A performance royalty is the payment owed to a songwriter and music publisher when their song is performed publicly — on terrestrial radio, in venues, on TV, in films, or on interactive digital streaming services. Collected by PROs (BMI/ASCAP/SESAC in the US, equivalents globally).

Performance royalties are distinct from mechanical royalties (the reproduction payment) and SoundExchange royalties (the digital-performance master-side payment). All three coexist on the same stream — Spotify pays performance to the PRO, mechanical to The MLC, and SoundExchange does not apply to interactive streams.

Performance royalties typically average $0.001-$0.005 per US stream. International streams pay through reciprocal agreements between the US PRO and the foreign CMO covering the listener's country.

A songwriter not affiliated with a PRO collects $0 in performance royalties — even from songs that get millions of plays.