One history, two ways in

If you have ever wondered whether Echo picks up what you play in Chrome as well as the Spotify app, the short answer is yes - but the two routes work differently. Understanding why helps you get the most out of Echo and make sure nothing slips through.

Why does Echo need two capture methods?

Native Mac apps and browser tabs are fundamentally different environments. A native app like Spotify or Apple Music talks directly to macOS, which means Echo can listen at the system level and pick up track names, artists, and albums without any extra setup. Browsers, on the other hand, are sandboxed environments where that same system-level access is not available - what plays inside a browser tab stays inside the browser unless something explicitly bridges the gap.

That bridge is the Echo browser extension.

How native app capture works

For native apps, Echo captures media automatically once you install it. The apps it supports include:

• Spotify (desktop app)
• Apple Music
• Apple Podcasts
• SoundCloud (desktop app)

There is nothing to configure. Open any of these apps, start playing, and Echo adds it to your history. You can open Echo at any time with ⌘⇧E and search back through everything you have played.

How browser capture works

For anything that plays inside a browser - YouTube, Spotify Web, SoundCloud in a tab, or web video on other sites - Echo uses its companion browser extension. The extension runs quietly in the background and sends what it detects to Echo on your Mac, where it joins the same history as your native app plays.

To get started, install the Echo extension for Chrome (or your preferred supported browser) and follow the one-time setup. Once it is in place, browser media is captured just like native app media - you do not need to do anything differently while you browse. See the browser extension setup guide for step-by-step instructions.

Does it matter which Spotify I use?

Not to Echo. If you listen through the Spotify desktop app one day and switch to Spotify Web in Chrome the next, both sessions end up in your history. Echo does not distinguish between them once they are captured - they are just tracks you played, listed alongside everything else.

The same logic applies to SoundCloud. Play it in the native app and it is captured directly. Play it in a browser tab and the extension picks it up. Either way, it is in your history.

Everything in one place

The point of having two capture methods is precisely so you never end up with gaps. People move between native apps and browsers constantly - sometimes in the same session. Echo is designed to follow that without requiring you to think about which mode you are in.

Your complete media history - native apps, browsers, every source - lives in one searchable list on your Mac. Search by title, artist, or source, and every play you have made is there, no matter how it was captured.