Spotify Marquee and Showcase are both native ad tools inside Spotify for Artists, priced at a $100 minimum on cost-per-click billing, but they serve different stages of a release. Marquee runs up to 10 days as a full-screen pop-up for new releases, while Showcase runs up to 14 days as a Home feed banner and is the only native option for catalog tracks older than 18 days.

How Does Spotify Marquee Compare to Showcase?

Marquee is a full-screen pop-up recommendation shown when targeted listeners open the Spotify app, priced on a cost-per-click basis. It works best within the first 2 weeks of a new release. Showcase is a banner placement on the Spotify Home feed, available for both new and catalog releases, also priced per click. Marquee drives higher immediate stream rates but requires a minimum budget and is limited to new releases. Showcase offers broader reach and works for catalog promotion. For new releases with budget, use both: Marquee for the initial push, Showcase for sustained visibility after week 2.

Quick Comparison

Feature	Marquee	Showcase
Ad format	Full-screen pop-up when app opens	Placement in Home feed
Release timing	New releases only (must start within a limited window)	New releases or catalog
Campaign duration	Up to 10 days	Up to 14 days
Minimum budget	$100	$100
Maximum budget	$10,000	$10,000
Pricing model	Cost per click	Cost per click

How Marquee Works

Marquee displays a full-screen, sponsored recommendation when targeted listeners open the Spotify app. It appears to both Free and Premium users and drives listeners directly to your release.

Key constraints:

Only available for releases within Spotify’s Marquee eligibility window (Spotify documents start-date rules by market)
Campaign runs for up to 10 days (or until budget is spent)
You can cancel early if performance is weak

For step-by-step setup and targeting guidance, see our Marquee and Showcase playbooks:

Because Marquee is full-screen, accidental clicks are rare. The gap between clicks and actual streams tends to be smaller than with feed-based placements.

How Showcase Works

Showcase places your release within the Spotify Home feed alongside other recommended content. It was designed to address a specific problem: 75% of a release's first-year streams happen after the first month.

Key constraints:

Only available for releases older than 18 days
Campaign runs for up to 14 days (or until budget is spent)
Works well for albums and EPs where "listening depth" matters

Showcase is best for re-engaging lapsed listeners or extending the life of catalog tracks.

Eligibility Requirements

Marquee eligibility:

At least 5,000 streams in the past 28 days OR more than 1,000 followers in at least one of 36 target markets
Artist must be based in an eligible territory (currently 11 countries: US, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Mexico, Colombia)

Showcase eligibility:

At least 1,000 streams in the past 28 days in any one of 30 targetable countries
Currently available to US-based artists only

Both tools require admin or editor access to your Spotify for Artists team and valid payment information.

Pricing and Costs

Both tools use cost-per-click billing. You pay only for clicks (including saves), so your final spend may be lower than your budget.

Minimum budget: $100
Maximum budget: $10,000
Cost per click: Varies by audience and market; typically ranges from $0.30-$0.40 for Showcase (based on 2024-2025 campaign data)

Prices fluctuate based on available inventory, targeting choices, and market dynamics. Spotify does not publish fixed rate cards.

Targeting Options

Both Marquee and Showcase offer audience targeting:

Programmed Audience: Listeners who haven't deliberately streamed your music in the past two years but have encountered it via editorial playlists or algorithmic placements
Active Audience: Listeners who have chosen to stream your music in the past 28 days from active sources (your profile, their own playlists)

You can also target by market (country) to focus spend where your audience is strongest.

When to Use Each Tool

Use Marquee when:

You have a new release (within 18 days)
You want to re-engage existing fans around release week
You need the flexibility to cancel if results are poor
You want to maximize the "opens → streams" conversion rate

Use Showcase when:

You want to promote an older release (catalog revival)
You have an album or EP where deeper listening matters
You want to extend momentum after the initial release window
You are a US-based artist targeting US listeners

Performance Expectations

Spotify claims Marquee delivers up to 10x more listeners per dollar compared to social ads, and Showcase makes fans 6x more likely to stream.

In practice, Marquee tends to outperform Showcase on raw conversion metrics. The full-screen format creates a clearer user experience with fewer accidental clicks.

Showcase may perform better for albums and EPs where initial click-through leads to multiple track plays.

Limitations

Both tools have significant constraints:

Budget cannot increase: Once a campaign launches, you cannot add budget. You can only create a new campaign.
Geographic restrictions: Marquee and Showcase are not available to artists in all countries.
Eligibility thresholds: Newer artists without 1,000+ followers or 1,000-5,000 recent streams may not qualify.
No A/B testing: You cannot run simultaneous variants to test creative.

The short answer

Marquee is for new releases. Showcase is for everything else. Both use the same pricing model and minimum budget, but they serve different strategic purposes.

For release-week momentum, Marquee's full-screen format typically converts better. For catalog revival or extending an album's run, Showcase is the only native option within Spotify.

Neither tool replaces external promotion. They work best as part of a broader strategy that includes Meta ads, organic content, and editorial pitching.