Introducing the Soundtrack API from Epidemic Sound
Learn how the Soundtrack API works with your product.
We’ll discuss:
- What is the Soundtrack API from Epidemic Sound?
- How do you access the Soundtrack API?
- Who is the Soundtrack API for?
- Why should you use the Soundtrack API?
- How does the Soundtrack API work?
What is the Soundtrack API from Epidemic Sound?
The Soundtrack API from Epidemic Sound is a one-click feature that lets users seamlessly soundtrack video content in your product. It pairs their footage and text prompts with music, analyzing pacing, mood, and key moments to find the perfect match. Their video comes back fully soundtracked.
Users can add a creative brief, such as “upbeat, corporate, no vocals,” to steer the choice. Without one, the Soundtrack API decides from the video alone.
All music available through the Soundtrack API comes from Epidemic Sound’s catalog. More than 55,000 tracks made by real artists. Up-and-coming talent to Grammy-nominated and -winning names. Nearly 400 genres. All cleared for your users to publish in their content.
How do you access the Soundtrack API?
To access the Soundtrack API, you need an API key and an active Epidemic Sound subscription to cover users in your product and beyond. This also includes the Epidemic Sound API Free tier.
Who is the Soundtrack API for?
The Soundtrack API is for anyone running a product where users soundtrack content. This includes:
- Mobile video editing apps: The user trims vacation clips on their phone and taps “Add music.” The video’s ready to publish before they’ve left the beach.
- Ad creation and ads manager platforms: A marketer creates ten versions of a video ad. Each is soundtracked individually to match its pace, so they can be tested side by side.
- Influencer marketing platforms: A brand sets the creative brief with a text prompt. 50 videos by 50 different influencers are automatically soundtracked with on-brand music.
- Gaming apps: A player saves their best moment from a session. The footage comes back as a highlight clip with music that pumps up the action.
- Sports and action camera apps: A day of skiing or a weekend hike becomes a video with custom-fit music, ready to share and publish.
- Video sharing platforms: A creator uploads their clip. The platform suggests a soundtracked version at the upload step.
- User-generated content (UGC) platforms: Customers submit reviews, unboxing videos, or challenge entries. Each comes back with music to match.
- Photo and “memories” apps: The user’s summer photos and clips turn into a “Your summer” video, paired with suitably bright music.
Why should you use the Soundtrack API?
The Soundtrack API simplifies soundtracking and licensing within your product. Here’s how.
You don’t have to build a music experience
The Soundtrack API replaces track search, preview, filters, and an editing timeline with one feature. Teams that never planned or expected to build a music interface can still give users great sound in a modern workflow.
Pricing is easy to predict
Every job uses the same number of credits, regardless of video length or output format. You know what a feature costs before it goes live in your product.
It’s made to flex with your product
Every soundtrack starts with a brief. You should be able to choose where that brief comes from. Map your product’s style presets to genres and moods, let users describe the vibe in their own words, and set brand-specific rules for enterprise clients or your own work. The Soundtrack API guides music selection without locking it to a specific track.
It’s built on real, directly licensed music
Every Soundtrack API result comes from Epidemic Sound’s fully licensed catalog of real music made by real artists. No AI-generated tracks. No risky licenses. Cleared for your users to publish on the platforms that matter to them.
How does the Soundtrack API work?
The Soundtrack API is a job-based workflow. The user uploads a video and adds an optional prompt of up to 2,000 characters. The Soundtrack API returns with a soundtrack, custom-fit to the video’s length and mood.
Click here for the complete technical guide.
Here to help you build
Epidemic Sound owns all the rights to the music in its catalog, meaning it’s licensed globally, forever.
No separate licensing. No territory gaps. Trusted by 70% of the top 300 US YouTube channels, plus world-famous brands including Levi’s, Warner Bros. Discovery, The Telegraph, and the Miami Dolphins.
Add one-click soundtracking to your product with the Soundtrack API from Epidemic Sound.
Frequently asked questions about the Soundtrack API
Is the Soundtrack API different from the Epidemic Sound API?
No. The Soundtrack API is a set of endpoints within the Epidemic Sound API, which create a custom “one-click soundtrack” feature for your product’s users. It’s available with the same API key, and isn’t a separate product.
Do users need an Epidemic Sound subscription to use the Soundtrack API in my product?
No, your users don’t need their own Epidemic Sound account or subscription. The music is covered by your product’s Epidemic Sound API agreement.
Can users soundtrack video with just one click?
Yes. Imagine you run a video editing software for social media. A user records a 45-second travel clip and taps “Add music.” A couple of minutes later, the clip has a soundtrack that fits, ready to publish.
Behind that button, your product sends the clip to the Soundtrack API, with a brief based on a style the user picked, such as “chill” or “energetic.” If the clip has a voiceover, your product can keep the original audio and add the music underneath.
The same works without a user in the loop. A content pipeline can soundtrack a queue of product videos or recaps overnight, using one brief for a consistent brand sound.
Can users edit output in the Soundtrack API?
No. There’s no in-flight editing or retry loop yet. The current Soundtrack API is a single automated pass, not an interactive session.
Can the Soundtrack API add sound effects?
Not yet. The Soundtrack API currently only supports music. Sound effects are coming soon.
Can the Soundtrack API keep original audio in a video?
Yes. By default, the Soundtrack API mutes any original audio and replaces it with music from Epidemic Sound. Users can set the source audio option to “unmuted,” which adds music underneath the original audio. An audio ducking feature is coming soon.
How much do Soundtrack API jobs cost?
Each Soundtrack API job costs 2,500 credits, whatever the video length or output format. These credits are taken from your Epidemic Sound credit allowance when the video upload completes, rather than when the job is created. Click here for more information about credits.
How long does the Soundtrack API take to soundtrack a video?
A 30-second video takes around one minute to process. Longer videos take proportionally longer.
Is the Soundtrack API in beta?
Yes, the Soundtrack API is in beta. Details may change before general availability. Today, it:
- Adds music, not sound effects
- Handles videos up to four minutes/600MB
- Runs as a single automated pass, with no interactive editing
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