Figuring out how to distribute your music comes down to three moves: pick a digital distributor, upload your finished, mastered track with correct metadata, and let that distributor push it to Spotify, Apple Music, and every other store you care about. You cannot upload directly to Spotify as an independent artist — a distributor is the bridge, and choosing the right one is most of the battle.
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Key takeaways before you release
- You need a distributor. Services like DistroKid, TuneCore, CD Baby, and LANDR deliver your song to streaming platforms — you don’t deal with each store yourself.
- Master first. A distributor won’t improve your audio. Get the track mixed and mastered before it goes anywhere.
- Metadata matters. Artist name, track title, spelling, and credits are hard to change once a release is live and indexed.
- Set a release date 3–4 weeks out. That lead time is what unlocks playlist pitching and pre-saves.
- Pricing models differ. Some distributors charge a flat annual fee, others take a cut of royalties — always check the provider’s current pricing before you commit.
What a music distributor actually does
A distributor is a licensed middleman between you and the digital stores. Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Tidal, Deezer, and the rest don’t accept uploads from individual artists — they only ingest content from approved partners. When you hand a distributor your audio file and artwork, it formats everything to each platform’s spec, delivers it, and then collects the royalties those platforms pay out and passes them back to you.
That collection role is the part people underestimate. Streaming money arrives from dozens of sources in tiny increments, and your distributor consolidates it into one payout. It also registers your release with an ISRC (a unique code for each recording) and often a UPC (a code for the release as a whole), which is how streams get tracked and matched to you. Without those codes, your plays don’t reliably count — and counted plays are what feed the algorithm and, eventually, your bank account.
How to distribute your music step by step
Here is the workflow I’d give any artist releasing their first single. Follow it in order and you’ll avoid the mistakes that force painful takedowns and re-uploads.
- Finish and master the track. Distribution is the last step, not a shortcut around a rough mix. If your master isn’t ready, sort that out first — our guide to mastering a song for streaming covers the loudness targets stores expect, and if you want a fast, affordable master, an AI service like LANDR can turn a mix around in minutes.
- Choose your distributor. This is the decision that shapes everything else — cost, payout timing, and which extra tools you get. More on picking one below.
- Create the release. Upload your WAV (not an MP3 — stores want lossless), add high-resolution square artwork (3000×3000 px is the safe standard), and enter your metadata carefully.
- Enter metadata precisely. Lock down your artist name exactly as you want it to appear forever, spell the title the way it should read, and credit every songwriter and producer. Add genre, language, and any featured artists. Mistakes here haunt you.
- Set a release date with runway. Schedule it three to four weeks out. That window lets you pitch playlists and gather pre-saves — release it tomorrow and you forfeit both.
- Pitch to editorial playlists. If your distributor delivers to Spotify early enough, use Spotify for Artists to submit the unreleased track to editorial curators. It’s free and it’s one of the few levers that can genuinely change a release’s trajectory.
- Submit and confirm delivery. After you hit publish, the distributor sends everything to stores. Delivery usually takes a few days, sometimes longer for smaller platforms — build that into your timeline.
Choosing the right distributor for your goals
There’s no single best distributor — there’s the one that fits how often you release and how you want to be paid. Here’s how the well-known names generally differ. Treat these as feature descriptions, not price quotes; always check the provider’s current pricing, because plans change.
DistroKid is built for artists who release a lot. It typically runs on a flat annual subscription that covers unlimited uploads, so if you’re dropping singles regularly the per-song cost drops toward nothing. TuneCore is another long-standing option with wide store reach and detailed reporting, historically on a per-release fee model. CD Baby has a long track record and has often used a one-time-per-release charge, which suits artists who release infrequently and don’t want a recurring bill. LANDR is worth a look because it pairs distribution with its mastering platform, so you can master and release in one place — convenient if you’re already using it for masters. Services like Amuse and Ditto round out the field with their own free or low-cost tiers.
The tradeoff usually comes down to flat-fee versus revenue-share, and whether you value included extras — publishing royalty collection, YouTube Content ID, pre-save tools, or bundled mastering. If distribution and mastering in one workflow appeals to you, a platform like LANDR is the natural pick. For a deeper feature-by-feature look, our LANDR review and roundup of the best online mastering services go further than we can here.
Metadata, royalties, and the money side
Getting on Spotify is the easy part. Getting paid properly is where careful setup earns its keep. There are several distinct royalty streams, and your distributor usually handles some but not all of them automatically.
Master/recording royalties are the per-stream payments from Spotify, Apple, and friends — your distributor collects these by default. Publishing and songwriter royalties are separate money owed to whoever wrote the song, and many distributors don’t collect these unless you opt into a publishing-administration add-on or register with a collection society yourself. Leave that unclaimed and you’re walking past money that’s genuinely yours.
Per-stream rates are famously small and vary wildly by platform, country, and listener plan, so treat any “per-stream” figure you see online as a rough approximation rather than a fixed rate — the real number changes constantly. What you can control is making sure every stream is attributed to you (correct ISRCs), every royalty type is being collected, and your payout details are set up so the money can actually reach you. If you’re weighing whether to pay for a mastering service as part of this, our comparison of AI mastering vs human mastering helps you decide where to spend.
Common mistakes that sink a release
Most first-release problems are avoidable. The big one is uploading before the audio is truly finished — a distributor ships exactly what you give it, flaws and all. The second is sloppy metadata: an inconsistent artist name splits your profile across two listings and confuses the platforms’ matching. The third is releasing with no lead time, which quietly kills your shot at editorial playlists and pre-saves. The fourth is ignoring publishing royalties entirely. And the fifth is choosing a distributor purely on the lowest sticker price without checking whether it collects the royalty types you’ll actually earn. Slow down on setup and you’ll save yourself a takedown-and-redo later.
Frequently asked questions
Can I upload my music directly to Spotify myself?
No — not as an independent artist. Spotify and the other major streaming platforms only accept music from approved distribution partners, so you need a distributor like DistroKid, TuneCore, CD Baby, or LANDR to deliver your track. Spotify for Artists lets you manage your profile and pitch playlists, but it isn’t an upload tool.
How much does it cost to distribute music?
It varies by service and model. Some distributors charge a flat annual subscription for unlimited releases, others a one-time fee per release, and a few offer free tiers that take a share of royalties instead. Because plans change often, check the provider’s current pricing before committing rather than trusting an old figure.
How long before my song appears on streaming platforms?
After you submit, delivery typically takes a few days, though smaller stores can take longer. That’s exactly why you should schedule your release three to four weeks out — the lead time guarantees the track is live on your chosen date and gives you a window to pitch editorial playlists and collect pre-saves first.
Ready to release? Master your track, pick a distributor that fits your release schedule, and if you want mastering and distribution handled in one place, a service like LANDR is a solid starting point. For more on the business side of an independent career, browse the full Music Business hub.
