What Are the Per-Stream Rates by Country?
| Country | Avg Per-Stream Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | $0.0103 | Above most major markets (Switzerland is highest at $0.0160) |
| Spain | $0.0068 | Strong European rate |
| Germany | $0.0067 | Consistent with EU average |
| Australia | $0.0065 | Above global average |
| United States | $0.0063 | Largest market, benchmark rate |
| France | $0.0061 | Close to the US rate |
| Japan | $0.0052 | Strong but below Western rates |
| Brazil | $0.0050 | Growing market |
| Canada | $0.0046 | Below US rate |
| Mexico | $0.0024 | Lower regional rate |
| China | $0.0024 | Lower tier pricing market |
| Russia | $0.0023 | Low-paying market (Nigeria $0.0006 and India $0.0013 are lower) |
Rates calculated from Dynamoi's first-party streaming data. See our streaming royalty data dashboard for the full breakdown by platform and country.
Why Rates Vary by Country
Apple Music's per-stream payout depends on:
Subscription price in local currency Apple charges different prices in different markets. A $10.99/month subscription in the US generates more per-stream revenue than a lower-priced subscription in an emerging market.
Pro-rata pool allocation Apple uses a pro-rata royalty model. The total subscription revenue in each country is pooled and distributed based on stream share. Countries with more subscribers and higher prices have larger pools.
Currency conversion timing Payouts are converted to your distributor's settlement currency. Exchange rate fluctuations can affect the final USD-equivalent amount.
What This Means for Your Strategy
If you are choosing between promoting on Apple Music vs Spotify, the per-stream economics strongly favor Apple. Based on Dynamoi's first-party distribution data, here is the per-1,000-stream comparison:
| Platform | Revenue per 1K streams |
|---|---|
| YouTube Music | $6.85 |
| TIDAL | $6.37 |
| Amazon Music | $6.07 |
| Apple Music | $4.98 |
| Spotify | $2.24 |
Apple Music pays 122% more per stream than Spotify at the median. The gap is even wider when comparing against Spotify's free tier, where per-stream rates drop significantly.
Apple Music has no free tier, so every stream comes from a paying subscriber. This structural difference is why the average payout is consistently higher.
Geographic targeting matters. If you can reach UK or Western European listeners on Apple Music, your per-stream revenue will be significantly higher than targeting emerging markets. See the full royalty data dashboard for country-level breakdowns across all platforms.
What Are the Important Caveats?
These are gross payouts to the rights holder account Your actual take depends on your label/distributor split. If your distributor takes 15% and your label takes 20%, your net is 68% of the gross.
Spatial Audio bonus Apple pays up to 10% higher royalties for tracks available in Spatial Audio, regardless of whether the listener streams the Spatial version. This can lift the US rate from about $0.0063 to about $0.0069.
Rates are not static Per-stream rates fluctuate based on total platform streams (denominator effect) and subscriber counts. More streams in a month with flat revenue = lower per-stream rate.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Apple Music's average payout per stream in 2026?
In 2026, Apple Music pays about $0.0063 per stream in the US and $0.0103 in the UK. Payouts vary based on listener territory, subscription tier (individual, family, student), and whether the track is mixed in Spatial Audio.
How does Apple Music's payout compare to Spotify?
Apple Music pays about 2.2 times Spotify's median per-stream rate ($0.0050 vs $0.0022). Because Apple Music operates purely on paid subscriptions with no free ad-supported tier, its blended unit rate is significantly higher.
Does Apple Music pay extra for Spatial Audio / Dolby Atmos?
Yes. Apple Music provides up to a 10% royalty payout premium for tracks delivered in Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos, regardless of whether the individual listener streams the spatial mix.
Sources and verification
- Reviewed: 2026-10-29 — Claude
- Scope: The platform RPM medians in the table (YouTube Music and Art Tracks $6.85, TIDAL $6.37, Amazon Music $6.07, Apple Music $4.98, Spotify $2.24) and the 122% Apple Music premium derived from the Apple Music and Spotify medians, as published in Dynamoi's streaming royalty comparison through July 2026, and the Apple Music per-stream rates by territory (Switzerland, the UK, Spain, Germany, Australia, the US, France, Japan, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, China, Russia, India and Nigeria), as published in Dynamoi's Apple Music royalty data. Earlier review by Trevor Loucks on 2026-09-15: Apple Music per-stream payout rates and Spatial Audio royalty multipliers.
- Methodology: Read each cited Dynamoi data page on the review date, took the published median or market figure, and recalculated every derived total or ratio from those figures. Earlier review method: Calculated from first-party streaming distribution data and published digital service provider payout reports.
- Sources: Dynamoi streaming royalty comparison, Dynamoi Apple Music royalty data, Dynamoi Spotify royalty data, Dynamoi YouTube Music and Art Tracks royalty data, Dynamoi Amazon Music royalty data, Dynamoi data, Dynamoi data
This is a dated snapshot. Check the sources for current figures; they can change.