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CDBaby.com is amazing! They have been around since March of 1998, and I wrote my first article on them that same year.  They started off very good, and kept getting better.  If you want to release a CD and can't afford $1,000+ to get 1,000 copies made, you can have a digital only release through them for a simple $35 setup fee.  You'll get on iTunes and all of the other major digital distributors, and they'll keep track of all of the information for you.  To me, they are the most valuable and important single resource for original independent musicians.

Here are some of the things they can do for you:

• Digital distribution through iTunes, cdbaby.com, Rhapsody, Napster, Amazon MP3, and many more!
• Physical sales
• Detailed accounting, including very detailed income information
• Bar codes
• Supply a credit card swiper so you can take credit cards at shows
• Give you personal email contact with the fans who buy your music
• News and tips for marketing your music
• Incredible customer service

I wrote a couple of articles on CDBaby in the archived issues of Underground Music Monthly. First in 1998, issue 5 and then again in the anniversary issue, 1999, issue 8. I think they're worth reading just to see the difference between where they were then to where they are now.

Here is a breakdown of their pricing:

• They keep $4 from every physical CD you sell, unless you price it at $5, in which case they only keep $2
• They keep 9 percent of any digital sale, whether directly through CDBaby.com or through another digital outlet, such as iTunes.  For example, iTunes gives 70 cents to CDBaby for a 99 cent sale, and then CDBaby gives you 63.7 cents.  Those .7 cents add up.
• There's a one time setup charge of $35
• If you want to take credit cards at shows, there's a one time refundable $30 deposit for the machine, and then they keep 9 percent of the sale.  I had the machine for a few shows, and the crowds weren't big enough to really sell any CDs, so I sent it back and got my $30 back.