Upload DJ mixes to Mixcloud: it is licensed with labels and publishers, so a mix of other people's records can stay up as long as it keeps to its Featured Artist Rules, chiefly no more than four songs by one artist and three from one release. SoundCloud says you need explicit permission from the rights holder of every track in a mix, and reported uploads lead to strikes and, at the third, a closed account, so keep it for your own productions and fully cleared mixes.
Side by side
| Mixcloud | SoundCloud | |
|---|---|---|
| Mixes of other people's music | Licensed, within the Featured Artist Rules | Needs permission from every track's rights holder |
| Free upload allowance | 10 published shows and 10 published tracks | 2 hours of audio in total |
| Paid creator plan | Pro: unlimited uploads | Artist: 3 hours; Artist Pro: unlimited |
| Longest upload | Files up to 4 GB | Files up to 4 GB and 24 hours |
| Uploads under 15 minutes | Original tracks only | No separate rules |
| Earning from a DJ mix | Tips and fan subscriptions, with Pro | Not possible: DJ sets can't be monetised |
| Stream quality | 64 kbps AAC+; 160 kbps Opus for Pro uploads | 128 kbps; 256 kbps AAC for Go+ listeners |
Sources are linked in each section below, all read on 12 October 2026.
Licensing: why mixes stay up on one and come down on the other
Mixcloud: licensed, within the Featured Artist Rules
Mixcloud says it is licensed with many of the largest rights holders, record labels and publishers, and scans every upload to identify the songs played and pay the artists. In exchange, uploads must keep to its Featured Artist Rules. For a show that everyone can play:
- Up to 3 songs from one release (an EP, album or compilation), with no more than 2 in a row.
- Up to 4 songs by one artist, with no more than 3 in a row.
- A break of 30 seconds or more of other music or talking between the songs that go past those runs.
A show with 4 to 8 songs by one artist still publishes, but only Mixcloud Premium subscribers, the creator's own subscribers and the creator can play it. A show over the limits is moved to drafts, at upload or later. Mixcloud's fixes are to split the show into two uploads of more than 15 minutes, cut a track, or space tracks out; a rights holder can also sign a waiver for their own recordings.
The licence covers shows, meaning uploads over 15 minutes. Uploads between 30 seconds and 15 minutes count as tracks, and Mixcloud's content rules allow only single, original tracks there: no remixes, covers or mini-mixes, nothing signed to a major label, and only from writers who belong to ASCAP, BMI, SESAC or no performance rights organisation at all. Members of PRS, PPL, GEMA and other societies can't upload tracks.
SoundCloud: permission for every track
SoundCloud's help centre is direct: to upload a DJ mix you need the explicit permission of the rights holders of every track in it. If a mix is taken down, its copyright team will reinstate it only with proof of permission for all the tracks, not just the one its content identification caught. The same page says that publishing the mix under Creative Commons doesn't help, and that uploading a mix for non-commercial or promotional purposes isn't fair use.
Takedowns carry strikes. A strike is issued when a report isn't successfully disputed within seven days; the second suspends downloads on the account, and SoundCloud permanently closes accounts with more than two active strikes. Strikes expire after 12 months. For a DJ uploading mixes of other people's records, that is a risk to the whole profile, including any original music on it.
Upload allowances and files
- Mixcloud Basic allows 10 published shows and 10 published tracks, unlisted shows included. Drafts don't count, so moving an old show to drafts frees a slot, and its plays and comments come back if it is republished, per Mixcloud's CEO when the cap was introduced. Pro removes the cap.
- Mixcloud files can be WAV, AIFF, FLAC, AAC, OGG, M4A, MP2, MP3 or WMA, from 30 seconds long and up to 4 GB, per its upload troubleshooting page.
- SoundCloud counts total audio rather than uploads: 2 hours on a free account, 3 hours on Artist and unlimited on Artist Pro, per its upload requirements. One file can be up to 4 GB and 24 hours long. SoundCloud recommends uploading lossless (WAV, FLAC, AIFF or ALAC), 16-bit and 44.1 kHz or better, with 0.5 to 1 dB of headroom.
A two-hour mix uses the whole of a free SoundCloud account, while on free Mixcloud it is one of ten shows.
Plans and prices
| Plan | For | Price shown on 12 October 2026 | What it adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mixcloud Basic | Creators | Free | 10 shows and 10 tracks published; private uploads; standard 64 kbps AAC+ audio |
| Mixcloud Pro | Creators | £9.00 a month, or £6.58 a month paid annually | Unlimited uploads, scheduling, live streaming, tips and fan subscriptions, listener insights, an embeddable show player, 160 kbps Opus audio |
| Mixcloud Premium | Listeners | £5.99 a month | No ads, unlimited replays and seeking, upfront tracklists, listening in the mobile apps, live streams |
| SoundCloud Basic | Creators | Free | 2 hours of uploads |
| SoundCloud Artist | Creators | £27 a year | 3 hours of uploads; 2 tracks a month promoted, distributed and monetised; 3 track replacements a month |
| SoundCloud Artist Pro | Creators | £75 a year | Unlimited uploads, promotion, distribution and replacements; scheduled releases; split royalties; priority support |
Prices are in pounds as the plan pages showed them to a UK visitor; Mixcloud adds sales tax to Premium, and prices differ by country: Mixcloud Pro, Mixcloud Premium and SoundCloud's artist plans. Mixcloud gives students half off Pro through UNiDAYS. Mixcloud's own comparison lists listening in its iOS and Android apps, unlimited replays and seeking as Premium features, so listeners on a free account hear your shows with limits.
Earning from uploads
On Mixcloud, a Pro creator can take tips during live streams and offer paid fan subscriptions, while the royalties for the music played go to the artists through Mixcloud's licences. On SoundCloud, monetisation through Artist or Artist Pro covers only original content you own all the rights to, between 30 seconds and 10 minutes long; unofficial remixes, mashups and DJ sets are excluded.
Which one to use
- Mixes of released music: Mixcloud. Plan the set around the Featured Artist Rules before you record it: a tribute mix with five to eight songs by one artist plays only for subscribers, and one with more may not play at all.
- Your own productions, edits you have cleared, and releases: SoundCloud, where Artist and Artist Pro add promotion, distribution to other services and payment for plays of original tracks.
- Live sets: Mixcloud Pro, which streams video and audio and identifies the tracks played so their artists are paid. For the setup and other platforms, see how to livestream a DJ set and DJing live on Instagram.
- Both: productions on SoundCloud and mixes on Mixcloud, which keeps copyright strikes away from the account that holds your own music.
The music in a mix still has to come from somewhere legal; see the best DJ pools and free and legal DJ music downloads.
How this page is made
Every rule, limit and price on this page comes from Mixcloud's and SoundCloud's own help centres and plan pages, linked above and read on 12 October 2026. Some of SoundCloud's copyright articles were first published in 2017; they were still live and unchanged when read. Platforms change their plans often, so check the linked page before you pay. We haven't uploaded test mixes to either service for this page. The methodology explains how the site works.
