A music distributor is a company that delivers music to digital service providers (DSPs) — streaming platforms — on behalf of artists, bands, and record labels.

In the digital age, distributors act as the bridge between creators and DSPs like Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and YouTube Music. They make sure tracks are properly uploaded, formatted, and accessible to audiences worldwide.

They often handle metadata, payment distribution, and rights management to streamline the process for artists, especially independent artists.

Some distributors also offer extra services like marketing support, analytics, publishing admin, or playlist pitching to boost an artist’s reach.

The cost of music distribution varies widely based on the service you choose. It can cost $1 per song, $10 per album, $40 per year, or include several other variables.

Let’s look at the two main ways music distribution services may charge you…

Some music distribution services will charge you a per-release fee (per song or per album/EP), while others will charge you a yearly or monthly subscription fee.

They both have pros and cons, so it depends on what you’re comfortable with.

The subscription model lets you release an unlimited amount of music for an affordable yearly price and you often keep 100% of the royalties. But if you stop paying the subscription fee (or your payment is declined), they may take your music down.

The flat-fee model is nice because you can pay one amount and your music is distributed forever, essentially. But a limited budget could limit the amount of music you’re able to release, and often the distribution service will take a percentage of your royalties.

When it comes to using a music distribution service, there are a few rules you need to know about…

You can use multiple different distributors for different releases.

But if you’ve released a song, EP, or album with one distributor, you cannot also release that same song, EP, or album with another distributor.

When you release music with a distributor, they do not own your music. You keep all the rights you had before you used that distributor’s services.

You are simply giving a distributor permission to deliver your music to DSPs in exchange for them potentially taking a percentage of the streaming royalties of that music.

Each music distributor negotiates with each DSP to determine their streaming rate.

So for example, Distributor X could negotiate a slightly better per-stream payout with Spotify than Distributor Y did.

This is why there’s not a set per-stream payout rate, but rather estimated averages.

We can’t say there’s one music distribution company that’s the “best,” only the one that’s best for you and/or your release.

Every indie artist has different needs, preferences, and budgets.

You just have to look at the options and choose the service that’s best for you.

Now let’s dive into what each music distribution company offers, what they cost, and what makes them good¹.

CD Baby was the first independent music distribution company when it launched in 1998. This means it’s one of the most reliable options.

They’ve always charged a flat fee for distribution and they still do. They also offer extra services, like collecting mechanical royalty and non-interactive digital performance royalties as well as getting you sync licensing opportunities.

Cost: $9.99 per song / $9.99 per album

Soundrop is owned by Downtown, the same parent company that owns CD Baby. They have a low per-song rate and no annual fee, but they do take a hefty 15% commission.

Cost: $0.99 per song

TuneCore launched in 2006, becoming one of the longest-running distributors in the game.

For about a decade and a half, they offered a flat-fee model, only to switch to a subscription-based model in 2022.

They also offer extra services, like publishing admin offerings and revenue advances.

Cost: Free distribution (20% commission) or plans up to $49.99 per year (unlimited releases, no commission)

LANDR started as an automated, instant mastering service. They’ve since developed into a company that offers several services to indie musicians, like a sample library, an online collaboration tool, a plugin library, and (of course) music distribution.

You can release a song for $9 or an album or EP for $19 in exchange for 15% commission. Or you can choose an annual subscription of $23.99 up to $99 that gives you unlimited releases and you keep 100% of your royalties.

Cost: $9 per song / $19 per EP or album (15% commission) or plans up to $99 per year (unlimited releases, no commission)

DistroKid says it can distribute your music to DSPs “10-20x faster than any other distributor.”

When they launched in 2013, they were the first to offer unlimited distribution for a low annual fee.

You keep 100% of your streaming royalties for an affordable annual fee. But if you want to do payment splitting, it costs an extra $10 per year per collaborator you’re splitting royalties with.

Cost: $22.99 per year (one artist)

Too Lost is one of the newer music distributors, and it’s very impressive.

They offer fraud prevention, which helps put more money into the pockets of indie musicians.

They also will search social media to find usages of your music and pay you for them. This service is an extra $1.50 per song per month, but it could be worth it for you.

Cost: $19.99 per year (one artist)

OFFstep is another newer music distributor, but it was started by the folks at ONErpm, so you can trust them.

They have an album creation tool, fraud prevention, and the distribution process is simple enough.

Cost: $12 per year (one artist)

Songtradr started as a sync licensing service, launching their music distribution service in 2018. So sync is still a big part of their business modeling, and they only take a 20% commission on sync deals, which is very good in the licensing world.

So if you want to join a music library and get sync opportunities while also distributing your music, Songtradr could be a good option.

Cost: $49 per year (one artist)

Amuse offers music distribution for anyone who signs up, but they also have a label.

The label offers marketing help, sync licensing opportunities, publishing services, and more. So if your streaming numbers catch their attention, you can get signed.

Cost: $19 per year / $59.99 per year

Like Amuse, ONErpm offers distribution and label services. The big difference is that ONErpm’s distribution is by submission only, so you have to apply and be accepted.

Cost: Free but they take a 15% commission

AWAL, too, is a distributor with a record label arm. They are also submission-only and they focus on artists who are doing well on streaming platforms. So if you’re already doing well, you’ll have a better chance of getting accepted.

Cost: Free but they take 15% commission