Song

I Want to Know What Love Is

Foreigner · Agent Provocateur · 1984

high confidence

Estimate at a glance

How much money does I Want to Know What Love Is make?

I Want to Know What Love Is by Foreigner is estimated at $170K-$550K/year on the artist side, with gross track revenue and ownership context separated below.

Takeaway: I Want to Know What Love Is is one of the stronger modeled catalog earners here because replay demand and ownership context both support a durable annual range.

This song holds value through a recognizable core riff or chorus, strong emotional payoff, and steady replay.

What stands out

  • Currently ranks around the top 49% of tracked songs by modeled artist-side earnings
  • Released in 1984 and still shows earnings power roughly 42 years later
  • Ranks #1 among 2 tracked songs for Foreigner
  • External listening links available
  • high confidence estimate

Why the song still earns

  • Classic replay value and catalog streaming keep major rock songs relevant.
  • Cultural familiarity supports long-tail listener demand.
  • Sync placements and live-culture recognition help extend the song's revenue life.

I Want to Know What Love Is lands in the top 49% of tracked songs by estimated artist-side earnings.

The song still reads as an evergreen catalog asset roughly 42 years after release.

Last updated: July 15, 2026

artist-side split is modeled + gross track revenue is separated. Why?

The headline number is the modeled artist-side annual share for this recording when split data exists.

Modeled artist-side range $170K-$550K/year
Gross track revenue $493K-$1.6M/year
Ownership context Included below
Platform signals Listening links only
Last updated July 15, 2026
I Want to Know What Love Is by Foreigner

How It Compares

I Want to Know What Love Is is compared against nearby songs in the catalog based on artist overlap, era, genre, and modeled earnings range.

Song Artist Estimated yearly midpoint
Foreigner $360,000
The Police $1,580,000
Billie Jean
same era
Michael Jackson $1,375,000

Revenue Breakdown

Gross track revenue $493K-$1.6M/year
100% of the lead revenue lane
Artist-side share $170K-$550K/year
34% of the lead revenue lane
Label master share $162K-$523K/year
66% of the lead revenue lane

Bars reflect modeled annual midpoint ranges, not audited royalty statements.

Listen

Preview audio is not available for this song right now.

Amazon Music

Reader questions about I Want to Know What Love Is

How much did I Want to Know What Love Is make in total?

I Want to Know What Love Is does not have a public lifetime total, so the estimate stays focused on modeled annual earnings instead of claiming an audited career total.

How much does I Want to Know What Love Is make per stream?

I Want to Know What Love Is does not have a single public per-stream rate because payouts vary by platform, territory, subscription tier, and contract structure. The estimate here is modeled from aggregate streaming, licensing, and catalog behavior instead.

Who owns I Want to Know What Love Is?

I Want to Know What Love Is is modeled from public-facing catalog behavior and conservative rights-split assumptions, not from audited royalty statements.

Show ownership and assumptions

I Want to Know What Love Is is modeled from public-facing catalog behavior and conservative rights-split assumptions, not from audited royalty statements.

Supporting Revenue Context

Estimated gross track revenue$493K-$1.6M/year
Estimated artist-side cut$170K-$550K/year
Estimated label master share$162K-$523K/year
Estimated publishing share$51K-$165K/year
Estimated songwriter share$71K-$231K/year
MastersLikely controlled through the recording label or distributor unless a specific rights sale is known
PublishingWriter and publisher splits affect the publishing share shown here
Catalog sale statusNo specific catalog sale adjustment is modeled for this track

Assumptions: Estimate keeps the current headline range as the artist-side figure and models gross track, label, publishing, and songwriter lanes from that conservative annual range.

Notes: I Want to Know What Love Is is modeled from public-facing catalog behavior and conservative rights-split assumptions, not from audited royalty statements.

Split-aware estimate

The headline number is the modeled artist-side annual share for this recording when split data exists.

  • Gross track revenue is separated from artist-side take-home where the page has enough split context.
  • Ownership notes on masters or publishing are included and should be read alongside the revenue number.
  • All figures are conservative annual modeled ranges based on streaming behavior, cultural replay value, sync potential, and available ownership information, not public royalty statements.

Read the full methodology.

More Context

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