Do I need PRS, PPL or both?

It depends on four things: whether you wrote the songs, whether they're out or played live, whether you sang or played on the recording, and whether you own it. Answer up to six questions and you get the UK registrations that apply to you, in the order to do them, and the ones that can wait.

QUESTION 1
Do you live and pay tax in the UK?

Up to six questions, under a minute. No sign-up, nothing stored.

How to use it

1Answer for today. Yes only if it's already true: a song that's out, a gig you've played, a recording you paid for.
2Read the list in order. The registrations that apply to you come back in the order to do them, each with what it pays.
3Get the shares in writing. If you co-wrote, agree and sign the split before you register, so every society gets the same numbers.
4Register each song and recording. Joining isn't enough. Each song and each recording has to be registered, or the money has nowhere to go.
5Leave the rest for later. Anything marked not yet can wait until the answer changes. Run the check again when it does.

What each one pays

PRS for Music pays the songwriter when a song is played on radio, TV, in venues, online and at gigs, including yours if you report the setlist. MCPS pays the songwriter when a song is copied: every stream, download, CD and record. A publishing administrator can collect that instead. PPL pays the performers on a recording and the person who owns it when it's broadcast or played in public. Three different pots of money, for three different jobs. Doing one of the jobs doesn't sign you up for the others.

Why so much of this money goes unclaimed

When our team went through the paperwork of the artists we work with this October, a large share still had at least one of these open: a society joined but songs never registered, live shows never reported, or a recording out with no one claiming the owner's share. Nobody had been careless. Each registration is a separate form at a separate body, and none of them tells you about the others. Our UK release checklist puts every one of them in order against a release date.

Questions

Do I need PRS and PPL?

They pay different people. PRS for Music pays the songwriter when a song is played or performed. PPL pays the performer and the owner of the recording when it's broadcast or played in public. If you write, perform and own your recordings, you're likely to need both. If you only do one of those, you need one.

What's the difference between PRS, MCPS and PPL?

PRS for Music pays songwriters when a song is performed or broadcast. MCPS pays songwriters when a song is copied: streams, downloads, CDs, vinyl. PPL pays performers and recording owners when the recording is broadcast or played in public.

Can my distributor collect all of this for me?

A distributor collects what the stores pay for the recording. It can't collect the songwriter's share of performing royalties, which only reaches you through a performing right society. PPL money is claimed through PPL.

Is it worth joining PRS before I've released anything?

If you've played your own songs live, yes: your setlists pay once you report them. If nothing's out and you haven't played live, it can wait. Join before the first release or radio play so nothing is missed.

Do I need MCPS if I'm with a publishing administrator?

Usually not. A publishing administrator collects mechanicals for you. What matters is that only one of them claims each song, because two claims on the same song freeze the money.

I live outside the UK. What do I join?

The societies where you live and pay tax. They do the same jobs and collect from the UK and elsewhere through sister societies. Joining a foreign society instead is possible in some cases but rarely better.

Is this advice?

No. It's the bodies' published rules turned into questions. Check fees and terms on each one's own page on the day, and for anything about your own tax, contracts or finances, talk to a qualified adviser.

THE GUIDE BEHIND IT

The UK independent release checklist (2026)Releasing music independently in the UK: which royalty bodies to join and when, the codes you need, the BBC uploader, tax, and a two-week timeline.How do independent artists make money?Six places money comes from for an independent artist, which two or three fit you now, the lines that switch each one on, and what to leave for later.

MORE FREE TOOLS

Artist development stage checkFive questions place you at one of the five stages, with what to do this month.Release countdown calculatorPut in your release date and get every deadline before it, as a calendar file.Split sheet generatorWriters, shares and who owns the master, checked to add up to 100, ready to print and sign.Artist bio generatorYour own words turned into the three bios you need: one line, 50 words and 150.Spotify pitch builderYour own words turned into a short pitch for the playlist editors, with the date to pitch by.Booking email builderThe two-line pitch a promoter will read, from your own words, plus a fallback note for a venue.Press release builderA one-page release for your single or launch night, laid out the way editors read them.EPK templateA one-page press kit from your story, bio, one track, a live video and two photos, in your own colour.UK music funding checkerFive questions match you to the UK grants, bursaries and showcase calls open now, soonest deadline first.Release budget templateYour own quotes against each line of a release, what's a must and what can wait, printed for a funding application.

All free tools

Want the whole plan done with you, week by week, around your music? Your first month of HyperTribe is £1 until Sun 29 Nov, then £29 a month.

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