This guide is for producers and DJs who like the idea of Droploud but want a standalone download gate, or who do not want to connect their own SoundCloud account just to publish one. On 18 October 2026 I built a test gate on GateRush, StillHype, Valorizd and Premierely, and I walked through Droploud's builder up to the publish step, with screenshots of each.
Droploud is a good free home for underground releases. The four tools below are better when you want a gate that lives on its own, and three of them add nothing you did not choose.
Droploud does discovery well, and the gate is one part of a bigger site
Droploud describes itself as an "underground music platform", and the download gate sits next to charts ranked by download momentum, a feed, artist profiles and a sample-pack shop. Everything is free for artists, with no paid tier, and according to Droploud its income comes from a 50 percent commission on shop sales, paid promo slots and purchasable Points (checked 18 October 2026). I like the in-app player and the way the chart gives a free edit a place to be found, which only StillHype's HypeChart comes close to among the gate tools here.
The limits show up when you only want a gate. In my test the builder pulled the title, cover and genre from my SoundCloud link, which was quick, but the Publish button stayed locked until I connected my own SoundCloud account as the producer. SoundCloud blocked my login from the server I tested on. That was as far as I got. The builder also shows "Includes following @droploudofficial on SoundCloud" on by default, and Droploud's gate terms say that follow may happen automatically when a fan connects. You can switch it off, but you have to notice it first. Rewards are files up to 300 MB or an external link, and according to Droploud the SoundCloud steps are enforced through OAuth. I could not finish a fan unlock, so I am quoting Droploud on that point.
Here is how the four tools compare at a glance
Every tool below shows a SoundCloud connect step in the fan flow. I did not complete any fan-side unlock, so the "Verified via" column is what each vendor says plus what I saw in the flow.
| Tool | Best for | SoundCloud actions | Verified via | Free plan | Paid from | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premierely | Verified SoundCloud steps plus email and lead data | Follow, like, repost, comment | Premierely's own approved SoundCloud API access (OAuth with PKCE) | 3 active gates, 7 platforms | Plus €5/mo billed yearly | 18 Oct 2026 |
| GateRush | A cheap, focused gate with pixels | Like, repost, comment, follow, playlist follow | SoundCloud OAuth, "genuinely enforced" per GateRush | Free forever, unlimited MP3 | Pro €22/yr (launch price, 50% off €44; monthly billing also offered) | 18 Oct 2026 |
| StillHype | A DJ gate live in a minute | Like, repost, comment, follow | SoundCloud OAuth, checked against the API per StillHype | 2 active gates | €89.99/yr | 18 Oct 2026 |
| Valorizd | Many platforms on one free gate | Follow, like, repost, comment | SoundCloud OAuth, per Valorizd | Unlimited gates, 2 actions each | Pro $4.99/mo | 18 Oct 2026 |
Premierely is the pick when you want verified SoundCloud steps and lead data
Premierely is a premiere booking system for music curators that also ships download gates for artists, and the gate is where the SoundCloud work happens for producers. The fan connects SoundCloud in a popup, and Premierely performs the follow, like, repost or comment through that login on its own approved SoundCloud API access, using OAuth with PKCE. The free plan (checked 18 October 2026) gives you up to 3 active gates with actions on SoundCloud, Instagram, YouTube, Spotify, Bandcamp, Facebook and TikTok.
Plus is €5 a month billed yearly and adds unlimited gates, any audio format, email capture, the fan's SoundCloud handle and follower data, CSV export, branding, a custom domain, webhooks and gate analytics. It also includes the connector that lets you launch gates from a chat, which is covered in the download gate MCP guide.
Droploud is stronger on discovery and costs nothing at any size, and Premierely has no chart or feed for your release to sit in. Pick Premierely if you want the gate on your own page with your own branding and a lead list you can export. You can read how the SoundCloud steps changed this year in what happened to SoundCloud download gates, and the full feature list is on the download gate page.
GateRush is a cheap and focused gate made in Italy
GateRush (https://gaterush.me) is the leanest option here. The free plan is free forever and covers SoundCloud like, repost, comment and follow on one playlist or account, one Instagram follow, one Spotify follow, email collection, CSV export and unlimited MP3 uploads. Pro is €22 a year at its launch price, half the €44 list price, with a monthly option also shown, and adds 10 SoundCloud playlists or accounts, 10 Instagram accounts, Meta and TikTok pixels and a link reward (checked 18 October 2026).
In my test the builder had live preview, per-platform "allow skip" toggles and a cover requirement, and the fan flow asked for name and email before the Connect SoundCloud step. GateRush does the pixels and the price better than Premierely does. The caveat is that I could only see the free and Pro limits through the pricing summary on its homepage, and its site blocked my automated checks, so confirm the plan details in your own browser. Pick it if you want a clean, low-cost gate with retargeting pixels. There is more in the GateRush alternatives guide.
StillHype is the fastest way to get a SoundCloud gate live
StillHype (https://www.stillhype.io) is a SoundCloud-first tool that is still labelled beta. You paste a track link, it pulls the title, cover and artist, and it even read the key from my track, with fields for Camelot key and BPM that DJs will like. The free plan has 2 active gates with all four SoundCloud actions, one Instagram account and an MP3 up to 50 MB, and Pro Artist or Indie Label is €89.99 a year for unlimited gates, more platforms, playlist follows, 200 MB files and CSV export (checked 18 October 2026). StillHype's own blog quotes a different price of $12 a month or $99 a year, so go by the pricing page.
It does the DJ details and the exposure on its HypeChart better than Premierely. The caveat is the beta label, the two-gate free limit and the price jump to a yearly plan to get other platforms. Pick it if you are a DJ who lives on SoundCloud and wants a gate in a minute. See the StillHype alternatives guide for the full picture.
Valorizd gives you unlimited free gates with a two-action cap
Valorizd (https://www.valorizd.app) lets you make unlimited gates on the free Starter plan, with up to 2 actions per gate and 15 MB of storage. Pro is $4.99 a month for 5 actions, 600 MB and widgets, and Studio is $11.99 a month for 15 actions, 15 GB and branding removal (checked 18 October 2026). It offers the widest action set per platform on a free plan, plus unlimited gates and a redirect reward for free, across SoundCloud, YouTube, Spotify, Instagram, Facebook, Discord and TikTok, and it can import a Hypeddit gate in one click.
The caveats are the 15 MB limit, which is too small for most full-length WAV files, and a line on the fan page saying that connecting also follows @valorizd on SoundCloud. That is similar to Droploud's bundled follow, so read the fan page before you share it. Pick it if you want many platforms on one gate and can live with 2 actions until you pay. The Valorizd alternatives guide goes deeper.
Pick the tool that matches how you release music
If you release free edits often and want a scene-facing site where fans can find them, stay with Droploud, since none of the other tools has its charts or feed. If you want the gate on your own page with verified SoundCloud steps, lead data and a custom domain, pick Premierely, and note that the lead data and branding sit on Plus at €5 a month billed yearly.
If budget is the main thing and you want pixels, GateRush at €22 a year (its launch price, half the €44 list price) is the cheapest paid step in this group. If you are a DJ and speed matters most, StillHype gets a gate live fastest, and if you want unlimited gates across many platforms for nothing, Valorizd will do that as long as 2 actions per gate and small files are enough. If you are leaving Hypeddit rather than Droploud, the Hypeddit alternatives guide covers that move.
You can start a free Premierely gate in a few minutes at app.premierely.io, and compare plans on the pricing page.
The same account books premieres if you also run a channel
If you also run a SoundCloud channel or a label and spend your week answering premiere submissions in an inbox, the same Premierely account is the premiere booking system for curators, where one approval publishes the premiere to every channel you run. You can see how that works on the premiere booking system page.
