ASCAP and BMI accept applications from eligible songwriters without an invitation, while SESAC is invitation-only. Check each PRO's current application terms, choose one, and register songs promptly.
Most ASCAP vs BMI vs SESAC comparisons are running on old information. ASCAP no longer charges writers an application fee. BMI is now majority-owned by an investment firm. SESAC remains invitation-only for writers and does not accept unsolicited writer submissions.
Those three facts change the usual advice. Everything below was checked against each organization's own site in August 2026. You get what it costs to join as a writer and as a publisher, when each PRO pays, who each one suits, and what switching involves. For the wider picture of what you are owed, Music Royalties Explained: The 6 Types You Earn covers where performance royalties sit alongside everything else.
The Decision Table
Current as of August 2026, from each organization's own published pages.
ASCAP | BMI | SESAC | |
|---|---|---|---|
Who can join | Eligible active songwriters or composers who are not already members of another PRO | Applicants who meet BMI's current songwriter or composer terms | Invitation only, no unsolicited submissions |
Writer cost to join | Free | Free | Not published |
Publisher cost to join | Free when joining as writer and publisher together; check the current publisher-only fee | $175 individual, $250 corporation or LLC, $500 partnership | Free when working with a SESAC composer and keeping the publisher share |
When you get paid | Four writer distributions a year, based on performances three quarters earlier | Quarterly, in February, May, August and November | Not published |
Ownership | Member-governed not-for-profit, board elected by the membership | Investor-owned since a majority investment closed in February 2024 | Acquired by Blackstone in 2017 |
Size, their own figures | 1.1 million+ members | 1.5 million+ affiliates, 25 million+ works | 15,000+ affiliates, 1.5 million+ songs |
Pick it if | You plan to hold your own publishing, since writer plus publisher together currently costs nothing | You are joining as a writer only and want the largest repertory | Not a choice you make, a representative approaches them for you |
Two rows there tend to surprise people. ASCAP currently charges nothing when a writer joins as both writer and publisher, while BMI lets a self-published writer collect the publisher share through the writer account without a BMI publishing company. And BMI, still described as a not-for-profit in plenty of guides, has been investor-owned since February 2024. ASCAP now describes itself as the only US PRO operating as a not-for-profit.
What It Costs to Join
ASCAP's help center states that joining is free for all new writer members. A publisher-only application carries a one-time, non-refundable $50 processing fee. Join as a writer and a publisher in the same application and ASCAP waives both. ASCAP flags that waiver as "a temporary policy", so it is not guaranteed to be there next year.
BMI's FAQ states that joining as a songwriter or composer is free, with no fees and no annual dues. Publisher affiliation is where BMI charges: a one-time $175 for an individual publisher, $250 for a corporation or LLC, and $500 for a partnership. BMI describes those fees as non-refundable and not deductible from future earnings.
SESAC publicly says it is free to open a publisher account when you work with a SESAC composer and keep the publisher share.
Publisher affiliation is a separate decision from writer membership, and it is the one with real money attached. Music Publishing Explained for Artists covers what the publisher share is and whether you should be claiming it yourself.
You will still find recent articles quoting a $75 BMI songwriter fee. BMI's own FAQ says otherwise in August 2026. Fee policy at both organizations has moved more than once in the last few years, so treat any figure without a date attached as unreliable, and check the PRO's page before you sign anything.
When Each PRO Pays
ASCAP splits the year into quarters and pays writers on performances surveyed three quarters earlier. Publishers are paid one quarter ahead of writers on the same performances.
Performance period | ASCAP writer payment |
|---|---|
January to March | October |
April to June | January, following year |
July to September | April, following year |
October to December | July, following year |
BMI distributes quarterly in February, May, August and November, and states that the schedule can change at its discretion.
The payment minimums matter more than the calendar when your earnings are small. ASCAP pays out from $1 by direct deposit, but holds check payments until you reach $100. BMI pays from $2 by direct deposit, while check and wire payments need $250 across all sources, dropping to $25 in the August distribution. BMI holds amounts under the minimum for a rolling twelve quarters.
Take direct deposit at either one. On checks, a writer earning modest amounts can sit unpaid for years while the balance creeps toward the floor.
SESAC does not publish a distribution schedule publicly. Affiliates get those terms in their agreement.
Why SESAC Works Differently
SESAC does not accept unsolicited submissions. Its own FAQ routes writers through a representative instead: a lawyer, manager or agent contacts SESAC on your behalf. The company was acquired by Blackstone in 2017 and reports 15,000+ affiliates against more than 1.5 million songs in its repertory.
That makes SESAC selective rather than sealed shut. If you already have representation, asking them to make the approach is a reasonable move at any stage. If you do not, treat SESAC as something to revisit and join ASCAP or BMI now, because uncollected performance royalties do not wait for you to get invited.
The smaller roster is structural rather than incidental. SESAC negotiates its license rates directly, while ASCAP and BMI operate under longstanding federal consent decrees that shape how their rates get set.
The US Has More Than Three PROs
Two newer organizations sit outside the usual three-way comparison. Global Music Rights, founded in 2013, is invitation-only and concentrates on a small roster of high-earning writers. AllTrack, founded in 2019, takes open registration.
Neither is the obvious default for a writer joining a first PRO, and both represent far fewer writers than ASCAP or BMI. Know the names anyway, because they come up in licensing conversations and in the fee schedules businesses receive.
How to Register With ASCAP or BMI
Both applications are online. Budget an hour, not a weekend, and have your tax identifier in front of you.
ASCAP:
Go to ascap.com and start the writer application.
Choose writer, and add publisher in the same application if you intend to hold your own publishing.
Supply legal name, performing name, contact details, date of birth, and a tax identifier. US individuals use a Social Security Number.
Submit. There is no writer application fee.
Save the member number and IPI number that come back to you.
Register each song as a work through Member Access.
BMI:
Go to bmi.com and start the songwriter application.
Select songwriter or composer. BMI calls its writers affiliates rather than members.
Supply the same personal and tax details.
Accept the agreement. No writer payment is required.
Save your affiliate number and IPI number.
Register each song through BMI Online Services.
Work-registration fields vary by PRO. Expect to provide the title, writers, publishers, and ownership shares, then supply any recording details the current form requests. Register songs promptly; BMI warns that late registrations can delay or lose royalties, while some audiovisual cues may be registered from cue sheets.
After You Register
Go back for the catalogue. If you released music before joining, register those songs too. BMI warns that late registrations can delay royalties or cause them to be lost.
Register on release day. Add the work to your PRO account in the same sitting as the distributor upload. Splitting the two tasks across weeks is how songs get missed.
Agree splits in writing first. BMI says one registration can credit all participants; if a later registration conflicts with the first, BMI asks for documentation or written confirmation before changing its records. Split Sheets: Why You Need Them and How to Use covers how to document this before anyone registers.
Read your statements each quarter. Meaningful streaming numbers with no PRO income usually means a registration problem, not a payment delay.
Keep agreed splits and release details organized, and supply any identifiers the PRO's current form requests. Orphiq can store user-entered UPCs, ISRCs, and release metadata against releases and tracks; registering the work still happens at the PRO.
Can You Switch PROs?
Yes, but the exit runs on the PRO's calendar rather than yours, and that is the part people underestimate.
ASCAP publishes its rule. A member who wants to resign has to give notice inside a three-month notification window that comes around every two years, timed from the date they were elected to membership. Miss the window and you wait for the next one. ASCAP also separates the date a resignation takes effect from the date works actually leave its repertory, and accounts for licenses already signed and final at that point, so the handover is not a clean single-day break.
BMI publishes general termination guidance, but says individual agreement terms may vary. Review your agreement before planning around a date.
Then there is the work itself. Every song has to be registered again at the new organization, and co-writers who stay put now sit at a different PRO from you. Most writers who look closely conclude the admin outweighs a difference in formulas they cannot measure from the outside. Switch when you have a specific documented reason, not a hunch.
International Royalties
When your music plays abroad, the local society collects and routes the money to your US PRO under reciprocal agreements. A play on UK radio is collected by PRS, sent on to ASCAP or BMI, then paid to you. Expect that round trip to add a year or more on top of the normal domestic delay.
Writers with real overseas activity sometimes affiliate directly with foreign societies, or hand collection to a publishing administrator to shorten the chain. Both add admin, and both only pay off once the foreign income is large enough to notice.
Common Registration Mistakes
Never joining. Delaying affiliation or registration can delay royalties or cause some to be lost.
Joining but not registering the works. Affiliation is necessary, but many performance types also require timely song registration; BMI can automatically register some audiovisual cues from cue sheets.
Mismatched splits between co-writers. The most common cause of frozen payments, and entirely avoidable with a split sheet.
Assuming your PRO handles copyright. A work registration at ASCAP or BMI is not a copyright registration. Music Copyright Basics Every Artist Should Know explains what each one covers.
Overthinking the choice. At writer level, ASCAP and BMI now cost the same and collect from the same sources. Deliberating for six months costs more than picking the wrong one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I be a member of ASCAP and BMI at the same time?
Not as a writer. ASCAP's rules allow only one US society at a time for public performance licensing as a writer. You can hold publisher affiliations at more than one society.
Does it cost anything to join ASCAP or BMI as a songwriter?
No. As of August 2026 both are free for writers. Publisher affiliation is where fees sit: $50 at ASCAP, waived if you join as both at once, and $175 and up at BMI.
Can I join SESAC if I am starting out?
Only by invitation. SESAC does not accept unsolicited submissions and asks that a lawyer, manager or agent make the approach for you. Join ASCAP or BMI now and revisit SESAC later.
Do I need a PRO if I only release on Spotify?
Yes. Streaming generates a performance royalty that flows through PROs, separate from the recording revenue your distributor pays you. Without a work registration, that share goes unmatched.
Read Next
Orphiq helps artists and their teams plan releases and think through where the money comes from. It does not register works or track royalties, so your PRO account stays the record for performance income.