How To Transfer Music From a Computer to an iPhone

28Nov

Do you have a great collection of music, and are you trying to transfer music from a computer to an iPhone? Please keep reading to find out different approaches to effectively and reliably transfer music from a computer (Windows/Mac) to an iPhone using the detailed steps provided.

While you can transfer arguably many different audio files, for a seamless transfer and compatibility, ensure you are working on the below audio file formats:

AAC (Advanced Audio Coding)
MP3 (MPEG Audio Layer III)
WAV (Waveform Audio File Format)
AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format)
Apple Lossless (ALAC – Apple Lossless Audio Codec)
HE-AAC (High-Efficiency Advanced Audio Coding)
FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec)

Using iTunes

Note: Before proceeding with this approach, ensure the music is already added to the library. If not, add them prior for a seamless transfer.

Start by opening iTunes on your Mac/Windows device and connect your iPhone with the lightning/USB-C cable.
If you’re connecting your iPhone for the first time, ensure you tap on Trust if you’re displayed with Trust This Computer?
Once done, look to the upper-left corner of iTunes to notice a Device icon. Now, click on it, and your device name is displayed, which ensures a successful connection.
Next, navigate to the options on the left under Settings and click on Music.
After the songs are added to the library, select the Sync Music If you want to transfer all your music, select Entire music library.
However, if you want to choose specific music, check the box Selected playlists, artists, albums, and genres.
After that, select Syncto start the automatic transfer process of music to your iPhone.

Use 3rd-Party Tools To Transfer Music Without iTunes

While iTunes allows you to transfer music, you’re greeted with several limitations, and the need to sync the music files is the biggest hassle among them.

However, with third-party software, you get benefits like two-way transfer capabilities, user-friendly interfaces, selective transfer options, and additional features like music conversion.

For this purpose, we tried several software and here is how you can transfer music from your computer to your iPhone on them:

CopyTrans Manager Free

Start by downloading CopyTrans Manager Free and installing it on your Windows device if you haven’t done so already.

After it is installed, wait for the software to load, click on Connect iOS device, and wait for the device name to appear on the interface.
Once done, please navigate to the Add button on top and click on it to add music to your device. However, if you find it difficult, drag and drop the music file on the software.
Next, navigate to the Update button on the top left corner and click on it to add the music to your iPhone right away.

Note: While you can easily drag and drop files, create and manage playlists, copy music without syncing, and use the handy Tag editor, the interface is outdated and requires learning.

Even though it is outdated, it does all the music transfer operations with ease and can compete with modern software. However, the biggest downside of this tool is it is solely focused on transferring and managing music.

Hence, you cannot work on other types of files, and you might have to install another software from the CopyTrans Control Center.

iMazing

Suppose you’re looking for more flexibility and are interested in software that is easy with a great interface for transferring music from a computer to an iPhone without iTunes. In that case, iMazing is arguably one of the best iPhone manager choices.

Do you find CopyTrans limited? Follow the steps below on iMazing to transfer music without iTunes:

Start by downloading and installing iMazing on your computer. Once that’s done, launch the app and connect your device to your Mac or PC.
Next, in iMazing, select your device in the sidebar. Doing so will bring up the option to choose Music, which loads your device’s music and playlists.
Now, click on Import from Folder in the bottom toolbar. Then, navigate to and select the folder containing the music you want to import.

So, once you’ve selected your music, iMazing begins the import process. If it finds any duplicate tracks, it will ask whether you want to cancel the import, keep both copies or skip the duplicates.
After making your choice, iMazing will continue to import the files to your iOS device. This step might take a bit of time, depending on the volume of files.
Then, once the import is complete, iMazing provides a summary report of the transfer.

Pro Tip: You can also drag and drop files from your computer directly into your device’s Music section in iMazing for a quick import. iMazing 3 is released, read our full iMazing review for more.

Using Cloud Services

If you’re not interested in using any software to transfer music from a computer to an iPhone, you can use cloud services. For demonstration, we have used iCloud Drive, and here are the steps for it:

Start by opening iCloud Drive on the browser and sign in with your Apple ID.
After you’re in, create a new folder by clicking on the Add Folder icon present at the top.
Now, name the folder and upload the music files to the folder by dragging and dropping

Wait for the files to upload and open iCloud Drive on your iPhone to access the music.

Using Email Services

If you want an extremely simple and efficient way to transfer music from a computer to an iPhone without needing any flexibility, Gmail is arguably the best approach.

Are you confused about how you can use Gmail to transfer music? Follow the steps below to learn how:

Start by opening Gmail and logging in with your credentials. Next, navigate to the Compose button and click on it.
Once done, upload the music files and send them to the mail address, which is used on iPhone.
After you receive the mail on your iPhone, the music files are displayed as attachments. Now, download them, and you’re done with the transfer.

Bonus Tips

Transfer Music from iPhone to PC/Mac

Some of you might be wondering how you can transfer music from iPhone to PC/Mac. While a few approaches provided above can do it, we have found the easiest way through iMobie Anytrans, and here are the steps for it:

Start by downloading and installing AnyTrans on your computer
Next, connect your iOS device to the computer using a USB cable. AnyTrans should automatically detect your device.
Now, select the Songs option from the Music category in AnyTrans. Then, choose the songs you wish to transfer.
After selecting the songs, click the To PC button to initiate the transfer.
Once done, wait for the transfer process to complete. You’ll see a Transfer Completed.

Transfer Music from iPhone to Android

While most try to transfer files between iPhone and Android and fail miserably, Wondershare has addressed this issue with its MobileTrans. If you’re one among them, here are steps below on how to transfer music from iPhone to Android:

Note: Remember, during the transfer process, ensure that both devices remain connected and do not disconnect until the process is fully completed.

Start by downloading and installing MobileTrans on your Mac or Windows computer. Once installed, launch it and select the Phone Transfer
Next, connect both your iPhone and Android to the computer. Check the files [music] you wish to transfer from iPhone to Android, and then click on the Start

Now, wait for the transfer process to complete. The duration will depend on the size of the data being transferred.

Are you interested in Wondershare Mobile Trans? Check our review on it for complete insights and a seamless transfer of different files between iPhones and other platforms.

Wrapping Up

With this guide, we have provided arguably every approach to transfer music to and from the iPhone. While none of the above methods corrupt music files, it is important to make sure you take a backup of them before transfer to avoid undesirable situations.

Also, keep in mind to use high-quality cables for the approaches that involve wired transfer of files for a seamless transfer.

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How To Transfer Music From a Computer to an iPhone

Using iTunes