Bandcamp vs DistroKid
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Bandcamp
Discover and purchase music directly from artists worldwide. Support creators by buying their merchandise and instantly access your purchased music, both online and offline.
- Explore global music catalog
- Direct artist support
- Purchase merchandise
- Wishlist albums and tracks
- Online and offline listening
- Connect with artists
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Bandcamp is an online record store and music community where passionate fans connect with and directly support the artists they love. The Bandcamp app lets fans explore a vast catalog of music by artists from every corner of the globe, allows them to directly support artists by buying their merch (and wishlisting albums & tracks for purchase at a later time), and lets them instantly listen to the music they've purchased, online or offline.
DistroKid
This app allows independent artists to distribute their music to over 150 streaming platforms. It offers unlimited uploads, keeps 100% of artist earnings, and provides tools for promotion and earnings management.
- Unlimited music uploads
- 100% earnings retention
- Access to artist accounts
- Create promo cards
- Earnings notifications and withdrawals
- Streaming stats on the go
- Edit releases anytime
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DistroKid is the easiest way to get your music on 150+ streaming platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music, TikTok, YouTube Music & more. Keep 100% of your earnings and upload as many songs as you want. Over 4 million independent artists worldwide trust DistroKid as their music distribution service. Features: · Enjoy easy, fast, unlimited uploads right from the app · Keep 100% of your earnings · Access your official artist accounts including Spotify for Artists, TikTok Artist Account, YouTube, and more · Create Promo Cards to share your release on socials · Get push notifications when you have earnings to claim and withdraw them seamlessly · Check your streaming stats on the go · Edit your releases anytime Log in with your existing DistroKid account or sign up to share your music with the world. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Bandcamp at none against DistroKid's 5. DistroKid's advantage is review sentiment (65% vs 51%) and chart position (#19 vs #117). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. DistroKid sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $24.99 per year. Bandcamp asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Bandcamp against 4.9 for DistroKid. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 38K and 27K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 51% of Bandcamp's written reviews are positive against 65% of DistroKid's.
Bandcamp ships an update every 3 weeks, DistroKid every 5 weeks. Both last shipped on October 25, 2026.
| Parameter | Bandcamp | DistroKid |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (38K ratings) | 4.9 (27K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 50.7% of reviews | 64.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 38K — better | 27K |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 5 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #117 | #19 — better |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 43 MB | 106 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Bandcamp | DistroKid Holdings, LLC |
Customer experience
Bandcamp
DistroKid
User reviews
Bandcamp
From 38K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great app for discovering new music
- 👍 Supports independent artists
- 🎧 Excellent audio quality
- 💰 Fair revenue share for artists
- 📥 Ability to download purchases
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔍 Poor search and navigation
- 💳 No in-app purchase option
- 📱 Lacks iPad-optimized interface
- 🔇 Missing basic playback features (repeat, shuffle)
DistroKid
From 27K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Quick distribution
- 👍 User-friendly interface
- 💡 Affordable pricing
- 🚀 Fast and efficient
- 👍 Easy to use
Room to improve
- 🐛 Withdrawal issues
- 🐛 Accounts being deleted without notice
- 🐛 Delayed customer support response
- 💰 Expensive additional features
- 🐛 Inability to edit artist profiles
Bugs and requests
Bandcamp
Reported bugs
4 issues- Tracks randomly skipping or not playing
- App crashing after updates
- Purchases not syncing across devices
- Login issues and account problems
Requested features
5 requests- Dark mode option
- Playlist creation and management
- Improved artist/genre discovery
- Offline listening and caching
- Chromecast/AirPlay support
DistroKid
Reported bugs
4 issues- Subscription plan issues
- Inability to log in or access account
- Incorrect file uploads
- Unresponsive customer support
Requested features
6 requests- Add draft option for uploads
- Expand genre options
- Improve credit management during uploads
- Reevaluate pricing structure
- Integrate music video distribution
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- Provide more detailed earnings reports
In-app purchases
Bandcamp
No in-app purchases
DistroKid
- Musician Plan$24.991 Year
- Musician Plus$44.991 Year
- Ultimate - 5$89.991 Year
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- Ultimate - 10$157.991 Year
- Ultimate - 20$269.991 Year
