Spotify posted its first quarterly profit since 2021 as higher prices and subscriber growth boosted revenues by more than expected.
Operating income was €32 million in the three months to end September, with €37m forecast for the current three months.
Revenues over the quarter just ended were €3.4b, up 11% while paying subscribers jumped by 16% to 226m.
Subscriber additions were a net six million or two million more than expected, that Spotify added made it the second-best quarter the streaming group has seen.
In total, monthly active users were 574m, up 26%.
Music advertising revenue grew by almost 20% year-on-year, driven by growth in impressions sold and stable pricing said the statement.
Podcast advertising revenue growth was in double-digits, driven by sold impressions across Original and Licensed podcasts and the Spotify Audience Network, which was partially offset by softer pricing.
Spotify spent more than €1bn building up its podcast business but has reined back recently cutting 6% of its employees and raising prices for its premium plans.
"We are still focusing on efficiencies, but efficiencies for us doesn't mean just cost cutting, it means getting more out of each dollar," chief executive Daniel Ek told Reuters.
Spotify's gross margin rose to 26.4% in the three months from July to September, up 166 basis points from a year earlier, teh news wire added.