DistroKid and CD Baby approach music distribution very differently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DistroKid sells subscriptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CD Baby charges per release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That alone can make one dramatically better than the other depending on how often you release music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DistroKid’s Musician plan currently costs $24.99 per year and allows unlimited releases for one artist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It passes through 100% of ordinary DSP streaming and download earnings, minus banking fees and applicable taxes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CD Baby currently charges $9.99 for a single and $14.99 for an album.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are no recurring subscription fees simply to maintain an artist account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, CD Baby takes a 9% commission from streaming and download revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That depends entirely on your behaviour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you release twenty songs every year and generate substantial royalties, DistroKid’s unlimited model could be significantly cheaper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you release one album every five years and simply want it to stay distributed, CD Baby’s one-time release model may be more appealing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is the fundamental trade-off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DistroKid:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
pay regularly and retain 100% of ordinary royalties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CD Baby:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
pay per release and give up a percentage of royalties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Neither structure is automatically better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There’s another option that sits between the two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
RouteNote Free charges no upfront or annual distribution fee but takes a 15% share of net revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For an artist earning very little, 15% of very little can be cheaper than paying any fixed fee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As income grows, fixed-fee distribution becomes more attractive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DistroKid works particularly well for high-volume artists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CD Baby may suit artists who release less frequently and dislike annual subscriptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before choosing, model what your catalogue will look like five years from now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That’s far more useful than comparing today’s signup prices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DistroKid and CD Baby approach music distribution very differently. DistroKid sells subscriptions. CD Baby charges per release. That alone can make one dramatically better than the other depending on how often you release music. How DistroKid works DistroKid’s Musician plan currently costs $24.99 per year and allows unlimited releases for one artist. It passes through 100% of ordinary DSP streaming and download earnings, minus banking fees and applicable taxes. How CD Baby works CD Baby currently charges $9.99 for a single and $14.99 for an album. There are no recurring subscription fees simply to maintain an artist account. However, CD…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3781,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2347,1378,1365],"coauthors":[2],"class_list":["post-3791","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-cdbaby","tag-distrokid","tag-pricing"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n