PRS payouts rise as more music earns royalties

PRS for Music paid royalties on 7.8 million works in 2025, extending payments to more creators than ever before.

The society distributed £1.07 billion to songwriters, composers and publishers, up 4.9 percent year on year, as total collections reached £1.24 billion, an increase of 7.7 percent.

Growth was driven by a rising number of works generating income, with 2.3 million more pieces earning royalties than in 2020. A total of 4,541 writers received payments for the first time, sharing £1.96 million.

Streaming remained the largest contributor, generating £351.4 million, while total online income reached £447.2 million. Video on demand also increased, alongside continued expansion across international markets, where revenues climbed to £367.3 million.

Live music delivered record returns, exceeding £100 million for the first time, with more than 37,600 members receiving payments from performances. Increased reporting, including over 231,000 submitted setlists, helped capture more activity.

Broadcast income from radio and television remained broadly stable at £111.8 million.

Andrea Czapary Martin said: “We’ve delivered another year of strong growth, with revenues up 7 percent and for the second consecutive year paying over £1 billion to songwriters, composers and publishers.”

She added that improvements to payment systems aim to ensure creators receive royalties more quickly and accurately.