Music retail spans recorded-music trade revenue, consumer formats, streams, album-equivalent consumption, exports and rights income. The figures below distinguish those measures by geography and period, with global revenue data from IFPI and UK market and consumption data from the BPI.
Key Music Retail Statistics
The most broadly useful music retail statistics are:
- US$29.6 billion was global recorded-music trade revenue in 2024, up 4.8% from 2023.
- US$20.4 billion came from global streaming revenue in 2024, representing 69.0% of global recorded-music revenue.
- 752 million paid subscription accounts existed globally at the end of 2024.
- US$4.8 billion was global physical recorded-music revenue in 2024, down 3.1% year over year.
- 4.6% growth was recorded by global vinyl revenue in 2024, its 18th consecutive year of growth.
- 87.8% of recorded-music revenue in Latin America came from streaming in 2024.
- 40.3% of global recorded-music revenue came from the USA and Canada together in 2024.
- 22.5% growth was recorded by Latin American recorded-music revenue in 2024, its fifteenth consecutive year of growth.
- £1.49 billion was UK recorded-music revenue in 2024, up 4.8%.
- £1.02 billion was UK streaming revenue in 2024, equal to 68.1% of UK recorded-music revenue.
- 199.6 billion audio streams were recorded in the UK during 2024.
- 88.8% of UK recorded-music consumption came from streaming in 2024.
- £246.5 million was UK physical-format revenue in 2024, up 1.3%.
- £794.2 million was UK recorded-music export income in 2024.
- Over £2 billion was invested by UK record-label businesses in artist A&R and marketing between 2020 and 2024.
- Around 600 British artists each accumulated more than 100 million worldwide audio streams in 2024.
Contents
- Global music retail revenue and growth
- Streaming adoption and subscription data
- Physical music retail formats
- Regional music retail trends
- UK music retail consumption and revenue
- Music retail exports, investment and outcomes
Global Music Retail Revenue and Growth
IFPI’s global recorded-music series measures record-company trade revenue from recorded-music products and licensing. It is therefore a useful market-scale indicator, but it is not the same as total consumer retail spending or all music-industry income.
| Year | Global recorded-music trade revenue | Reported change | Geography and definition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | US$17.4 billion | — | Global recorded music |
| 2019 | US$18.7 billion | — | Global recorded music |
| 2020 | US$20.0 billion | — | Global recorded music |
| 2021 | US$23.7 billion | — | Global recorded music |
| 2022 | US$25.8 billion | — | Global recorded music |
| 2023 | US$28.6 billion | 10.2% | Global recorded music |
| 2024 | US$29.6 billion | 4.8% | Global recorded music |
Source: IFPI: Amidst Highly Competitive Market, Global Recorded Music Revenues Grew 4.8% in 2024. IFPI market values are sourced from record-company members and national groups, and local-currency restatements can change historic values because of exchange rates.
The 2024 figure describes recorded-music trade revenue, not a complete retail-sales total. That distinction matters when comparing it with streaming accounts, physical sales, exports or rights income measured by other organizations.
Streaming Adoption and Subscription Data
Streaming was the dominant global recorded-music format in 2024. IFPI reported US$20.4 billion in streaming revenue, equal to 69.0% of global recorded-music revenue, while paid subscription accounts reached 752 million by the end of the year.
- Paid subscription streaming revenue increased 9.5% in 2024 globally, measuring revenue growth rather than account growth.
- Ad-supported streaming formats grew 1.2% in 2024 globally.
- Streaming revenues added US$1.4 billion of global growth in 2024, according to IFPI’s format-revenue measure.
- Streaming represented 87.8% of Latin American recorded-music revenue in 2024.
- Streaming represented 99.5% of recorded-music revenue in the Middle East and North Africa in 2024.
Source: IFPI: Amidst Highly Competitive Market, Global Recorded Music Revenues Grew 4.8% in 2024 and IFPI Global Music Report 2025: State of the Industry.
The account figure should not be read as a count of unique people or all streaming users. Streaming shares describe the share of recorded-music revenue, not listening time or total consumer spending.
Physical Music Retail Formats
Global physical recorded-music revenue reached US$4.8 billion in 2024, down 3.1% after physical revenue increased 14.5% in 2023. The category contains divergent format results rather than one uniform physical-market trend.
| Format or category | 2024 result | Geography and measure |
|---|---|---|
| Physical recorded music | US$4.8 billion; down 3.1% | Global trade revenue |
| Vinyl | Up 4.6%; 18th consecutive year of growth | Global trade revenue |
| CDs | Down 6.1% | Global trade revenue |
| Music videos | Down 15.5% | Global trade revenue |
| Downloads and other digital | Down 7.7%; 2.8% of revenue | Global, excluding streaming |
Source: IFPI Global Music Report 2025: State of the Industry. Vinyl growth is a trade-revenue measure, not a unit-sales measure.
The UK shows the same format-level contrast. UK physical-format revenue rose 1.3% to £246.5 million in 2024, while vinyl LP revenue rose 2.9% to £145.7 million and CD revenue fell 0.5% to £96.7 million.
- UK digital-download revenue fell 6.6% to £24.3 million in 2024, excluding streaming.
- UK vinyl revenue grew more than 650%, from £19.4 million in 2014 to £145.7 million in 2024; the comparison is nominal.
Source: UK Recorded Music Market Hits £1.49 Billion in 2024, Marking a Decade of Growth.
These figures are revenues, not physical-unit counts. They also use different currencies and market definitions, so global and UK values should not be added together.
Regional Music Retail Trends
Regional music retail data shows a large established-market base alongside faster growth in several emerging markets. The percentages below refer to recorded-music trade revenue unless a different denominator is stated.
| Region or market | 2024 result | Specific denominator or caveat |
|---|---|---|
| USA and Canada | 40.3% of global revenue; up 2.1% | Combined regional market |
| Europe | 29.5% of global revenue; up 8.3% | Regional revenue |
| Asia | Up 1.3%, after 14.4% in 2023 | Regional revenue |
| Latin America | Up 22.5% | Fifteenth consecutive year of growth |
| Australasia | US$629 million; up 6.4% | Regional revenue |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | US$110 million; up 22.6% | First time above US$100 million |
Source: IFPI: Amidst Highly Competitive Market, Global Recorded Music Revenues Grew 4.8% in 2024.
At country level, the US market grew 2.2% in 2024, Germany grew 4.1%, France grew 7.5%, China grew 9.6%, Brazil grew 21.7% and Mexico grew 15.6%. Canada grew 1.5%, although IFPI noted that its comparison was affected by a one-off performance-rights payment in 2023.
- Japan’s recorded-music revenue fell 0.2% in 2024, with IFPI attributing the flat result to physical-format decline.
- Asia accounted for 45.1% of global physical recorded-music revenue in 2024.
- South Africa accounted for 75% of Sub-Saharan Africa’s recorded-music revenue in 2024.
Latin America’s streaming share and growth rate use different denominators: the first is a share of regional recorded-music revenue, while the second is year-over-year regional revenue growth.
UK Music Retail Consumption and Revenue
The UK recorded-music market reached £1.49 billion in 2024, up 4.8%, and BPI reported ten consecutive years of revenue growth through 2024. Its revenue definition combines streaming, physical, downloads, synchronisation and public performance.
| UK measure | 2024 result | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| Recorded-music revenue | £1.49 billion; up 4.8% | Market revenue |
| Streaming revenue | £1.02 billion; 68.1% of total | Subscription, ad-supported and video streaming |
| Paid subscriptions | £875.5 million; over 86% of streaming revenue | Reported paid services |
| Audio streaming consumption | 199.6 billion streams | Consumption units |
| Album-equivalent consumption | 200.5 million; up 9.7% | Sales and streams combined |
| Public performance and broadcast | £161.7 million; up 5.6% | Rights income |
| Synchronisation | £43.9 million; up 11.3% | Film, television, games and advertising use |
Sources: UK Recorded Music Market Hits £1.49 Billion in 2024, Marking a Decade of Growth and BPI Playback 2024: Women Dominate Charts, Physical Music Returns and Streaming Soars.
BPI’s consumption figures are based on Official Charts data and use album-equivalent methodology, so 200.5 million is not a count of physical albums. Streaming represented 88.8% of UK recorded-music consumption in 2024, compared with 87.7% in 2023.
- The UK recorded more than 4 billion audio streams in a single week in May 2024, a peak-week measure rather than an annual average.
- Four UK tracks exceeded 200 million combined audio and video streams each in 2024.
- More than 10,000 artists surpassed 1 million UK audio streams during 2023; this threshold does not measure artist revenue.
Music Retail Exports, Investment and Artist Outcomes
UK recorded-music exports reached £794.2 million in 2024, up 1.9% year over year compared with 7.6% growth in 2023. The BPI measure covers record-label overseas income, not all UK music-industry exports.
| Export, investment or outcome | Reported result | Period and scope |
|---|---|---|
| UK recorded-music exports | £794.2 million | 2024 |
| Historical exports | £364 million in 2000; £243 million in 2013 | Nominal export income |
| Label A&R and marketing investment | Over £2 billion | 2020–2024, UK record-label businesses |
| UK acts’ global stream share | Around 8–9% | 2024 estimate; UK population context about 1% of world population |
| British artists above 100 million worldwide audio streams | Around 600 | 2024 |
| MEGS-supported artists | More than 450 | Approximate prior decade through 2024 |
| MEGS recipient-act streams | 15.9 billion; up 11% | 2024, worldwide streams |
Source: UK recorded music exports rose to a £794 million high in 2024.
BPI also reported that more than 450 artists were supported by the Music Export Growth Scheme over the decade covered through 2024, with nearly £14 generated per £1 of government funding. That return is an industry-reported program estimate, not a randomized causal effect.
MEGS recipient acts collectively accumulated 15.9 billion global streams in 2024, up 11% from 2023. Separately, BPI reported that UK labels invested well over £2 billion in marketing and A&R between 2018 and 2023; this overlaps in time with other investment reporting and should not be added to the 2020–2024 figure.
The estimate that UK acts represented around 8–9% of global streams in 2024 is a stream-share estimate, not a revenue share. Likewise, the approximately 600 British artists above 100 million worldwide audio streams are counted by streaming threshold, not by UK retail sales or artist income.