What is the mechanical royalty rate in 2026?

Mechanical royalties are what songwriters and publishers earn when their songs are reproduced and distributed: pressed on vinyl or CD, sold as downloads, or streamed on demand. In the United States the rates for the statutory license are set by the Copyright Royalty Judges and published in the Code of Federal Regulations. For the bigger picture of publishing income, see our page on collective rights management and music publishing. How these royalties fit with recording and sync deals is covered on our main entertainment law page.

How a mechanical rate is set and paid, step by step

1. The Judges set the rates for a five-year period. A petition to start a section 115 proceeding can be filed every fifth calendar year (17 U.S.C. 804(b)(4)), and the Judges aim for the rates a willing buyer and a willing seller would have negotiated (17 U.S.C. 115(c)(1)(F)). The current streaming table runs from 2023 through 2027 (37 CFR 385.21).
2. The physical and download rate is adjusted each year. The Judges recalculate it from the Consumer Price Index and must publish the new figures in the Federal Register at least 25 days before January 1; they take effect on January 1 (37 CFR 385.11(a)(2)). The 2026 figures were published December 1, 2025 (90 FR 55045).
3. A user takes a license. Digital services take the blanket license administered by the Mechanical Licensing Collective. A label or artist pressing copies of someone else's song uses a negotiated license or the compulsory license, which for physical copies requires a notice of intention.
4. Royalties accrue as copies are distributed or songs are streamed. A physical copy counts as distributed once the licensee has voluntarily and permanently parted with it (17 U.S.C. 115(c)(1)(B)).
5. The licensee reports and pays monthly. Individual licensees pay by the twentieth day of each month for the month before, under oath, with an annual statement certified by a CPA (17 U.S.C. 115(c)(2)(I)). Digital services report and pay the collective 45 calendar days after the end of each month (17 U.S.C. 115(d)(4)(A)(i)).
6. The money reaches the song's owners. The collective allocates streaming royalties per song; individual licensees pay the copyright owner directly.

Where does the mechanical rate come from?

The Copyright Act makes the right to reproduce and distribute recordings of a nondramatic musical work subject to a compulsory license (17 U.S.C. 115). Once recordings of a song have been distributed to the public in the United States with the copyright owner's authority, others can make and distribute their own recordings for the public by following the statute and paying the statutory rate. The license includes the privilege of arranging the song to fit the new performance, but the arrangement may not change the basic melody or fundamental character of the work. Digital services obtain a blanket license through the Mechanical Licensing Collective. For an artist planning to record someone else's song, our page on whether you need permission to release a cover song walks through the notice and payment steps.

What is the 2026 rate for physical copies and downloads?

For 2026, the rate for each song on a physical phonorecord or a permanent download is 13.1 cents, or 2.52 cents per minute of playing time or fraction of a minute, whichever is larger (37 CFR 385.11(a)(1)). The Copyright Royalty Judges announced those figures in a cost of living adjustment published December 1, 2025, which applies from January 1 through December 31, 2026. The adjustment is tied to the Consumer Price Index, starting from base rates of 12 cents and 2.31 cents, and is recalculated every year (90 FR 55045).

On a five-minute song, for example, the per-minute rate gives 12.6 cents, so the 13.1-cent minimum applies. On a six-minute song the per-minute rate gives 15.12 cents, which is larger, so that figure applies instead.

What is the 2026 rate for on-demand streaming?

Streaming does not work on a per-play penny rate. The regulations start with a headline percentage of each service's revenue, compare it with alternative calculations, and then divide a pool among all the songs played. The headline percentage rises each year of the current rate period:

The calculation then runs in steps (37 CFR 385.21). First, the all-in royalty for each service offering is the greater of the revenue percentage and a second measure based on what the service spends for the rights to stream the recordings, which the regulations call TCC. For a standalone portable subscription, for example, that second measure is the lesser of 26.2% of total content cost or $1.10 per subscriber; for a non-portable streaming-only subscription it is the lesser of 26.2% or 60 cents per subscriber. Second, the performance royalties the service pays for its use of the same musical works are subtracted from that amount. Third, the result is compared with any applicable royalty floor. Finally, the Mechanical Licensing Collective divides the resulting pool among the songs streamed, based on their share of plays.

Long songs get an adjustment in that last step: a recording that runs 5:01 to 6:00 counts as 1.2 plays, 6:01 to 7:00 as 1.4 plays, and each further minute adds 0.2 plays (37 CFR 385.21(c)). The performance royalties subtracted in the second step are licensed separately, often through the performing rights organizations described in our page on how PROs work and why ASCAP and BMI are under consent decrees.

Who actually collects these royalties?

The license fee is owed for the song, not the recording, so it belongs to the songwriter and any publisher or administrator who holds a share of the composition. For streaming, the Mechanical Licensing Collective allocates the per-song amounts. For physical copies and downloads, the licensee that makes and distributes the copies pays. Either way, payments follow the ownership and split information on file, so a song that is not properly registered or has conflicting splits can leave money sitting unpaid. Our page on registering a song's composition and recording covers the copyright side of that paperwork. The recording side earns its own digital royalties, explained in our page on internet radio royalties for artists.

When you review a recording, distribution or publishing agreement, it is worth checking how its mechanical terms relate to the current statutory figures, since the physical and download rate now changes every year. Our page on publishing deals covers what to look for before you sign.

What changes the answer

• The format. Physical copies and downloads use the per-song or per-minute rate, ringtones a flat 24 cents (37 CFR 385.11), and on-demand streams the revenue-share formula (37 CFR 385.21).
• Song length. Over five minutes, the per-minute figure takes over for copies and downloads (37 CFR 385.11(a)(1)), and long tracks count as more than one play in the streaming pool (37 CFR 385.21(c)).
• The year. The 13.1-cent figure applies only to 2026; each year's figure is published before January 1 (37 CFR 385.11(a)(2)).
• A negotiated license. Licenses voluntarily negotiated between song owners and licensees are given effect in place of the Judges' rates (17 U.S.C. 115(c)(2)(A)), and a direct deal with a digital service takes those songs out of the blanket license (17 U.S.C. 115(d)(1)(C)).
• Video instead of audio. "Phonorecords" exclude sounds accompanying a motion picture or other audiovisual work (17 U.S.C. 101), so a song in a video needs a separately negotiated license, as our page on who owns a music video explains.
• The rate period. The current streaming table ends with 2027; a new proceeding sets the rates for 2028 through 2032 (90 FR 61424).

A worked example

Common mistakes

• Budgeting with the old 12-cent base figure or last year's rate. The 2026 figure is 13.1 cents, and it changes every January 1.
• Paying the flat per-song amount on a track over five minutes, when 2.52 cents per minute, with any fraction counted as a full minute, gives a larger figure.
• Expecting a per-stream penny rate. Streaming mechanicals come from a revenue pool, minus performance royalties, divided by share of plays.
• Assuming the mechanical royalty goes to the performer. It is paid for the song, to its writers and publishers.
• Missing the twentieth-of-the-month payment date, which starts the 1.5% monthly late fee running.
• Reading a contract's mechanical clause as if it were the statutory rate. A negotiated license can set different terms; our post on licensing mistakes artists and productions make covers related traps.

What to do this week

1. Pull every recording, distribution and publishing agreement and mark any clause that sets a mechanical rate.
2. Compare those rates with the 2026 figures: 13.1 cents, or 2.52 cents per minute, for copies and downloads.
3. List the running time of each song you release or license, and flag anything over five minutes.
4. Check that each song's writers, publishers and splits are on file with your publisher or administrator and the collective.
5. If you are pressing other writers' songs, put the twentieth of each month on your calendar as the payment date.
6. Read your latest royalty statements and confirm the 2026 rate is the one being applied.

Frequently asked questions

Will the physical and download rate change in 2027?

It is recalculated each year from the Consumer Price Index, and the Judges must publish the new figures at least 25 days before January 1 (37 CFR 385.11(a)(2)). The streaming headline rate is already set at 15.35% for 2027 (37 CFR 385.21).

What happens to the rates after 2027?

On December 31, 2025, the Judges started the Phonorecords V proceeding to set rates and terms for January 1, 2028 through December 31, 2032. Petitions to participate, with a $150 filing fee, were due January 30, 2026 (90 FR 61424). Our page on who sets music royalty rates explains how such a proceeding runs.

Is a mechanical royalty the same as a performance royalty?

No. A mechanical royalty is paid for reproducing and distributing the song, while a performance royalty is paid for performing it publicly. For streaming, the formula subtracts the performance royalties a service pays for the same songs before the mechanical pool is set (37 CFR 385.21).

Can a label pay less than the statutory rate?

A license voluntarily negotiated between the song's owner and the licensee is given effect in place of the Judges' rates (17 U.S.C. 115(c)(2)(A)). So a contract can set different terms, which is why the mechanical clause in a recording or publishing deal deserves a careful read.

Do I owe a mechanical royalty on a song in the public domain?

The section 115 license and its rates apply to musical works still under copyright, so a song whose term has ended can be recorded without one. Whether a particular song has entered the public domain depends on when it was published and on its copyright term, set out in our page on how long a song's copyright lasts.

What happens to streaming royalties the collective cannot match to an owner?

They are held for a period set by the statute before any market-share distribution. Our page on how the Mechanical Licensing Collective pays songwriters covers the holding period and how to claim.

Zala IP Law advises songwriters, artists and publishers on publishing agreements, registration and royalties. If you want a second look at a deal or a royalty statement, request a consultation or call 404-313-1701.