Syncing Apple Music Across Your Devices Is Easier Than You Think

Apple Music is one of the best music streaming platforms right now, especially for Apple device owners. But despite its association with the tech giant, Apple Music is not exclusive to Apple devices and is available on multiple platforms. You can, for example, sign in with your Apple Account and listen to your favorite songs on an Android phone, Windows PC or even smart TVs. 

After signing in on a new device, though, you may notice that your music library isn’t synced and your songs aren’t there. If this has happened to you, don’t worry. Changing a single setting in Apple Music will prompt it to sync your music across all your devices, ensuring you don’t have to manage your library manually on each one.

The main reason Apple Music might not sync your library across devices is that you’re using different accounts on each device, so check that first. If you’re not sure which account you’re using, open the Apple Music app and tap your profile picture on the Home tab. If the email address on the unsynced device doesn’t match, you’re signed in on a different account. Sign out, then log in using your primary Apple Account.

Now make sure Sync Library is enabled on your devices. On your iPhone or iPad, open Settings and look for Apps. Then, find the Music app in the list and enable Sync Library. On a Mac, open the Music app and click the “Music” menu at the top of the screen, then go to Settings. Now, under the General tab, make sure Sync Library is enabled and click OK to save your settings. The process is pretty much the same in Windows, but you need to click the three-dot button instead to find Settings. If you have an Android phone, this option is enabled by default, and you don’t need to change anything. 

No matter the platform, the first sync might take a while, especially if you have a large music library. If you don’t see your songs right away after enabling syncing, leave the Music app open and wait a few minutes.

In the Mac app, click the File menu, then go to Library and select Update Cloud Library — this will force the app to sync and check for updates in your personal library. This option is also available in the Windows app and can be found in the sidebar. Unfortunately, the Android and iOS apps don’t have that option. 

Also, make sure your mobile devices are connected to Wi-Fi and not in Low Power Mode, as this may prevent them from syncing your music library. If nothing else has worked, your best option is to go back to Settings, turn off Sync Library and then turn it back on. You can also try signing out of your Apple Account and logging back in. If you don’t subscribe to Apple Music and have an offline library on your Mac or PC, the only way to sync your library is to manually transfer the Music folder to another computer via Apple iTunes or Apple Devices. 

Syncing behavior isn’t the only setting you might want to change in Apple Music. While you’re there, it’s worth exploring some other toggles, like changing the audio quality options to enable lossless audio.