How much does iTunes pay an artist for a song?

The amount received from sales through the iTunes store will vary depending on the particular circumstances of the artists. If signed to a record label that is responsible for distributing their music they will have an individual contract that will state the percentage they receive; this can be as low as 10% of the sales value. An independent artist can organise their own distribution and can receive up to 90% of the sales value, after an initial one off payment to organise the uploads (See links below), but will have to pay all the promotional/advertising costs etc. themselves.