Comparison
Soundtrack's own pricing and licensing pages, as a US browser showed them on October 10, 2026, next to eleMusic's plans. eleMusic wrote this page and is one of the two services compared.
Last reviewed October 13, 2026.
On October 10, 2026, Soundtrack (its US contracting company is Soundtrack Your Brand USA Inc.) listed Soundtrack Essential on its US pricing page at USD 41 per zone a month on monthly billing, or USD 37 per zone a month billed annually at USD 444 per zone. Soundtrack describes a zone as "an individual music stream", offers "over 125 million tracks licensed for commercial use" and says "ASCAP, BMI, and GMR licenses included." eleMusic prices each location by how many devices play at once, and a device is also one stream: Practice is $24 a month for up to 5 devices. The two prices buy different things: eleMusic plays only original instrumental music, generated and mastered by eleMusic, and its plans include no license from any performing rights organization.
eleMusic wrote this page, and eleMusic is one of the two services it compares. Every Soundtrack fact here comes from Soundtrack's own pages, read in a US web browser on October 10 and 11, 2026, and those pages are listed under Sources. Where we quote Soundtrack, its words are in quotation marks; the rest is our summary of those pages, and the Soundtrack totals in the worked example are our arithmetic. Soundtrack's prices are not in its page's HTML: they load in the browser after the page opens, and its FAQ says prices differ by country. We could read every price named here in the loaded page, and the prices were the same on both days. Prices change, so check soundtrack.io/pricing on the day you decide.
On the name: for customers in the United States, Soundtrack's General Terms and Conditions (last updated March 12, 2026) name the contracting company as "Soundtrack Your Brand USA Inc.", and its legal page says its site is "hosted and managed by Soundtrack Technologies Sweden AB (formerly Soundtrack Your Brand Sweden AB)". We read both on October 11, 2026. Soundtrack is a trademark of its owner, and eleMusic is not affiliated with or endorsed by Soundtrack or Spotify.
This page is general information about US law and business music services. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice about your practice, talk to a lawyer.
The table sets the two services side by side. Soundtrack's column comes from its US pricing and licensing pages; where we quote Soundtrack, its words are in quotation marks, and the rest is our summary. eleMusic's column comes from our pricing, stations and How it works pages and our Terms of Service.
| Point | eleMusic | Soundtrack |
|---|---|---|
| What a plan counts | Devices playing at once, at one location. A device is one stream: a tablet feeding the ceiling speakers in several rooms counts once. | Zones: "Think of a zone as an individual music stream." |
| Monthly billing | Solo $15 for 1 device, Practice $24 for up to 5 devices, Clinic $49 for up to 15 devices. Extra devices $4 each. | Soundtrack Essential: "USD 41 / zone per month" |
| Annual billing | Solo $150, Practice $240 or Clinic $490 a year, for the same devices as monthly. Extra devices $40 a year each. | USD 37 per zone a month, "billed annually at USD 444" per zone; a badge beside the "Annual payment" switch reads "10% discount" |
| Add-ons | No feature add-ons: every plan includes every music station. Extra devices are $4 a month each. | Unlimited, Messaging and Hi-Fi Audio, each priced per zone; Single Sign-On at "Custom pricing" |
| The music | 8 stations of original instrumental music. No vocals, no ads, no commercial recordings. | "over 125 million tracks licensed for commercial use" and "Over 2,500 expertly curated business playlists" |
| Choosing what plays | A station per device. Staff can skip or flag a track. | Playlists, custom playlists, Spotify playlist import and scheduling; Unlimited adds playing tracks in any order |
| Performing rights wording | eleMusic is PRO-free: it never registers its tracks with ASCAP, BMI, SESAC or GMR, so there is no performing rights fee for the music you play through eleMusic. Its plans include no license from any performing rights organization; see "What does eleMusic say about ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and GMR?" below. | "ASCAP, BMI, and GMR licenses included. No additional licenses required, some exceptions may apply." |
| Where it plays | A web browser on a tablet or laptop, with Cast or AirPlay to a TV or speaker from supported browsers | "Available on Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Sonos and more." |
| Trial | 14-day trial. Card required, nothing due at checkout. | 14 days. Its US licensing page says: "No payment or commitment required." |
| Who it is for | For business locations in the US. | "Soundtrack is currently available in 73 different countries." |
Soundtrack's US pricing page shows one plan with a published price, Soundtrack Essential, described as "Music streaming licensed for business enhanced with smart features." It is priced per zone. The page opened with its "Annual payment" switch on, showing USD 37 per zone a month, "billed annually at USD 444" per zone. With the switch off, it read "USD 41 / zone per month". An Enterprise offering is priced through "Contact sales".
Four add-ons are listed. Three are priced per zone, and Single Sign-On shows "Custom pricing":
| Add-on | Soundtrack's description | Monthly billing | Annual billing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unlimited | "Queue tracks, play in any order, and use Offline Mode." | + USD 19 | + USD 17, billed yearly at USD 204 |
| Messaging | "Advanced audio messaging to engage your customers between songs." | + USD 9 | + USD 9, billed yearly at USD 108 |
| Hi-Fi Audio | "Stream in premium sound with 320 kbps bitrate." | + USD 7 | + USD 7, billed yearly at USD 84 |
| Single Sign-On | "Seamless and secure login for your whole team with your existing credentials." | "Custom pricing" | |
The same page lists "Credit or debit card payments", "Digital wallet payments" and "Monthly or annual billing". To the FAQ question "Do prices differ by country?" it answers "Yes."
Close, but not the same. Each is one music stream, not a room. What gets counted differs: Soundtrack says you pay for each zone you set up, while an eleMusic plan counts the devices playing at the same moment. Soundtrack explains a zone in a pop-up on its pricing page:
"Think of a zone as an individual music stream. If you want to play different music in different parts of your business location at the same time, you’ll need multiple zones. If you want the same music everywhere, you only need one. You pay for each zone you set up."
Soundtrack, Plans & Pricing, "What is a zone?", read October 10, 2026
eleMusic counts devices. A device is one stream: a tablet feeding the ceiling speakers in several rooms counts once. Any number of devices can join a location with the access code, and the plan sets how many play at once. Every playing device counts, even when two devices play the same station. So for eleMusic, count the devices that will play at the same moment; for Soundtrack, ask how many zones your setup needs. How eleMusic works, room by room.
This example counts music streams: zones set up on Soundtrack, devices playing at the same time on eleMusic. It uses each service's US list prices as shown on October 10, 2026, in US dollars before any sales tax, for the base plan only: no add-ons, hardware, speakers or installation. The Soundtrack totals are our arithmetic from its per-zone prices.
| Music streams | Soundtrack Essential, monthly billing | Soundtrack Essential, annual billing | eleMusic, monthly billing | eleMusic, annual billing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1: one tablet feeds every room the same music | USD 41 a month | USD 444 a year | Solo: $15 a month | Solo: $150 a year |
| 5: five rooms, each with its own music | USD 205 a month (5 × USD 41) | USD 2,220 a year (5 × USD 444) | Practice: $24 a month | Practice: $240 a year |
| 15: a larger office, each room its own music | USD 615 a month (15 × USD 41) | USD 6,660 a year (15 × USD 444) | Clinic: $49 a month | Clinic: $490 a year |
Read the totals together with what each price buys. Soundtrack's price buys access to its catalog of recorded music from the labels and publishers it works with and, in its words, "ASCAP, BMI, and GMR licenses included." eleMusic's price buys 8 original instrumental stations and no license from any performing rights organization. For eleMusic: Annual plans cost ten times the monthly price, so two months are free. Five or more locations take 15% off every location. For dated prices from other services, see our comparison of dental office music services.
Soundtrack's US pages describe what its plan includes in the words below. We quote them and draw no conclusion about your practice. The pricing page says:
"ASCAP, BMI, and GMR licenses included. No additional licenses required, some exceptions may apply. Personal music services are not approved for business use."
Soundtrack, Plans & Pricing (US), "Licensed for business", read October 10, 2026
Its page on music licensing in the United States adds:
"In the United States, everything you need is typically included in your plan. If you charge admission fees, play live music or have timed music for exercise classes you may need additional permissions."
Soundtrack, Music licensing in the United States, "Play it right", read October 10, 2026
"Your Soundtrack plan includes your ASCAP, BMI and GMR licenses. Music from SESAC is not available on Soundtrack." ... "Note: some exceptions require additional licensing."
Soundtrack, Music licensing in the United States, "Cut costs" (one of two versions the page showed), read October 10 and 11, 2026
That section came in two versions on October 10 and 11, 2026. On some visits a US browser showed "Cut costs", quoted above. On other visits it showed this section instead:
"Soundtrack covers the licenses needed to stream music in a business. ASCAP, BMI and GMR are included in every plan, saving you time and stress."
"If you charge admission fees, play live music or conduct physical activity to music you may need additional permissions. Music from SESAC, AllTrack and other PROs is filtered out by Soundtrack."
Soundtrack, Music licensing in the United States, "No licenses? No problem" (the other version), read October 10 and 11, 2026
Both versions carry this sentence in the page's introduction:
"It is solely your responsibility as the user to ensure you hold all necessary licenses for your business, in accordance with the laws of relevant territories."
Soundtrack, Music licensing in the United States, introduction, read October 10, 2026
That page also lists contact details for ASCAP, BMI, GMR, SESAC, SoundExchange, Pro Music Rights and AllTrack. If you want to know whether any of these exceptions applies to your practice, ask Soundtrack, and ask your attorney.
eleMusic plays a different kind of catalog, and its plans include no license from any performing rights organization. Section 11.1 of our Terms says:
"eleMusic does not register the Content with ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, GMR or any other performing rights organization (a "PRO"), and does not license the Content through any PRO."
eleMusic Terms of Service (version 2026-10-11), Section 11.1, read October 11, 2026
Every location with an active plan or trial gets an Original Catalog Certificate in its name. What the certificate covers, and what it does not.
eleMusic is PRO-free: it never registers its tracks with ASCAP, BMI, SESAC or GMR, so there is no performing rights fee for the music you play through eleMusic. Radio, TV, music on hold and any other music you play still need their own licenses. We cannot control or verify what others register, and we do not promise that no PRO or other person will contact you or make a claim. The certificate describes our catalog and your subscription; it does not determine your practice's legal obligations. The certificate is not a license from any performing rights organization and is not legal advice.
ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and GMR are trademarks of their respective owners. eleMusic is not affiliated with or endorsed by any performing rights organization.
Whether your practice needs a license from any of these organizations, for eleMusic, Soundtrack or anything else it plays, is a question for your attorney. Our guide Do dental offices need a music license? sets out the questions, and Got a letter from ASCAP, BMI, SESAC or GMR? lists what to gather if a letter arrives.
Soundtrack streams recorded music from record labels and publishers. Its pricing page offers access to "over 125 million tracks licensed for commercial use" and "Over 2,500 expertly curated business playlists. Updated weekly." Its US licensing page says: "Soundtrack offers an excellent selection of music because of our direct relationships with publishers, performing rights organizations and record labels. These include Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and more." The playlist previews on that page include instrumental ones, such as "No Words Jazz" and "Instrumental Jazz", and the pricing page lists an explicit lyric filter. Soundtrack also has a page called "Music for dental offices", linked from the Business types menu on its pricing and licensing pages. It describes "family-friendly playlists that have been professionally curated for dental offices".
eleMusic plays none of those recordings. Original instrumental music, generated and mastered by eleMusic. No vocals, no ads, no commercial recordings. It has 8 music stations (Acoustic Guitar, Light Jazz, Ambient, Elevator Music, Tropical, Soft Piano, Calm and Classical), a small catalog next to Soundtrack's. You pick a station for each device rather than songs: each device plays the station's tracks in its own order, and staff can skip or flag a track, but there are no playlists to build. Hear the stations, or read how the music is made. Here is a 30 second preview of Light Jazz:
Soundtrack's pricing page says it is "Available on Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Sonos and more." It also lists "Remote control from any supported device", a "Central dashboard for multiple locations" and scheduling ("Plan your music in advance with smart scheduling."). Offline Mode comes with the Unlimited add-on.
eleMusic runs in a web browser at elemusic.fm/play on each room's tablet or laptop, joined with one access code; staff need no account. From the office, the Rooms panel shows what every room is playing and can change a room's station, play, pause or skip. One owner account can hold several locations, but the panel shows one location at a time: there is no single view across locations. Chrome and Edge can cast to a Chromecast, and Safari can send to an AirPlay speaker. Each playing device needs an internet connection, and there is no schedule today: a room plays until it is paused. No microphone, no patient information, ever. How it works, step by step.
Spotify's US help article on business use ends with this sentence, which links to soundtrack.io:
"To play in a commercial environment, check out our friends at Soundtrack."
Spotify Support, "Spotify for public or commercial use" (US), no date shown, read October 10, 2026
The article says nothing more about Soundtrack, and neither do we. Personal streaming accounts are licensed for personal, non-commercial use, which is why business music services exist. Our guide Can a dental office play Spotify? quotes Spotify's help article and the relevant parts of its terms.
The trials start differently. Soundtrack's US licensing page describes a 14-day trial and says of starting it: "No payment or commitment required." Its next step reads: "Select a plan and add your payment details to officially join Soundtrack." eleMusic's trial also lasts 14 days, but it works differently: a card is required to start it, and nothing is due at checkout. Unless you cancel before the trial ends, the card is charged the plan price when it ends (Refund and Cancellation Policy).
Cancel anytime in Manage billing, or by emailing hello@elemusic.fm. Cancelling takes effect at the end of the period you have paid for. Prices in US dollars, plus applicable sales tax. Soundtrack's terms for renewing and ending a subscription are in its General Terms and Conditions (last updated March 12, 2026, read October 11, 2026), in sections such as "Product Period", "Terms of Order" and "Term, Termination and Suspension of Service". We do not summarize them here: read them, or ask Soundtrack, before you sign up.
It depends on what you want playing. These two lists repeat only what each service's own pages say.
For the full cost picture across services, see what music for a dental office costs.
Eight instrumental stations and one access code, on a tablet or laptop in each room, or cast to your TV. From $15 a month for one device; Practice covers up to 5 devices for $24.
New locations start with a 14-day trial. A card is required and nothing is due at checkout. A reminder goes to the billing email before the trial ends, and you can cancel in Manage billing or by emailing hello@elemusic.fm. Unless you cancel before the trial ends, the card is charged the plan price when it ends. See the Terms of Service and the Refund and Cancellation Policy.