How to Fix “This sound isn’t licensed for commercial use” on TikTok

If you are using a sound on TikTok but you are facing this error message, “This sound isn’t licensed for commercial use”?

There is a chance that you were able to use every song in the past, but in the present, you cannot use most of them.

Or it might be possible that you switched the accounts and now you are unable to use most of the songs.

A lot of TikTok users report “This sound isn’t licensed for commercial use” error, it means that you’re not alone.

In this post, I am going to teach you why you got the error, and how to fix it.

Why did I get the “This sound isn’t licensed for commercial use” error?

You are getting this error “This sound isn’t licensed for commercial use” if you are using a business account.

If you are using a business account, you won’t be able to use mainstream music on TikTok anymore.

In May 2020, businesses and organizations cannot use mainstream songs on TikTok.

In a nutshell, if you are using a business account, you can no longer use popular songs in your videos.

After May 2020 update, TikTok announced the release of the Commercial Music Library for businesses.

This update result in an end to businesses from using mainstream music and songs on the app.

It shows that the businesses can only use royalty-free music from the commercial music library in their content.

According to TikTok, “The Commercial Music Library contains a collection of royalty-free music so that businesses can avoid the hassle of music licensing”.

“Although the full music library is unavailable to businesses, they will still be able to access user-uploaded sounds”.

Businesses can now only use user-uploaded sounds or royalty-free music in their videos.

Many TikTok users did not like this update who’ve used mainstream music for their business in the past.

Dave Jorgenson who is a Washington Post TikTok guy has published a tweeted about the change using his Twitter account.

He said that he came to know about the change when one of his videos wasn’t published on TikTok.

Dave did not like the change because he cannot use his favorite song(s) in his videos.

Users use trending songs in their videos on TikTok to get more likes on their videos.

Having said that, it will affect the organizations and businesses negatively due to this change.

It is because the businesses will have to create more creative ideas to keep themselves attach with the latest trends.

As a result, the engagement rate will decrease on TikTok automatically due to the weightage of trending songs.

However, the change will not affect the TikTok stars or regular users.

It is because the regular TikTokers can still use the popular songs in their content.

As I stated earlier, the change will only affect organizations and businesses; which means that personal accounts will not be affected.

How to fix “This sound isn’t licensed for commercial use” on TikTok

To fix the “This sound isn’t licensed for commercial use” error on TikTok, you need to use a personal account or switch back to it.

If you have a business account, you cannot use mainstream songs on TikTok due to the update in 2020.

To use mainstream songs on TikTok again, simply change your account type to a personal account from your account’s settings.

You might be getting the error because you probably switched to a business account in the past.

So, if you want to use trending songs on TikTok again, you need to change your account from a business to a personal one.

After switching your account, you can use the mainstream songs in your videos on TikTok.

You can use the account settings to switch your account to a personal one.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to switch the account:

1. Firstly, visit your TikTok profile.
2. Tap on the “triple-dots” icon on the top-right hand corner of your profile.
3. Now, tap on “Manage account”.
4. Select “Switch to Personal Account”, then “Switch back” to switch to a personal account.

After changing your account to personal, you will be able to use mainstream songs on TikTok again.

However, you will not be able to see your analytics, and will not be able to add the link in your bio.

If you don’t give preference to analytics or adding a link in your bio, then switching to a personal account will not affect you much.

However, if you’re using TikTok to promote your business, then it is best to maintain a business account.

But using a business account will only allow you to use royalty free music from the commercial music library of TikTok.

Can you use any song on TikTok?

Yes, if you have a personal account, you can use any song on TikTok.

If you are using a personal account, you can use any song on TikTok.

However, if you have a business account, you can only use royalty-free music from Commercial Music Library of TikTok.

Choose the song under any video in order to use it for your own video.

You can also use the songs from TikTok available in the “Sounds” tab.

However, if you changed your account to a business account, you won’t be able to use popular songs on TikTok.

You will see a commercial music library when you go to the “Sounds” tab.

If you want to use popular songs on TikTok, you need to switch your account to a personal one.

Otherwise, you cannot use popular or trending songs on TikTok.

What the music restriction means for businesses

As businesses will not be able to use trending or popular songs on TikTok anymore, their reach will be negatively affected.

Businesses can no longer use the mainstream songs in their videos and their reach on TikTok will be negatively affected.

TikTokgives rise to trending content.

The statement shows that if a user posts trending content, there is a great chance that the user will get on the “For You” page more than someone who does not.

You need to use trending songs in your videos if you want to post trending content.

Since businesses cannot use trending/popular tracks in their videos, they cannot post trending content.

It means that businesses will not be able to catch up the latest trends on TikTok.

As a result, it will affect their reach as well as engagement negatively.

Additionally, the restriction of mainstream songs makes it difficult for businesses to go viral with the help of a single piece of content.

The best bet for business is to create even more creative work in order to maintain engagement.

In short, the restriction of trending songs will impact the businesses negatively.

To fight the change, they will have to post innovative content to stand out in the audience or have to spend money on TikTok ads.

Final Words

This post is covering why you got the “This sound isn’t licensed for commercial use” error on TikTok, and how to fix it.

In short, TikTok has restricted businesses from using mainstream songs.

The change is not applicable for personal accounts and TikTok stars.

So, if you do not care about the business account features, you need to switch to personal account to use the trending songs again.

Unluckily, TikTok did not announce the restriction in their newsroom, therefore, a lot of users are in confusion because of this change.

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