Creator Payments 2021-22

Content Separator

Statistics – February 2022

Overview of the 2021-22 PLR Program


Registered authors: 20,278

Authors receiving payments: 18,139

Eligible titles in PLR database: 89,551

Titles found: 81,328

Total amount paid to authors: $14,999,662.90

Minimum author payment: $50.00

Maximum author payment: $4,500.00

Average author payment: $827.00

Median author payment: $402.96


Distribution of Author Payments

Payments by Province and Territory (2021–22)
Province Number of authors Total Paid
Newfoundland and Labrador 249 $161,432.37
Nova Scotia 638 $449,063,60
Prince Edward Island 72 $52,820.35
New Brunswick 438 $268,169.91
Quebec 7,137 $6,498,776.12
Ontario 4,963 $3,916,267.33
Manitoba 393 $261,389.21
Saskatchewan 333 $238,991.18
Alberta 929 $753,089.30
British Columbia 2,484 $1,962,202.57
Northwest Territories 21 $11,458.60
Yukon 26 $15,904.85
Nunavut 3 $2,019.76
Outside Canada 453 $408,077.75
Total 18,139 $14,999,622.90

Library sampling

PLR payments are determined based on how often a title shows up in an annual survey of select public library system catalogues across Canada. We survey each participating system for all eligible titles.

Calculating the payments

PLR payments are calculated using a four-category payment scale. The categories correspond to the number of years that a title has been registered with the program. This year, for any title found in the PLR’s library sampling, the payment was calculated as follows:

Year Title was Registered with PLR Payment if Title Found
Category I: 2017 to 2021 $62.96
Category II: 2012 to 2016 $50.37
Category III: 2007 to 2011 $44.07
Category IV: 1996 - 2006 $37.38

The amounts in this scale apply to authors claiming 100% of a PLR payment. In situations where there is more than one eligible contributor to a book, payment is calculated based on the percentage of the book’s content that was claimed.

Re-Activated Files: An author whose file is re-activated will receive payments based on the category corresponding to the original date of registration of their titles.