Distributor comparison

CD Baby vs DistroKid

CD Baby and DistroKid charge in opposite ways. CD Baby takes a one-off fee for each release ($9.99 for a single) and keeps 9% of your streaming royalties, but never charges you again. DistroKid charges $24.99 a year for unlimited releases and keeps none of your royalties, but takes your music down if you stop paying.

Which is cheaper?

Example artist CD Baby DistroKid
Just starting out 2 singles a year, earning about $50 a year
$73 Standard plan Cheapest
$75 Musician plan
Releasing regularly 6 singles and an EP a year, earning about $600 a year
$387 Standard plan
$75 Musician plan Cheapest
Band or small label 8 singles and 2 albums a year across 3 artist names, earning about $4,000 a year, with royalty splits and YouTube Content ID
Not suitable: No automatic royalty splits
$927 Ultimate plan Cheapest

Total cost over three years in US dollars, using each distributor’s own prices (checked 27th October 2026). Assumes you keep paying for the whole period.

DistroKid usually costs less if you release more than a couple of times a year, or once your music earns more than a little, because CD Baby’s fees and cut add up with every release and every stream. CD Baby can work out cheaper if you release rarely, and it’s the safer choice if you don’t want an ongoing subscription.

Compare them for your releases

How much will you release each year?

How much do you earn from streaming?

What do you need?

Compare all 12 distributors with these numbers

Key differences

  • How you pay: CD Baby charges once per release; DistroKid charges every year.
  • Royalties: CD Baby keeps 9% of streaming and download royalties; DistroKid keeps none.
  • YouTube Content ID: included at CD Baby, which keeps 30% of what it earns. DistroKid charges $4.95 per single every year and keeps 20%.
  • If you stop paying: CD Baby releases stay up, as there’s nothing to renew. DistroKid releases are taken down unless you buy Leave a Legacy for them.
  • Royalty splits: DistroKid pays collaborators their share automatically. We couldn’t confirm that CD Baby does, so check before you rely on it.

Prices side by side

CD Baby

Plan Yearly fee Per release Royalty cut YouTube Content ID Limits
Standard None Single $9.99, EP $14.99, album $14.99 9% Keeps 30% No limits

One-off fee per release, so there is nothing to renew. Prices checked 27th October 2026.

DistroKid

Plan Yearly fee Per release Royalty cut YouTube Content ID Limits
Musician $24.99 None None $4.95 per single, $14.95 per album a year; keeps 20% 1 artist name
Musician Plus $44.99 None None $4.95 per single, $14.95 per album a year; keeps 20% 2 artist names
Ultimate $89.99 None None $4.95 per single, $14.95 per album a year; keeps 20% 5 artist names

Releases are removed if you stop paying. A one-off Leave a Legacy fee keeps a release up anyway. Prices checked 27th October 2026.

Common questions

Is CD Baby cheaper than DistroKid?

Only if you release very little. For two singles a year earning around $50, they cost about the same over three years; release more, or earn more, and DistroKid quickly becomes cheaper. The table above has the exact figures.

Can I move my music from CD Baby to DistroKid?

Yes. Upload your releases to DistroKid using the same ISRC codes so streaming services can keep your play counts, then ask CD Baby to take down the old versions once the new ones are live.

Which is better for YouTube?

CD Baby includes Content ID with no extra fee but keeps 30%. DistroKid keeps less, 20%, but charges for Content ID on every release each year. If your music earns a lot on YouTube, DistroKid’s lower cut can make up for the fees.

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