The 4 Best Music Libraries Accepting Submissions: A List of Music Submission Opportunities

music licensing

The Best Music Libraries Accepting Submissions

Here are the best music libraries currently accepting submissions by composers and producers. I’ve been licensing my music for the past ten years, and this information is directly based on my experience earning thousands of dollars through licensing on these sites.

If you're new to stock music licensing and want the full picture before choosing which libraries to submit to, start with our complete guide to making money licensing stock music. For a full ranked comparison of all the major libraries, see our best music libraries for stock composers.

To get the most out of your music library submissions, sign up for this free 5-day music licensing crash course!

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I’ve found music licensing to be one of the best ways to earn passive income as a musician. I was able to earn over $10,000 in less than four years through my music licensing side hustle. In fact, in 2024 I earned almost $6,000 from my favorite site, despite not uploading a single song to that library in 2024.

If you want to estimate how much you can earn, check out this free music licensing earnings calculator.

Exclusive vs Non-Exclusive Music Libraries

With an exclusive library, they have the exclusive right to sell your song — sometimes permanently. This can lead to higher royalty payouts and even upfront cash payments, but you must be careful before locking in.

With a non-exclusive library, you can upload the same song to multiple libraries simultaneously. I recommend non-exclusive for beginners — all of the libraries below are non-exclusive. For more on strategy, read our article on how to build a music licensing strategy.

How Do These Libraries Pay You?

None of the stock music companies below offer upfront fees. They pay you whenever a license to use your song is purchased — they keep a portion (50-60%) and forward the rest. If your song is publicly performed and you’re registered with a PRO like BMI or ASCAP, you’ll also earn broadcast royalties.

Best Music Libraries Accepting Submissions (Non-Exclusive)
Library	Pros	Cons	Rating
🏆 Pond 5	Lots of buyers Easy interface Reasonable review process AI payments program	Lower payout rate	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Audio Jungle	Huge buyer base	Temporarily paused new submissions Painful upload process	⛔⛔⛔
AudioSparx	Easy review Diversified opportunities Slow and steady payments	Few direct licenses Dated interface	⭐⭐⭐⭐
SongTradr	No review process Direct pitching opportunities Potential for big payouts	Very hard to make actual sales	⭐⭐⭐

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#1 — Pond 5

Pond 5 is my all-time favorite music library for beginners. It has a very active marketplace, reasonable review standards, and a straightforward interface. It's where I’ve earned the bulk of my money. You can read a more in-depth Pond 5 review here, and our guide on how to make money on Pond5.

Pond 5 has been signing deals allowing AI companies to train their models on Pond 5's library. I earned almost $5,000 in 2024 on Pond 5 just from AI.

#2 — AudioSparx

AudioSparx has been a decent earner for me. It includes a diversity of extra revenue streams — compilation albums, in-store playback opportunities, ringtone licensing, and AI training programs. My recommendation is to focus on Pond 5, but simultaneously upload to AudioSparx because it's easy to do so at the same time. Note that submissions to AudioSparx are non-exclusive but in perpetuity — you cannot pull songs later to move them to an exclusive library. Read our full Audiosparx review here.

#3 — AudioJungle 👎 (Currently Paused)

Update 2024: AudioJungle has temporarily paused accepting new musicians. Don't bother applying until they reopen. When they do, it's worth pursuing — they have a very active marketplace — but the review process is demanding and the upload process painful. Read the full AudioJungle review and our step-by-step guide to selling music on AudioJungle.

#4 — SongTradr

SongTradr is different from other stock music companies — they allow you to directly submit tracks for specific opportunities (a pop song for a TV show, for example). Big-name clients are directly searching for music and sometimes willing to pay thousands of dollars upfront if you’re selected. I've made the final list a few times, though never been selected. Just one placement would make it all worth it.

#5 — Crucial Music

Crucial Music has fairly high standards but pitches for really premium placements. Non-exclusive, requires proof of all rights, no recognizable loops. Of 9 songs submitted, 6 were rejected and 3 accepted. Best fit for producers with more complex arrangements.

#6 — TunEdge

TunEdge is a non-exclusive library that sends out emails soliciting songs for specific opportunities with tight turnarounds. A unique model — they need an old school hip hop song in 4 days, and if you meet the deadline, you have a good shot of getting the song accepted permanently whether or not it gets licensed for that specific opportunity. Of 29 songs submitted, 12 were accepted.

Conclusion

Those are my favorite non-exclusive music libraries accepting submissions. I’ve got my music up on each of these sites. I've seen the best results with Pond 5 and AudioSparx, but have still made money on AudioJungle and SongTradr.

Ready to get started? Our complete guide to making money licensing stock music covers the full strategy — from choosing platforms to building a catalog that earns passively. And our full ranked comparison of the best music libraries goes deeper on each platform's payout, curation standards, and who it suits best.

Join the FREE Music Licensing Crash Course

From a Frustrated Producer in a Ragtag Bedroom Studio to Major Placements on TV Earning $1,000s!

My name is Evan, and I've been making music since around 3rd grade. I'm from San Diego, California, but I've lived in Washington, DC for the last 20 years.

After 3 grueling years of grad school, though I had put aside serious attempts at making music. I found myself spending my days doing work that was dreadfully uncreative, with a ton of student student loan debt.

Which made me feel like my favorite parts of myself were withering.

But I didn't know what to do about it.

Being in my early 30s with tons of student loan debt, in a world where there is "no money in music," I felt like my youthful dreams of trying to "make it big" were dead. Like my music would remain unheard in my head and hard drive.

Frustrated by my inability to get my music heard, I started researching solutions.

Instead, I wanted to find a way where I could focus on making the music and let someone else deal with promoting it.

I realized the music licensing was the perfect opportunity for a solo artist like me to get my music heard, without having to do any promotion. I just need to focus on improving what I could control - my songwriting and my production skills.

While I still have a full-time day job, I have created systems that have allowed me to produce dozens of songs a year in my spare time.

My songs have been on Netflix, TV shows like the 90 Day Fiance, an award-winning indie film, and NPR’s “All Thing Considered.” They've also been streamed millions of times.

In addition to being a music producer, I am passionate about teaching people how they can make professional-sounding music and earn money licensing it, all in their spare time.

Thousands of musicians, like yourself, have trusted me to guide their musical journey. My YouTube videos have been watched nearly a million times. And my story has been in Forbes, Side Hustle Nation, and the Side Hustle School.

You Can Achieve Your Musical Dreams Too - Attend the Free Music Licensing Workshop!