Apple Music is a popular music streaming service developed by Apple. It allows users to stream over 90 million songs as well as download music to listen to offline. While Apple Music offers the ability to download individual songs or albums, many users wonder if there is a way to download all their Apple Music at once.
Can you download all your Apple Music at once?
Unfortunately, Apple Music does not have a single “download all” button that lets you download your entire music library in one go. The service is designed around streaming music from the cloud rather than downloading large amounts of songs upfront.
However, there are a couple of workarounds that allow you to download multiple songs or albums from Apple Music more efficiently:
Use the “Make Available Offline” button for playlists
If you have songs saved into playlists on Apple Music, you can download those playlists for offline listening. Open a playlist, scroll to the bottom, and tap the “Make Available Offline” button to download all the songs in that playlist.
This will not download everything in your Apple Music library, but can be useful for downloading playlists for trips or when you won’t have an internet connection.
Use the download button for albums and songs
You can manually go through your Apple Music library and download individual albums and songs using the download button next to each. This is time consuming, but will allow you to selectively save music for offline listening.
On the Songs tab, swipe left on any track and tap the cloud download icon to save that song. On the Albums tab, tap the 3 dots next to any album and select “Download” to save the entire album.
Use a third party app
Some third party apps for iOS allow you to identify and download multiple songs from your Apple Music library more easily. For example, an app like tsDown can find and batch download all saved Apple Music based on playlist, artist, album, or other criteria.
While Apple does not provide a native “download all” feature, apps like tsDown essentially provide that functionality using the Apple Music API and algorithmic selection tools.
Why doesn’t Apple Music have a “download all” button?
Apple likely avoids having a single “download all” button on Apple Music because it could lead to a negative user experience for a few reasons:
- Downloading an entire Apple Music library could easily result in hundreds of gigabytes of music occupying storage space on a device.
- Cellular data caps could be exceeded attempting to download that much music over a mobile network.
- Most users don’t need their full library available offline, so downloading everything by default goes against the streaming model.
The selective downloading model encourages more intentional curation of offline music. Users think about which playlists, albums, or songs they actually need offline, rather than just mass downloading their full library.
How many songs can you download on Apple Music?
Apple Music does not impose a hard limit on how many songs you can download for offline listening. The only real limit is the storage capacity on your device.
On an iPhone or iPad, the amount of music you can save for offline listening depends on:
- The amount of total storage space on your device
- How much space is still available after accounting for iOS, apps, photos, and other files
On average, here’s how many songs you can expect to download with different iOS device storage capacities:
| Device capacity | Approx. number of songs |
|---|---|
| 16GB | 3,000-5,000 songs |
| 32GB | 6,000-10,000 songs |
| 64GB | 12,000-20,000 songs |
| 128GB | 25,000-40,000 songs |
| 256GB | 50,000-80,000 songs |
Of course, the actual amount will vary based on the bitrate of your music and any other files on your device.
Tips for downloading Apple Music
Here are some tips to efficiently download and manage music from Apple Music for offline listening:
Use WiFi for initial downloads
Always use a WiFi connection for your initial Apple Music downloads rather than cellular data. Saving music over WiFi will prevent you from unintentionally exceeding mobile data caps.
Manage your offline music
Periodically review and remove any offline music you no longer need. This will free up storage space for new downloads. Tap the Downloaded Music section and swipe left on any song, album or playlist to delete it.
Use Smart Downloads
Enable Smart Downloads in your Apple Music settings to automatically save any music you add to your library for offline listening. This builds your offline collection over time without manual effort.
Download playlists
Focus on downloading full playlists rather than individual songs when possible. Playlists allow you to efficiently prepare music for trips, workouts, parties, and more.
Use cellular data selectively
Be selective when using cellular data to download music on the go. Downloading playlists over LTE or 5G can quickly consume gigabytes of data.
Can you export Apple Music to MP3?
Apple Music songs are encrypted with digital rights management (DRM) which prevents outright conversion to unprotected file formats like MP3. This restricts unauthorized copying and distribution.
However, there are a few legitimate ways to export your Apple Music library:
- Use the Apple Music app on a Mac to convert purchased songs to MP3. Downloaded songs are DRM-free.
- Burn purchased and downloaded Apple Music to a CD, then re-rip the CD to MP3.
- Use a specialized audio recording tool to capture song streams as MP3 files.
- Use a third party app like iMazing to convert purchased Apple Music to MP3.
While technical workarounds exist, converting streamed Apple Music to unprotected MP3 at scale would constitute copyright infringement. Any MP3 exporting should be limited to personal use cases.
Can you upload your MP3s to Apple Music?
Apple Music does not currently allow you to directly upload your own MP3 files to the catalog. However, any songs purchased from iTunes or ripped from CD to iTunes will appear in your Apple Music library.
For MP3s not already in iTunes, unofficial upload tools do exist. A third party Mac app like TuneMyMusic can scan your computer for music files and match them to the Apple Music catalog for access on iOS and other devices.
However, unauthorized mass uploading of unlicensed music could violate copyrights. Handle personal MP3s uploads judiciously and avoid pirated content.
Should you download or stream Apple Music?
Both streaming and downloading Apple Music have their place, depending on your needs:
Streaming
- Access to full Apple Music catalog on demand.
- No storage space required.
- Data connection required.
- Ideal for casual everyday listening.
Downloading
- Listen offline without data connection.
- Curate playlists and albums for trips or predictable listening.
- Consumes device storage space.
- Time consuming to manage downloads.
In general, streaming works well as a default with selective downloading for situations when offline listening is essential. Enable Smart Downloads to get the best of both approaches.
Conclusion
While Apple Music lacks a singular “download all” feature, you have several options to download multiple songs, albums and playlists for offline listening. Carefully manage your downloads and storage usage to maximize the convenience of offline music. Balance downloading with streaming based on your connectivity needs and listening habits.