Spotify Podcast Streaming Royalty Calculator

This calculator shows estimated earnings from the number of streams your podcast receives on Spotify.

Remember, to generate any noticeable revenue, your podcast should consistently get 1000+ valid monthly streams on Spotify.

Spotify Podcast Earnings, Not Royalty?

Unlike music, podcast doesn’t receive any royalty from Spotify.

Based on the backend data we studied from the Spotify for Podcasters platform of a pool of creators, podcasts that receive more than 5000 streams per month made anywhere from $0.003 to $0.006 per stream through ads, sponsorships, subscriptions, and donations.

Whereas podcasts with little or no streams didn’t generate any returns. Some did, but very rarely through donations.

Why the $0.003 – $0.006 range? Well, earnings are not consistent across all countries.

Podcasts that have the most listeners from countries with large paying users and where the cost of living is higher constantly generate a decent amount.

Subscription-based podcasts generate more cash, even though they have a small audience. This is because they have a paying audience.

Podcasts that have direct deals with Spotify, like The Joe Rogan Experience, sure make the most money.

At the same time, small creators with a small but consistent audience struggle to see a penny.

We also found some lucrative niches, such as personal finance, generate more revenue per stream through in-stream sponsorship ads.

If you play this game smart enough, you can surely build a gold mine with a Spotify podcast.

How Else Can Podcasts Generate Revenue?

Most successful podcasters use a diversified model to maximize their earnings.

Other ways podcasts can generate revenue include:

• Sponsorships: Brand sponsorships and native ads are a major revenue stream for top podcasts. Rates can vary greatly based on a podcast’s audience size and demographic.
• Premium Subscriptions: Some podcasters offer bonus content, early access, or ad-free episodes to paying subscribers. Platforms like Patreon help manage paid memberships.
• Merchandise: Podcast-branded apparel, mugs, posters, and other merchandise are commonly sold by popular podcasts.
• Live Events: Podcasters can also generate revenue through live shows, meetups, and other events with paid tickets.

Who Gets Paid Podcast Earnings?

With Spotify, the podcast creator is the only party who earns any money.

This contrasts with music streaming, where royalties are split among artists, songwriters, publishers, and record labels.

Since Spotify does not own the podcast content, the podcast creator receives all of the earnings.

This means podcasters have more control over their finances and do not have to share their earnings with an intermediary.

So, most creators have mechanisms and agreements to split the earnings with their team.

Spotify for Podcasters: The Future of Podcasts on Spotify?

Spotify has made major investments in podcasting in recent years through the platform called Spotify for Podcasters (previously known as Anchor).

The platform offers recording, editing, and collaboration features to simplify podcast production.

What does this mean for the future of podcasts on Spotify?

A major emphasis for Spotify is helping podcasters monetize their shows.

Spotify for Podcasters allows creators to easily:

• Insert dynamically targeted audio ads and get paid per ad or per impression.
• Offer subscriber-only content and collect monthly fees.
• Sell branded merch directly to listeners.

This suggests Spotify aims to incentivize more creators to produce exclusive content on their platform.

Their platform provides data on listenership, engagement, demographics, and more to help guide content creation.

So, in the future, Spotify could evolve into an all-in-one platform for creating, distributing, and monetizing podcasts.

And more podcasters may choose Spotify over other hosts for its monetization tools.

Spotify is clearly signaling its intention to be the premier podcasting destination for listeners and creators.