Guide · Updated September 3, 2026 · 7 min read
Audora vs. CD Baby (2026): an honest comparison
Written by Audora, with the pay-once model given the credit it deserves.
CD Baby is the elder statesman of independent distribution. It was founded in 1998 and popularized the "pay once, stay up forever" model. Audora is young and built around the release: you create an account, and one monthly plan covers distribution, artwork, bios and promotion. The two barely compete for the same artist, and that is what makes the comparison useful. Work out which model fits you, and most of the decision is made.
Key takeaways
- CD Baby is a delivery service. You bring a finished release (artwork, copy, campaign and all), and it goes to the stores and stays there. You pay once per release with no renewals, and CD Baby keeps 9% of your royalties forever.
- Audora is built around making the release. One monthly plan covers the release and the work around it: cover art, bios and promotion that publishes approved posts to TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook Pages. Distribution is on the paid plans, and there is a Free plan to start on. We take nothing from your royalties on any plan. If you cancel and we keep your music distributed, we recover only our distribution costs from what it earns. Everything above that is still paid to you.
- The fee is the cheap part of a release. CD Baby's is $9.99 a single or $14.99 an album, one time (July 2026), and no subscription beats that. But it buys delivery only. The rest of the cost is the work around it: a freelance cover runs $200–$500, press copy $100–$300.
- CD Baby's parent company Downtown was acquired by Universal Music Group in February 2026. The "independent" pioneer now answers to the biggest major label.
Audora vs. CD Baby at a glance
Prices were checked in July 2026 against CD Baby's public cost page. Both services can change their terms at any time. The freelance figures are what that work costs to buy elsewhere, not a CD Baby charge.
| CD Baby | Audora | |
|---|---|---|
| Model | Pay once per release, self-serve | Create an account, then set up your first release |
| Artwork and copy | You supply them: a freelance cover runs $200–$500, press copy $100–$300 | Cover art and bios (short, medium and press) come from the same credits |
| Promotion tools | Sync licensing and marketing tools | Campaign planning with auto-posting to TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook Pages |
| Commission | 9% of all royalties, forever | We take nothing from your royalties on any plan. If you cancel and we keep your music distributed, we recover only our distribution costs from what it earns. Everything above that is still paid to you. |
| How you pay | $9.99 per single, $14.99 per album, one-time | One monthly plan covers the release, the artwork and the copy. Distribution is on the paid plans, and there is a Free plan to try first. See plans. |
| If you stop paying | Nothing to stop: music stays up | Releases stay live, under our distribution terms |
| Ownership | You keep ownership; parent owned by UMG since Feb 2026 | You keep ownership of your music |
| Distribution route | Self-serve delivery to stores | The Orchard (the majors' network) |
| Best for | Occasional releasers who hate subscriptions | Artists actively building each release |
Where CD Baby wins
- The set-and-forget guarantee. Pay once, and your music stays on every platform with nothing to renew, even if you never sign in again.
- Simplicity for rare releasers. One album every three years? $14.99 once beats any subscription arithmetic, including ours.
- Sync and publishing add-ons. Decades-old sync licensing and publishing administration programs that can collect royalties most artists don't even know they're owed.
- Nearly three decades of paying artists. Longevity builds justified trust.
The 9% that never goes away
CD Baby's model has one permanent tax: 9% of your royalties, forever. On a hobby release it's pennies, and that's fair. But commissions scale with success. If a track takes off years later, CD Baby keeps 9 cents of every dollar it earns, for as long as it earns.
Where Audora wins
- The money. We take nothing from your royalties on any plan. If you cancel and we keep your music distributed, we recover only our distribution costs from what it earns. Everything above that is still paid to you. Our revenue is the plan, not a share of what your music earns. CD Baby's 9% applies for as long as a release earns, hit or not.
- The release work is included. Cover art, bios (short, medium and press), campaign planning and rendered promo videos come from the same credits. Measure that against what the work costs elsewhere: a freelance designer alone runs $200–$500 per cover. CD Baby delivers your finished package, and Audora helps you build it.
- Promotion that posts itself. Promotion on Audora publishes the posts you approve, on schedule. CD Baby's promotion tools pitch playlists and sync, but they don't run your socials. TikTok, YouTube, Instagram (Stories included) and Facebook Pages post automatically, and nothing goes out until you approve it. A Facebook Page post is a photo or a link, never a video. Stories carry no link sticker, so your release link goes in your bio.
- People on the other end. A person answers, usually within one business day, and everything that goes out is checked first.
- Distribution through The Orchard, the network the major labels use. We watch what's performing and put our best artists in front of the industry.
Already on CD Baby? Your streams can move with you
Because CD Baby has no renewal, many artists leave old releases there and start new ones elsewhere. That's fine, and it avoids a migration. If you want everything in one place anyway, streams follow your ISRC codes: redeliver with the same codes, wait until the new version is live, then take down the old one. The full steps are in our switching guide.
Which should you pick?
- Pick CD Baby if: you release rarely, want zero ongoing costs or obligations, and are happy trading 9% forever for never thinking about your distributor again.
- Pick Audora if: you're actively building a release schedule and want promotion and presentation handled in the same plan.
- Or use both: some artists keep their older catalog on CD Baby and build and promote new releases through Audora. Nothing about either service prevents it.
Questions
Is CD Baby really pay-once with no subscription?
Yes. As of July 2026, CD Baby charges $9.99 per single or $14.99 per album, one time, and your music stays on streaming platforms with no renewal fees. The ongoing cost is the commission: CD Baby keeps 9% of all royalties the release earns, permanently.
Does Audora charge a commission like CD Baby?
No. We take nothing from your royalties on any plan. If you cancel and we keep your music distributed, we recover only our distribution costs from what it earns. Everything above that is still paid to you. Our revenue is the monthly plan, which covers the release along with cover art, bios and promotion tools. The details are in our distribution terms. CD Baby has no subscription to keep or cancel, but its 9% commission applies forever on each release.
Who owns CD Baby now?
CD Baby's parent company Downtown was acquired by Universal Music Group in a $775 million deal completed in February 2026. CD Baby continues to operate as a distribution service, but it is now part of the largest major-label group rather than an independent company.
Which is better for an artist who releases once a year?
On distribution cost alone, CD Baby wins: one $9.99–$14.99 fee with no renewals is hard to beat. The comparison changes if you also need cover art, bios and social promotion for that yearly release. Audora bundles those into one plan and takes nothing from your royalties, which can cost less than buying the work separately alongside CD Baby. A freelance designer alone runs $200–$500 per cover.
Can I use both CD Baby and Audora?
Yes. Distributors only conflict when the same release is delivered twice. A common setup is leaving older releases on CD Baby (they stay up with no fees) while building and promoting new releases through Audora. Keep each release with exactly one distributor and keep a copy of all your ISRCs.
Will my streams reset if I move a release from CD Baby to Audora?
Not if you move it correctly: deliver the same recording with the same ISRC through the new distributor, wait for it to go live, then request the takedown at CD Baby. Stream counts and playlists follow the ISRC. Skipping ahead (a takedown first, or new ISRCs) is what resets counts.