Since introducing its no-fee holidays in March 2020, Bandcamp has paid out a total of $154 million to artists and labels who use its platform.
Not long after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic and artists were forced to shelter in place, Bandcamp held a no-fee holiday as a way to give back to its user base. It wouldn’t be the last. At the time of writing, the download and merch platform has paid out $154 million to artists and labels who use its platform on Bandcamp Fridays, $19 million of which was in 2025 alone.
Bandcamp Fridays take place every first Friday of the month. On these days, the platform waives the 15% fee that it charges on music downloads as well as the 10% fee it charges on merch sales. Artists and fans from across the music spectrum participate, with content creators encouraging buyers to make their purchases on the dates in question.
“Five years on, Bandcamp Fridays continue to show just how powerful direct fan support can be,” said Bandcamp General Manager Dan Melnick in a statement. “2025 was another brilliant year for artists and labels, capped by our strongest Friday of the year, and we’re incredibly excited to bring even more opportunities to the community in 2026, expanding to 8 next year.”
The popularity of Bandcamp Fridays has helped the concept endure a period of transition for the platform founded by Ethan Diamond in 2007. In March 2022, it was acquired by Epic Games, which then fell on hard times and sold the company to Songtradr in September 2023. Songtradr laid off about half of Bandcamp’s staff the following November.
Bandcamp has announced that next year’s no-fee holidays will fall on February 6, March 6, May 1, August 7, September 4, October 2, November 6, and December 4, 2026.
