Quick Answer
Yes, your Apple Music playlists will come back after you renew your subscription. Apple Music saves all of your playlists, so they will still be there when you resubscribe. You don’t need to worry about losing your playlists if your subscription temporarily lapses.
In-Depth Answer
Apple Music is a subscription-based music streaming service that allows you to listen to over 90 million songs, create playlists, get customized recommendations, and more. When your Apple Music subscription expires, you will lose access to many features of the service until you renew. However, your playlists and library will be saved, so they will come back once you resubscribe.
Apple Music Keeps Your Playlists After Subscription Lapse
Even if you cancel or your Apple Music subscription ends, all of your playlists, music library, and other data will be stored on Apple’s servers. So when you renew your subscription, everything will be as you left it.
Your Apple Music profile, settings, and downloaded content are also retained. So you can pick up right where you left off once you restart your membership. Your playlists will repopulate on all your devices that are connected to your Apple ID.
Why Apple Music Saves Your Playlists
There are a few key reasons why Apple Music keeps your playlists after your subscription lapses:
- To make resubscribing easy and seamless
- To keep users invested in the platform
- To retain users’ data
- To allow users to restart playlists where they left off
By saving playlists indefinitely, Apple removes a major barrier to resubscribing to the service. Users know their playlists are safe, so they can take a break from Apple Music without worrying about losing their music.
How Long Are Playlists Saved For?
Apple Music will store your playlists indefinitely, or until you decide to cancel your Apple ID. There is no set time limit on how long inactive playlists are saved for. As long as you keep your Apple ID, your Apple Music data, including playlists, will remain securely stored in the cloud.
Even years after lapsing, your Apple Music content will still be there when you sign back in. Unless you specifically delete your playlists or Apple ID, they will persist through subscription cancellations.
What Happens If You Cancel Apple Music?
Canceling your Apple Music subscription works a bit differently than letting it lapse. Here’s what happens to your Apple Music content if you decide to actively cancel:
Playlists are Deleted After Canceling
If you voluntarily cancel your Apple Music membership, your playlists and library will eventually be cleared from Apple’s servers. However, this delete process is not immediate.
- Playlists remain for up to 90 days after cancellation.
- If you resubscribe within this 90 day window, your playlists will still be intact.
- After 90 days, playlists and library content are permanently deleted.
So you do have a grace period to reactivate and recover your data if you change your mind after cancellation. But after 90 days, Apple will remove all of your Apple Music content from its servers. Make sure to export any important playlists before the 90 day post-cancellation window ends.
Other Apple Music Account Data is Deleted
When you cancel Apple Music, other account data like your profile, preferences, and settings will be immediately erased. Only your playlists and library content remain available for the 90 day post-cancellation period before being deleted.
What About Downloaded Apple Music Content?
Downloads and offline content work differently than items saved to your Apple Music library. Here’s what happens to downloads when your subscription ends:
Downloads Are Removed After Subscription Lapse
Songs, albums, or playlists downloaded for offline listening will only remain on your devices while your Apple Music membership is active. As soon as your subscription lapses, all downloaded content is automatically removed.
This automatic deletion prevents you from accessing Apple Music content without a paid subscription. It also frees up storage space on your devices.
Re-Downloading After Renewal
Although downloads are erased after your subscription ends, you can simply re-download any content again once you renew Apple Music.
As long as the songs, albums, or playlists are still in your library, you can download them again for offline access after resubscribing.
Automatic Re-Downloads After Renewal
In some cases, Apple Music will actually automatically re-download content you previously had saved for offline use once you renew your subscription.
Any music, playlists, albums, etc. you’ve added to your library should re-populate on your devices after resubscribing. This convenient feature ensures you have offline access to your favorite content right after renewal.
Tips for Renewing Apple Music
Follow these tips to make the Apple Music renewal process quick and easy:
Turn On Automatic Renewal
Enable auto-renewal so your Apple Music membership will continue uninterrupted each billing cycle. This prevents any lapses that could cause your playlists to be deleted.
On an iOS device: Go to Settings > [Your Name] > Subscriptions and turn on auto-renew.
On desktop: Go to Account Settings > Subscriptions > Apple Music Membership and enable auto-renew.
Renew a Few Days Early
Don’t wait until the expiration date! Renew a few days early to avoid any disruption to your service and access to playlists.
Check Your Billing Date
Log in to your Apple account to see your next billing date so you know when to expect your next charge. Mark it on your calendar as a reminder.
Update Payment Method
Make sure the payment method on file doesn’t expire before your next renewal date. Update it ahead of time if needed to avoid issues.
What If You Can’t Resubscribe Immediately?
If you need to wait a bit before resubscribing to Apple Music, follow these steps:
Export Important Playlists
Back up key playlists by exporting them. On desktop, click File > Library > Export Playlist. On iOS, tap the three dots next to a playlist and choose Export. This saves them as .csv files until you can re-add them.
Screenshot Your Library
Take screenshots of your Library tabs so you remember your playlists, artists, albums, songs, etc. Recreate anything important after resubscribing.
Use Up Leftover Time
If your subscription is lapsing but hasn’t expired yet, use any remaining time to download favorite songs or export playlists.
Activate Again ASAP
Reactivate your Apple Music membership as soon as realistically possible so playlists aren’t at risk of deletion 90 days post-cancellation.
Can You Recover Deleted Apple Music Playlists?
If your playlists were permanently deleted after canceling Apple Music or letting your subscription lapse too long, is there any way to get them back? Unfortunately, there is no way to recover deleted Apple Music playlists at this time. Some potential recovery options include:
Restore from iTunes Library/Finder
If you sync your Apple Music library to iTunes or the Finder, your playlists may still be stored there and can be restored from your local music library.
Recover from iCloud Backup
Playlists saved in a recent iCloud backup from your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch can potentially be restored via the backup.
Use iPhone Data Recovery Software
Data recovery apps may be able to find residual playlist files left on your device and restore them after deletion.
Contact Apple Support
While unlikely, you can try reaching out to Apple Support to see if they can recover deleted playlists from your account.
But these methods are hit-or-miss. The best approach is being proactive and exporting your playlists before cancellation to avoid permanent data loss.
Key Takeaways
Here are some key points to remember about your Apple Music playlists when subscriptions lapse:
- Playlists remain available after subscription ends.
- Renewing will reinstate access to playlists.
- Canceling starts a 90 day countdown before playlist deletion.
- Downloads are removed on expiration but can be re-downloaded.
- Turn on auto-renewal and update payment methods to prevent lapses.
- Export important playlists as backups.
- Reviving deleted playlists may not be possible.
As long as you resubscribe before the 90 day post-cancellation window ends, your Apple Music playlists will remain intact. So you can take a break from the service without worrying about losing your customized playlists and libraries.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do my playlists disappear when my Apple Music subscription ends?
No, your Apple Music playlists do not disappear immediately when your subscription ends. Playlists are retained indefinitely as long as you keep your Apple ID active. They will only be deleted if you voluntarily cancel the service, initiating a 90 day countdown until permanent removal.
Can I still listen to my playlists if Apple Music expires?
No, you cannot listen to Apple Music playlists without an active subscription. When your membership ends, you lose access to stream or download any content until you renew. But playlists remain saved, ready to be restored once you resubscribe.
What happens if I resubscribe after a year without Apple Music?
As long as you maintained your Apple ID, resubscribing even after a year away will bring back your Apple Music library and playlists intact. There is no time limit for how long inactive playlists remain saved for.
Do I have to rebuild my library if my subscription lapses?
No, your entire Apple Music library including playlists, stations, downloads, etc. will return as it was when you renew your subscription. You shouldn’t lose any music or have to rebuild anything.
Can I recover a deleted Apple Music playlist?
Unfortunately, once an Apple Music playlist is permanently deleted either 90 days after cancellation or by manual removal, it is likely gone for good. There is currently no way to recover deleted playlists, so export important ones in advance.
Conclusion
Lapsing Apple Music users can rest assured knowing their playlists and libraries will remain safely backed up until they resubscribe. Apple’s cloud retention of user data and generous post-cancellation grace period prevent most scenarios where playlists are permanently lost. As long as you renew reasonably quickly after your membership ends, you will once again have full access to all your cherished and customized playlists.