Latin Music H1 ’26 Revenue Topped $540M in the US: Report

Latin music recorded revenue topped $540 million in the U.S. during 2026’s opening half thanks to solid paid streaming gains and triple-digit vinyl growth, according to a new report.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) published that report today, pointing specifically to H1 2026 wholesale recorded revenue of $542.2 million for Latin music in the States.

That’s up 8.6% year over year (YoY) – compared to 5.9% YoY for H1 2025 and 4.2% YoY for the whole year – and represents the 13th consecutive year of growth, per the resource.

Unsurprisingly, streaming still accounts for the vast majority of Latin revenue – to the tune of $308.4 million in H1 2026 recorded revenue from subscriptions (up 12.4% YoY) and another $177.8 million from ad-supported listening (down 1.1% YoY), the report shows.

Despite that fact and an 11.8% YoY slip on the permanent downloads side ($2.8 million total), Latin vinyl sales climbed to 800,000 or so units (up 291.2% YoY) en route to generating $13.7 million (up 245.8% YoY), according to the breakdown.

Evidently, then, there’s room for Latin to achieve physical growth – though like with across-the-board vinyl and CD sales, release timing and volume play a significant role here.

To be sure, the wider February 2026 vinyl release of Bad Bunny’s DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS – besides the artist’s Super Bowl Halftime Show performance that same month – drove the triple-digit improvements and could make for a tough act to follow in H1 2027.

In any event, growth is, of course, growth. Rounding out Latin’s H1 2026 figures, the narrowly defined sync category is said to have turned in domestic recorded revenue of $3.3 million (up 104.2% YoY). And “other streaming,” encompassing SoundExchange distributions and different ad-supported revenue, suffered a 1.1% YoY dip to $36.1 million, per the report.

Addressing the results, RIAA SVP of state public policy and Latin music Rafael Fernandez Jr. touted Latin’s “expanding reach” and touched on the factors fueling the trend.

“Latin music keeps raising the bar as more fans connect with the artists they love and discover new favorites,” the longtime RIAA higher-up said. “Whether your first experience is an iconic performance like Bad Bunny at the Super Bowl or Shakira & Burna Boy’s World Cup anthem, a shared playlist or passed through a friend’s vinyl collection, there are more ways than ever to uncover and enjoy Latin music.

“These mid-year results show that expanding reach and a healthy music marketplace where sustained label investment helps artists break through, find fresh audiences and build lasting careers,” he concluded.