Royalty-free music for commercial use.
What royalty-free music actually means — and how to license fantasy and orchestral music for your commercial project.
What Does Royalty-Free Mean for Commercial Use?
Royalty-free means you pay once for a license to use the music — you don’t owe the composer a royalty every time the music is heard or earns money. It does not mean the music is free. It means the licensing structure is a flat fee rather than a percentage of revenue.
Commercial use means you’re monetizing the project the music appears in — a YouTube channel with ads, a game for sale, a paid podcast, a film with distribution rights, a client video, or similar. This is a separate question from whether the music itself costs money.
Does Royalty-Free Cover Commercial Projects?
It depends on the license. My music comes in two types:
Free tracks (tagged as free in the song browser) are available with attribution for non-commercial use. If your project is commercial, you need a paid license.
Paid tracks and bundles include a non-exclusive commercial license. You pay once, use the music in your commercial project, and owe nothing further. The Lifetime Bundle covers the full library in a single purchase.
What Counts as Commercial Use?
- YouTube channels with ads or paid memberships
- Games sold through Steam, itch.io, or similar platforms
- Podcasts behind a paywall or with sponsorships
- Client videos, corporate videos, advertisements
- Films with distribution or streaming rights
Tabletop actual plays on Twitch or YouTube, even monetized ones, generally fall under a lighter license — check the licensing page for specifics.
Where to Find the Right License
For detailed terms, visit the licensing page or the royalty-free music overview. For the full music library, browse by use case: fantasy music, adventure music, or video game music.
Commercial licensing — FAQ.
Everything you need to know before using this music in a commercial project.
- What does royalty-free mean for commercial use?
- Royalty-free means you pay a one-time license fee to use music in your commercial project — a YouTube channel, game, film, or advertisement — without owing the composer a percentage of your revenue or recurring payments.
- Can I use royalty-free music in a YouTube video that earns ad revenue?
- Yes. A paid license from this library covers monetized YouTube content. You can run ads on your videos, join the YouTube Partner Programme, and earn revenue without any additional payments to the composer.
- What counts as commercial use for royalty-free music?
- Commercial use means your project earns money directly or indirectly from the music’s presence — paid games, ad-monetized videos, sponsored podcasts, client videos, film with distribution rights, and similar projects. Free personal or educational projects that earn no money are typically non-commercial.
- Is royalty-free music the same as copyright-free?
- No. Royalty-free music is still copyrighted — the composer retains ownership — but the license removes ongoing royalty payments. Copyright-free means the work is in the public domain with no owner. Professional royalty-free libraries use licensed music, not public domain.
- Do I need to credit the composer in my commercial project?
- Yes — attribution is required on all licenses (free and paid) wherever it’s practical. Credit Ivan Duch as the composer in your video description, credits screen, show notes, or equivalent. The only exception is media where attribution isn’t possible (live podcasts, live events), in which case it may be omitted. Free tracks are for non-commercial use only.
- Can I use royalty-free music in a game I sell on Steam or itch.io?
- Yes. A paid license or the Lifetime Bundle covers indie games sold on commercial storefronts like Steam, itch.io, or the Epic Games Store. The one-time license fee covers the full commercial release.