With music streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music, it’s easier than ever to access tons of music on your iPhone. However, streaming requires an internet connection. If you want to listen to music without using data or relying on WiFi, downloading songs to your device is the way to go. The good news is there are plenty of legal and free ways to download music to your iPhone for offline listening.
Why Download Music to Your iPhone?
There are several key reasons you may want to download music to your iPhone rather than stream:
- Listen without WiFi or cellular data: Downloaded music doesn’t require an internet connection, allowing you to listen anywhere at any time. This saves you money on potentially expensive data overage fees.
- Avoid streaming interruptions: Streaming can cut out or pause if your connection is spotty. With downloads, listening is seamless.
- Save storage space: Streaming caches songs temporarily, taking up valuable storage over time. Downloads let you be selective about what’s taking up space.
- Access exclusive content: Some artists release albums or tracks only for purchase or download.
- Build your permanent library: While streamed music comes and goes, your downloads are yours to keep.
Whether you want to minimize data usage, listen offline, or expand your permanent music collection, downloading songs to your iPhone is the best option.
How to Download Free Music to Your iPhone
Luckily, there are many ways to download free music you can listen to anytime on your iPhone. Here are some of the top methods:
Use Free Streaming Apps
Popular free streaming apps like Spotify and SoundCloud allow you to download tracks and albums for offline playback:
- Spotify: Spotify has a vast music catalog, and lets you download playlists, albums, and podcasts on mobile. Just tap the download icon next to any content when using a free account. There are some restrictions, like a 10,000 song limit.
- SoundCloud: SoundCloud’s enormous catalog of remixes, original songs, and more can be downloaded right on your iPhone app. Tap the download icon on tracks to save them. Keep in mind there’s a limit on how many downloads are allowed in a certain time frame.
The key benefit of using a free streaming app is convenience. If you already use Spotify or SoundCloud, downloading for offline playback is easy. Just note that downloaded content may expire after 30 days if you don’t open the app.
Use Free MP3 Download Sites
There are many websites that offer free legal MP3 downloads. These let you find individual songs to download, rather than full albums:
- Free Music Archive: This site offers a huge selection of original music uploaded by independent artists. Genres include jazz, classical, hip hop and more. Just search for songs and download the MP3 files.
- Jamendo Music: Jamendo has over 500,000 tracks and albums free to download under Creative Commons licenses. You can search by genre, mood, what’s popular or new.
- DatPiff: This hip hop focused site has mixtapes from both major and indie rappers available to download. They have over 8,000 mixtapes dating back to 2004.
Using MP3 sites gives you more control to hand-pick specific songs. However, you’ll have to download one track at a time rather than full albums.
Use YouTube to MP3 Converters
YouTube hosts tons of music content, though you can’t directly download songs. With YouTube to MP3 converters, you can turn YouTube videos into downloadable audio:
- Find the YouTube music video you want to download.
- Copy the video URL.
- Go to a converter site and paste the URL. Some popular options are YoutubeMP3.org, YTMP3 or OfflineTube.
- Click convert or download. An MP3 file will be created.
- Save the MP3 file to your computer, then sync it over to your iPhone.
YouTube converters give you an easy way to grab MP3s of almost any song. However, sound quality may vary. Make sure to only use it for legally uploaded YouTube videos.
Download from Bandcamp
Bandcamp is a platform for artists to share their music directly with fans. Many bands offer free music downloads:
- Search for bands on Bandcamp and find their free songs or albums.
- Click Download. You can often pay what you want, including $0.
- Download the Zip file containing the MP3s.
- Open the Zip on your computer, then sync the tracks to your iPhone.
Bandcamp is great for discovering indie artists and legally downloading entire albums for free. Just be aware some bands only share samples or short excerpts this way.
Download from SoundClick
Similar to Bandcamp, unsigned artists share their music on SoundClick. Many offer free downloads:
- Search SoundClick for an artist and navigate to their profile.
- Find free songs or albums. Click the Download button.
- Open the downloaded Zip on your computer, then sync to iPhone.
SoundClick lets you discover and download free original music while supporting independent artists. You may have to search through some amateur mixes, but can find some gems.
Record Streaming Audio
If you come across a song you want to download that’s not available directly, you can record the audio as you stream it:
- Play the song on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube or another streaming service.
- On your Mac or PC, use a free audio recording program like Audacity to record system audio.
- Save the recording as an MP3 file.
- Sync the MP3 to your iPhone.
Recording streaming audio may work as a last resort. However, sound quality likely won’t be as high. Make sure you stick to downloading legal streams.
Rip Music from CDs
If you still buy physical CDs, you can “rip” tracks to MP3 format:
- Insert the audio CD into your computer.
- Open a ripping program like iTunes (Windows) or Finder (Mac).
- Select the tracks to import and convert to digital files.
- Sync the files over to your iPhone.
Ripping CDs helps you go truly digital, while maintaining that physical music collection experience. Though it takes some time, it provides high quality files.
Download from Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library offering free music:
- Go to Archive.org and browse the audio collections.
- Search for albums or artists you want to download.
- Click on a result to download the MP3 files.
- Transfer downloads to your iPhone.
This method gives you access to a huge array of older and independent music. Just be aware some tracks may not be officially authorized for download.
Best Practices for Downloading Music
When downloading free music, keep these guidelines and best practices in mind:
- Use trusted sources like major streaming platforms, rather than pirating from unauthorized sites.
- Watch for expiring downloads that may disappear after 30 days if unused.
- Store your downloads on your computer as a backup so you can sync again if needed.
- Download full albums instead of single tracks when possible for higher sound quality.
- Stay organized – tag your downloads with correct artist, song and album info.
Following these tips will help ensure you build a robust, high-quality music library on your iPhone.
Storing Downloaded Music on Your iPhone
Once you’ve downloaded MP3 files using the methods above, there are a couple steps required to get them onto your iPhone:
Sync iPhone to iTunes
If you use a Mac or PC, syncing with iTunes is the easiest way to transfer downloaded music:
- Connect your iPhone to your computer using the USB cable. Open iTunes if it doesn’t automatically.
- Under Library, select Music then drag the downloaded songs/albums to the Sync list.
- Check Sync Music, then press Apply.
- This will copy the downloads to your iPhone.
Syncing with iTunes copies lots of music quickly. But it requires a desktop computer.
Use Cloud Storage
For added portability, you can transfer downloads using cloud storage services:
- Upload the MP3 files to cloud storage like Dropbox, Google Drive or iCloud.
- Install the matching cloud app on iPhone, like Dropbox.
- Tap the More (•••) menu of the app and choose Select from the options.
- Select all the music files you want to import.
- Tap the share icon and choose Add to My Music.
Cloud storage gives you wireless transfer without cables. Just note limits on how much you can sync for free.
Share via AirDrop
If your downloads are on another Apple device, use AirDrop:
- Make sure both devices have Bluetooth and WiFi enabled and are closeby.
- Open the downloads folder on the first device. Tap Select.
- Choose the songs to share. Tap the Share icon.
- Select AirDrop then pick your iPhone as the recipient.
- Accept the download prompt on your iPhone.
AirDrop lets you quickly share between Apple products without using wires or internet. Just keep devices within 30 feet of one another.
Listening to Downloaded Music
Once your free downloads are on your iPhone, there are couple places you can access them:
Apple Music App
Your downloaded MP3s will be available in the Apple Music app alongside any streaming content:
- Open the Music app. Tap Library at the bottom.
- Select Songs to see all synced tracks.
- Tap Filters at the top to filter just downloaded songs if desired.
- Tap any track to start listening offline!
The Music app puts downloads right next to streaming content for one unified library.
Files App
You can also access transfers directly through the Files app:
- Open the Files app and select Browse from the tabs at the bottom.
- Navigate to On My iPhone > Music folder.
- Tap to open any MP3 file.
Files lets you browse your actual device storage outside the Music app. Good for quick access or editing file info.
Top Tips for Managing Music Downloads
To keep your download library organized and optimized, use these music download tips:
- Add metadata: Tag your files so songs show correct titles, artists, albums, genres and more.
- Delete old downloads: Remove any tracks you no longer want clogging up space.
- Make playlists: Curate custom playlists so you can find downloads easily.
- Download entire albums: Get full albums when possible for completeness.
- Store on your computer: Keep the original files as a backup that can be transferred again if needed.
- Update iTunes: Check for new updates occasionally to ensure continued sync support.
Following these best practices will help you expertly manage your offline music collection.
FAQs
Here are answers to some frequently asked questions about downloading free music to your iPhone:
Is downloading free music legal?
Yes, as long as you use reputable sites and sources. Stream ripping, piracy and illegal downloads are prohibited.
Do I need an internet connection to listen?
No. One of the main benefits of downloads is the ability to listen offline without using cellular data or WiFi.
Can I download music onto my iPhone for free?
Yes! All of the options in this guide allow legal free music downloads. Paid downloads are also available via services like iTunes.
How much music can I download to my iPhone?
It depends on your iPhone model and storage capacity. You can download songs until you reach max storage, minus some needed operating system space.
What file format should I download?
MP3 is the most common and compatible format to download. However, lossless formats like FLAC provide better sound quality.
Conclusion
Whether you want to save data usage, listen offline, or expand your permanent music library, downloading songs to your iPhone is simple and easy. Take advantage of the wealth of legal free music sources to build your perfect offline collection. With the right tools and practices, you can become an expert at managing your downloaded music.