Spotify payouts cross $11 billion as independent artists take larger share

Spotify said it paid out more than $11 billion to the music industry in 2025, marking the largest annual payment to music rights holders ever made by a single retailer.

The Swedish streaming platform said in a blog post on Wednesday that its payouts last year rose by more than 10 percent from 2024 levels. Independent artists and labels accounted for roughly half of all royalties distributed through the platform, underscoring Spotify’s growing reliance on non-major label content.

The company has been focused on retaining existing artists and attracting new creators as competition intensifies in the global music-streaming market. Rivals such as YouTube and Apple continue to invest heavily in music and creator ecosystems, increasing pressure on Spotify to maintain scale and engagement.

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YouTube said in October that it paid more than $8 billion to the music industry in the 12 months between July 2024 and June 2025, highlighting the rising payouts across the streaming sector as platforms expand their user bases and monetisation efforts.

Spotify said it distributes close to two-thirds of its total music-related revenue to rights holders, amounting to nearly 70 percent of what the company generates from music. As Spotify’s revenues grow, payouts to the industry rise in tandem, the company said.

The remaining revenue is reinvested into the platform to support expansion into newer formats such as podcasts, video content and audiobooks. Spotify has increasingly positioned itself as a broader audio and media platform rather than a pure music-streaming service.

To support profitability, Spotify has raised prices for its premium subscription plans in several markets over the past year. The company is seeking to leverage its scale and pricing power while continuing to fund content investments and product development.

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Spotify reported 713 million monthly active users at the end of the third quarter, reinforcing its position as the world’s largest music-streaming platform by user base. The latest payout figures reflect both the platform’s growing scale and the rising cost of sustaining artist and label relationships in an increasingly competitive streaming landscape.