How to Control Your Music and Podcasts Directly from Your PC using Phone Link

Controlling your music and podcasts directly from your PC using Phone Link lets you pause tracks, skip songs, and change the volume without picking up your phone. This built-in Windows feature bridges the gap between your computer and mobile device, giving you instant control over whatever audio is playing.

You need Phone Link version 1.22082.50.0 or newer on Windows 11 to use this feature. Once set up, you manage your favorite listening apps straight from your desktop taskbar.

Get Your Apps Ready

For Phone Link music control to work with apps like Spotify or YouTube Music, your Android phone’s audio apps must send notifications.

Open Settings ⚙️ on your Android device and tap Notifications.

Locate your preferred audio app—such as Spotify, Pocket Casts, or YouTube Music—and make sure the switch next to Show notifications is active.

Good Tip: Even if you don’t want other alerts from an app, enabling its main notification setting often allows Phone Link’s audio playback controls to function.

Turn On Audio Controls in Phone Link on Your PC

Enable Phone Link music control on your PC by opening the Phone Link app and adjusting a setting.

Open the Phone Link app on your Windows computer.

Click the gear icon in the Phone Link interface to open the Settings menu.

Under the Personalization section, look for an option labeled Show audio currently playing from my phone.

Turn the switch next to this option to On.

What Happens When It's All Set Up

Once configured, playing audio on your phone displays a dedicated music player within the Phone Link app on your PC, featuring controls for Previous Track, Play/Pause, and Next Track.

• Previous Track
• Play/Pause
• Next Track

Managing multiple audio sources—such as music from one app and a podcast from another—requires using the dropdown menu within the Phone Link player. Start playback from the new source on your phone, and Phone Link updates automatically.

Reference:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/additional-features-and-settings-in-phone-link-896a3bb1-97b8-4ba5-a56e-98490573721d

Summary

The Phone Link app lets you control your Android phone's music and podcasts directly from your PC. Ensure your phone's audio apps display notifications and that you have enabled the audio playing setting in the Phone Link app on your computer for basic playback controls.