---
title: DistroKid vs UnitedMasters vs Symphonic Distribution: which royalties each one actually collects
publisher: RapCanon
canonical: https://rapcanon.com/compare/distrokid-vs-unitedmasters-vs-symphonic/
license: CC-BY-4.0
retrieved: 2026-08-14
---

> A sourced, side-by-side comparison of what DistroKid, UnitedMasters, Symphonic Distribution each collect across eight royalty streams. Every cell read from the company's own documentation.

Comparison

 
# DistroKid vs UnitedMasters vs Symphonic Distribution

 
 
 
The short answer: all three collect your master streaming royalties, and that is roughly where the similarity ends. DistroKid, UnitedMasters, Symphonic Distribution differ on 5 of the 8 royalty streams a released song generates. The most consequential split is US mechanical royalties, where DistroKid paid add-on, UnitedMasters paid add-on, Symphonic Distribution partly.

 
Every cell below was read from that company's own published documentation on 2026-08-13. Where a company has not published an answer, this page says not published rather than guessing. Nothing here is affiliate-linked and no company paid to appear.

 
 
 

 
 
 
Side by side

 
## What each one collects

 
Rows where the three companies disagree are marked. Those are the rows worth reading; the rest are industry-standard and would look the same whoever you signed with.

 
 
 Royalty coverage read from each company's own documentation, 2026-08-13. 
 Royalty stream | DistroKid | UnitedMasters | Symphonic Distribution | 
 
 
 Master streaming royalties | CollectsCore service. DistroKid states artists keep 100% of the master streaming royalties it collects. | CollectsCore service. | CollectsCore service. | 

 US mechanical royaltiesthey differ | Paid add-onNot included in standard distribution. Covered only by the separate paid DistroKid Publishing product. | Paid add-onThrough its publishing offering rather than base distribution. | PartlyOnly if you separately take publishing administration, which is delivered THROUGH SONGTRUST. Not included in plain distribution. | 

 International mechanical royaltiesthey differ | Paid add-onSame — publishing product only. | Paid add-onPublishing offering. | PartlySame Songtrust-powered add-on. | 

 Performance royalties (songwriter) | PartlyThe publishing add-on collects the PUBLISHER share only. The writer share is paid by your PRO directly to you, so with no PRO affiliation nobody collects it at all. | PartlyPublisher share only. Your PRO still pays your writer share. | PartlyVia the same opt-in add-on, not via distribution. | 

 Neighbouring rights / SoundExchangethey differ | Not publishedSoundExchange is not documented anywhere in DistroKid's published material. Treat your SoundExchange registration as your own job until they say otherwise. | Does notTreated as a third-party matter — your SoundExchange registration is your own. | PartlyOpt-in enrolment, and it can collect the recording OWNER share only. Symphonic states outright that SoundExchange does not allow any third party to claim the featured-artist portion. | 

 YouTube Content IDthey differ | CollectsOffered, with a revenue share taken on the Content ID income. | CollectsOffered. | PartlyOpt-in, requires Symphonic distribution, reviewed by their team and can be rejected. Symphonic typically retains around 30% of Content ID revenue. | 

 YouTube publishing | Not publishedNot separately documented from the recording side. | Not publishedNot separately documented. | Not publishedFalls under the publishing add-on and is not itemised. | 

 Sync licensingthey differ | Contradicts self⚠ DistroKid's own materials both describe collecting sync income AND state the service does not include sync licensing. Their copy contradicts itself; do not rely on either sentence. | CollectsSync placement is a core part of the UnitedMasters proposition. | PartlyOffered via a separate brand as an approval-gated add-on at separate rates. | 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
## What to know about DistroKid

 
DistroKid collects your master streaming royalties from the DSPs. The table above shows where that stops.

 - "Keep 100%" describes the MASTER side only. The publishing side is a separate paid product, and Content ID income is shared.
- With no PRO affiliation, your songwriter performance share is collected by nobody — not by DistroKid, and not automatically by anyone else.
 
 
 
 
 
 
## What to know about UnitedMasters

 
UnitedMasters collects your master streaming royalties from the DSPs. The table above shows where that stops.

 - "Keep 100%" again describes the master side. Publishing and UGC are where the share is taken.
 
 
 
 
 
 
## What to know about Symphonic Distribution

 
Symphonic Distribution collects your master streaming royalties from the DSPs. The table above shows where that stops. Pricing: Starter tier $29.99/year. Add-ons separately priced and approval-gated.

 - "Earn 100% of royalties" applies ONLY to DSP distribution. Content ID takes around 30% and every rights add-on is separately priced.
- ★ Symphonic's publishing administration IS SONGTRUST white-labelled. Signing up for both pays twice for one pipe.
- Even with Symphonic enrolled on SoundExchange, the 45% featured-artist share is legally unreachable by them. You must open your own account.
 
 
 

 
 
 
## The thing none of these three do for you

 
Whichever of DistroKid, UnitedMasters, Symphonic Distribution you choose, the 45% featured-artist share of neighbouring rights is legally unreachable by any distributor. SoundExchange pays it directly to the performer, and no label, distributor or aggregator is permitted to claim it on your behalf. If you have never registered with SoundExchange yourself, that money is accruing to nobody.

 
The same is true in a softer way of US mechanical royalties: they flow through the blanket licence to The MLC, which is free to join and takes no commission, and a distributor deal does not register you there.

 
Check all 16 organisations, not just these three →

---

## How to cite this page

**APA**
RapCanon. (2026). DistroKid vs UnitedMasters vs Symphonic Distribution: which royalties each one actually collects. Retrieved from https://rapcanon.com/compare/distrokid-vs-unitedmasters-vs-symphonic/

**BibTeX**
```bibtex
@misc{rapcanon-compare-distrokid-vs-unitedmasters-vs-sy,
  title  = {DistroKid vs UnitedMasters vs Symphonic Distribution: which royalties each one actually collects},
  author = {{RapCanon}},
  year   = {2026},
  url    = {https://rapcanon.com/compare/distrokid-vs-unitedmasters-vs-symphonic/},
  note   = {Accessed: 2026-08-14}
}
```

**Wikipedia**
```
{{cite web |title=DistroKid vs UnitedMasters vs Symphonic Distribution: which royalties each one actually collects |url=https://rapcanon.com/compare/distrokid-vs-unitedmasters-vs-symphonic/ |publisher=RapCanon |access-date=2026-08-14}}
```

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