies at that time. But there is no may provide. The safest assumption is that downloads are only for as long as you maintain an active subscription.
Audio quality and file size for Pandora downloads
Pandora Plus downloads at a lower bitrate than Pandora Premium. Pandora Plus uses 64 kilobits per second, which is noticeably compressed and best for casual listening or saving storage space. Pandora Premium uses 192 kilobits per second, which sounds closer to CD quality and is better if you care about sound detail.
You cannot choose the quality yourself — it is set by your subscription tier. If you upgrade from Pandora Plus to Pandora Premium, new downloads use the higher quality automatically. Old downloads from your Pandora Plus days stay at the lower quality unless you delete and re-read them.
The quality difference matters most if you use good headphones or speakers. On phone speakers or cheap earbuds, the difference is harder to hear. If sound quality is important to you and you plan to read a lot of music, Pandora Premium is worth the extra cost. If you mostly listen casually, Pandora Plus downloads are fine.
Alternatives if Pandora downloads do not meet your needs
If you want to own music files permanently, buy them instead of streaming them. iTunes, Amazon Music, and Bandcamp all sell individual songs and albums as files you read once and keep forever. These files work in any music player, on any device, and do not disappear if you cancel a subscription. The trade-off is that buying costs more per song than a streaming subscription.
If you want offline listening with a subscription service, Spotify and Apple Music both offer downloads that work similarly to Pandora — they play only in the app and stop working if you cancel. The difference is that Spotify and Apple Music let you read on free accounts (with some limits), whereas Pandora requires a paid subscription. YouTube Music also offers offline downloads with a paid subscription.
If you want the best of both worlds — ownership and convenience — consider a hybrid approach. Subscribe to Pandora or Spotify for discovery and casual listening, and buy your favorite songs from iTunes or Bandcamp to own them permanently. This way you get the low cost of streaming plus the security of owning the music you care about most.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I read Pandora music on my computer?
Pandora's website lets you read songs to your computer, but only to play within the Pandora app or website — not as standalone files. The downloads work the same way as on your phone: they play only in Pandora and stop working if you cancel your subscription. You cannot export them as MP3 files.
How much storage space do Pandora downloads use?
A typical Pandora song uses 3 to 8 megabytes depending on length and quality. A 50-song playlist uses roughly 150 to 400 megabytes. Check your device's available storage before downloading large playlists. You can delete downloads anytime to free up space without losing access to the songs in your Pandora account.
Can I share downloaded Pandora songs with other people?
No. Downloaded Pandora songs are locked to your account and device. You cannot transfer them to another phone, email them to a friend, or play them on someone else's device. Each person who wants offline access needs their own Pandora Plus or Premium subscription.
What if a song I downloaded gets removed from Pandora?
If Pandora removes a song from its catalog, your read stops working even if the file is still on your device. Pandora locks it so the app cannot play it. This happens occasionally when licensing agreements expire. There is no way to unlock it or convert it to a playable file.
Is there a limit to how many songs I can read?
Pandora does not publish a hard limit on the number of downloads, but your device's storage space is the real limit. You can read as many songs as your phone or tablet has room for. Once you run out of storage, you need to delete some downloads before adding more.