Song

King of Pain

The Police · Synchronicity · 1983

high confidence

Estimate at a glance

How much money does King of Pain make?

King of Pain by The Police is estimated at $170K-$550K/year on the artist side, with gross track revenue and ownership context separated below.

Takeaway: King of Pain is one of the stronger modeled catalog earners here because replay demand and ownership context both support a durable annual range.

King of Pain strengthens Synchronicity's album value because it gives the record another recognizable catalog anchor beyond Every Breath You Take.

What stands out

  • Currently ranks around the top 50% of tracked songs by modeled artist-side earnings
  • Released in 1983 and still shows earnings power roughly 43 years later
  • Ranks #3 among 3 tracked songs for The Police
  • External listening links available
  • high confidence estimate

Why the song still earns

  • classic-rock catalog replay
  • The Police singles recognition
  • album-level Synchronicity demand

King of Pain lands in the top 50% of tracked songs by estimated artist-side earnings.

The song still reads as an evergreen catalog asset roughly 43 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 $360K-$980K/year
Ownership context Included below
Platform signals Listening links only
Last updated July 15, 2026
King of Pain by The Police

How It Compares

King of Pain is compared against nearby songs in the catalog based on artist overlap, era, genre, and modeled earnings range.

Song Artist Estimated yearly midpoint
King of Pain
selected song
The Police $360,000
Every Breath You Take
same artist · same album
The Police $1,580,000
Billie Jean
same era
Michael Jackson $1,375,000

Revenue Breakdown

Gross track revenue $360K-$980K/year
100% of the lead revenue lane
Artist-side share $170K-$550K/year
54% of the lead revenue lane
Label master share $90K-$270K/year
46% 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 King of Pain

How much did King of Pain make in total?

King of Pain 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 King of Pain make per stream?

King of Pain 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 King of Pain?

Artist-side range is directional and not based on disclosed royalty statements.

Show ownership and assumptions

Artist-side range is directional and not based on disclosed royalty statements.

Supporting Revenue Context

Estimated gross track revenue$360K-$980K/year
Estimated artist-side cut$170K-$550K/year
Estimated label master share$90K-$270K/year
Estimated publishing share$50K-$170K/year
Estimated songwriter share$35K-$130K/year
Masterslabel / catalog rightsholder
Publishingpublisher / songwriter split
Catalog sale statusnot modeled as a fully sold song position

Assumptions: Estimate is modeled from classic-rock catalog replay and The Police's long-tail single demand.

Notes: Artist-side range is directional and not based on disclosed 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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