DistroKid vs TuneCore vs CD Baby vs The Black Turn (India 2026)

You have narrowed your music distributor search to four names. DistroKid. TuneCore. CD Baby. The Black Turn. Every blog tells you a different one is best, and most of them are written for American artists, so they quietly skip the Indian context: caller tunes, JioSaavn, INR billing, and what happens to your songs in year three when you forget to renew.

We are The Black Turn team. In 6+ years of distributing music for 200K+ Indian artists, the same questions come up again and again from artists who are about to choose (or leave) one of these services: “Will my songs come down if I stop paying?”, “Can fans set my song as their caller tune?”, “Why does my card statement show a different amount than the price page?” This comparison answers those questions with each company’s current official prices and rules, and it says plainly where each competitor is better than us.

Quick answer (prices as of October 2026): DistroKid costs $24.99, $44.99 or $89.99 a year for unlimited uploads. TuneCore India costs ₹1,599, ₹2,799 or ₹4,499 a year + GST for unlimited releases, or ₹1,599 per single / ₹2,799 per album, and every TuneCore plan and per-release purchase renews yearly. CD Baby charges $9.99 per single or $14.99 per album once and keeps 9% of digital distribution revenue. The Black Turn charges ₹599 per single once (₹799 with caller tunes on Jio, Airtel, Vi and BSNL) and pays 95% royalty for life.

How This Comparison Works

Each distributor is evaluated on 7 categories that genuinely matter for Indian artists:

• Pricing model and total cost (one-time vs yearly, INR vs USD)
• Caller tune coverage across Jio, Airtel, Vi, BSNL
• Royalty pass-through percentage, for stores and for YouTube/social income
• Platform reach including JioSaavn and YouTube Content ID
• Catalog safety if you stop paying or want to switch
• India-specific features like INR billing and GST
• Support and India-market understanding

All competitor prices and rules below were checked on the companies’ own pricing and help pages in October 2026. Prices change, so open the linked official page before you pay. If you want a ranked overview instead of a feature-by-feature comparison, see our best music distribution company in India 2026 ranking. This blog is the deep-dive comparison; that one is the verdict-led overview.

DistroKid vs TuneCore vs CD Baby Pricing in India (as of October 2026)

This is the table most people searching “distrokid pricing”, “tunecore plans” or “cd baby pricing” actually want. Prices are exactly as shown on each official page in October 2026.

Sources: DistroKid pricing, TuneCore India pricing, CD Baby cost page, and The Black Turn pricing. We have not converted USD prices to rupees because the amount on your statement depends on that day’s exchange rate and your bank’s forex markup.

Master Comparison Table

Reading the table fairly: DistroKid, TuneCore, and CD Baby are all reputable global distributors. DistroKid and TuneCore pass on 100% of store royalties, which is more than our 95%, and DistroKid lets you withdraw whenever you like while we pay quarterly. The India-specific gaps (caller tunes, takedown risk, USD billing) are what change the math for many Indian artists. Now let’s break down each category in detail.

1. Pricing Model and Total Cost of Ownership

DistroKid

Yearly subscription with unlimited uploads, priced in USD. As of October 2026 the official DistroKid pricing page lists Musician at $24.99/year (1 artist), Musician Plus at $44.99/year (2 artists, custom label name, your own release and pre-order dates, daily stats) and Ultimate at $89.99/year (up to 100 artists, advanced analytics, replacing song audio). Strong value if you release a lot of songs. The catch: DistroKid’s help centre says if you don’t renew, your music is removed from services, unless you have bought the optional Leave a Legacy extra ($29 per single, $49 per album, one-time, per release) for that release.

TuneCore

TuneCore has an India site that bills in rupees. As of October 2026 the TuneCore India pricing page lists three Unlimited plans: Rising Artist ₹1,599/year, Breakout Artist ₹2,799/year and Professional ₹4,499/year, with GST added at checkout. All three include unlimited releases, YouTube Content ID, your own release date and free splits. Breakout adds Store Automator and the cover art creator; Professional adds a custom label name, your own UPC and 24-hour support response. Extra artist profiles cost ₹999 each. If you don’t want a plan, a single costs ₹1,599 and an album ₹2,799 per release. Important: every TuneCore plan and every per-release purchase renews yearly, so the ₹1,599 single is not a one-time price. There is no free plan any more; TuneCore discontinued its free New Artist plan in June 2025.

CD Baby

One-time per-release fee, priced in USD: $9.99 per single and $14.99 per album as of October 2026, with “NO annual fees” according to the CD Baby cost page. ISRC and UPC are free. In exchange for the low upfront fee, CD Baby keeps 9% of your digital distribution revenue for as long as the release is live, and 30% of social video monetization income.

The Black Turn

One-time fee in INR: ₹599 per single, ₹799 per single with caller tunes on Jio, Airtel, Vi and BSNL, ₹1,999 for an album/EP of up to 7 songs. Labels and frequent releasers can take the Custom Label plan at ₹4,999/year for unlimited releases and unlimited artists. You keep 95% of all income for life, and earnings continue even without renewal on every plan. ISRC, UPC and YouTube Content ID are free, and mix & mastering is free and unlimited with TrackFix.

Worked Example: 15 Singles Over 5 Years

This is a hypothetical example, not a real artist. Say you release 3 singles a year for 5 years (15 singles) and don’t need extra artist profiles. Using the October 2026 prices above:

The honest reading: over 5 years, the fees are in the same range for all four. TuneCore Rising and DistroKid Musician are not expensive at this volume, and if you release 10 or more songs a year, their unlimited plans get cheaper per song than paying for each release. The real differences show up after year 5 (does the catalog stay live without paying?) and in what each option unlocks (caller tunes, free Content ID, mastering). For a longer version of this math, read our real 5-year cost of one-time vs yearly vs commission distribution.

See current pricing for The Black Turn here to compare exact INR numbers against the others.

2. Caller Tune Coverage (All 4 Indian Networks)

This is the largest India-specific difference, and it is where the comparison shifts most clearly.

“No” here means we found no caller tune (CRBT) delivery on the company’s official pricing, store or partner pages in October 2026. CD Baby’s digital partner list, for example, includes Saavn and Hungama but no Indian telecom operator. Caller tunes are a uniquely Indian format: a fan picks your song and every person who calls them hears it. On Airtel, fans now set it as a Hellotune in the Airtel Thanks app; on Jio, through the JioSaavn app. With The Black Turn you add caller tunes on the ₹799 single plan (up to 2 caller tune clips per song), or add one to an already released song for ₹499, live in 1–3 weeks.

How much a caller tune earns depends on how many subscribers keep it and for how long; operators don’t publish per-tune rates. To understand how caller tune money actually reaches Indian artists, see our caller tune revenue guide.

3. Royalty Pass-Through

The headline percentage is different for store income and for YouTube/social income, so look at both:

• DistroKid: “Keep 100% of earnings” from stores, per its pricing page. YouTube Content ID and social platforms come through the paid Social Media Pack, and DistroKid keeps 20% of that revenue.
• TuneCore: TuneCore’s help centre says you keep 100% of streaming revenue and 80% from YouTube Content ID, Facebook/Instagram, TikTok and CapCut.
• CD Baby: 91% of digital distribution revenue and 70% of social video monetization.
• The Black Turn: 95% of all income, including YouTube Content ID and caller tunes, with no per-song fee for Facebook, Instagram or YouTube claims. Paid quarterly.

Why headline percentage alone misleads: 100% of streaming plus 0% of caller tunes is not automatically more than 95% of streaming plus caller tune income. And 100% of streaming minus a yearly fee you keep paying is a different number from 95% with no fee. The real metric is total earnings net of all costs, across every revenue stream the distributor actually unlocks for you.

4. Platform Reach (Including India-Specific Platforms)

Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon Music: all four distributors deliver to these.

The differences show up with India-specific platforms:

• JioSaavn: all four list it. DistroKid’s store list includes Saavn (its full catalogue is visible only from India and nearby countries), TuneCore’s India homepage names JioSaavn and Gaana, and CD Baby lists Saavn.
• Gaana: named on TuneCore India’s site and delivered by The Black Turn. Not on CD Baby’s partner list. We could not confirm it on DistroKid’s list either way.
• YouTube Content ID: all four offer it, but on different terms: DistroKid as a yearly paid add-on plus 20%, TuneCore on its Unlimited plans with a 20% fee, CD Baby with a 30% share, The Black Turn free with 95% to you.
• Instagram and Reels: available with all four, on the same social-income terms as Content ID above.
• Indian telecom caller tunes: of these four, only The Black Turn covers Jio, Airtel, Vi and BSNL.

Wynk Music no longer counts as a store: Airtel shut it down in 2024. The Black Turn delivers to 150+ stores, including JioSaavn, Gaana, Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music and Amazon Music.

5. Catalog Safety. What Happens If You Stop Paying or Want to Leave

This is one of the most underrated factors. Many artists discover the takedown risk only after a payment lapses or a card declines, often because international online transactions were switched off on an Indian debit card. A song that comes down loses future royalty and its streaming links, and playlist placements don’t always return when you re-upload. One-time models remove this risk.

If you ever do want to switch distributors, the critical step is ISRC carry-forward to keep streams intact. See our ISRC code explained guide for the exact process. Doing this wrong can split your streaming history permanently.

6. India-Specific Features

• INR pricing: The Black Turn and TuneCore India both price in rupees (TuneCore adds GST at checkout). DistroKid and CD Baby bill in USD, so your card statement depends on the exchange rate and your bank’s forex markup.
• Card issues: USD billing needs international online transactions enabled on your card. For yearly plans this matters every renewal, not just once.
• Caller tunes: only The Black Turn of these four, as covered above.
• Support: The Black Turn offers in-person support to every artist and email at cms@theblackturn.com. TuneCore India lists 72, 48 or 24-hour response times depending on plan.

Where Each Competitor Is Genuinely Better

A fair comparison has to say this part out loud:

• DistroKid: 100% of store earnings, unlimited uploads for one yearly fee, withdrawals whenever you want (twice-weekly processing, $6 minimum, per its help centre), and a large set of built-in tools. The best fit here for someone releasing a song every week.
• TuneCore: 100% of streaming revenue, INR pricing on an India site, unlimited releases from ₹1,599/year, and a separate publishing administration service (a $75 one-time fee per writer plus 20% of the royalties it collects, per TuneCore’s help centre). If you need publishing admin, TuneCore offers something we don’t sell as part of our plans.
• CD Baby: the lowest one-time price per release in this list ($9.99 single) and no annual fee. A sensible choice for a global artist who releases rarely and doesn’t need caller tunes.

Head-to-Head Verdicts (The Black Turn vs Each One)

The Black Turn vs DistroKid

DistroKid wins on: 100% of store earnings, unlimited uploads (great for very high volume), on-demand withdrawals, strong global brand. The Black Turn wins on: caller tune coverage, one-time INR pricing, free Content ID at 95%, catalog safety without renewals. If you release only a few songs a year for Indian listeners, the India fit usually decides it. For the two-way breakdown see DistroKid vs The Black Turn, and for a deeper look at DistroKid alone, our DistroKid review for India.

The Black Turn vs TuneCore

TuneCore wins on: 100% of streaming revenue, unlimited releases from ₹1,599/year, a separate publishing administration service, established global brand. The Black Turn wins on: caller tunes, no yearly renewal on single releases, free Content ID at 95% (TuneCore takes 20%), in-person support. If you need publishing admin and release often, TuneCore is worth considering. For Indian-audience artists releasing occasionally, The Black Turn is often the better fit. See our TuneCore India review for specifics.

The Black Turn vs CD Baby

CD Baby wins on: lower one-time price per release, no annual fee, established global brand. The Black Turn wins on: caller tune coverage (CD Baby lists no Indian telecom partner), 95% vs 91% on store income, 95% vs 70% on social video, INR pricing, Gaana delivery. Both are one-time models, so the deciding factors become caller tunes, revenue share and India fit. Compare in our CD Baby vs DistroKid vs The Black Turn deep dive.

Which One Fits Your Specific Situation

The pattern: The more Indian-audience-focused your music is, and the more caller tunes matter in your genre, the stronger the case for an India-native distributor. For high-volume releasers, DistroKid and TuneCore’s unlimited plans have real merits. For artists releasing a few songs a year for Indian listeners, a one-time fee plus caller tunes is usually the better math.

5 Mistakes Indian Artists Make in This Decision

1. Picking on Brand Name, Not Fit

DistroKid is famous, so people assume it’s best. Famous in the US is not the same as right for an Indian release plan. Fit beats fame.

2. Ignoring Caller Tunes Entirely

Treating caller tunes as a small extra is a common mistake in genres where fans love setting songs on their phone. A distributor with zero caller tune coverage closes that door completely.

3. Comparing Headline Price, Not Total Cost

A cheap-looking yearly fee repeats every year, and on TuneCore even per-release purchases renew yearly. Calculate the 3 to 5 year total, including forex markup on USD prices, before deciding.

4. Not Checking ISRC Carry-Forward

If you ever switch distributors, ISRC handling decides whether your streams survive. Confirm this upfront with whoever you choose.

5. Trusting Old Price Lists

Blogs and YouTube videos often quote prices from a year or two ago. TuneCore’s free plan, for example, no longer exists. Always check the official pricing page on the day you pay.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better DistroKid or TuneCore or CD Baby or The Black Turn for Indian artists?

It depends on how you release. For Indian artists releasing a few songs a year who want caller tunes, The Black Turn fits best: caller tunes on Jio, Airtel, Vi and BSNL, one-time INR pricing and 95% royalty for life. DistroKid suits very frequent releasers who want 100% of store earnings. TuneCore suits frequent releasers who want INR billing or publishing admin. CD Baby suits global artists who release rarely and don’t need caller tunes.

What is DistroKid’s pricing in India?

As of October 2026, DistroKid charges in USD: Musician $24.99/year, Musician Plus $44.99/year and Ultimate $89.99/year, all with unlimited uploads. Your Indian card is charged at the day’s exchange rate plus your bank’s forex markup, and the plan must be renewed every year to keep songs live.

What are TuneCore’s plans in India, and is TuneCore free?

As of October 2026, TuneCore India offers Rising Artist ₹1,599/year, Breakout Artist ₹2,799/year and Professional ₹4,499/year, plus GST, or ₹1,599 per single and ₹2,799 per album. Every plan and per-release purchase renews yearly. TuneCore is not free: its free New Artist plan was discontinued in June 2025. Detailed TuneCore India review.

TuneCore vs DistroKid: which is cheaper for Indian artists?

At the entry level they are close: TuneCore Rising is ₹1,599/year + GST in rupees, DistroKid Musician is $24.99/year in dollars. Both offer unlimited releases and pass on 100% of store revenue. TuneCore includes Content ID on its plans with a 20% fee; DistroKid charges for it as a yearly add-on plus 20%. Neither offers Indian caller tunes, and with both, songs can come down if you stop paying.

Does CD Baby work in India?

Yes. Indian artists can use it, and CD Baby lists PayPal and Payoneer among its payout methods (non-US artists also submit a W-8BEN tax form). As of October 2026 CD Baby charges $9.99 per single and $14.99 per album once in USD, keeps 9% of digital distribution revenue, and lists Saavn and Hungama among its partners. Gaana and Indian caller tune networks are not on its partner list.

Does DistroKid distribute caller tune in India?

We found no caller tune (CRBT) delivery to Jio, Airtel, Vi or BSNL on DistroKid’s official pages as of October 2026. Indian artists in caller-tune-heavy genres miss that format with DistroKid.

Which has the highest royalty payout?

On store and streaming income, DistroKid and TuneCore pass on 100%, The Black Turn 95% and CD Baby 91%. On YouTube and social income, The Black Turn passes 95%, DistroKid and TuneCore 80%, CD Baby 70%. The right comparison is total earnings net of fees across all revenue streams.

Can I switch between these distributors?

Yes, with the same ISRC carried forward. ISRC keeps streams intact across platforms; a new ISRC for the same recording splits history. Upload with the new distributor first, then take down the old release. See ISRC guide before switching.

How much does each cost in INR in 2026?

As of October 2026: The Black Turn ₹599 one-time per single (₹799 with caller tunes). TuneCore India ₹1,599/year + GST for unlimited releases or ₹1,599 per single, renewing yearly. DistroKid $24.99/year and CD Baby $9.99 per single are billed in USD, so the INR amount depends on the exchange rate and your bank’s forex fee. See current INR pricing here.

Conclusion

One public example shows why “check the price on the day” is not just a formality. In June 2022, TuneCore moved from per-release fees to yearly unlimited plans, with a free New Artist tier at the bottom (Digital Music News, Record of the Day). Three years later, TuneCore ended free social-platform distribution in May 2025 and discontinued the free plan on 18 June 2025, and artists who didn’t upgrade had their social-only releases taken down (TuneCore support). Artists who had chosen TuneCore because it was free had to start paying or lose those releases.

The takeaway is not that TuneCore is bad. It is still a strong distributor, and so are DistroKid and CD Baby. The point is that a distributor’s model, not its year-one price, decides what happens to your catalog over time. Choose the one whose rules you can live with for five years: how often you release, whether your listeners use caller tunes, and whether your songs stay up if you stop paying.

If your answers point to one-time pricing, caller tunes on Jio, Airtel, Vi and BSNL and 95% royalty for life, that is what we built The Black Turn for. You can see how our music distribution in India works and release to 150+ stores, with approval within 24 hours.