Royalties Simulator
This calculator provides an estimate of the earnings you can generate from your music streams on platforms like Spotify and Apple Music.
Note: This simulation refers to master royalties — the earnings paid to artists, labels, or distributors from recorded music streams. It does not reflect publishing income such as songwriter or composer royalties.
Your earnings: €0.00
How to Understand and Maximize Your Spotify Royalties
A Guide from Prisma Music
Navigating today’s music industry as an independent artist or producer isn’t easy — but with the right tools and understanding, you can take full control of your earnings. At Prisma Music, our mission is to help creators maximize revenue from both master and publishing rights, ensuring every stream, spin, and sync works harder for you.
One tool worth understanding is the Spotify Royalties Calculator — a great way to estimate earnings and plan your release strategy. But remember: calculating your royalties goes beyond simple stream counts. Let’s break it down.
What Is a Royalty Calculator?
A royalty calculator estimates how much you’ll earn from your streams on platforms like Spotify. It gives you a ballpark figure based on average per-stream rates. These tools are useful for forecasting income — but they don’t tell the full story.
At Prisma Music, we go beyond estimates. We track real-time performance data, help you understand splits across master royalties, publishing shares, and mechanical rights, and ensure you're receiving what you’re owed.
What Does Spotify Pay Per Stream?
Spotify pays between $0.0025–$0.005 per stream, depending on factors like:
- Listener location
- Free vs. Premium account
- Your distributor's or label’s terms
But here's where most artists lose money: this figure refers only to the master side. Your publishing rights (performance + mechanical royalties) are often uncollected or mismanaged.
With Prisma Music, we help you collect both sides of your rights — not just the master recordings but also your composer shares and publishing income across global territories.
How Are Spotify Royalties Calculated?
Spotify uses a pro-rata model:
(Your streams ÷ Total Spotify streams) × Revenue pool = Your royalty share
From there:
From there:
- Spotify pays your distributor for master royalties
- Performance and mechanical royalties are sent to collection societies (like SPA, GEMA, or BMI)
- You might only receive your publishing share if you’re registered with a publisher or rights admin (like Prisma)
This complexity is why many artists don’t receive their full earnings. Prisma Music streamlines this process by aggregating all royalties into one dashboard, including:
- Master revenue
- Publishing revenue
- Neighboring rights
- Usage tracking across platforms
How Long Does It Take to Get Paid?
From Spotify stream to your bank account takes roughly 2–3 months:
Month 0 – Your song is streamed
Month 1 – Spotify reports to distributors and societies
Month 2 – Payouts are processed and sent to rights holders
Depending on your distributor or publishing admin, delays or lost revenue can occur. Prisma Music handles that complexity and ensures fast, transparent payouts.
Who Actually Receives Spotify Royalties?
Royalties are divided into:
- Master royalties (for the performer/label/distributor)
- Publishing royalties (for the songwriter and publisher)
If you're not properly registered or administered, you’re likely missing out on 20–50% of your potential income.
Prisma Music takes care of this by:
- Registering your works globally
- Claiming uncollected royalties
- Administering publishing rights in over 200 territories
How Can I Maximize My Spotify Royalties?
Here are proven strategies:
- Release consistently to stay in the algorithm
- Claim both master and publishing rights (Prisma does this for you)
- Pitch to playlists and editorial curators
- Encourage fans to follow you for repeat streams
- Collaborate with artists and producers to tap into new audiences
And most importantly: centralize your royalty management so you don’t leave money on the table. That’s what we do at Prisma.
Final Thoughts
Streaming income isn’t magic — it’s data, rights, and good administration. While per-stream rates may feel low, understanding your full rights profile is what turns thousands of streams into actual income.
At Prisma Music, we empower creators to collect and grow their earnings across master, publishing, and neighboring rights. Use our tools, our team, and our network to build a sustainable music career — and finally take full ownership of your royalty flow.
Ready to stop guessing and start collecting?
👉 Join Prisma Music and unlock your full royalty potential.
FAQ
What is Prisma?
Prisma is a technology-driven platform that helps artists, labels, and music professionals manage royalties, copyright, and distribution in one place.
Who is Prisma for?
Prisma is designed for independent artists, labels, publishers, producers, and content creators who want a seamless way to manage their music rights and earnings.
How does Prisma work?
We simplify the process of music distribution, royalty collection, and copyright administration by using in-house technology to track and collect all the revenue you’re owed.
Getting Started
How do I sign up?
Simply click Sign Up, you can use SSO if prefered and it’s done.
How long does the release/register form take?
Most users are fully set up in under 15 minutes. This saves you hours of paperwork compared to handling distribution, digital copyright, and performance rights separately.
Can I leave Prisma anytime?
Yes, you’re free to leave at any time. There are no lock-in contracts for distribution, for publishing there’s a minimum of 3 months (however to really feel the impact on your wallet is advise to stay for 6 months to 1 year).
Have more questions?
Reach out to our team anytime! We’re here to help.