TikTok reports your music in more than one way, and the numbers mean very different things. Understanding the difference helps you read your dashboard correctly and know what to expect from your TikTok earnings.
Two Different Numbers
On TikTok's sound page you see how many videos have been created using your sound. This is a creator count. It tells you how many people used your audio, not how much you earned.
In your InterSpace dashboard, the stream count for a release is the total of certified, royalty-eligible plays collected from every platform combined, including Spotify, Apple Music, TikTok, Boomplay and the rest. It is not a TikTok-only number, and it is not the same as the video count on TikTok.
How TikTok Earnings Work
When creators add your sound to their videos, you earn royalties based on certified usage of your track, reported to InterSpace by TikTok. The per-use rate is generally modest on its own, which is why reach and virality tend to drive TikTok earnings much more than on streaming stores. Your TikTok earnings appear on your monthly royalty statement alongside your other platforms.
Why the Dashboard Number Covers All Platforms
Your dashboard shows your total certified streams across every store, not a per-store breakdown. That combined figure is what royalties are calculated from. To see how your earnings split by platform, check your royalty statement, where amounts are shown per store. See How to Read Your Royalty Statement.
Why Dashboard Numbers Run Behind
Stream counts in your dashboard update monthly and typically run about three months behind real-time activity, because the platforms need time to compile, audit, and certify official play counts before sending them to distributors. See When Do Streams Show in My InterSpace Dashboard?
How to Check Your Live TikTok Sound
- Open TikTok and tap the + (Create) button.
- Tap Add Sound.
- Search for your song title or artist name.
- Tap your song to open its sound page, which shows the number of videos using that sound.
Remember, that number updates in near real time but is separate from the certified streams your royalties are based on.