Songfile

Songfile is the quick and easy way to license cover songs for physical and digital formats such as CDs, downloads, ringtones and interactive streams.
By properly licensing your recordings, you ensure that the proper publishers and songwriters are paid!

WHAT IS SONGFILE?

Songfile is a limited quantity mechanical licensing application that gives all users the tools to license copyrighted works. We have made it easy for users to pay the proper royalties to publishers and songwriters for their work!

Songfile can be used to get mechanical licenses for:

Up to 2,500 units of physical recordings (CDs, cassettes, vinyl), permanent digital downloads and ringtones made and distributed in the U.S.

Up to 10,000 interactive streams per song. Please note that HFA only grants mechanical licenses for units that are manufactured and distributed in the U.S.

All processing is done online, and in most cases, you will have your license in 24 hours. Once processed, licenses are made available to you electronically for viewing and printing through your Songfile account.

Need a larger quantity?

HOW DO I USE SONGFILE?

It's easy: Create a username and password and get started! Make sure you have either a valid credit card or a checking account to complete a transaction.

You will also need:

The number of units you will want to license prior to ordering.

The configurations that you want to obtain a license for.

The song title and writer information for the compositions being licensed.

WHAT DOES SONGFILE COST?

Royalties for Songfile licenses are the following:

Physical product and downloads:

$0.091 (9.1 cents) per unit for songs that are five minutes and under in length or

$0.0175 (1.75 cents) per minute or fraction thereof, per unit for songs that are over five minutes in length.

Ringtones:

$0.24 (24 cents) per song, per unit

Interactive Streams:

$0.01 (1 cent) per stream

In addition to royalty fees, there is a per-song processing fee of $16 for up to five songs. If you license 6 or more songs at one time, the processing fee is reduced to $14 per song.

DO I NEED A LICENSE?

If you want to record or distribute a song that you do not own or control, U.S. Copyright Law requires that you get a mechanical license. This is required regardless of whether or not you are selling the copies that you make.
Many Distributors and online music sites require that you to have a mechanical license in place before they duplicate your recording of it or offer it online.

PUBLIC SEARCH

This search provides information on titles, songwriters, and publishers for songs that have been registered with HFA. No user name or password required. Please note that you cannot obtain a license through the search option; you must use the Songfile Licensing tool to get a license.
To Research Song Information Only.

Search Songs