Background Music for Videos — Royalty-Free & Paid Options

Okay, clearly it can be a challenge to find the best background music. Don’t fret though — we’ve done the research for you. We’re going to list some reputable sites where you can download background music. We’re also going to note if the music from each site requires licensing fees or creative commons.

By the end, you’ll have a new go-to destination for background music — sad, somber, energetic, frenetic or otherwise.

Soundcloud isn’t just great for up-and-coming rappers and EDM artists, it’s a great site for background music too. Most, but not all, music on Soundcloud is subject to creative commons — that means if you credit the artist as they request, you can use their tracks as background music in your video.

Soundcloud includes music from established artists and novices alike. And perhaps the greatest strength of Soundcloud is how it allows artists to test out new styles before ushering them into the mainstream.

Bedtracks was designed from the ground up for video editors who are looking to optimize their workflow. We touched on how it can be a nightmare for editors to find the right music — Bedtracks streamlines the process with intuitive AI.

If you have a song stuck in your head that you wish you could use in your video, upload it to Bedtracks. Bedtracks will analyze the style, rhythm, and BPM to match you with similar royalty free tracks.

Free Music Archive is a great site for finding the best background music because it allows you to search by creative commons and royalty free tags. It also features a semi-frequent “featured mix” that’s curated for music lovers.

The curated mixes on Free Music Archive (FMA) are a great place to look for background music if you don’t want to comb through thousands of tracks. Most of the tracks I’ve listened to on the curated mixes have been high quality. They may not suit every video, but at least they’re well-produced. 

Mixter is one of the best reviewed services for background music. Why? Because its simple and straightforward approach is a plus for artists. Mixter prides itself on being the go-to destination for those looking for background music for videos and video games.

Mixter makes it incredibly easy to credit artists. When you download a song on Mixter, it will automatically cite the artist and copy the citation to a clipboard. 

IMSLP is an absolutely amazing resource for background music – but there’s a catch: you can’t download music files, but rather the sheet music to produce them. IMSLP is a database of public domain music tracks. 

You’ve probably heard that music scores fall into public domain after a certain number of years, but that’s a misleading point. It’s not the tracks that are public domain but rather the sheet music used to produce them; well, most of the time. For example: Mozart’s symphonies are in the public domain but the London Symphony Orchestra's renditions are not. Most of the time, if you want to use classical music, you have to record it yourself.

Epidemic Sound is a good option for finding the best background music if you’re willing to pay a monthly/yearly subscription fee. It’s clear from the user interface that Epidemic Sound has a more premium feel than many of its competitors.

The only real downside to Epidemic Sound is that it costs money to use. But if you’re looking for high-quality background music and are willing to pay the fee, then Epidemic Sound might be worth it.

Jamendo is definitely one of the more expensive options on this list – but it’s a great option nonetheless. Jamendo is perhaps best suited as an enterprise solution for background music. 

Ever wonder how store chains are able to play music without licensing individual tracks? Jamendo is one way. Jamendo offers 100% royalty free music with an official licensing certificate. Their service also works online and offline so there’s no need to worry about background music cutting out.

Soundstripe prides itself on its simplistic approach to licensing. Here’s a snippet from the official site, “Never worry about licensing again. With Soundstripe, your membership covers the cost for every song license. Just find the right track, download the file, and get a custom license. That’s it.”

The subscription cost for Soundstripe’s music service starts at $12.50 per month as of this writing. Of course, if you want to license a single song, it’s going to be more expensive than subscribing. Currently, a single license for a song is $79.99.

Alibi is home to a lot of great music, and its background songs are well-organized and easy to sift through. Of course, you’ll definitely be paying for the quality. Alibi has three tiers of subscription pricing: Indie, Small Business, and Enterprise.

Indie is the cheapest, at $19/month, and it offers YouTube monetization (for one channel), and social media use (for one page). To get blanket licensing, you’ll need to go with Enterprise, which has flexible licensing based on scope.