How to Keep Apple Music Songs Forever After Your Plan Ends

Many Apple Music users wonder how to keep Apple Music songs forever after their free trial, subscription, or Apple Music plan ends. Maybe you want to save favorite tracks for offline listening, preserve a family playlist, or make sure your music library will not disappear when your account, device, or payment plan changes.

The short answer is: Apple Music subscription songs are not permanently owned files. Even if you have downloaded them in the Apple Music app, they are only playable while your subscription is active. So, if you cancel your Apple Music subscription, the downloaded songs may become unplayable, while purchased iTunes songs, imported local music, and audio files saved in common formats like MP3 or M4A are much easier to keep long-term.

In this guide, we will show you how to keep Apple Music songs forever after your plan ends using 3 practical options: converting Apple Music songs to local files, buying songs from the iTunes Store, and backing up your Apple Music library or playlists. You will also learn where to store your saved songs, such as on your computer, iPhone, USB drive, or cloud storage, for safer long-term backup.

Method 1. Keep Apple Music Songs Forever Before Cancelling Subscription

If your goal is to keep Apple Music songs playable after your free trial, subscription, or Apple Music plan ends, downloading them inside the Apple Music app is not enough. Those in-app downloads are still tied to an active subscription, which means they may become unavailable once you cancel the plan or stop renewing it. What you really need is to save Apple Music songs as MP3s or other regular audio files before your subscription expires.

This is where a dedicated Apple Music converter can help. Instead of only keeping songs inside the Apple Music app, TuneFab Apple Music Converter lets you convert Apple Music tracks, albums, and playlists to common audio formats for personal offline backup. Once saved as local files, the songs can be stored on your computer, transferred to your iPhone, copied to a USB drive, or backed up to cloud storage without being limited to the Apple Music app.

TuneFab is also designed for users who do not want a complicated setup. It comes with a built-in Apple Music web player, so you can search for songs, open playlists, and add music to the conversion list in a familiar interface. Whether you want to save a few favorite tracks before cancelling Apple Music or back up a large playlist after the free trial ends, the whole process can be completed with simple clicks.

Now let's take a look at how TuneFab Apple Music Converter works to help you cope with the confusion around how to keep Apple Music songs forever, even if you plan to cancel your subscription.

Step 1. Install TuneFab Apple Music Converter

Click the buttons below to install TuneFab Apple Music Converter first. Then log in to your Apple account in the embedded Apple Music web player.

Step 2. Select Songs to Download

Browse your collected library or search tracks, albums, or playlists using keywords. Then click the "Add to Convert" button to add them to the conversion list.

Step 3. Configure the Output Formats

After the software automatically parses songs, the format is set to MP3 by default on the conversion interface. If you want to change, click the "MP3" dropdown menu and choose one. The "Apply to All" button will apply the format to all downloads. You can also adjust the bitrate and sample rate using the adjacent buttons.

Step 4. Convert Music for Forever Save

When all settings are ready, hit the "Convert All" in the bottom right corner. In just a few minutes, the download task will be completed.

Then go to "Finished", where the "File" icon will locate you in the destination folder. Now, it is easy to listen offline on your computer or transfer your Apple Music songs to your iPhone, iPad, MP3 player, or USB for permanent storage.

Method 2. Buy Songs from the iTunes Store to Own Them Permanently

Another way to keep Apple Music songs forever is to buy the songs you truly want from the iTunes Store. Unlike Apple Music subscription downloads, purchased songs are tied to your Apple ID as owned music, so you can download them again and keep them even after your Apple Music free trial or subscription ends. Most iTunes Store music purchases are provided as DRM-free AAC files, making it easier to store them on your computer, sync to your iPhone, or back up to an external drive, to get unlimited Apple Music songs.

However, this method is better for selected songs or albums rather than a large Apple Music library. A single song usually costs around $0.99 or more, so buying hundreds or thousands of tracks can quickly become expensive. If you want to keep full Apple Music playlists after cancelling your subscription but do not want to repurchase every song one by one, using TuneFab Apple Music Converter to save your whole Apple Music library as local files can be a more budget-friendly and flexible option.

Buy Apple Music on an iPhone or iPad

To purchase and keep Apple Music songs forever on an iPhone or iPad, simply use the iTunes Store app as follows:

Step 1. Open the iTunes Store app and select "Music" at the bottom;

Step 2. Locate the song or album you want to buy and tap the price next to it;

Step 3. Log in to your Apple Account and complete your purchase.

Buy Apple Music on a Computer

Windows now has a standalone Apple Music app, and the purchase process is the same as on the Mac version. Here's how to buy Apple Music songs on a MacBook:

Step 1. Launch Apple Music and find the song or album you want to save forever;

Step 2. Hit the "iTunes Store" button in the top right corner and click the price next to your selection;

Step 3. Purchase and keep Apple Music songs forever by signing in with your account.

Method 3. Transfer Apple Music Library to Other Services as a Backup

If you are more worried about losing your playlists, song lists, and library records after your Apple Music plan ends, transferring your Apple Music library to another music service that won't delete your music library after subscription ends can be a practical backup option. Tools like Soundiiz and TuneMyMusic can help you move playlists from Apple Music to Spotify, YouTube Music, and other platforms, so you can still keep a searchable record of your favorite songs even if you cancel Apple Music later.

However, this method does not save the actual Apple Music audio files. It only backs up your playlist data, such as song titles, artists, albums, and playlist structure. Therefore, it is better for users who want to preserve their music collection for future recovery, rather than those who want to keep Apple Music songs playable offline forever.

Here are the basic steps to use playlist transfer tools to back up Apple Music songs to other music streaming services to save forever.

Step 1. Open an online music transfer tool in your browser and choose Apple Music as the source platform, and sign in with your Apple ID.

Step 2. Choose your target music service, such as Spotify, YouTube Music, Deezer, or another supported platform. Then log in to that account and grant the required permission.

Step 3. Select the Apple Music playlists you want to back up or transfer. You can usually choose one playlist, multiple playlists, or your entire library.

Step 4. Click the transfer or convert button, then select the destination platform to start the process. Once finished, check the target music service to make sure the playlists have been created successfully.

Step 5. Review the transferred playlists manually. Some songs may not match perfectly because different streaming platforms have different catalogs, versions, or regional availability.

Tips: Where to Save Apple Music Songs for Long-Term Backup

Now you have three methods to make Apple Music songs playable. However, whether you convert to MP3, record audio, or purchase music, you'll need one or more storage locations to guarantee that your songs aren't lost or accidentally deleted. In this case, here are three storage options for how to keep Apple Music songs forever.

Save Apple Music Songs to Local Storage

1. Create a dedicated folder for Apple Music on your computer;

2. Set it as the default folder to save Apple Music songs permanently;

3. Alternatively, copy and paste the songs to the folder for permanent storage.

Copy Apple Music Songs to a USB Flash Drive or External Drive

1. Plug your USB drive into your computer and open it;

2. Drag and drop all your Apple Music downloads into the USB folder for forever storage.

Upload Apple Music Songs to Google Drive or iCloud Drive

1. Visit Google Drive using a browser and log in to your Google account;

2. Go to "New" > "File upload"("Folder upload") to upload Apple Music downloads;

3. Once complete, Apple Music songs will be securely stored on Google Drive for good.

FAQs About Keeping Apple Music Songs Forever

Can You Keep Apple Music Songs Forever After Your Plan Ends?

No, you cannot keep Apple Music subscription songs forever inside the Apple Music app after your free trial, subscription, or plan ends. The songs you download from the Apple Music catalog are only playable while your subscription is active. To keep Apple Music songs forever, you need to save them as local audio files, buy them from the iTunes Store, or back up your playlists and library information before your plan ends.

Will I Lose My Songs If I Cancel Apple Music? What If I Rejoin Later?

If you cancel Apple Music, the songs added or downloaded from the Apple Music catalog may be removed after your subscription ends. Your purchased iTunes music will remain available, but subscription-based songs, downloads, and some playlists made with Apple Music catalog tracks may no longer be accessible. If you rejoin Apple Music later, your library may come back in some cases, but it is not something you should fully rely on. To be safe, export your playlists or save important songs as local files before cancelling.

How to Permanently Download Music from Apple Music?

Apple Music does not offer a built-in way to permanently download subscription songs as regular MP3 or M4A files. In-app downloads are designed for offline listening during an active subscription only. If you want permanent access, the official option is to buy songs from the iTunes Store. Another practical option for personal backup is to use an Apple Music converter to save songs, albums, or playlists as local audio files before your subscription ends.

How to Keep Apple Music Songs Forever on iPhone?

You cannot permanently keep Apple Music subscription downloads directly in the Apple Music app on iPhone after your plan ends. A workable method is to convert Apple Music songs to common formats like MP3 or M4A on a computer first, then transfer the saved files to your iPhone, iCloud Drive, or another music player app. If you only want to preserve playlists instead of audio files, you can also export or transfer your Apple Music playlists to another service for backup.

Can I Cancel Apple Music Without Losing Playlists?

You may lose access to playlists that are built with songs from the Apple Music catalog after cancelling, especially if they are synced through your Apple Music library. To reduce the risk, you can export your Apple Music library or playlists before cancellation, transfer playlists to another music service like Spotify or YouTube Music, or save a copy of important playlist information. However, playlist transfer only preserves the song list and structure; it does not keep the actual Apple Music audio files playable forever.

Conclusion

To wrap up, the best way to keep Apple Music songs forever after your plan ends depends on what you want to preserve. If you want playable audio files, you can convert Apple Music songs to common formats like MP3 or M4A before cancelling your subscription, or purchase selected tracks from the iTunes Store. If you mainly want to save your playlists and library records, transferring them to another music service can also be a useful backup.

For long-term protection, do not leave your saved music in only one place. After getting local Apple Music files, you can store them on your computer, copy them to a USB flash drive or external drive, or upload them to cloud storage like Google Drive. Among these options, TuneFab Apple Music Converter offers a more flexible way to save Apple Music songs locally, especially if you want to back up full playlists, albums, or large music collections before your subscription ends.

TuneFab Apple Music Converter

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