What does an artist actually make per stream?
The headline Spotify per-stream rate is about $0.004. By the time it passes through a distributor, a label, a publisher, and a manager, what lands in the artist's account is much smaller. Pick a deal type to see how much smaller.
Artist take-home, per Spotify stream
$0.0032
That's 20% eroded from the $0.0040 Spotify gross before the artist sees a cent.
Per-stream waterfall
- Spotify gross$0.0040
- Distributor cut$0.0000
- Label cut$0.0000
- Publisher cut$0.0000
- Manager commission−$0.0008
- Artist take-home$0.0032
Monthly take-home
$320.00
mgmtOS · Early access
Per-stream math is the easy part.
Knowing which artist on your roster is in which deal — and how their take-home shifts the moment a release lands — is the work. mgmtOS keeps deal context next to every artist's releases, shows, and finances.
How to read the waterfall
Each line is a slice taken off the gross before the next slice applies. Distributor cut is taken from the gross; the label share is taken from what remains; the publisher slice and manager commission are taken from the artist's side after that. The numbers shift if your deal structures any of these differently — these are common, not universal, structures.
Why the headline number is misleading
- The distributor takes first. Flat-fee services (DistroKid, Amuse free) take 0%. Revenue-share services (CD Baby ~9%, AWAL/Stem ~15%) take a cut before anyone else sees the money.
- The label takes their share next. Indie deals are often 50/50 of net; major-label royalty rates on streaming often sit around 18–22% of net. The difference is enormous over the lifetime of a release.
- Publishing income is separate. The mechanical and performance royalties tied to the composition pay the songwriter through their PRO and publisher — they don't flow through the same waterfall. We approximate publisher cut as a small slice for sync / mechanical blended.
- Manager commission is on top. Standard commissions of 15–20% apply to the artist's earnings — what reaches them after distributor, label, and publisher.
The deal math is the easy part. Knowing which release on the roster moves the income line in which direction is the work.
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