CCLI (Christian Copyright Licensing International) administers licences that allow churches to use copyrighted worship songs in their services. For Christian artists and songwriters, CCLI registration is how royalties flow from church use — a significant income stream that many faith-based artists never claim.
What is CCLI?
CCLI — Christian Copyright Licensing International — is the organisation that administers licences allowing churches and faith communities to use copyrighted worship songs in their services. Founded in 1988 in the United States and now operating globally, CCLI manages the rights for hundreds of thousands of Christian worship songs, from contemporary Hillsong and Bethel repertoire to traditional hymns. Its primary product is the Church Copyright Licence, which churches purchase annually to cover congregational singing, song projection, bulletins, and recordings of services. For Christian artists and songwriters, CCLI is the mechanism through which royalties flow from church use — a revenue stream that operates entirely separately from streaming platforms and PRO distributions.
How does CCLI work for churches?
A church purchases an annual CCLI licence priced according to congregation size. The licence covers the use of all songs in CCLI's licensed repertoire — churches do not need to seek individual permission for each song they sing. In exchange, CCLI requires churches to report which songs they use in services, typically through a six-month reporting period twice a year. These usage reports form the data set from which royalty distributions are calculated. A church with 200 members singing a particular worship song every Sunday for six months generates a measurable, reportable usage record. That record drives the payment to the rights holder.
How do Christian artists and songwriters get paid through CCLI?
CCLI distributes royalties to rights holders — songwriters and publishers — based on the aggregated usage data from participating churches. The more churches report using your song, the higher your distribution. Payments are made annually. The critical requirement is that your compositions must be registered in CCLI's repertoire before the reporting period closes; songs added after churches have already submitted their reports will not receive royalties for that period. Registration is free for individual songwriters and music publishers. Once registered, your songs appear in CCLI's SongSelect database, which churches use to identify and project licensed lyrics.
CCLI vs PRS: what is the difference for faith-based artists?
PRS for Music covers the public performance, broadcast, and online streaming of musical compositions in the UK. It covers concerts, radio, television, streaming platforms, and public venues. What PRS does not cover is congregational use — singing in a worship service is treated differently from a commercial public performance, and CCLI holds the specific licence for that context. Most UK Christian artists need both. PRS will collect royalties when your songs are streamed on Spotify, played on BBC Radio, or performed at a festival. CCLI will collect royalties when those same songs are sung by congregations in churches that hold a Church Copyright Licence. The two systems are complementary, not interchangeable. Relying on PRS alone means you are missing all church-use income.
How to register with CCLI as a songwriter or publisher
Registering your compositions with CCLI is straightforward:
- Create an account at ccli.com and register as a rights holder (songwriter or publisher).
- Add your compositions to the CCLI repertoire through the rights holder portal. You will need the title, your writer credit, and your publishing details.
- Ensure your works appear in the SongSelect database — this is the searchable catalogue churches use to find licensed songs. Songs that are not in SongSelect will not be reported by churches even if they use them.
- Monitor your annual distributions through the CCLI rights holder account. Review the usage reports to identify which churches are using your songs and in which territories.
Why many Christian artists miss CCLI income
CCLI income goes uncollected for several predictable reasons:
- Never registered — the artist is on Spotify and registered with PRS but has never registered compositions with CCLI. Church use goes entirely uncompensated.
- Assumed PRS covers church use — the most common misconception. PRS and CCLI cover different contexts. PRS does not distribute royalties for congregational singing under a Church Copyright Licence.
- Self-released without registering — independent worship artists who release songs on streaming platforms often do not know CCLI registration is a separate, required step.
- Song used outside CCLI coverage — some smaller or newer churches may not hold a CCLI licence and use songs without reporting. This is a compliance issue for the church, not a registration failure for the artist.
- Missing from SongSelect — if your song is not searchable in SongSelect, churches cannot properly identify and report it even if they use it regularly.
Code Group Music includes CCLI registration as part of its Kickstarter plan, with specific expertise in the Christian music sector. If your worship songs are being used in congregations across the UK and internationally and you have never registered with CCLI, you are leaving annual royalty income on the table. Our catalog assessment identifies which of your compositions are missing from collecting society registrations — including CCLI. Start at codegroupmusic.co.uk/#catalog-assessment.
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