Airtune vs BeatStars: honest 2026 comparison for India

Airtune vs BeatStars is a choice between global reach and an India-first way of getting paid. BeatStars is the best-known beat store in the world, and it takes 0% of beat sales on its paid plans. Airtune is a smaller, invite-only store made in India, where buyers pay by UPI and producers withdraw in rupees.

Every BeatStars fact below comes from its own help centre, checked on 8 Nov 2026. Every Airtune fact comes from the Airtune pricing, licensing and policy pages, checked the same day.

In short

• BeatStars wins on global name recognition and 0% commission from its $4.99 Starter plan.
• Airtune wins on Indian payments: UPI checkout, separate ₹ and $ prices for buyers, and rupee payouts to UPI or bank.
• Airtune takes 0% only on Studio Pro; its cheaper plans take 10% to 20%.

How do Airtune and BeatStars compare side by side?

Airtune and BeatStars both sell beat licences online, but they are built for different buyers. BeatStars serves a global audience in US dollars. Airtune serves India first, in rupees, and lets producers set a separate dollar price for buyers abroad.

The biggest differences are about money. BeatStars takes 0% commission on beat sales on all three paid plans, according to its help centre (checked 8 Nov 2026). Airtune takes 20%, 15% or 10% on its cheaper plans and 0% on Studio Pro, according to the Airtune pricing page (checked 8 Nov 2026).

On the other side, BeatStars pays beat sales only to PayPal and does not list UPI at checkout. Airtune buyers in India pay by UPI, cards or netbanking, and producers withdraw in rupees. The table puts the main facts side by side, all as of 8 Nov 2026.

“Pro” on Airtune includes Legacy, which also has 0% commission.

Is Airtune or BeatStars cheaper for Indian producers?

Neither is cheaper for everyone. It depends on how much you sell. BeatStars plans cost $4.99 a month for Starter, $8.99 for Growth and $19.99 for Professional, or $19.99, $79.99 and $179.88 a year (help centre, checked 8 Nov 2026). Every BeatStars plan takes 0% of beat sales.

Airtune plans cost ₹199 one time for Studio Starter, ₹1,999 a year for Studio Lite, ₹399 a month or ₹3,999 a year for Studio, and ₹699 a month or ₹6,999 a year for Studio Pro. All are GST included (Airtune pricing page, checked 8 Nov 2026).

So a cheap Airtune plan costs less up front but takes a share of each sale. BeatStars costs dollars every year but takes no share. Your bank may also add a foreign currency charge on dollar plans. Here is what one sale looks like on each, using our own maths on the listed prices.

• A ₹999 Easy WAV licence on Airtune Studio: the 10% commission is ₹99.90, so ₹899.10 goes to your wallet before the payment provider’s fee.
• The same sale on Studio Pro: commission is ₹0.00. Only the payment provider’s fee comes off, at cost.
• A beat priced at $30 on the BeatStars Marketplace: the buyer pays a 12% service fee of $3.60 on top, so $33.60. You keep $30 minus PayPal’s fee.
• If you cover the BeatStars fee for your buyer: the $3.60 comes out of your share instead.

For every plan and limit, see Airtune Studio plans. For every BeatStars fee, read our BeatStars pricing guide.

How do payments and payouts work on BeatStars in India?

BeatStars pays beat sales only to PayPal, according to its help centre (checked 8 Nov 2026). Bank withdrawals are for royalties, and the bank account must be a US dollar account with a tax ID. BeatStars uses PayPal’s marketplace system, so if PayPal does not support your country, you cannot receive payments.

Buyers can pay BeatStars by card, PayPal, PayPal Pay Later, Apple Pay or Google Pay. UPI is not on that list, and India is not in its Apple Pay or Google Pay region lists. Many Indian artists will need a card that works abroad, or PayPal.

Airtune works the other way round. Indian buyers pay in rupees through Razorpay, by UPI, cards or netbanking. Buyers abroad pay in dollars through Stripe, and you still get paid in rupees. Sales clear in 7 days (14 when paid in US dollars), then become available the next Friday, paid in rupees to UPI or bank.

• KYC comes first: Airtune payouts need KYC and PAN, the Airtune team checks each one, and there is no minimum payout.
• Tax is simple to read: all Airtune selling prices are tax-inclusive. Airtune pays the tax on its own commission. Any other tax, such as your GST or income tax, is yours to handle.
• Two prices, no forced conversion: you set a rupee price and a dollar price for every licence.

Our guide on how to get paid for selling beats in India covers KYC, PAN and payouts step by step.

Which has the better lease agreement: BeatStars or Airtune?

Both stores give the buyer a written licence with every sale, so neither leaves an artist without proof. On BeatStars, a licence agreement is made automatically when someone buys or downloads a beat. It is filled in with “Contract Codes” such as the buyer’s name, the title, the price and the term (help centre, checked 8 Nov 2026).

BeatStars offers more licence types: non-exclusive, exclusive, a free non-commercial download, a $0 commercial licence and a PROkits licence for sound kits. That gives producers lots of choice.

Airtune’s difference is proof. The buyer sees the full terms before paying, then signs in their legal name at checkout. The terms are locked at that moment and saved as a PDF with a QR code. Anyone can scan the code to check the licence is real and still valid. Every Airtune Easy licence allows unlimited streams and unlimited monetised music videos.

This is general information, not legal advice. For a big deal, ask a music lawyer.

See the full rights table on Airtune licensing.

Where does BeatStars beat Airtune?

BeatStars beats Airtune on size, choice of tools and the price of 0% commission. Its help centre talks about storing “tens of millions” of audio files, and it is the best-known beat store worldwide. Airtune is newer, invite-only, and has a much smaller catalogue.

BeatStars also takes 0% commission on every paid plan, from $4.99 a month. On Airtune you need Studio Pro, at ₹699 a month or ₹6,999 a year, to pay 0%. If you sell a lot on a cheaper Airtune plan, that commission adds up.

BeatStars has a deeper rights stack too. BeatStars Publishing runs an admin deal with a YouTube CMS. Beat ID scans YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok for uses of your beats. The Creator Rights Agency helps close deals for a 10% fee. Airtune’s pricing page lists no tools like these.

• Best-known global store: best if most of your buyers are outside India.
• 0% on every paid plan: best if you sell often and can take PayPal.
• More licence types: including free commercial and sound kit licences.

Airtune or BeatStars: how to choose

Pick by where your buyers are and how you want to be paid.

Choose BeatStars if:

• Your buyers are mostly abroad and pay in dollars.
• PayPal works well for you and you are happy to be paid there.
• You want 0% commission at the lowest plan price, from $4.99 a month.
• You want publishing and tracking tools such as BeatStars Publishing and Beat ID.

Choose Airtune if:

• Your buyers are mostly in India and want to pay by UPI.
• You want rupee payouts to UPI or bank, with plans priced in rupees, GST included.
• You want signed, verifiable licences that artists can show a distributor.
• You want your beats on YouTube automatically: Airtune uploads them to your own channel on every plan. See YouTube beat upload sync.

You can also list on both. Just take a beat off both stores the moment you sell it exclusively.

Next steps

1. Compare costs at your real sales level on the Airtune pricing page.
2. Read our BeatStars alternative in India guide to compare BeatStore and Beat22 too.
3. Check every BeatStars fee before you renew with our BeatStars pricing breakdown.