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Overview

The simplest authentication method for the Spotify SDK is using a direct access token. This approach is ideal for:
  • Quick prototyping and testing
  • Short-lived applications
  • Scenarios where you manually obtain tokens from the Spotify Developer Dashboard
  • Server-side scripts with pre-generated tokens
Access tokens expire after 1 hour. This method does not support automatic token refresh. For production applications requiring long-lived access, use Client Credentials or Authorization Code flows.

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Basic Usage

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Creating a Client with Access Token

from spotify_sdk import SpotifyClient

client = SpotifyClient(access_token="your-access-token")

# Use the client
album = client.albums.get("5K79FLRUCSysQnVESLcTdb")
print(f"{album.name} by {album.artists[0].name}")

client.close()

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Using Context Managers

from spotify_sdk import SpotifyClient

with SpotifyClient(access_token="your-access-token") as client:
    album = client.albums.get("4aawyAB9vmqN3uQ7FjRGTy")
    print(album.name)

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Async Support

import asyncio
from spotify_sdk import AsyncSpotifyClient

async def main():
    async with AsyncSpotifyClient(access_token="your-access-token") as client:
        album = await client.albums.get("4Uv86qWpGTxf7fU7lG5X6F")
        print(f"{album.name} by {album.artists[0].name}")

asyncio.run(main())

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Constructor Parameters

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access_token
str
required
A valid Spotify access token. You can obtain one from the Spotify Developer Dashboard or through OAuth flows.
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timeout
float
default:"30.0"
Request timeout in seconds.
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max_retries
int
default:"3"
Maximum number of retry attempts for failed requests. The SDK automatically retries on connection errors, timeouts, rate limits (429), and server errors (5xx).

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Token Expiration Handling

Access tokens expire after 1 hour. When using direct access token authentication, you must handle expiration manually: 
from spotify_sdk import SpotifyClient, AuthenticationError

def get_data_with_token_refresh():
    access_token = get_fresh_token()  # Your token refresh logic
    
    with SpotifyClient(access_token=access_token) as client:
        try:
            album = client.albums.get("album_id_123")
            return album
        except AuthenticationError as e:
            # Token expired - get a new one
            new_token = get_fresh_token()
            
            # Create a new client with the refreshed token
            with SpotifyClient(access_token=new_token) as new_client:
                album = new_client.albums.get("album_id_123")
                return album
For automatic token refresh, consider using ClientCredentials or AuthorizationCode authentication providers.

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Getting an Access Token

1

Create a Spotify App

Visit the Spotify Developer Dashboard and create a new application.
2

Get Your Credentials

Note your Client ID and Client Secret from the app settings.
3

Generate a Token

Use the Spotify Web API Console or implement an OAuth flow to generate an access token. For quick testing, you can use the Spotify Web API Console.

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When to Use Access Token Authentication

Use access token authentication when:
  • Building quick prototypes or proof-of-concepts
  • Running one-off scripts or data analysis tasks
  • Testing API endpoints manually
  • You have a secure way to refresh tokens externally
Avoid access token authentication when:
  • Building production applications (use Client Credentials or Authorization Code instead)
  • You need automatic token refresh
  • You need to access user-specific endpoints (use Authorization Code flow)
  • Your application runs continuously (tokens expire after 1 hour)

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