TuneCore release planner: how far in advance to upload

TuneCore deadlines, counted back from release day

What TuneCore says, word for word

Fully upload your release 3 to 4 weeks ahead of your target release date. For playlist consideration the release will need to be approved by TuneCore and processed in the stores at least two weeks prior to your release date.— TuneCore help: How far in advance should I upload my release?

TuneCore's help centre blocks automated reading, so the quote comes from a search snippet of that article, checked on 13 October 2026. Read the article yourself before a release that depends on it.

The detail most people miss: approved, not uploaded

TuneCore's two weeks are not counted from the day you press upload. The release has to be approved by TuneCore and processed in the stores two weeks before release day. Review takes about two business days, so an upload on a Thursday may not be approved until the following Monday or Tuesday. If you are aiming for the minimum, upload at least 17 days out, not 14, and check that the release shows as approved before you count on the pitch.

"Fully upload" matters too. A release with missing artwork, an unfinished track list or open questions about credits is not uploaded in TuneCore's sense, and the clock does not start until it is complete. Finish everything a week before your upload date; the planner puts that as the first row.

Why the planner uses four weeks for TuneCore

Three weeks works when everything passes review first time. Four weeks gives you a full week of slack for a resubmission and still leaves two to three weeks in which to pitch Spotify editors, build a pre-save page and announce the date. If your release lands in December, add another week.

Spotify's side of the plan

What time does the release go live?

By default, at midnight local time in each territory. Spotify's documentation for distributors calls this Store Turn: "the release goes live at Midnight, the start of the day for each territory. Daylight savings time can change this." Midnight arrives first in New Zealand and last on the US West Coast, so in December Auckland hears a Friday release at 11:00 UTC on Thursday and Los Angeles at 08:00 UTC on Friday, a 21 hour spread. A distributor can instead set a timed release (one chosen moment), but few independent distributors offer it. The planner shows your own local time for each market under the plan.