Epidemic Sound
Epidemic Sound is a Stockholm-based, PE-backed music licensing and soundtracking platform that owns a fully cleared catalog of 55,000+ tracks and 250,000+ sound effects, serving individual creators, SMB brands, enterprise customers (revenue over $50M), and 40,000+ commercial venues through subscriptions, plugins, and APIs.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersStockholm, Sweden
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Epidemic Sound does
Epidemic Sound is a Stockholm-based, PE-backed music licensing and soundtracking platform founded in 2009 that owns 100% of the rights to a catalog of 55,000+ music tracks and 250,000+ sound effects, enabling it to sell a direct, license-inclusive subscription that bundles public performance rights globally and eliminates PRO fees and ongoing royalty reporting. The company serves four overlapping customer segments through differentiated go-to-market motions: individual creators and SMBs via self-serve subscriptions (Creator $9.99/mo, Pro $16.99/mo, Business $30/mo, Business Plus from $100/mo) with 30-day free trials; enterprise brands and agencies with revenue over $50M USD through custom contracts with dedicated Customer Success Managers, SSO, indemnification, and sonic branding services; commercial in-store venues (40,000+ businesses worldwide) via certified local partners; and developers/platforms through a public API used by Veel, Blaze AI, elevate.io, and Canva. Distribution is omnichannel, including native plugins for Adobe Premiere Pro/After Effects/Audition and DaVinci Resolve Studio, MacOS and Windows desktop apps, iOS and Android mobile apps, and a global Enterprise reseller network.
The technology stack is increasingly AI-centric, built around four named proprietary AI products — Studio (video-to-audio soundtrack generation), Assistant (conversational search built on Google Gemini with Find Similar and video-frame reference), Adapt (stem-level AI music editing), and Soundproof (AI compliance scanning for unlicensed music) — supplemented by Voices (AI text-to-speech/speech-to-speech voiceover), the Song Sleuth music-metadata engine acquired in April 2025, and Labs (experimental AI features). Catalog tracks are heard 2.5 billion times per day on YouTube and 3 billion+ times daily across all platforms, generating a proprietary data signal that feeds both AI models and curation. In April 2026 the company announced a strategic evolution from a music catalog into a next-generation AI-powered creative platform, scaling the Plenty Labs (formerly VXA) marketing-workflows acquisition and repositioning Studio, Adapt, and Assistant as platform offerings.
Epidemic Sound's monetization is subscription-driven across self-serve tiers and enterprise contracts, with additional revenue from perpetual single-track licenses, API/platform licensing, and reseller channel sales. The company reached unicorn status after a $450M funding round co-led by Blackstone Growth and EQT, with reported revenue above 1.5 billion SEK (~$140-150M USD) at the time. Growth has been recognized by the Financial Times FT1000 (33.5% CAGR 2021-2024, fifth consecutive year) and as a Europe Long-Term Growth Champion (55% CAGR). In March 2026, co-founder Oscar Höglund stepped down as CEO after 18 years and joined the board, with CFO Sara Börsvik appointed interim CEO; EQT was reported in late 2025 to be exploring a sale or IPO of its stake, indicating an upcoming liquidity event.
Epidemic Sound firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Epidemic Sound
- Legal name
- Epidemic Sound
- Website
- https://epidemicsound.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Epidemic Sound is a Stockholm-based, PE-backed music licensing and soundtracking platform that owns a fully cleared catalog of 55,000+ tracks and 250,000+ sound effects, serving individual creators, SMB brands, enterprise customers (revenue over $50M), and 40,000+ commercial venues through subscriptions, plugins, and APIs.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Epidemic Sound industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Music Licensing & Soundtracking Platform
- NAICS
- Record Production and Distribution (51225), Music Publishers (51223), Music Publishers (512230)
- SIC
- Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Distribution (7822)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Music & Audio Streaming Platforms (BPAMAJAC)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Recorded Music Distribution (Physical & Digital) (MPAIAAAC)
Keywords
Where Epidemic Sound is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Stockholm
- HQ country
- Sweden
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Epidemic Sound business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Self-serve creator subscriptions: Tiered SaaS-style subscriptions for individual creators and freelancers (Creator $9.99/mo billed yearly; Pro $16.99/mo billed yearly; Pro Plus custom) with monthly credit allowances for Adapt and Voices usage; 30-day free trial; monthly or annual billing with up to 60% savings on yearly.
- Business / team subscriptions: Business tiered subscriptions for SMB brands, agencies and teams (Business $30/mo; Business Plus from $100/mo) including multi-seat licensing, plugin access, priority support, and channel-protection entitlements; billed monthly or annually.
- Enterprise custom licensing: Bespoke enterprise contracts for brands, agencies, broadcasters and publishers with revenue over $50M USD, including global rights, SSO, indemnification, dedicated Customer Success Managers, expert music curation, sonic branding and API integrations; pricing is quote-based.
- In-store / commercial background-music licensing: License-inclusive background music for retail, restaurants, hotels, gyms, spas and offices delivered through certified local partners; single contract / single monthly license fee covering public performance rights, used by over 40,000 businesses worldwide.
- API / platform integration licensing: API and SDK licensing that embeds Epidemic Sound's catalog and AI soundtracking into third-party platforms (e.g., Veel, Blaze AI, Blackbird's elevate.io) under commercial partnership agreements — monetized as a recurring platform/integration revenue stream.
- Single track / perpetual licenses: Option to purchase a single track license or perpetual license as an alternative to subscription for one-off usage rights, with all rights included globally.
- Reseller / channel partner revenue: Indirect revenue via certified Enterprise resellers (e.g., Ligar Music, Hoodooh, Sweat Shop Boys, Viral tunes) and in-store music delivery partners that resell Epidemic Sound licenses and services in their territories.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Creator plan for individual creators |
| Subscription | Annual | Pro plan for professionals/freelancers |
| Subscription | Annual | Pro Plus for large creators with teams |
| Subscription | Annual | Business plan for SMB brands/agencies |
| Subscription | Annual | Business Plus for growing teams up to $50M revenue |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Enterprise plan for large global brands |
| Subscription | Monthly | In-store music for commercial venues |
Go-to-market motion6 records
Distribution channels8 records
Marketing channels10 records
Epidemic Sound product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Epidemic Sound sells subscriptions to a fully owned catalog of 55,000+ royalty-free music tracks and 250,000+ sound effects with all rights (master, performance, composition) included globally, augmented by AI-powered soundtracking tools (Studio, Assistant, Adapt, Voices, Soundproof). Distribution is via self-serve web subscriptions, native plugins for Adobe and DaVinci Resolve Studio, MacOS/Windows desktop apps, iOS/Android mobile apps, an enterprise sales motion, a certified in-store music reseller network, and a developer API.
Product overview
Epidemic Sound operates as a platform-plus-modules architecture: the core platform combines a directly licensed royalty-free catalog (55,000+ music tracks and 250,000+ sound effects) with a suite of AI-powered soundtracking tools and ecosystem products. At the center are four named AI products — Studio (AI video-to-audio soundtrack generator), Assistant (AI-powered soundtracking search sidekick built on Google Gemini), Adapt (AI music editor for stem-level customization), and Soundproof (AI compliance/copyright-detection) — complemented by Voices, an AI text-to-speech/speech-to-speech voiceover tool built from professional voice artist recordings, plus Labs (experimental AI features). These tools are exposed through multiple delivery channels: native plugins for Adobe Premiere Pro, After Effects, Audition, and DaVinci Resolve Studio; a universal desktop app for MacOS and Windows (with Final Cut Pro and Avid Pro Tools support); and iOS and Android mobile apps. The platform also offers a developer-facing API (used by partners such as Veel, elevate.io, Blaze AI, and Canva), an Enterprise plan with SSO and indemnification, an In-store Music service for commercial venues, and artist collaboration programs including The Bridge mentorship, Extra Version remix series, and re/works series.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Voices (Voices by Epidemic Sound): AI-powered voiceover product built from recordings of professional human voice artists, offering text-to-speech and speech-to-speech capabilities.
- Plenty Labs
Products and services
- Music catalog Royalty-free catalog of 55,000+ original tracks across genres, moods, and themes, directly licensed with all rights included (including public performance rights) for use across online platforms, podcasts, broadcast, and in-store.
- Sound effects catalog Royalty-free catalog of over 250,000 unique sound effects and variations across 700+ categories, including ambience, vehicles, voices, designed elements, foley, and cartoon.
- Studio AI-powered video-to-audio tool that analyzes uploaded videos to generate a complete, synced soundtrack draft composed of human-made music and sound effects from the Epidemic Sound catalog; supports MP4/MOV/WebM up to 4 minutes/600MB and integrates into Adobe Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve Studio plugins.
- Assistant AI-powered soundtracking sidekick (built on Google Gemini) that uses natural-language conversation to deliver categorized music and sound effect recommendations, including "Find Similar" search and video-frame visual reference; available via web, plugins, and desktop apps.
- Adapt AI music editor that customizes the mood, structure, instrumentation, stem mix, and length (15s/30s/60s presets up to 5 minutes) of catalog tracks via natural-language prompts; non-destructive and credit-based.
- Voices AI voiceover platform offering text-to-speech and speech-to-speech generation based on recordings from professional voice artists; supports 14+ languages, voice cloning/replicas, customizable pacing and pronunciation, and plugin integration for Adobe and DaVinci Resolve.
- Soundproof AI-powered compliance solution that scans brand and influencer content for unlicensed music risks, resolves copyright claims at the source, and continuously monitors new content; includes re-soundtracking with fully licensed catalog tracks.
- Labs Experimental AI features program that combines human creativity with cutting-edge technology; users can sign up to try new tools and provide feedback to shape future soundtracking products.
- Mobile apps (iOS and Android) Native mobile applications for iOS and Android enabling creators to discover and download music tracks and sound effects on the go.
- Desktop app (MacOS and Windows) Universal desktop application for MacOS and Windows that enables drag-and-drop integration of music, sound effects, and voiceovers directly into video editing timelines (Final Cut Pro, Avid Pro Tools and others) with length, loop, and section adjustments.
- Plugins for Adobe and DaVinci Resolve Studio Native video editor plugins providing in-editor access to the music and sound effects catalog, voiceovers, Studio AI soundtracking, and Assistant, with support for Adobe Premiere Pro, After Effects, Audition, and DaVinci Resolve Studio.
- For developers (API) Public/partner-facing API enabling third-party platforms to integrate Epidemic Sound's catalog of licensed music and sound effects directly into their products; documented partners include Veel, elevate.io, Blaze AI, and Canva.
- Enterprise plan Customizable subscription tier for brands and agencies with complex workflows, global distribution, and revenue over $50M; includes SSO, indemnification, expert music curation, and a dedicated Customer Success Manager.
- In-store Music License-inclusive background music service used by over 40,000 businesses worldwide in retail, restaurants, hotels, gyms, and spas, with all public performance rights included and delivered via local partners.
Quantifiable outcome
- Tracks heard 2.5 billion times per day on YouTube alone and 3B+ times daily across all platforms
- +10 more outcomes
Companies that use Epidemic Sound
Customer profileNamed customers55 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Epidemic Sound technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration9 records
AI capability5 records
Feature8 records
Epidemic Sound partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
17 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- Google (Google Cloud / Gemini)flagshipEpidemic Sound's AI Assistant is built on Google Gemini, supporting all of Gemini's languages and underlying the conversational soundtracking experience. Google Cloud and EQT (Epidemic Sound's majority owner) also announced a portfolio-wide AI partnership that gives portfolio companies access to Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform, Mandiant/Wiz cybersecurity and co-sell via Google Cloud Marketplace.
- AdobeflagshipNative Epidemic Sound plugin for Adobe Creative Cloud (Premiere Pro, After Effects and Audition) embeds the catalog, AI Assistant, AI Studio soundtracking and AI Voices directly inside Adobe video editors — a primary distribution channel for creator and SMB customers.
- DaVinci Resolve (Blackmagic Design)flagshipNative Epidemic Sound plugin for DaVinci Resolve Studio embeds Studio, Assistant and Voices soundtracking tools directly inside the video editor, with MacOS/Windows desktop-app integration supporting Final Cut Pro and Avid Pro Tools workflows.
- Blackbird plc (elevate.io)coreBlackbird's browser-based collaborative video editor elevate.io integrates Epidemic Sound's catalog directly into the platform (rolling out before end of Q1 2026), giving users royalty-free music without leaving the editor. Target market is the collaborative video editing category forecast at $4.5B by 2029.
- VeelcoreAPI partnership that integrates Epidemic Sound's full catalog of licensed music and sound effects directly into Veel's AI-powered creator-brand video collaboration platform, removing licensing complexity for Veel's brand and creator network worldwide.
- BlazecorePartnership integrating Epidemic Sound's music platform into Blaze's AI-powered marketing platform to power content for small businesses and brands, providing access to 50,000+ tracks with simple licensing and AI-driven soundtrack selection.
- Talpa NetworkcoreExtended partnership with major Dutch media company Talpa Network to continue using Epidemic Sound's music and sound effects across TV productions, online and social content, with AI-powered soundtracking tools and licensing.
- Björn BorgcoreSwedish sports fashion brand Björn Borg uses Epidemic Sound's 50,000+ tracks and 200,000 sound effects for digital content, advertising campaigns and marketing across social media and global territories with legally safe licensing.
- Johnny MarrflagshipThe Smiths co-founder Johnny Marr is the latest world-renowned musician in Epidemic Sound's mentorship series 'The Bridge', providing in-person and virtual mentorship to artists Rebecca Mardal, Christoffer Moe Ditlevsen and Kylie Dailey.
- Richie HawtinflagshipTechno pioneer Richie Hawtin completed 'The Bridge' mentorship with three Epidemic Sound artists (The Yard Woman, Blue Saga, dreem), culminating in the 'Off the Grid' EP combining the artists' skills with Hawtin's production.
- Honey DijonflagshipGrammy-winning DJ Honey Dijon remixed Ebo Krdum and Ooyy's Afro-house track 'Umbélé' as the first release of Epidemic Sound's 'Extra Version' remix series, making the result available globally for sync and streaming.
- LP GiobbicoreLP Giobbi joined Epidemic Sound's 'Extra Version' series with a remix featuring Lakesha Nugent, part of a program that has surpassed 510 million views on YouTube and TikTok.
- re/works by Epidemic Sound artistscoreGlobal artist series 're/works by Epidemic Sound' invites celebrated musicians to reimagine tracks from the catalog, starting with a Swedish edition featuring DJ Carpenter, Kerstin Ljungström and Adam Taal, premiered at Soho House Stockholm.
- Ligar MusiccoreCertified Enterprise reseller for Epidemic Sound's commercial background-music and in-store music services in its territory.
- HoodooHcoreCertified Enterprise reseller delivering Epidemic Sound's commercial background-music services in its territory.
- Sweat Shop BoyscoreCertified Enterprise reseller of Epidemic Sound's in-store and commercial background music.
- Viral TunescoreCertified Enterprise reseller distributing Epidemic Sound's commercial and in-store music licensing.
Scale indicators19 records
Recent moves10 records
Expansion highlights8 records
Epidemic Sound competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Artlist: Artlist is the closest direct competitor to Epidemic Sound, offering a royalty-free music and sound effects subscription for creators and brands with similar per-tier pricing (Music, Footage, SFX). It is the most frequently cited alternative in Epidemic Sound's own comparative SEO content.
- Musicbed: Musicbed is a premium royalty-free music licensing platform focused on filmmakers, brands and agencies, with curated artist catalogs and per-track or subscription licensing. Overlaps with Epidemic Sound's Enterprise plan and is another frequently named competitor in Epidemic's comparison content.
- Envato Elements: Envato Elements offers unlimited downloads of music, sound effects, video templates, graphics and more under a single subscription, competing directly with Epidemic Sound's Creator and Pro tiers for SMB creators and freelancers.
- Soundstripe: Soundstripe is a subscription-based royalty-free music, sound effects and footage library targeting video creators, YouTubers and brands, with tiered pricing and unlimited downloads comparable to Epidemic Sound's Creator/Pro plans.
- Pond5: Pond5 is a royalty-free music and SFX marketplace serving filmmakers, broadcasters and brands with per-track licensing, overlapping with Epidemic Sound's Enterprise and In-store Music segments on the rights-managed side of the market.
- Mood Media: Mood Media is the largest global in-store and commercial background-music provider, directly competing with Epidemic Sound's In-store Music business that serves 40,000+ venues via certified partners such as Ligar Music, Hoodooh, Sweat Shop Boys and Viral tunes.
Broad incumbents
- Shutterstock (PremiumBeat): Shutterstock acquired PremiumBeat to add royalty-free music to its broader stock-media platform, competing with Epidemic Sound across creator, agency and enterprise segments as part of a much wider media marketplace offering.
Emerging players
- Splice: Splice is a music creation platform offering royalty-free samples, loops and AI tools for music producers; it overlaps with Epidemic Sound in the sound creator economy and represents a creator-side alternative, though it focuses on production rather than video soundtracking.
- Suno: Suno is a leading generative-AI music platform producing original songs from text prompts, representing the principal disruptive threat to pre-licensed subscription catalogs like Epidemic Sound for SMB creators and brands.
- Udio: Udio is a generative-AI music creation platform that competes for the same creator and brand use cases as Epidemic Sound's Studio and Adapt tools, but produces fully AI-generated tracks rather than curating a rights-owned catalog.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat8 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Epidemic Sound social profiles
Digital presenceEpidemic Sound financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Epidemic Sound leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles18 records
Epidemic Sound subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Epidemic Sound funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors10 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Epidemic Sound M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A3 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Epidemic Sound
What does Epidemic Sound do?
Epidemic Sound sells subscriptions to a fully owned catalog of 55,000+ royalty-free music tracks and 250,000+ sound effects with all rights (master, performance, composition) included globally, augmented by AI-powered soundtracking tools (Studio, Assistant, Adapt, Voices, Soundproof). Distribution is via self-serve web subscriptions, native plugins for Adobe and DaVinci Resolve Studio, MacOS/Windows desktop apps, iOS/Android mobile apps, an enterprise sales motion, a certified in-store music reseller network, and a developer API.
Is Epidemic Sound a public or private company?
Epidemic Sound is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was Epidemic Sound founded?
Epidemic Sound was founded in 2009. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Epidemic Sound based?
Epidemic Sound is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, in the Europe region.
How does Epidemic Sound make money?
Seven revenue lines are on record. Self-serve creator subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are business / team subscriptions, enterprise custom licensing, in-store / commercial background-music licensing, API / platform integration licensing, single track / perpetual licenses and reseller / channel partner revenue.
Who are Epidemic Sound's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Artlist, Musicbed, Envato Elements, Soundstripe, Pond5 and Mood Media. Shutterstock (PremiumBeat) is listed as a broad incumbent. Emerging players are Splice, Suno and Udio.
Does Epidemic Sound have an API?
Yes. Epidemic Sound offers a public/partner-facing API that allows third-party platforms to integrate its full catalog of licensed music and sound effects directly. Documented integrations include Veel (AI-powered creator-brand UGC video collaboration platform) which accesses the catalog via API, elevate.io (Blackbird) integrated via API for in-editor music access, Blaze AI marketing platform integration, and API-first integrations with platforms such as Canva and Adobe. The API is referenced via the dedicated developer portal at developers.epidemicsound.com. Developer documentation is at developers.epidemicsound.com.
What industry is Epidemic Sound in?
Epidemic Sound's product category is Music Licensing & Soundtracking Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMAJAC, Music & Audio Streaming Platforms, with a secondary code of MPAIAAAC, Recorded Music Distribution (Physical & Digital). Its NAICS code is 51225 and its SIC code is 7822.