How to Use Music for YouTube Without Copyright

YouTube has taken some of the risks out of using music you don't own in your YouTube videos. The site offers an extensive list of popular commercial songs from well-known artists that you can use under certain circumstances and an Audio Library that contains free music and sound effects.
Both of these collections are located in the Create section of your Creator Studio.

1: Log in to your YouTube account from a computer browser.

2: Click your profile photo in the upper right corner of the screen and click on Creator Studio in the menu that appears.

3: Click Create in the panel that opens on the left side of the screen.

4: Select Music Policies.

5: Click on any title in the list to open a field that includes the restrictions on that song.

YouTube Restriction Types

Each song in the Music Policies list is accompanied by the restrictions that the music owner has set for its use on YouTube. In most cases, they apply to the original song and also to any cover of that song by anyone else. They include:

A comment on where the original music or covers can be used. This may be Viewable worldwide, Viewable everywhere except 2 countries, Not viewable in 74 countries, and other similar entries. You don't want to choose a song that isn't usable in the U.S. because your video would be blocked here. If you see a notice that the music is blocked in a group of countries, tap on the entry to open the list of countries and see which ones won't be able to view your video.

You will typically see a note that Ads can appear. This means that the music owner can place ads on your video in exchange for the right to use your music. If you don't like the idea of the music owner monetizing your video, you may need to select from the free songs in the Audio Library because most of the copyrighted music has this disclaimer.

You may see This song is not available for use in your YouTube video along with a warning that your video may be blocked if you use it. Don't use it.

For example, at the time of publication, "Gangnam Style" from Psy and "Uptown Funk" from Mark Ronson and Bruno Marks were listed as Viewable worldwide. Wiz Khalifa's "See You Again" is labeled not available for use, and Adele's "Someone Like You" is Blocked in 220 countries. All of them note that Ads can appear.

Important: Using one of these commercial songs legally on YouTube does not grant you the right to use it anywhere else. Also, copyright holders can change the permissions they grant for the use of their music at any time.

Legal Free Music for YouTube Videos

If you don't find the music you'd like to use or don't care about the restrictions, check out YouTube's free music Audio Library. There are plenty of songs to pick from, and they rarely have any restrictions on usage.

To locate the YouTube collection of free music that you can use with your videos:

1: Log in to your YouTube account from a computer browser.

2: Click your profile photo in the upper right corner of the screen and click on Creator Studio in the menu that appears.

3: Click Create in the panel that opens on the left side of the screen.

4: Select Audio Library to open a huge collection of free music and sound effects. Select the Free Music tab.

5: Click on any of the free music entries you see to listen to a preview and—most importantly—to read about any restrictions on your use of the music. In most cases, you'll see You're free to use this song in any of your videos. In some cases, you may see You're free to use this song in any of your videos, but you must include the following in your video description: followed by a disclaimer of some kind that must be copied and used exactly as described. When you find the music you want to use, click the download arrow next to the title to download it for use with your video.

You can browse through the tracks, enter a specific title in the search field, or browse by category using the Genre, Mood, Instrument, and Duration tabs.

Best Sites for Royalty-Free Music to Use

Royalty free is attractive because the legal responsibilities with it are completely minimized. It is the closest you can get to public domain, yet still retain some legal rights if you are the original creator. The nice thing here is that your music or work can become widely used and gain exposure for original creator, yet it benefits the community at large with a free service. These works are free and allow you to use them without penalty or fees. Each site may have some stipulations on the way in which you use the work, so be sure to read the type of license they grant.

Some good examples of royalty free music sites are:

1: The Public Domain Project

2: YouTube Audio Library

3: Incompetech.com

4: www.audionautix.com

5: Nathan Wills Music

6: Audio Micro

7: FreePD.com

Note: Royalty-free doesn’t necessarily mean FREE to use – you will still have to pay something for the license. However, there are also some websites that offer free, royalty-free music sites that you could explore. If you are partnered with an MCN, some of those networks also have a royalty-free music library available to members.