Best Music Distribution Services

DistroKid is our top pick for active indie artists. You get unlimited uploads to every major platform for a flat $24.99 a year, with 100% royalty payouts, instant splits to collaborators, and direct integration with Spotify Discovery Mode. It's the default for a reason — the economics keep working as your catalog grows.

• Unlimited uploads for $24.99/year
• 100% royalty payout — no revenue cut
• Built-in splits to collaborators
• Fast metadata edits without takedown
• Spotify Discovery Mode integration
• Leave-a-Legacy keeps catalog live

Amuse is the best free distributor for artists releasing one or two tracks a year. The free tier delivers your music to every major platform with no upfront cost. The catch is a 15% revenue share on the free plan (dropping to 10% on Amuse Pro). For high-volume artists DistroKid wins on net royalties, but for hobbyists Amuse is the cleanest free option.

• Genuinely free tier (no upfront cost)
• Splits and metadata editing included
• Monthly royalty payouts
• Mobile-first dashboard
• Built-in pre-save links
• Pro tier removes upload limits

CD Baby is the only major distributor still running physical distribution (CDs and vinyl) at scale, and their sync licensing team genuinely places music in TV, film, and ads. The 9% royalty cut hurts on high-earning tracks, but if you're chasing sync deals or physical formats, that team alone pays for itself.

• Active sync licensing team
• Physical distribution (CDs, vinyl)
• Per-release model — no annual fees
• YouTube Content ID included
• Solid human support
• Publishing admin available

TuneCore has the best royalty reporting in the indie distribution space — daily streaming data per platform per country, itemized statements that look like a major label sees. If you need that level of data for sync deals or publishing prospects, TuneCore is worth the per-release fee. For everyone else, DistroKid's flat fee wins.

• Best-in-class royalty reporting
• Daily per-country stream data
• Recently switched to monthly payouts
• Publishing admin available
• YouTube Money tier for content ID
• Established 2005 — 19 years running

Symphonic is a boutique distributor that vets the labels and artists it accepts. You apply, they decide. In return you get human account management, sync placements, and royalty splits that work for labels with multiple artists. Not the right pick for solo artists releasing their first single — but for established indies and small labels, the curated service shows.

• Application-only — vetted artists
• Dedicated account manager
• Strong sync and licensing team
• Label-friendly multi-artist tools
• Royalty splits across legal entities
• YouTube and TikTok monetization