How Much Does Spotify Pay Per Stream? Answered!

Let’s agree that as much as we mock Spotify’s ads, the platform is one of the biggest music streaming services. It is one of the best ways for emerging artists to make their music heard across the globe while monetizing them at the same time. However, a question that many artists have asked is, “How much does Spotify pay per stream?” and the answer isn’t as simple. So in this article, we will try to answer this question and help you understand the revenue sharing system of Spotify.

How Much Spotify Pays Per Stream?

Okay, let’s address the important question first, how much does Spotify Pay Per Stream? Well, there is no simple answer for this but pay-per-stream rate, or PPS in short differs from country to country.

According to an analysis byiGroom(Music Distributor) from 2022, the PPS in the United States is about$0.003to $0.004 while an artist in India will earn a fraction of that which is$0.0008. So an artist in the US can earn about$3 per 1000 streamswhile an artist in India will make $0.8.

The rate might have increased in recent years so we recommend you use thisrevenue calculatorby SoundCampaign. You can use it to check how much revenue you can earn per stream from Spotify in your country.

How Spotify Calculates Pay-Per-Stream

You might be wondering why a difference in PPS between the two countries and to answer it, we have to discuss how Spotify calculates pay-per-stream. Spotify uses a method calledStreamsharewhere the totalroyaltypool created by streaming is divided by the number of streams of the artist on Spotify.

It is also referred to as the Pro-rata system. The royalty pool differs from region to region as it is influenced by various factors. Let us have a look at them.

Country-Based Analysis of Spotify Payouts

Now you should be able to understand why there is a difference in the pay-per-stream amount between the two regions. Spotify generates more revenue in countries like the United States, due to thehigher cost of the subscriptionplan which is 10 times more than the cost of the same plan in India.

But this metric is ever-changing, as more people jump on the platform and buy the Premium plan, the PPS also gets increased. To give a better perspective of the PPS around the globe, we have created a table of 20 countries with varying payouts per Million streams. The data for this table comes fromiGroovebased on their 2022 analysis of the platform. All figures have been converted to USD for easier comparison.CountriesPay Per Million StreamsPay Per StreamIceland$6,720.55$0.006720Switzerland$5,659.36$0.0056593Finland$5,602.48$0.005602United Kingdom$5,588.33$0.005588Norway$5,452.83$0.005452South Korea$4,960.18$0.004960Sweden$4,927.99$0.004927United States$4,090.58$0.004090Australia$3,792.69$0.003792Japan$3,338.32$0.003338Hong Kong$2,692.26$0.002692United Arab Emirates$2,205.90$0.002205South Africa$1,638.68$0.001638Brazil$1,430.00$0.001430Saudi Arabia$1,228.15$0.001228Malaysia$1,078.44$0.001078Egypt$914.29$0.000914India$841.80$0.000841Venezuela$724.08$0.000724Fiji$600.09$0.00060

As you can see in the table,English-speaking regionsoffer the best payouts, with upwards of $3000 per million streams. South Korea also isn’t behind which can be due to the increasing popularity of K-pop. However, the PPS fallsbelow $1000 in most Asian marketsas you can see. Even though India has a bigger population and higher market adoption rate, the regional payout is only $841.80 for a million streams.

So as an artist, you should try to target English-speaking audiences with your songs. This will help the song reach a global appeal and help you earn the most from Spotify.

How Spotify Distributes Revenue With Artists

Calculating the pay-per-stream is one part of the equation. If you want to learn how much you can make on Spotify then you also have to know how Spotify distributes revenue with artists. Streaming services like Spotify or Apple Music don’t just pay the artist directly. An artist has to partner with a distributor or a record label that will upload their songs or albums on the platform on their behalf.

Spotify then pays out70% of the revenue to artistsand rights holders while keeping a30% cut. So let’s say your song made $1000 on Spotify, it will take a $300 cut and pay the remaining $700 to the right holders.

The right holders include the label, distributor, songwriter, and recording artist. As an artist, how much of that 70% you will receive will depend upon your contract. While labels can take up to 80% of the earned revenue, distributers take only 20% leaving the rest for artists.

Real-Life Case Studies of Artist Payouts by Spotify

To better understand the payout structure of Spotify, let us have a look at some real-life case studies of artists and how much they have earned from the music streaming platform alone.ArtistStreamsPayoutsPay Per Stream (PPS)Beautiful Beats2.4 Million$2164.30$0.0009016SourceL. Dre4 Million (Album)$11,683.96$0.0029207SourceRyan Harris400 Thousand$1400$0.0035SourceAdameant1.4 Million$4040.08$0.002885SourceStruggling Musician1 Million$3,382$0.003382Source

These case studies show that the pay-per-stream is not the same for each of the artists. It differs from person to person and depends on various factors. If you look closely, Beautiful Beats, received a lower payout which could be due to the contract between him and the right holders, and other artists he collaborated with. As always, the country in which your music is most streamed is important, as indicated by all of the artists in the sources.

Drawbacks of Spotify’s Streamshare Model

As much as Spotify would like to brag about how excellent its Streamshare model is, the reality is that many aspiring musicians struggle to make a living off the platform. And after taking a closer look, we have come up with some common drawbacks of Streamshare.

With more than 11 Million artists on the platform, it’s not easy to make a living from Spotify. This is why, in my opinion, musicians should promote their work on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook. They should also use other streaming services like Apple Music which pays more per stream compared to Spotify. Building a brand is crucial for earning more on these platforms.

What are your opinions on the topic? Please let us know in the comments below.

On average, artists from the US can make up to $4000 per Million streams. But this number varies depending on the region a song is being heard from. Artists from India will make only $800-1000 per Million streams.

No. Toupload your song on Spotify, you need to partner with a label or a digital distributor. Most independent artists go with distributors as they get to keep most of the revenue generated by their work.

Spotify payouts usually roll out after 90 days of uploading your song or album. After which you will receive monthly payouts for your work. The amount you receive depends on how many times your song was streamed on the platform.

Any song that exceeds 30 seconds of playback will count as a single stream by Spotify. But that does not mean that every 30 seconds of a song will add to the stream count. It will still count as one.

Anshuman Jain

As a tech journalist, I dive into the ever-evolving tech landscape with a particular interest for smartphones, apps, and gaming. With a passion for sharing insights, my articles blend expertise with a friendly touch—think of me as your friendly neighborhood tech support.

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