20 Great Royalty-Free Music Websites for Your Videos

Royalty-Free music is a great way to get some music in a project, video, or game without getting into trouble with copyright or royalty fees. Royalty-Free music is a one-time purchase for a user who claims the musical piece and is free to use it thereafter.

In short, royalty-free music will cost you money only when you purchase it rather than investing money into royalties or lawsuits later down the road! Here are 20 of the best stock music sites you can use to source your music.

Read this first! Important points about using Royalty-Free Music

If you are searching for royalty-free music, then you want to make sure not to get into legal trouble or be liable for paying royalties later on. Therefore, you MUST follow these rules.

Check The License

Royalty-free music licenses come in different forms. If you want music for a YouTube or social media video then you can often find a ‘personal’ or ‘standard’ license, which is usually relatively cheap.

If you want to use the music for commercial purposes, advertisements, or movies, then different and more expensive licenses may be required (These may vary based on the provider).

Read the licenses VERY carefully. If in doubt, seek legal advice and get them to advise based on the terms and conditions of the licenses.

FREE Royalty-Free Music may require Attribution

Some marketplaces offer a free license on the basis of attribution. This means that you MUST give appropriate credit for the work.

For example, if you are using music for a YouTube video, you must follow the attribution rules set out by the royalty-free music provider. For example, you may need to credit the music at the end of the video or link back to the provider’s website in the description.

If you don’t have the money to pay, then you need to be willing to credit the author if required. If you don’t, they could come after you looking for license money. Also, you’re effectively stealing their work if you don’t follow these rules, which is a big no-no.

Get your Music from a Reliable Source

Make sure to do your research beforehand when choosing your provider of stock music. Check the reputation of the site and make sure you’re not buying into a scam!

1. Premium Beat

It is one of the most popular websites that offer a great variety of music in its catalog. Premium Beat promises high-quality exclusive tracks and sound effects that will bring life to your projects. It is part of the renowned Shutterstock company.

The music is organized based on genre, mood, artist, BPM, and instruments. Different prices are charged based on if your music is going to be used for personal or commercial projects.

PremiumBeat guarantees music from world-class composers and music producers. Their professional team is composed of members from organizations like ASCAP, BMI, PRS, SESAC, and SOCAN.

2. Hooksounds

Hooksounds will hook you up with the best music variety for your creative productions, business, or YouTube videos. It is a credible platform owned by two partners who promise good quality, curated royalty-free music. Its increasingly unique catalog has now caught the attention of many.

The collection is exclusive which you can only find on the website. There are three types of license payment plans which include the Premium or Personal plan for $14.99/month, the Business or Most Popular plan for commercial use for $49/month, and the Custom Plan.

3. Artlist

The site has been designed and developed beautifully and is extremely user-friendly. Artlist provides various subscription plans based on your need for either music or SFX (or both) for unlimited use of thousands of songs.

The website has a facility of advanced filtering options such as the ability to choose music tracks based on various classifications.

4. Audio Jungle

One of the most popular marketplaces for music, Audio jungle has an enormous selection compared to many of its competitors. It commits to its name pretty well, a jungle full of audio varieties that are royalty-free. There are millions of sounds with different pricing.

Some of the tracks are available at the lowest price of $1. It offers music from every genre you could think of (pop, heavy metal, vocals, instrumentals, and many more) and has got amazing tunes, sound effects, video effects, stock footage, and stock photography.

Their collection is updated weekly so users can never run out of available options. This music licensing website is part of Envato Market. Envato market includes a host of professional digital assets such as digital music, web templates, stock videos, stock photos, graphic templates, and much more.

5. BenSound

It is a highly appreciated platform with an easygoing name. Bensound was founded by a French musician and composer, Benjamin TISSOT. It offers a great variety of royalty-free stock music tracks that can be used diversely in animations, slideshows, website background music, web advertisements, YouTube, TV, and radio broadcasts.

There are three pricing plans for a music license from Bensound, this includes the Standard, Extended, and Premium subscriptions. You can also use the music from the website without paying any price (under Creative Commons License) provided that you give all credentials to the website.

6. Pond5

Pond5 is another royalty-free stock photo marketplace with a very large selection. The Songs have been categorized in terms of theme covering everything from adventure, to orchestral, meditation, and even war.

Other media options include sound effects, after-effects, and royalty-free stock videos. You can buy individual tracks, get pre-purchased credit bundles or go all in with monthly or annual memberships.

7. Soundstripe

Soundstripe is another royalty-free music distributor that appreciates the power of partnerships.

It has gained popularity by working side by side with a century of talented, gifted, and enthusiastic artists. Search for your desired music track by filters such as mood, genre, pace, instruments, keys, vocals, duration, and BPM.

Soundstripe offers three pricing plans: the Creator plan for $9.99/month, the Pro plan for $19.99/month, and the Pro Plus plan for $33.99/month.

8. Epidemic Sound

Epidemic Sound has curated a unique and nice collection of more than 750 music albums. They use straightforward licensing packages.

The Personal subscription plan costs €9/month and the Commercial plan costs €19/month. They also offer a 30-day free trial.

9. YouTube Audio Library

YouTube Audio Library has proven to be a gem for many aspiring YouTubers who cannot afford high prices but need a boost to increase their audience.

It’s extremely easy to use with a stock music library that is big, wide, and deep. YouTube audio licensing is absolutely free and when searching, you may opt to customize the search to your liking. You can do this by sorting via different options including instrument, artist, genre, mood, etc.

It is important to exercise caution when using content under the YouTube audio license, as this license only covers the use of the audio within YouTube itself. If you use this audio outside of YouTube, such as on other social networks, you may be subject to copyright strikes, which can result in lost work and potential legal issues. This doesn’t apply to creative commons tracks, which you can usually use as long as you provide attribution.

10. Purple Planet

Purple Planet offers thousands of uncompressed, royalty-free tracks and audio sound effects.

Users have access to unlimited free downloads for non-commercial purposes, like YouTube videos, as long as they fulfill all attribution requirements. However, for bigger projects like a game or to use in a film, there’s a standard license fee of as little as $8 or a broadcast license for $40.

The collection is not very vast and filtering options are rather strange- classified on the basis of the song’s impression or effect on the listener.

11. Icons8

Icons8 is another great place for stock music for your videos. The website has its music categorized by various genres and moods for you to choose from. The best thing about it is that it offers free use of music as long as you attribute the website and use it for non-commercial stuff.

The pricing plans are somewhat modest and similar to most popular royalty-free music sites. The plans include the Single Track plan for $9 per track, the Subscription plan for $13/month, and the Music + Graphics plan for $29/month.

12. Free Stock Music

Free Stock Music is just what the name suggests, pretty straightforward right? The site is really simple and easy to navigate, you can search through categories, moods, licenses, tempos, etc.

They have a music catalog of almost 4000 songs which is great. They also have a curated collection of Royalty Free Music Playlists which you can check out. The standard license costs $9 per track or if you decide on a whole album, there is a discount price.

13. Stock Music

Stock Music is another popular platform among the best royalty-free music sites. Not only do they offer a great collection of music but they also have sound effects and have been in the business for 20+ years.

There are two pricing plans or subscriptions to choose from if you go with Stock Music and that includes the monthly subscription plan for $16.67/month or Individual Music Licenses for $39.95 per track or $2.95 per sound effect.

14. MixKit

MixKit is your all-in-one place for your next video or music project. The site offers stock video clips, stock music, sound effects, and even video templates. The best part about it is that it’s completely free, provided the content creators give the right attribution.

The site is simple and easy to use, you can scroll through the music genres and categories and easily download your tracks. The video templates apply to Premier Pro, After Effects, Final Cut Pro, and DaVinci Resolve.

15. Addictive Tracks

Addictive Tracks is another great internet source for royalty-free music. The reason why the site is incredibly popular is that they offer tracks as Stems. This means that you could further edit the track or strip it down instrument-wise, whichever way you wish.

You can browse different categories of music and decide if you want to purchase on a per-track basis, monthly, or annual plan. The audio tracks are made by world-class composers.

16. Music Vine

Music Vine is another great place for royalty-free music tracks. Their filter system is some of the best I’ve ever seen, this includes browsing by genre, mood, production type, movie genre, culture, era, and many more creative categories.

The site offers three subscription plans: The Pro Subscription has the Pro Lite plan for $24.99/month and $44.99/month. The Creator Subscription offers the Creator Ambassador plan for $17.49/month and the Creator Standard for $24.99/month. Lastly, you have the Pay-Per-Use subscription.

Note that if you choose annual billing, there is a 20% discount on all prices on a monthly basis.

17. Jamendo

Jamendo offers unlimited access to its free music library for non-commercial use. You have unlimited downloads if you don’t plan on using the music for commercial purposes. Their music catalog is packed with over 250,000+ songs.

The site offers two pricing plans, the monthly plan for €49/month and the annual plan for €399/year. Additionally, there is a nice little feature on the site that lets you download and use background music free for 2 weeks for venues.

18. Shockwave Sound

Shockwave Sound is another platform that offers tracks as Stems. Their carefully curated collection of music is top-notch. They have three license plans that include the Standard, Extended, and Widest licenses.

You can browse their music catalog via mood, genre, and production types. You can even select tracks featuring a prominent instrument you’re looking for which is a nice little addition. Naturally, you can browse through artists as well.

19. AudioNetwork

If you want high-quality music then this might be the place. AudioNetwork is a platform for stock music used for TV, videos, and advertising. You have curated playlists, tracks, and various artists to choose from.

Granted, their pricing plans are somewhat confusing, but, it seems that they offer custom plans and subscriptions based on your use of the music. Contact them to check it out in more detail if the site sparks your interest.

20. Filmstro

Last but not least is Filmstro. The platform offers great stock music that you can further customize through momentum, depth, and power faders. It is somewhat unique when you think about it.

You have three pricing plans to choose from: Monthly, Yearly, and Lifetime plans. The prices vary depending on your choice and can go as low as $8.25 if you select the annual YouTuber plan.

Does Royalty-Free mean Free Music?

This is a common misconception as many think that Royalty-Free actually means free. While many do offer free download and use (non-commercially), royalty-free means purchasing a license for a specific track, and then you can use it whichever way you choose. So, in short, royalty-free does not mean actually free.

Do you still need a license for Royalty-Free Music?

As previously stated, you need a license if you plan to use the music for commercial purposes. That includes if you use it for music videos, TV, or even podcasts, just to name a few. Always read the licensing agreements before you decide to purchase royalty-free music and follow the regulations. You may still need to provide attribution for the music in some cases even if you paid for a royalty-free license.

Can you profit from Royalty-Free Music?

Absolutely, you can! If you’re the creator of the stock music, then, you profit from the purchase of the license to use it by users. If you’re a user and purchase the proper license for a track, you can then use it for commercial use and therefore profit from it.

Can you use just a few seconds of copyrighted Music?

This is also a common question that many people don’t get. Even if you use a few seconds of copyrighted music you can still get flagged. Always contact the original source and ask for permission, purchase a license, or the music if you wish to use it, especially commercially!

Conclusion

Determining which music source is the best option is important because it can have a big effect on your project. Go through each website and figure out which one suits your requirements and will attract an audience.

Also, make sure to be careful with licenses. For example, if you’re going to use the music for commercial advertising purposes, a cheap personal license will probably not cover you. If you are going to use free options, then make sure to give appropriate credit where required.