Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

DistroKid VS SoundCloud

Compare DistroKid VS SoundCloud and see what are their differences

DistroKid logo DistroKid

Unlimited uploads to iTunes and more. Keep 80-100% of your royalties.

SoundCloud logo SoundCloud

Enjoy music & follow favourite artists
  • DistroKid Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-10-10
  • SoundCloud Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-13

SoundCloud

Release Date
2007 January
Startup details
Country
Germany
State
Berlin
City
Berlin
Founder(s)
Alexander Ljung
Employees
250 - 499

DistroKid features and specs

  • Cost-Effective
    DistroKid offers affordable pricing for unlimited uploads, making it a budget-friendly option for independent artists.
  • Unlimited Releases
    Artists can upload an unlimited number of songs and albums per year for a flat fee, which benefits prolific musicians.
  • Fast Distribution
    DistroKid boasts quick turnaround times, often getting music onto streaming platforms within days.
  • Wide Range of Platforms
    DistroKid distributes music to a vast array of streaming services and digital stores, including Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music.
  • Simple Interface
    The user interface is straightforward and easy to use, even for those who are not tech-savvy.
  • Useful Features
    DistroKid includes useful tools such as split payments for collaborators, automatic Shazam integration, and YouTube monetization.

Possible disadvantages of DistroKid

  • Annual Fee
    While cost-effective, DistroKid requires an annual subscription fee, which may be a drawback for those who prefer a one-time payment.
  • Limited Customer Support
    Customer service is primarily available through email, and users have reported slow response times.
  • No Physical Distribution
    DistroKid focuses solely on digital distribution and does not offer physical CD or vinyl production services.
  • Additional Fees for Extras
    Some features, such as extra band artist names or legacy services, come with additional charges on top of the annual fee.
  • Not Ideal for Labels
    DistroKid is primarily designed for individual artists, and might not offer the robust features that record labels need for managing multiple acts.
  • Royalties Management
    DistroKid does not provide detailed royalty management or advanced financial analytics compared to some competitors.

SoundCloud features and specs

  • User-friendly Interface
    SoundCloud features an intuitive and easy-to-navigate interface that makes it accessible for users of all technological proficiencies.
  • Free Access
    Users can upload, listen to, and share music for free, making it a cost-effective platform for both listeners and creators.
  • Discoverability
    SoundCloud's extensive library and recommendation algorithms make it easy for users to discover new and emerging artists.
  • Community Engagement
    The platform allows for comments and likes on individual tracks, facilitating direct interaction between artists and listeners.
  • Emerging Artists’ Platform
    It offers a great starting point for emerging artists to gain exposure without needing a record deal.
  • Integration with Other Services
    SoundCloud can be easily integrated with social media platforms and other music services, enhancing its usability.

Possible disadvantages of SoundCloud

  • Limited Earnings for Artists
    The monetization options available on SoundCloud are generally less lucrative compared to other platforms like Spotify or Apple Music.
  • Sound Quality
    Some users report that SoundCloud's audio quality is not as high as other streaming services.
  • Limited Offline Access
    While there is an option to download tracks for offline listening, this feature is restricted to SoundCloud Go+ subscribers.
  • Search Function Limitations
    The search function can sometimes be cluttered or not very accurate, making it difficult to find specific tracks or artists.
  • Copyright Issues
    Users sometimes upload copyrighted material without authorization, which can lead to tracks being taken down.
  • Ad-Frequency
    Free users may experience a high frequency of ads, which can disrupt the listening experience.

DistroKid videos

Distrokid Review - 2020: What Nobody Tells You | Digital Distribution

More videos:

  • Review - DistroKid - BEFORE you upload, watch this!
  • Tutorial - DistroKid Review & Tutorial - Make Money With Your Music

SoundCloud videos

Spotify vs Soundcloud - An Honest Comparison

More videos:

  • Review - Is Soundcloud Free | How It Works and Is Soundcloud Right For You
  • Review - Is Soundcloud Go Worth It?

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to DistroKid and SoundCloud)
Music
24 24%
76% 76
Music Streaming
8 8%
92% 92
Audio & Music
32 32%
68% 68
Musician Tools
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using DistroKid and SoundCloud. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare DistroKid and SoundCloud

DistroKid Reviews

  1. Basic opinion

    Not bad

SoundCloud Reviews

  1. Maksym Moskalenko
    · Founder at Mixcode.io ·
    The best audio streaming service on the market

    Great for both music producers and music labels. It's robust and very convenient.

  2. FaizaAdeel
    · Owner at Peacock.collection11 ·
    Diverse Music Community

    SoundCloud stands out as a unique platform, fostering a diverse music community and providing a platform for emerging artists. Despite minor drawbacks like ad interruptions and discoverability challenges, it remains a valuable resource for those seeking a wide range of musical content.

    🏁 Competitors: Spotify
    👍 Pros:    Unlimited uploads|Community engagement|Free tier with ads|Versatile content
    👎 Cons:    Ad interruptions in free version|Discoverability challenges|Quality disparities

Best Spotify Alternatives In The World [Top 10] 2024
SoundCloud hosts over 200 million files, including songs and podcasts, making it a hotspot for emerging indie artists. While Spotify offers a curated experience with mainstream artists, SoundCloud fosters a vibrant community for discovering new talent and engaging with user-generated content.
Top 10 Spotify Alternatives (Free/Paid) – 2024
Yes, you can find new music with Spotify alternatives and with options such as SoundCloud. You can check the genre and find new music for your taste.
9 Best Free Music Download Sites in 2022
As a professional tip, we recommend you use Soundcloud and Geekersoft YouTube to MP3 to download music for free. However, the final choice is entirely up to you! If you have any suggestions, please share your feedback with us.
23 Best Podcast Hosting Platforms in 2022 (Free and Cheap)A Collection and Review of the Top Platforms to Host Your Podcast
SoundCloud’s free plan affords you 3 hours of content per month and basic reporting. Upgrading to their SoundCloud Pro ($6/month) and Unlimited Pro ($12/month) plans gives you access to a more robust feature set that gives you the freedom to produce more content as well as promote it effectively. Let’s take a look at the features you’ll get with the Unlimited Pro plan.
Source: www.ryrob.com
Podcast hosting
For hobby podcasters: Anchor and Soundcloud both provide a free hosting solution. They're both limited in terms of functionality (and both use ads to earn revenue).
Source: transistor.fm

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, SoundCloud should be more popular than DistroKid. It has been mentiond 95 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

DistroKid mentions (32)

  • How the Music Industry Learned to Love Piracy
    > The actual distribution is not free, management companies take a huge cut both formally or informally. Spotify has a list of recommended distributors [1]. The first one on the list, DistroKid, charges $22/yr for unlimited uploads to Spotify, Apple Music with the artist keeping all royalties[2]. $22 is not free but is very reasonable. [1] https://support.spotify.com/us/artists/article/getting-music-on-spotify/... - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • How lucky/laid off
    There are lots of places where all you have to do is upload your music, and the website will distribute/release it across a ton of platforms (Youtube, Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Music etc.) I've used a place called DistroKid to do it, but there are a few others out there that do the same kind of deal. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Can someone walk me through the issues i’m dealing with? 15s video is linked showing the issue, as it is difficult to describe in text. Thanks in advance.
    Have you tried opening https://distrokid.com in a new tab or the iOS app? Or tried opening it on a computer instead of a phone? DistroKid’s website isn’t really set up very well for phone use when you need to set up your account or upload music. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Where would the first place the new song would be released?
    I’m checking with Dashon again today to see if he knows why the song isn’t on YouTube or Spotify yet, but it’s all up to https://distrokid.com/ at this point. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Making money on Sporify with AI?
    Then you can upload it using ( https://distrokid.com/ ). You can create mixes on youtube or Spotify and make some passive income. Source: almost 2 years ago
View more

SoundCloud mentions (95)

  • Stream Miror B's Grav Drive Spool by Third Cow
    Https : // soundcloud . Com / third-octave / miror-bs-grav-drive-spool. Source: about 1 year ago
  • How can I get the soundcloud downloading of a playlist to sleep?
    Yt-dlp --add-header Authorization: "" https://soundcloud.com/. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Bi-Weekly Discussion Thread - Find language partners, ask questions, and get accent feedback - July 12, 2023
    Go to Vocaroo, Soundcloud or Clypit and record your voice. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Recent DNS issues?
    Seems like after the update to 2023.4 I am unable to access certain websites. It may have nothing to do with the latest release. But I cannot access (for example) soundcloud.com or arcboosts.com from any server I try from. Never had this issue before, and not happening on other devices with vpn turned off. Tried with both dns ad blocking on and off within the mullvad ui. Source: over 1 year ago
  • 403 Error?
    The app works fine, along with w.souncloud.com links which are embeds. All help links work, but the moment you try to go to the normal soundcloud.com, it gives that error. Source: over 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing DistroKid and SoundCloud, you can also consider the following products

TuneCore - Music distribution platform for artists to sell their content worldwide

Spotify - Map shows when two people play same song at same time

Ditto Music - Release your music online, set up a record label and keep 100% of royalties

Deezer - Deezer is a music streaming app created in France. It is available in 180 counties and gets 16 million users a month. 6 million of the users have paid subscriptions. Read more about Deezer.

ONErpm - Distribution and marketing solutions to help creators succeed in the digital age.

Last.fm - The world's largest online music service. Listen online, find out more about your favourite artists, and get music recommendations, only at Last.fm