Spotify paid over $11 billion to music industry in 2025
Streaming platform says payouts rose more than 10% and will invest further in artist discovery tools
Spotify paid more than $11 billion to the music industry in 2025, marking its largest annual payment to date, according to a blog post from Charlie Hellman, head of the company’s music team.
Hellman said the figure represents an increase of more than 10% from 2024 and that Spotify now accounts for roughly 30% of global recorded music revenue.
He added that more than 750 million people pay monthly for music streaming across all platforms and that Spotify returns nearly 70% of its intake to rights holders.
“That’s why this year our number one priority is to help more new music and new artists cut through the noise and form real connections with fans,” Hellman wrote on the Spotify for Artists blog.
The company said it will introduce new features to support artist development, including the launch of SongDNA, which will highlight behind-the-scenes collaborations such as Addison Rae’s work with Luka Kloser and Elvira Anderfjärd.
Spotify also pointed to early use of its Clips format by KATSEYE and recent editorial support for Leon Thomas through its RADAR and RNB X programs.
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It said artists have generated more than $1 billion in ticket sales through Spotify’s ticketing partners.
The company plans to introduce changes to artist verification, song credits and protections against impersonation and scams, and will roll out new editorial formats and live-show tools to help emerging artists maintain momentum in 2026.
The Recap
- Spotify paid out more than $11 billion in 2025.
- More than 750 million people pay monthly for streaming.
- Company plans SongDNA, verification and editorial programs in 2026.
