How this calculator works
A streaming payout is a share of a revenue pool, not a price per play. The service collects subscription and advertising revenue, takes its share, and divides the remainder among rights holders according to their share of total streams, usually weighted by the listener's subscription country. The effective rate per stream on your statement is therefore an average that moves with the service mix, the countries your listeners are in and the month. Multiplying your stream count by that effective rate gives a planning estimate. The table re-runs the same stream count at several rates, which shows how much the answer depends on the rate rather than the arithmetic.
Formula
monthly royalties = streams per month x royalty per stream. yearly royalties = monthly x 12. royalty per thousand streams = rate x 1,000. streams needed for $1,000 = 1,000 / rate.
Worked example
At 100,000 streams a month and a rate of $0.0035 per stream, the estimated monthly royalty is $350. Over a year that is $4,200. At $0.004 the same streams earn $400 a month; at $0.002 they earn $200. To reach $1,000 a month at $0.0035 you need 285,714 streams a month.
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Frequently asked questions
Why is there no single per-stream rate?
The payout depends on the revenue pool, the listener's country and plan, the service's subscriber mix and the share of total streams. A premium listener in a high-price country can be worth several times a free or family-plan listener elsewhere. Distributors report an average, which is what this page asks you to enter.
Does the calculator include publishing royalties?
No. It estimates the recording side, the master royalty that usually flows through a distributor. Songwriting and publishing royalties are collected separately by performance rights organisations and mechanical licensing agencies, and they follow different rules.
Should I use gross or net streams?
Use the stream count that your distributor reports alongside the rate. Some platforms count a stream after a minimum listening time, and some reports separate paid and free streams. Mixing a gross count with a rate that already reflects deductions will overstate the payout.
Can I use this for a payout forecast?
Yes, as a range rather than a promise. Run the numbers at a low and a high rate from your recent statements to get a bracket. Streaming income is volatile, so a single rate is a planning assumption, not a guarantee.