Apple Music Converter

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Apple Music Converter

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How to Convert Apple Music to MP3 (3 Helpful Ways)

By Catrina Jones

Updated on November 15, 2023

Even though Apple Music lets you download songs on its app, the downloads are DRM-protected and can only be played on Apple's authorized devices. Therefore, does it mean that you cannot play Apple Music on Apple's unauthorized devices, like MP3 players, Roku RV, etc.? Actually, in this case, you can try to convert Apple Music to MP3, a format that is compatible with most devices and players, then move the MP3 Apple Music downloads to the devices you like for offline playback.

To help you download songs or playlists from Apple Music to MP3 with ease, this post will show you a step-by-step guide on how to do that, along with some tips on converting songs purchased on iTunes to MP3 within iTunes easily.

Table of Contents

How to Convert Apple Music to MP3 via Best Apple Music to MP3 Converter

How to Convert Purchased Apple Music to MP3 via the Apple Music App or iTunes

How to Convert Apple Music to MP3 via Free Online Apple Music Downloader

FAQs About Converting Apple Music to MP3

How to Convert Apple Music to MP3 via Best Apple Music to MP3 Converter

There are many ways for you to convert Apple Music to MP3, such as using the Apple Music app/iTunes, or using an online program, etc. No matter what methods you use, they can work for you. However, the best way to download MP3 from Apple Music is definitely using a professional desktop Apple Music to MP3 converter, because of their high efficiency and more stable performance, which is something no other freeware or online tools can do.

Among all the Apple Music to MP3 converters, TuneFab Apple Music Converter. is a relatively powerful and trustworthy one. This program can help you convert Apple Music to MP3 in high quality that is almost the same as the original one. Besides, unlike some ordinary audio converters, this tool can bypass Apple Music DRM, making it possible for you to listen to Apple Music not only on the app itself, but also on an MP3 player, Roku TV, and so on.

Better yet, it can help you convert Apple Music to MP3 effortlessly, because of its convenient control options and built-in Apple Music web player. What's more, it offers you a batch download feature that enables you to convert all Apple Music songs/playlists in batch with only one click.

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Windows 11/10/8/7

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Mac OS X 10.11 or Above

TuneFab Apple Music Converter

Main Features	Convert Apple Music to MP3, M4A, WAV, FLAC Preserve the original quality after conversion 5X or higher conversion speed available Keep ID3 Tags, metadata info Rip Apple Music with simple clicks on embedded web player
Supported Language	English, French, Japanese, German, Traditional Chinese
Free Trial Version	30 days free trial (with usage limits)
Paid Version	1-Month Subscription (1/PC), $14.95 1-Year Subscription (1/PC), $59.95 Lifetime License (1/PC), $89.95 >> Check more plan details

Main Features

Convert Apple Music to MP3, M4A, WAV, FLAC
Preserve the original quality after conversion
5X or higher conversion speed available
Keep ID3 Tags, metadata info & audiobook chapter
Rip Apple Music with simple clicks on embedded web player

Supported Language

English, French, Japanese, German, Traditional Chinese

Free Trial Version

30 days free trial (with usage limits)

Paid Version

1-Month Subscription (1/PC), $14.95
1-Year Subscription (1/PC), $49.95
Lifetime License (1/PC), $79.95
>> Check more plan details

Now, let's learn how to convert songs from Apple Music to MP3 using TuneFab Apple Music Converter:

Step 1. Run TuneFab Apple Music Converter

Download, install and launch TuneFab Apple Music Converter on your Windows PC or Mac.

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Windows 11/10/8/7

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Mac OS X 10.11 or Above

When you launch the program, click on the "Open the Apple Web Player" on the welcome page

Step 2. Log into Apple Music Web Player

Click on the Sign in button and log in the Apple Music web player with your Apple ID to access the full music library as well as the download service.

Step 3. Drag Apple Music Songs/Playlists/Albums to Download

After signing in the web player, you can browse the Apple Music library to access any Apple Music song to download for streaming offline. All content from the Apple Music library can be converted on this app, including albums, playlists, and even all songs from your favorite artists.

Only by dragging them to the "Convert" button, all the songs contained will be added to get ready to process the conversion.

Step 4. Customize Output Format and Parameters

On the conversion window, you can select an output format such as MP3 from the "Convert all files to" menu to download the Apple Music tracks.

Select Output Format to Download Apple Music

To further customize other parameters such as the Sample Rate or Bitrate, you should go to "Preferences" to adjust the figures under the "Advanced" tab. To make the converted music close to Apple Music's original quality, it's recommended to set up songs in M4A with SampleRate 44,100 Hz and Bitrate 256kbps.

Step 5. Convert Apple Music to MP3

In the final step, click on the "Convert All" button to start converting all Apple Music to MP3. TuneFab Apple Music Converter will complete the conversion for you with quick speed in a while.

When the music conversion is done, you can find all songs in the output folder. All ID3 information can be well-preserved including the album cover, song title, album title, and artist, which is easy for later management.

TuneFab Apple Music Converter is extremely easy to operate and works like a charm. In my test on a Windows PC, it takes less than 3 minutes to convert a 45-minute album while maintaining the original music quality. But if you wish to convert songs purchased from iTunes, check the tips in the following part.

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Windows 11/10/8/7

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Mac OS X 10.11 or Above

How to Convert Purchased Apple Music to MP3 via the Apple Music App or iTunes

Compared with songs from Apple Music, songs you purchased from iTunes or the Music App on Mac are not DRM-protected. They are also encoded in AAC format but with a .m4a file extension. Conveniently, these purchased iTunes music can be directly converted to MP3 with iTunes and the native Apple Music App on Mac. After creating an MP3 copy of your favorite music, you can better manage and play them on your music device.

NOTE

Not necessarily all iTunes-purchased music after 2009 is DRM-Free. Therefore, you may still have to check if it is attached to DRM protection and unprotect iTunes songs. If the song you are trying to convert in this method is DRM-protected, you will fail in the last step as the option will grey out. In this case, you can only use the third-party tool TuneFab iTunes Music Converter to change it to an MP3 version.

Convert Songs with the Apple Music on Mac

Normally, the Music app is installed on Mac computers so you don't need to download other software for MP3 copies. The steps below will help you do that.

Step 1. Adjust Import Settings

Open the Apple Music app. Select Music > Preferences from the menu bar. Then, click the Files tab and click Import Settings.

Step 2. Change Encoding settings

Click the menu next to Import Using, choose MP3 Encoder, and select an output quality from the setting drop-down menu. Don't forget to click OK to confirm.

Step 3. Convert Songs to MP3 with Apple Music App

Select songs in your library that you want to convert. On your keyboard, hold down the Option key, and choose File > Convert > Create MP3 Version. And then the converted songs will appear in your library next to the original song files as MP3 files.

Tip: To convert songs from a folder or on a disk, just select the folder or disk after you select File > Convert > Convert to [MP3].

Convert iTunes Purchased Song to MP3 on Mac

Convert Songs with iTunes on Windows PC

iTunes on Windows PC can also convert your purchased DRM-free songs to MP3 with the MP3 encoder. Now follow the steps below to convert your songs. If you see Create AAC Version instead of Create MP3 Version, you should change your import setting first. Go to Edit > Preferences... > General > Import Settings... > Import Using and choose MP3 Encoder from the drop-download list.

Step 1. Get your songs ready on iTunes.

Import your purchased songs to the iTunes library.

Step 2. Convert songs to MP3 with iTunes.

On your keyboard, hold down the Ctrl key, and choose songs. Then File > Convert > Create MP3 Version. And select songs in your library or the folder or disk that contains songs you want to import and convert. Not long after, the converted songs and the original song files will be shown in your library.

NOTE

All MP3 files created in this method are compressed copies of the original one. You can't hear the differences clearly, but if you want a better-quality copy, you can choose the AIFF or WAV Encoder instead of the MP3 one. Or convert them to MP3 with TuneFab iTunes Music Converter.

How to Convert Apple Music to MP3 via Free Online Apple Music Downloader

If you want to download several favorite songs from Apple Music to MP3 without installing any software, then the online Apple Music Downloader might be a top pick. It is a free online tool that allows you to download songs, playlists, and albums from Apple Music to an MP3 file with effortless operation. Once done, the downloads will be kept with the full ID3 tag info and relatively high output quality.

NOTE: The conversion speed may be a little slow, you need to be patient. Also, it will fail to download songs from Apple Music sometimes. Once you face this situation, you can use another program, like TuneFab Apple Music Converter, as an alternative.

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Windows 11/10/8/7

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Mac OS X 10.11 or Above

Step 1.

Launch your Apple Music app or open the Apple Music web player.

Step 2.

Choose the songs you want to download, then click the three-dot icon near the songs.

Step 3.

Tap "Share > Copy Link" to get the link, then paste the copied link into the search bar and click "Start > Download".

Step 4.

Click "Download MP3" to start downloading and exporting Apple Music to MP3 files.

FAQs About Converting Apple Music to MP3

Q1: Is AAC a Format Just for Music from iTunes or Apple Music?

Because songs bought from iTunes and downloaded from Apple Music come in the AAC format, many people will think AAC is a proprietary Apple format. Actually, that's definitely not. AAC is a format that's virtually available to everyone.

The difference might be that AAC files from iTunes or Apple Music are locked by Apple's FairPlay DRM, which just allows Apple Music users to play music on Apple devices. So if you want to play Apple Music on other unsupportive devices, you can convert Apple Music or iTunes Music to MP3 using the above methods.

Q2: What Kinds of Materials do You Have the Right to Copy from?

As mentioned above, songs from Apple Music are all encrypted with Apple's FairPlay DRM to avoid infringement. Therefore, if you want to reproduce the materials from Apple Music, you should know that you just have the copyright to the following ones:

- Non-copyrighted materials from Apple Music

- Materials that you own the copyright

- Materials that you are legally permitted to reproduce

Q3: What's the Difference Between Compressed Apple Music Songs and Uncompressed Ones?

The compressed Apple Music you get has a smaller file size than that is uncompressed. However, the sound quality of the compressed songs is lower than the original, uncompressed ones.

Actually, it's hard for you to tell apart the sound quality between a compressed and uncompressed song, because it also depends on your music device or headphones.

NOTE: You can't improve a song's sound quality by converting it from a compressed to an uncompressed format. The uncompressed file only takes up more data space.

Q4: Can You Convert Apple Music Without Quality Loss?

If you are an audiophile and wonder if it will reduce the sound quality when converting Apple Music to MP3, it depends on the tool you use. When you do this with a third-party professional Apple Music to MP3 converter, you can set the parameter to match the original quality and get the MP3 files in the best quality. If you prefer to use the official way to convert your purchased songs from iTunes, the converted songs will be compressed.

Summary

After converting Apple Music to MP3 songs, you can import the converted MP3 files back to your iTunes music library or copy them to other non-iOS gadgets or computers without having to be authorized with your Apple ID. The best part is, once you have tried the multi-functional TuneFab Apple Music Converter, even if you cancel your Apple Music subscription, you can still be able to keep Apple Music forever without paying a penny.

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Windows 11/10/8/7

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Mac OS X 10.11 or Above

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