What to Know Before You Use SubmitHub (2026)

How SubmitHub works

SubmitHub is a credit-based pitching platform. You buy credits, browse a list of playlist curators, bloggers, and influencers, and send your track to the ones you choose. Each curator listens for at least a minute and replies with an approval or a decline.

It's transparent, it's been around for years, and plenty of artists have found good playlists through it. It also asks a lot of you, in money and in hours. Here's what to know before you buy your first package.

You do the matching yourself

On SubmitHub, picking curators is your job. SubmitHub suggests options based on the genres, moods, similar artists, and lyric language you list, but you read the profiles, listen to the playlists, and decide who gets your track.

For one release, that might be an evening of research. If you put out a single every month, it turns into a recurring part-time job. Be honest with yourself about how many hours you want to spend reading curator bios.

Credits are spent on declines too

Each submission costs 1 to 4 credits per curator, depending on who you pick, and packages start around $96. A credit is used up once the curator listens and replies, whether they approve your track or turn it down.

You get the credit back if a curator doesn't reply within 72 hours, or if they skip the required listening and feedback. A quick, polite "not for us" costs the same as a yes.

About 7 in 10 replies are a no

SubmitHub's own figures put the approval rate at about 30%. So roughly 7 out of every 10 curators who reply to your track will decline it.

Curators have to write at least 20 words when they decline, so you get something for each credit. Some artists find that feedback valuable. Others find that by the tenth "great production, just not right for my list," the notes have stopped helping. If you mainly want placements, plan your spending around that 30%.

Credits can't be turned back into cash

Once you've bought credits, they stay credits. If a package doesn't work out for your genre, the money is still committed to the platform. Start with the smallest package and test a handful of curators before you buy more.

Check each playlist yourself

SubmitHub doesn't publish a minimum listener count for its playlists. Some curators run active, well-loved playlists. Others have follower counts that look healthy with very little listening behind them.

Since you're choosing the curators, checking the playlists falls to you too. Look at how often the playlist is updated, what's been added recently, and whether the artists on it have listener numbers that make sense for its size. Our guide on how to tell if a music promotion service is legit has a checklist.

Paying for a listen and Spotify's rules

Spotify's guidelines don't allow anyone to accept payment to influence what goes on a playlist, and Spotify for Artists warns against services that charge for playlist consideration. On SubmitHub, you pay each curator to consider your track. Read Spotify's rules yourself and decide how comfortable you are with that, because if your track gets flagged, it's your release that takes the hit.

Where SubmitHub works well

SubmitHub is a good fit if you like choosing every curator yourself, want a written reply from each one, or want to reach blogs and influencers alongside playlists. It also works for tracks that aren't released yet.

What artists who are tired of pitching use instead

If you've used SubmitHub and found yourself spending more time pitching than releasing, there's another model worth knowing about.

On Soundmango there's nothing to pitch. You upload your track, choose the kind of playlists you want and how big they should be, and its AI matches the track to playlists that fit how it sounds, from subgenre and tempo to mood, vocals, and instruments. You don't browse profiles or spend credits on rejections. Since curators only get tracks that suit their playlists, Soundmango reports a curator acceptance rate of about 60%, roughly double the 30% SubmitHub publishes, and a 99% chance that an approved track lands on at least one playlist.

You pay one price per campaign, for promotion and the curator's feedback. Curators still decide for themselves whether to add your track, which Soundmango says keeps the model 100% within Spotify's rules, and if no curator takes on your campaign, you get a full refund. Campaigns start at $20, and Soundmango's SubmitHub comparison goes through the differences point by point.

A checklist before you buy credits

• How many hours will I spend choosing curators for this release?
• What will each approval cost me at a 30% approval rate?
• Do I want feedback, placements, or both?
• Have I checked that each playlist has real, recent listening?
• Am I comfortable with how the platform fits Spotify's rules?

Turn placements into fans who stay

Getting on a playlist is the start. When the playlist moves on, most of its listeners move with it unless you give them a reason to follow you. Backstaged Drops lets you give away a free download, like an extended mix or stems, that fans unlock with an email or a follow, so your next release reaches them on day one. For the full release timeline, see our music release promotion plan.

Frequently asked questions

Is SubmitHub worth it?

It depends on what you want. If you value a written reply from every curator and enjoy picking them yourself, yes. If you mainly want placements, plan for about 7 in 10 replies to be declines.

How much does SubmitHub cost?

Credit packages start around $96, and each submission costs 1 to 4 credits per curator.

Do I get my credits back if a curator declines?

No. A credit is spent once the curator listens and replies, approval or decline. You only get it back if they don't reply within 72 hours or skip the required feedback.

Is there an alternative to SubmitHub without pitching?

Yes. On Soundmango you set the kind of playlists you want, your track is matched to fitting curators automatically, and you get a full refund if no curator takes on your campaign.