A Simple, Legal and Affordable Alternative to PRS PPL
Key Takeaways
- Any gym playing mainstream commercial music, via a streaming service, radio or CD, is legally required to hold a PRS PPL Music Licence.
- PRS PPL licence costs for gyms range from approximately £903 to £1,743 (inc VAT) per year depending on the size of your space.
- Royalty-free music is a fully legal alternative that removes your PRS PPL licence obligation entirely.
- Background Sounds costs £180 (inc VAT) per year. A flat fee regardless of your gym’s size, number of members or number of staff.
- Most gym owners switching to Background Sounds save between £700 and £1,500 per year.
- A free 7-day trial is available with no card details required.
Music is an essential part of the gym experience. Whether your members are pushing through a tough session on the gym floor or winding down in a stretching area, the right background music keeps energy levels up, makes the environment more enjoyable and encourages people to come back.
But, playing music legally in a commercial gym is not as straightforward as pressing play on your chosen tunes. If you’re playing commercial music through any streaming service, the radio, TV or CD, you’re legally required to hold a PRS PPL Music Licence. And for gyms, those licence costs can be high.
This post explains what your options are, how much you could save, and why royalty-free music is the solution most gym owners don’t know about until they find it.
Why Music Matters in a Gym
The benefits of exercise are well established: improved cardiovascular health, better mood, lower stress levels and improved sleep are just some of the reasons people make the gym a regular part of their routine. The right background music supports all of those outcomes, and has a measurable effect on whether your members come back.
Research conducted in fitness centre environments found that ambient conditions, including music, directly predict customer pleasure, and that customer pleasure in turn drives behaviour such as returning and recommending to others.
In a study of 420 fitness centre members across ten gyms, ambient factors were confirmed as a significant marketing tool for gym operators looking to improve member retention. (Nusairat et al. 2021).
The broader picture supports this finding. A meta-analysis of 66 studies covering more than 15,000 participants found that environments where music was playing produced significantly higher pleasure, satisfaction and behavioural intention ratings than those without. Indicating that these effects are stronger in service environments like gyms than in retail settings. (Morin et al. 2016).
For gym owners, the implication is straightforward. Background music is not simply atmosphere; it is a factor in whether your members enjoy their experience enough to renew their membership. A gym that sounds good will likely retain members longer than one that doesn’t.
Music also benefits your staff; research across 4,500+ UK workers found that 79% would benefit from music at work and 59% say it improves their psychological wellbeing. (Totaljobs / Dr Anneli Haake 2016).
Do You Need a Music Licence to Play Music in Your Gym?
Yes, if you are playing mainstream commercial music. This includes:
- Any music streaming service, including Spotify, Apple Music or YouTube
- Commercial radio and talk radio
- CDs or downloaded music from mainstream artists
- TV, whether playing music or shows
If you’re a gym owner and want to play music for your members, you need to make sure you have an appropriate licence. Under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act (1988), any business playing music commercially requires the copyright holder’s permission. A PRS PPL licence grants that permission on behalf of the copyright holders, or a royalty-free service removes the requirement entirely.
The cost of a PPL PRS licence will depend on the size of your building, its use and the number of people who use it.
If PRS PPL identifies that you have been playing licensable music without a valid licence, you will be required to pay the standard licence cost plus a 50% penalty for the unlicensed period. PRS PPL actively monitors businesses and carries out in-person compliance checks.
Good to Know…
The personal Spotify or Apple Music account most of us use at home is licensed for private use only. Using it in your gym, even a paid premium account, is a breach of their terms of service and of UK copyright law, regardless of how many members are in the building.
The alternative to getting a costly licence is to play royalty-free (PRS/PPL free) music via a specialist royalty-free music service.
Royalty-free music is a legal way for businesses to play music for their staff and customers without the expense of a music licence. This type of music isn’t registered with PRS PPL, so they don’t collect royalty payments on behalf of the copyright owners.
That doesn’t mean that the music creators don’t get paid for their work. They do, but by a music licensing company.
How Much Does a PRS PPL Music Licence Cost for a Gym?
The cost of a PRS PPL licence for a gym is calculated based on your floor area. The larger your gym, the more you pay. Here are three example costs based on the combined PRS and PPL standard tariff charges from September 2026.
- Small boutique gyms (2000 sqft) approx £903.73 (inc VAT) per year.
- Medium-sized Gyms (4000 sqft) approx £1,290.17 (inc VAT) per year.
- Large commercial Gym (10,000 sqft +) approx £1,743.92 (inc VAT) per year.
Example prices based on combined PRS and PPL standard tariff charges. Actual costs may vary.
In comparison, an annual subscription to Background Sounds is £180 (inc VAT). A flat fee, regardless of your gym’s size, so the bigger your gym, the greater your saving!
💪 Most gym owners switching to Background Sounds save between £700 and £1,550 per year.
What Is Royalty-Free Music and Is It Legal?
Royalty-free music is a fully legal alternative to mainstream commercial music that removes the need for a PRS PPL licence.
Here is how it works. The artists and composers behind royalty-free music receive their royalties through the licensing company they work with, rather than through PRS and PPL. Because they have chosen to be paid this way, there is no PRS PPL liability passed on to you as the business owner.
Background Sounds is not a specialist fitness music platform; it is a general royalty-free music service used by over 1,000 UK businesses, from shops and salons to restaurants and gyms. If you are looking for a service that maps specific playlists to individual workout zones with precise BPM targets, this is not it. But if you need a legal, affordable and genuinely good-quality music solution that works well in a gym environment, Background Sounds does the job extremely well.
Our playlist library covers a wide range of genres and tempos, from high-energy dance, tech house and trance to more relaxed easy-listening and ambient options. You can switch between playlists at any time to suit the time of day, the area of your gym or the class.
What You Get With Background Sounds
A Background Sounds subscription gives you:
- Access to over 70 professionally curated playlists across more than 20 genres
- New music added every month, included in your subscription at no extra cost
- Stream from any device: laptop, PC, tablet or mobile phone
- No specialist equipment required
- A certificate of subscription is issued automatically to all paid members
- Access to the Background Sounds customer support team, based in the UK
Ready to Cut Your Music Costs?
Join over 1,000 UK businesses already saving money with Background Sounds. Try it free for 7 days, no card details, no commitment, no hard sell. If it is not right for your gym, there is no pressure to continue.
- Free 7-day trial (no card details required)
- £180 inc VAT per year, flat fee regardless of gym size
- Certificate of subscription issued automatically
- Stream from any device, no specialist equipment needed
We’re confident we’ve got the perfect playlists for your gym. But don’t just take our word for it; take our 7-day free trial and listen for yourself.
You’ll get access to our full playlist, and there’s no requirement to add any payment details to start the trial. If it’s not for you, there’s no pressure to take out a subscription.
We’re always happy to answer any questions you may have about using our royalty-free music service in your gym. Please email yours to info@backgroundsounds.co.uk
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a PRS PPL music licence cost for a gym?
The cost depends on your gym’s floor area. Based on current PRS and PPL standard tariffs, a small boutique gym of around 2,000 sq ft pays approximately £903 inc VAT per year. A medium-sized gym of around 4,000 sq ft pays approximately £1,290 inc VAT per year. A large commercial gym of 10,000 sq ft or more pays approximately £1,743 inc VAT per year.
A Background Sounds annual subscription costs £180 inc VAT, and it’s a flat fee regardless of size, saving most gym owners between £700 and £1,500 per year.
Can I play Spotify in my gym?
No, Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube and similar streaming services are licensed for private personal use only. Playing them in a commercial gym, even through a paid premium account, breaches their terms of service.
To play music legally in your gym, you need either a PRS PPL music licence or a royalty-free music service. A royalty-free service like Background Sounds removes the PRS PPL obligation entirely.
Is Background Sounds a specialist gym music service?
No, and we think it is important to be upfront about that. Background Sounds is a general business music service used by over 1,000 UK businesses across a wide range of sectors. It is not a specialist fitness platform with BPM-mapped workout playlists.
What it does offer is a wide range of professionally curated playlists across more than 20 genres, from high-energy dance and house to more relaxed ambient and easy listening options at a fraction of the cost of a PRS PPL licence.
For gym owners who need a legal, affordable and good-quality music solution without the complexity, it works extremely well.
Does the size of my gym affect how much I pay for royalty-free music?
No, Background Sounds charges a flat annual fee of £180 inc VAT per site, regardless of your gym’s floor area, number of members or number of staff.
What happens if I play music in my gym without a licence?
If PRS PPL identifies that you have been playing licensable music without a valid licence, you will be required to pay the standard licence cost plus a 50% penalty for the period you were unlicensed. PRS PPL actively monitors commercial premises and carries out in-person compliance checks.
For a gym already managing tight margins, an unexpected backdated penalty is a financial risk. Using a royalty-free music service removes this liability, and Background Sounds automatically issues all paid subscribers a certificate of subscription.
How do I prove I am playing music legally if PRS PPL contacts my gym?
All paid Background Sounds subscribers automatically receive a certificate of subscription confirming their royalty-free status. This certificate can be shown to PRS PPL as evidence that you are playing music that does not require a PRS PPL licence.
You do not need to request it; the certificate will be added to your account automatically when you purchase a subscription.
Can I try Background Sounds before committing?
Yes, every new customer can take a free 7-day trial with full access to the entire playlist library. No card details are required, and there is no obligation to continue afterwards.
It is a straightforward way to hear whether the service works for your gym environment before making any financial commitment.
References
Nusairat, N.M. et al. (2021). Fitness Centers Ambience-Customer Behavioral Intentions Relationship: The Mediating Role of Customer Emotional States. International Journal of Business and Management, 15(9), p.93.
Morin, S. et al. (2016). Calibrating 30 Years of Experimental Research: A Meta-Analysis of the Atmospheric Effects of Music, Scent, and Color. Journal of Retailing, 93(2), pp.163–177.
Totaljobs / Dr Anneli Haake (2016). The Sound of Productivity: Analysing attitudes towards music listening in the workplace. Survey of 4,553 UK workers.
About Us
Background Sounds is a specialist provider of royalty-free music. That’s music you can play without a PRS PPL Music Licence. We supply businesses across the UK with background music at a fraction of the cost of a music licence.
Access to the service is via our digital streaming platform and is available with a subscription. You can find out all you need to know on our home page here
