ASCAP, BMI and SoundExchange: What Is the Difference and Do You Need All Three?
By Written by Peter McVeigh
One pays for the song. One pays for the recording. Here's who collects what, who gets paid, and which ones you need.
ASCAP and BMI pay for the song. SoundExchange pays for the recording, on certain digital services. Most artists who write and release their own music need one of the first two, plus SoundExchange. You don't need both ASCAP and BMI as a writer.
These names get mixed up all the time. They all collect royalties and they all turn up when you release a record, but they pay for different things and pay different people. This guide sets out the difference using each organization's own published information.
I'm a Belfast songwriter who collects my US royalties through ASCAP via PRS. I've also visited both ASCAP and BMI in Nashville, so I've seen this system from the outside looking in. Here's how it fits together.
I checked the details in this guide on 4 November 2026. Fees and rules change, so check each organization's own page before you rely on them.
A recording contains two copyrights
Every recorded track holds two separate copyrights. There's the song, meaning the music and lyrics, which belongs to the writers and publishers. And there's the sound recording, also called the master, which is the particular performance captured on the track. It usually belongs to whoever paid for or owns the recording, whether that's you or a label.
A PRO (performing rights organization) such as ASCAP or BMI deals with the song. SoundExchange deals with the recording. They aren't competitors, because they collect different money.
Side by side
: ASCAP: BMI: SoundExchange
Covers: The song: The song: The recording
Pays: Writers and publishers: Writers and publishers: Rights owners, featured artists and a fund for non-featured performers
Writer cost: Free: Free: Free
Publisher cost: Free with a new writer application, otherwise $50: $175 individual, $250 corporation or LLC, $500 partnership: Not applicable
Payment timing: Four writer distributions a year (third-party summary): Feb, May, Aug and Nov: Monthly, with minimum balances
Fees and dates change, so check each organization's own page before you rely on them.
What ASCAP and BMI collect
Businesses that play music in public need permission for the song. That includes venues, bars, broadcasters and streaming services. A PRO licenses that use, collects the money and pays it out to the writers and publishers of the works it represents.
ASCAP says royalties are split 50/50 between writers and publishers. That matters because many independent writers only claim the writer half. If you publish your own songs, you also want the publisher side set up. The guide to joining explains how.
Can you join both?
Not as a writer. ASCAP says you can belong to only one US PRO at a time as a writer. BMI says you can join only if you aren't a member of any other performing rights organization worldwide. If you want to switch later, there's a process and you'll need to check your current agreement. Publishers are different. ASCAP says a publisher can belong to more than one society.
What about SESAC and GMR?
SESAC and Global Music Rights are also US PROs. They're smaller, and you don't simply sign up in the same way. A third-party guide quotes SESAC as saying it "does not accept unsolicited submissions". If you're starting out, ASCAP and BMI are the two open doors.
What SoundExchange collects
SoundExchange collects US digital performance royalties for recordings on non-interactive services. Its own registration page names SiriusXM, Pandora and iHeart Radio. These are services where the listener doesn't pick each track on demand.
The split is set out on its site: 50% to the rights owner of the recording, 45% to featured artists and 5% to a fund for non-featured artists. Registering is free. It collects for the recording only, so songwriters and publishers are paid elsewhere.
The big UK and US difference
AM/FM radio stations in the US don't pay a royalty for the sound recording. They pay the PROs for the song, but nothing goes to the artist or label for the recording. The American Music Fairness Act would change that, and it's still a bill, not law. So there's no direct US version of what PPL collects from radio.
What SoundExchange doesn't collect
On-demand streams on Spotify or Apple Music don't go through SoundExchange. The recording money from those services comes through your label or distributor. The song side is split into performance money through your PRO and mechanical money through The MLC.
Which ones do you need?
You write songs but don't own recordings or perform on them: a PRO, and The MLC if you handle your own publishing.
You're a session musician and don't write: no PRO for that work. SoundExchange says session players and backup vocalists are covered through AFM and SAG-AFTRA, so look at the AFM & SAG-AFTRA Fund.
You write, record and own your masters: a PRO as writer and publisher, The MLC, and SoundExchange as both featured artist and rights owner.
You run a label: SoundExchange as a rights owner.
What to do next
Look at your last release and write down three things: did you write it, did you perform on it, and do you own the recording? Then match each answer to a registration. Registering with SoundExchange and The MLC is free, so there's no cost in sorting those out today.
Try this on the site
Keep your writers, splits and codes together with the Songwriting Split Agreement and ISRC Code Tracker.
Sources
ASCAP, Join: https://ome.ascap.com/en
ASCAP, Membership help: https://www.ascap.com/help/my-ascap-membership
BMI, Joining FAQ: https://www.bmi.com/faq/category/joining
BMI, Royalty Policy Manual: https://www.bmi.com/creators/royalty/general_information
SoundExchange, Register: https://register.soundexchange.com/
SoundExchange, Digital performance royalties: https://www.soundexchange.com/digital-performance-royalties/
SoundExchange, FAQ: https://www.soundexchange.com/frequently-asked-questions/
SoundExchange, AM/FM rights: https://www.soundexchange.com/advocacy/us-terrestrial-radio-performance-rights/
Recording Academy, AMFA: https://www.grammy.com/advocacy/issues-policy/american-music-fairness-act/
Orphiq, PRO comparison: https://orphiq.com/resources/ascap-vs-bmi-vs-sesac
Disclaimer
General information for independent musicians, not legal or financial advice.