The digital music marketplace is quite complex, but we thought we would start a series of posts that helped to explain questions in simple terms.

Question: How does RouteNote pricing compare to other top digital music distributors like Tunecore and CDBaby.

Below is a quick table that outlines pricing for a Single with all these services. We have included both RouteNote Free and RouteNote Premium options. Within RouteNote we allow artists to move between Free and Premium whenever they feel it makes financial sense, thus allowing artists to maximise their revenues.

Single Upfront costs Yearly Fee Percentage Optimum Number (70) 100 sales @ $1.00 500 sales @ $1.00 Over 5 Years (100/yr)
RouteNote Premium 9.99 9.99 100.00% 60.01 90.01 490.01 450.05
CDBaby 12.95 0 91.00% 50.75 78.05 442.05 443.22
Tunecore 9.99 9.99 100.00% 60.01 90.01 490.01 450.05
RouteNote Free 0 0 85.00% 59.50 85.00 425.00 425.00

The table above states the options for artists who sell 100 sales per year, 500 sales per year and then 100 sales per year over 5 years. The amounts are the finalised royalties the artists would receive after paying all fees.

Conclusions:

1. If your an artist that sells less than 70 single sales per release then RouteNote Free is the best option for you!

2. If your an artist who sells more than 70 single sales per release then RouteNote Premium is the best option for you!