Independent artists make more from streaming than merch, touring AND publishing
49% of indie musicians name streaming as their biggest source of musical income.
June 21, 2024
Global music distributor and artist services company Ditto Music has found that nearly half of independent artists earn more money via streaming platforms than any other revenue stream.
Ditto's survey of 2000+ independent musicians uncovered that 49.5% named streaming as their biggest earner - despite only 19.6% of artists on Spotify achieving over 1,000 monthly listeners in 2023.
The survey also discovered that 61.3% of those surveyed made more money through the Daniel Ek-owned platform than any other streaming site.
Only 27.5% of musicians claimed that the majority of their earnings came from live shows, in spite of many artists turning their focus back towards live performances and tours post-COVID.
Main findings from Ditto's artist survey can be seen below:
Although there is constant discourse around how much Spotify and the other streaming platforms pay artists, these findings provide interesting insights into how independent artists are making money in 2024. Find out how much you can earn from your Spotify streams using our Spotify Royalty Calculator.
For more info on Ditto's findings and the company's services, head to dittomusic.com or reach out to press@dittomusic.com.
