Streaming
How SoundCloud pays royalties.
SoundCloud runs Fan-Powered Royalties (FPR): a listener's subscription or ad revenue goes only to the artists they actually play, with no minimum-stream threshold to start earning. As of November 2025, SoundCloud also dropped the 20% distribution revenue share it used to keep, so eligible artists on Next Plus or Artist Pro keep 100% of royalties earned on partner platforms distributed through SoundCloud.
- Payment model
- Fan-Powered Royalties: revenue tied to individual listener behaviour, not pooled with total platform plays.
- Estimated rate
- Estimated $0.005–$0.012 per engaged play under Fan-Powered Royalties.
- Royalty types generated
- Master recording royaltiesMechanical royalties (where applicable)Performance royalties
How to collect it
- Enrol in SoundCloud for Artists / Artist Pro to activate Fan-Powered Royalties — participation is automatic once tracks are monetised.
- Mechanical and performance royalties still require separate registration with a mechanical rights body and a PRO, same as any streaming platform.
Related royalty types
Rates verified 2026-08-28 from cross-industry research; treat all per-stream figures as estimates — they vary by territory, subscription tier, and your own distribution deal. Rekon is independent of SoundCloud and not affiliated with it.
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