How do i transfer music from itunes to my iphone

“I’m new to the iOS ecosystem so I don’t know how to add music from iTunes to iPhone. Can someone tell me how to transfer my saved songs to an iPhone 11?”

As I came across this query posted on a leading online forum, I realized that so many people out there can’t transfer their music from iTunes to iPhone. Ideally, if you also wish to copy your favorite songs from your computer to an iOS device, then you can use iTunes. Besides that, there are several other applications that can also help you do the same. In this post, I will let you know how to sync music from iTunes to iPhone and would also cover another solution to move music from an iTunes backup to iPhone.

Part 1: How to Add Music from iTunes to iPhone: The Standard Way

To make it easier for us to sync our data between our iPhone and computer, Apple has added dedicated features in iTunes. If you want, you can download it for free on your Windows while Mac users can just find it installed in their Applications. Using it, you can sync your songs, albums, playlists, videos, movies, etc. between your iTunes library and your iPhone. For this to work, you have to first add the songs to your iTunes library and can later directly sync it to your iOS device.

Here is a stepwise tutorial on how to transfer songs from iTunes to iPhone like a pro.

Step 1: Add music to your iTunes library (optional)

Before you learn how to get music from iTunes to iPhone, you need to ensure that your songs are present in your iTunes library. To do this, you have to launch iTunes on your computer and go to its File > Add File/Folder to Library option. This will let you browse and select the songs you want to add to your iTunes library.

Step 2: Connect your iPhone to iTunes

Now, using a working lightning cable, just connect your iPhone to the system and launch iTunes on it. If you are connecting your iPhone to the computer for the first time, then you will get a security prompt like this. Just tap on the “Trust” button and let iTunes detect the connected iPhone.

Once your iPhone is detected by iTunes, you can go to the device's icon from its top panel and select the connected iPhone from here.

Step 3: Sync your iTunes music to iPhone

Great! Now all you need to do is go to the “Music” tab from the side panel of iTunes and select what you wish to sync. From here, you can choose to sync the entire iTunes library or select the albums, artists, playlists, etc. of your choice.

After selecting what you wish to transfer, just click on the “Sync” button from the bottom and wait as your iTunes music would be copied to your iPhone.

Limitations

• • A bit complicated to implement
• • It won’t directly transfer your data, but would “sync” it instead
• • Compatibility issues with non-purchased music

Part 2: How to Transfer Music from iTunes to iPhone without Syncing?

From the above guide on how to download music from iTunes to iPhone, you can see that the entire process can be a bit complicated. If you are looking for a smart, seamless, and quick solution, then you can try MobileTrans – Restore instead. A dedicated module of the MobileTrans application, it can help you restore your backup to an iOS device without any compatibility issues.

• • Using MobileTrans, you can select an existing iTunes backup and transfer music from it to your iPhone.
• • Apart from music, you can also restore other kinds of content from the iTunes backup to your iOS device as well.
• • You can also use it to restore an existing MobileTrans backup to your iPhone without any complications.
• • The application is extremely easy to use, does not need jailbreak access, and encounters zero compatibility issues.

To learn how to transfer songs from iTunes to iPhone using MobileTrans – Restore, just follow these basic instructions.

Step 1: Connect your iPhone to the system

To start with, just install the MobileTrans application on your system and launch it. From the provided options on the welcome screen of MobileTrans, click on “Restore” to continue.

Also, use a working lightning cable and connect your iPhone to the system. If you are connecting it to for the first time, then you need to trust the computer before.

Step 2: Select the iTunes backup to transfer

In no time, the application will detect the connected iPhone and would display its snapshot. Here, you can see that you can restore an existing iTunes or MobileTrans backup. Just select the “iTunes Backup File” and choose a relevant backup file you wish to extract.

Step 3: Restore iTunes backup to your iPhone

After selecting an iTunes backup file, its stored data types (like music, notes, photos, etc.) would be listed on the interface. You can select “Music” from here (or any other type of content) and click on the “Start” button to restore these files to your iPhone.

That’s it! Now you just have to wait for a few minutes as the application will transfer your music to iPhone. In the end, it will display a prompt after successfully transferring your data so that you can remove your iPhone safely.

Who knew it would be so easy to learn how to sync music from iTunes to iPhone, right? As you can see, I have listed a stepwise solution on how to copy music from iTunes to iPhone in this post. Besides that, if you want to know how to transfer music from iTunes to iPhone without syncing, then you can just use MobileTrans – Restore. A user-friendly and efficient application, it can help you transfer music your iTunes backup to your iPhone easily. Not just your music, MobileTrans can help you transfer your photos, videos, contacts, notes, and so much to your iPhone without any compatibility issue.

In this guide, you will learn how to add music from iTunes to iPhone in detail using two different methods. If you don't want data loss, follow the bonus tip to transfer music from computer to iPhone without iTunes.

Whether you want to put music on your iPhone to enrich your music library or add ringtones to your iPhone, iTunes might be one of the best options. With iTunes, you don't need to buy any third-party software or service to transfer music to your iPhone, which makes it a good choice for users who want to transfer music from computer to iPhone for free. If that's exactly what you want, learn how to add music from iTunes to iPhone in detail.

Overview of Steps to Transfer Music from iTunes to iPhone

• Connect your iPhone to the computer
• Choose the automatic or manual way to transfer music
• Select the music you want to transfer
• Start syncing music from iTunes to your iPhone

Before You Start

Convenient as it is, there is a potential issue that you may encounter when you add music to an iPhone using iTunes. As you may know, iTunes moves the music to your iPhone by syncing, which means the iPhone files, including existing music, movies, TV shows, and books, that are not existing in iTunes will be deleted and replaced by the synced items. Thus, there may be data loss after you move music from iTunes to iPhone. 

If that's acceptable for you, follow one of the two methods below to put music from iTunes to iPhone. If you prefer to transfer music from computer to iPhone without syncing, learn how to add music to your iPhone without iTunes.

To sync music from iTunes to iPhone, here are some preparations you need to make:

• Download and install the latest version of iTunes on your computer.
• Add music files to the iTunes library before you transfer music from iTunes to your iPhone by going to "File" > "Add File to Library" in the iTunes window.

Ready? Let's see how to sync music from iTunes to iPhone in two ways in detail.

How to Sync Music from iTunes to iPhone Automatically

If you want iTunes to automatically add songs to your iPhone when it's connected, here is how to do it.

To automatically transfer music from iTunes to iPhone:

Step 1. Connect your iPhone to the computer with a USB cable. (iTunes will run automatically.)

Step 2. Unlock your iPhone and trust the computer. If asked, enter your iPhone password as required.

Step 3. Click the device icon and choose "Music".

Step 4. Check the option "Sync Music" and choose "Remove and Sync" in the new iTunes window.

Step 5. Select to sync the "Entire music library" or "Selected playlists, artists, albums, and genres" from iTunes to your iPhone. If you choose the latter, continue to select the specific items you want to transfer.

Step 6. After the selection, click "Apply" > "Sync" to start transferring music from iTunes to your iPhone.

Step 7. When the syncing is over, you can check the songs on your iPhone by going to "Music" > "Library" > "Songs".

How to Transfer Music from iTunes to iPhone Manually

If you prefer to take more control over the data transfer, you can choose to manually copy songs from iTunes to your iPhone.

To manually move music from iTunes to iPhone:

Step 1. Connect your iPhone to your computer and make sure iTunes is running.

Step 2. Unlock your iOS device and trust the computer.

Step 3. In the iTunes window, click your iPhone icon and choose "Summary" from the left panel.

Step 4. Check "Manually manage music and videos" in the "Options" section and click "Apply" to save the settings.

Step 5. Go to "Devices" > "Music". Open the folder that contains the songs, select the items you want to sync, then drag and drop them to the left panel or to the center of the window. (You can also drag and drop songs from the iTunes library to your device.)

How to Add Music from Mac to iPhone via Finder

iTunes has been discontinued in macOS Catalina and Finder does the data syncing and device backup jobs on the Mac. Thus, if you want to transfer music to your iPhone from a Mac that is running macOS Catalina, you should use Finder instead of iTunes.

To put music to iPhone via Finder:

Step 1. Open a Finder window and connect your iPhone to the Mac.

Step 2. Choose your iPhone and select the type of content you want to sync, namely "Music".

Step 3. Check the option "Sync music on to [your iPhone name]" and select the items you want to transfer.

Step 4. Click "Apply" to start syncing music to your iPhone from the computer.

It's necessary to stress again that using iTunes or Finder to sync music to your iPhone will cause loss of the existing media files on your iPhone. Therefore, if you want to avoid data syncing to keep your files, follow the next part.

How to Transfer Music from Computer to iPhone Without iTunes

If you want to put music on your iPhone more flexibly without syncing,  you should use professional iOS data transfer software like EaseUS MobiMover. It works well to:

Apart from music, it also supports photos, videos, contacts, ringtones, audiobooks, messages, and other files.

To transfer music from computer to iPhone without iTunes:

Download for PC Download for Mac 

Step 1. Connect your iPhone to your computer and run EaseUS MobiMover. Afterward, go to "PC to Phone" > "Select Files".

Step 2. Select the music files you want to transfer to iPhone and click "Open" to continue.

Step 3. The selected music files will be classified in Audios, check the box and click "Transfer" to start transfering music from PC to iPhone. When it has done, open the Music app on your iPhone to check these songs. 

In addition to using iTunes to add music to your iPhone, you can also choose the download music to your iPhone directly to enrich your iPhone music library. If you want to know how to download music on your iPhone, refer to the related guide for full steps.

The Bottom Line

The ways shown above are also applicable to transfer other types of files, like photos and videos, from a computer to an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. For you to make a better decision:

If you prefer a free solution, use iTunes to sync music to your iPhone. While if you want to avoid data syncing, try an iOS data transfer tool to transfer music from a computer to your iPhone safely.