Are a music distributor and a record label different?

Yes. A distributor delivers your tracks to platforms under a license and charges a subscription or commission. A label invests money and resources in your career, often in exchange for recording rights and a share of income beyond streaming.

Who owns my track when I work with a distributor?

You do. The distributor receives a license for specific uses, such as distribution through streaming platforms. You retain the master rights and copyright in the underlying work.

How much of an artist’s income does a label take?

Public sources on the recording industry commonly put the label’s share at 50–80% of recording income, in return for an advance, production, marketing and a promotional budget. The exact terms are always set out in the individual contract.

When does signing with a label make sense?

When you need money for production and promotion now, or a team and connections you do not yet have, and you are prepared to exchange some of your rights and income for that support over the coming years.

Can I work with a distributor and a label at the same time?

Yes. This is common: the label develops your career and often has its own agreement with a distributor or aggregator to deliver music to platforms.

Music distributor or record label: the difference and how to choose

At a glance

A distributor delivers your tracks under a license while you retain your rights; a label deal works differently
A label invests money and resources but commonly takes 50–80% of recording income for years to come
Hybrid arrangements include distribution deals and label services: assess the actual contract, not its name

Two different questions that often get confused

Music distributors and record labels both help bring music to listeners, but they answer different questions. A distributor answers, “How will my track reach Spotify and Russian streaming services such as Yandex Music and VK Music?” A label answers, “Who will invest in my career and take on some of the decisions in exchange for a share of my future income?”

Confusing the two can be costly. Artists sometimes sign a label contract thinking they are simply choosing a delivery service, then lose control of their recordings for years.

With a distributor, you retain the rights to your recording and the underlying work. You can take your releases to another distributor.

You only need deliveryDistributor

You need a budget and teamLabel or label services

Master rightsCheck the term and territory

AdvanceCheck which costs are recoupable

Leaving the agreementTakedown, notice and consequences

The key ruleAssess the contract, not the name

Record label

Rights often pass to the label
An advance may be available, but artist royalties are 15–50%
The label decides what to release and when
Long contracts

creator distribution

You retain your rights
A fixed fee or subscription; keep up to 95% of royalties
You make the decisions
Internal review usually takes up to 2–3 business days. Once a release has been delivered, each platform sets its own review and publication timeline.

A distributor provides infrastructure

A distributor, also called an aggregator, delivers your audio file and metadata to streaming platforms under a licensing agreement. “License” is the key word: you authorize specific uses of the track, such as reproduction and making it available through streaming, rather than transferring ownership of the work.

You retain the rights to the master recording and the underlying work.
You can usually end the agreement, take down your releases and move to another distributor.
The distributor earns a subscription fee or a commission on royalties, rather than a share of all your income from shows, merchandise, film and advertising syncs.
A distributor does not fund production, promotion or PR, although it may offer optional paid services such as pitching.

A label invests in exchange for rights and a share of income

A label is closer to a production and investment business. In a traditional record deal, it pays for recording, production, music videos and advertising, and sometimes gives the artist an advance. In return, it receives rights to use the recordings, sometimes through a full assignment of exclusive rights, for a long period and often for several albums.

Label agreements usually last several years and cover an ongoing working relationship rather than a single release.
Under many arrangements, the label owns the masters or holds exclusive rights for the contract term, sometimes indefinitely.
Public sources on the industry commonly put the label’s share at 50–80% of recording income, with the remainder going to the artist. This reflects the label’s financial investment and risk.
An established label can provide producers, studio time, video and advertising budgets, a promotional team, and sometimes a lawyer and manager.

⚠️

Under many arrangements, a label takes 50–80% of recording income. Signing that contract means agreeing to give up most of what your tracks earn for years to come.

How the money works

With a distributor, the cash flow is straightforward: the platform pays the distributor, which takes its subscription fee or percentage and passes the rest to you. It is clear and predictable, but the release risk is yours. If the release does not take off, you may not earn back what you spent on the subscription.

A label deal is more complex. The label pays some recording and promotion costs up front, taking a real financial risk. Its share is higher because it is investing rather than simply providing a service. Successful releases help it recoup that investment and offset losses elsewhere in its catalog. If a release succeeds, an artist signed to a label may earn less per stream than an independent artist using a distributor, all else being equal, but they had access to resources they did not have before.

When a label can be useful

You cannot afford the recording, mixing and mastering quality you need to progress.
You need access to radio, TV and advertising syncs, or major playlists that are difficult to reach without connections and a promotional budget.
You are willing to exchange some rights and income for a team and a faster path forward: legal support, management, production and PR under one agreement.
You are planning a career over several years and accept sharing some release decisions with others.

Hybrid arrangements

The choice is not limited to a basic distributor or a traditional record label. There are models in between.

Distribution deal. A label or distribution service handles delivery and some marketing. The artist retains master rights, and the label’s share is lower than in a traditional deal.
Label services deal. The artist pays separately for specific services, such as production, PR or sync, without transferring recording rights. This is closer to a distributor with a broader range of paid services.
360 deal. A broader commitment: the label takes a share of shows, merchandise and sponsorships as well as recordings, in exchange for support across the artist’s career.

📊

A distribution deal can provide delivery and some marketing while the artist retains master rights. It sits between a basic distribution service and a traditional label deal.

Before signing any label contract, check exactly which model it follows. The word “label” can describe anything from a flexible distribution deal to a demanding 360 agreement that ties up your rights for years.

When a distributor is enough

If you already write, mix and promote your own music, or work with a small independent team, you may only need technical delivery to platforms while retaining your rights. A distributor provides that without a commitment spanning several years. Most independent artists in 2026 start this way and consider a label later, when their career gains momentum and they need resources a distributor does not provide.

Many independent artists use creator distribution for years while retaining their rights. They sign with a label when a particular offer is worthwhile, rather than treating it as the inevitable next step.