How to Keep 100% of Your Music Royalties in 2026

If you release music independently, one question comes up constantly: how much of what my music earns actually reaches my bank account?

The answer depends on three things — and only one of them is your distributor.

1. The distributor’s commission

Most distributors take a percentage of every stream. It ranges widely: some take 15%, some 30%, some 9%. A few advertise “keep 100%” but charge a yearly fee that eats into your first releases before you break even.

Mh Musik VIP replaces the percentage model with a flat monthly or yearly fee. You keep 100% of your master royalties and 99% of mechanicals (we retain a 1% administration fee, the lowest in the industry).

2. The US tax withholding

This is where most artists get confused. If you’re a non-US resident, the US IRS may withhold up to 30% of your US-sourced income. This is not a distributor commission — it’s a federal tax. It applies to any distributor that processes payments through US infrastructure and hasn’t filed your tax paperwork correctly.

To avoid it, you generally need:

• A Form W-8BEN filed correctly.
• A country of residence with a US tax treaty (most Latin American countries have reduced rates, some have 0%).
• A tax ID from your country (RUT, RFC, CUIT, DNI, etc.).

Mh Musik doesn’t automatically apply this withholding to non-US artists. Contact our support before releasing if you have questions specific to your country.

3. The withdrawal fees

The last piece is how you get paid out. PayPal, Payoneer, wire transfer — each has its own fee structure. This part is usually independent of your distributor.

We recommend Payoneer for most Latin American artists and PayPal for US-based ones. Wire transfer via SWIFT is available for larger balances.

What this means in practice

For an artist generating $1,000/month in Spotify streams:

• With a 15% commission distributor: you get ~$850, minus tax withholding.
• With a flat-fee VIP membership at $19.99/month: you get ~$980 net (after subtracting the membership).
• If US tax withholding applies to your account: subtract up to 30% of your US-sourced portion.

The membership model wins as soon as you generate more than roughly 10x the monthly fee — and pays for itself faster the more you release.

Getting started

Ready to release under a 100% royalty model? Create your account and pick a VIP plan. Music distribution starts within 24 hours.