SoundCloud said musicians will soon be able to sell music directly through its platform, with a beta launch for 200 U.S.-based Artist Pro subscribers before a wider rollout this fall.
Music fans will be able to buy tracks from an artist’s profile page instead of using other services to complete a purchase. SoundCloud said it will not take a cut of sales, though artists will still have to pay processing fees and remit local taxes.
Musicians will be able to track sales through SoundCloud’s Artist Studio and Fan Support dashboards, and they will be able to choose which digital formats to offer.
“Starting with a smaller creator group gives us a direct feedback loop: what’s working, where there’s friction and what artists want us to build next. We’ll use those learnings to refine the experience as we gradually expand access,” SoundCloud said.
SoundCloud already offers other direct monetization tools for musicians, including ticket sales and on-demand vinyl pressings.
The launch comes after Bandcamp laid off most of its engineering team in June, following earlier staff cuts by owner Songtradr in 2023 that reduced Bandcamp’s workforce by about half.
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