What Percentage Should Your Music Manager Actually Get?

Quick answer: The standard range is 15-20% of your gross income, sometimes 10-15% for a newer manager or a developing artist. It’s calculated on gross earnings - before expenses - and your manager will typically also be reimbursed for costs directly tied to promoting you. The right number for your situation depends on how much of the business side they’re actually handling and how established your career already is.

The percentage line in a management contract is the one that determines your actual paycheck, so it’s worth understanding exactly what you’re agreeing to before you sign - including what it applies to, not just the headline number.

There’s No Single “Standard” Manager

The word “manager” covers a wide range of actual responsibility - one artist’s manager handles literally everything, another’s is one piece of a larger team. That range is exactly why the percentage varies as much as it does.

For a New or Developing Act

Expect a manager to ask for 15-20%, sometimes higher if they’re handling every business decision themselves - travel and reasonable expenses typically get reimbursed on top of that. The more responsibility they’re actually carrying, the more that percentage tends to climb.

As Your Team Grows

Once you need more than one person - a road manager, someone handling promotion specifically - those additional roles often come out of your manager’s own cut, not as a separate expense on top of it. Your manager’s percentage might stay around 25% even as they’re now splitting some of that with the team they’ve built around you.

For an Established Act

At this stage, you may have a separate booking agent (typically capped closer to 10% by regulation) alongside your manager, with each earning independently rather than out of the same pool.

Working With a Management Company

Companies sometimes start a new relationship at a lower rate - 10-15% - with a clause that increases it as your success grows. Read that clause closely; “as your success grows” should be defined with real numbers, not left vague enough to argue about later.

What to Actually Watch For

• Gross, not net. Your manager’s cut comes off the top, before any of your own expenses are deducted.
• What it applies to. Some managers exclude merchandise or songwriting royalties, especially anything they didn’t help negotiate - get this explicit.
• What happens after the contract ends. Many managers continue earning on deals made during the term - fair, in moderation. A clause with no end date on that continuation is outdated; push for a real sunset clause.

For the full list of what else belongs in the contract beyond the percentage, see the talking points every music manager contract needs.

Frequently Asked Questions

What percentage does a music manager typically take? 15-20% of your gross income is the standard range, sometimes 10-15% for a newer manager or developing artist with substantial existing income negotiating down.

Is a music manager’s cut based on gross or net income? Gross - meaning before any deductions or expenses come out. This is standard across the industry, but it’s worth understanding clearly before you sign, since it changes what the percentage actually costs you.

Does a manager keep earning after the contract ends? Often, yes, on deals made during the term of the contract - though a fair modern contract includes a sunset clause limiting how long and how much that continues, rather than granting it forever.

Should every income stream be subject to my manager’s commission? Not necessarily. Some managers exclude merchandise sales or songwriting royalties, especially deals they weren’t directly involved in negotiating - this should be spelled out explicitly, not assumed.

Building the income worth negotiating over starts here. Submit Your Music and let’s get it moving.