How to Convert M4P to MP3 on Windows/Mac [4 Ways]

If you have bought some iTunes songs between 2003 and 2009, you might notice that they can not be played on some devices and players like your Android phone or old MP3 player. This is because these old iTunes songs are in M4P and encrypted with Apple FairPlay DRM. Thus, they are only compatible with Apple devices and iTunes. Besides iTunes Music purchases, songs downloaded from Apple Music also protected mpeg-4 audio. Even though you download them on your device, they are not available for flexible use.

To enjoy offline Apple Music tracks and your purchased iTunes songs without restriction, the key is to remove their DRM and convert these songs from M4P to MP3 on your computer. To get the job done, you can use an efficient and safe desktop app like TuneFab Apple Music Converter. You can download and try it now, or keep on reading to explore more.

How Can You Convert M4P Files to MP3? (Tools You Need)

There are 4 useful tools that can help you convert M4P to MP3, including desktop applications, Apple official functions, online tools, and CDs. In the following sections, we will introduce these tools and their detailed tutorials. Then you can choose the best way to download your purchased iTunes songs on your Windows/Mac computer and listen to them on any device you like. Check the overview of these 4 methods.

How to Convert Protected M4P File to MP3 on Windows/Mac^HOT!

The simplest and most efficient way to convert M4P to MP3 is using a professional Apple Music converter that lets you convert every song from the Apple Music library. No matter if you are to convert iTunes purchased songs before 2009 or convert your Apple Music/iTunes playlists, this kind of tool is of great help.

With so many song converters available on the market, I highly recommend TuneFab Apple Music Converter for its excellent performance and solid reputation among millions of customers and 100+ authority sites. It is a powerful desktop application designed for batch converting M4P to MP3 on Windows/Mac. Available for converting playlists and albums in one click, this tool completes the conversion at a 20X faster speed. Check more features of it:

Now, let’s convert the protected M4P files into MP3s on Windows/Mac in 4 easy and quick steps.

Step 1. Launch TuneFab Apple Music Converter on Your PC

First, you need to download and install TuneFab Apple Music Converter on your computer. The app is equipped with a built-in Apple Music web player. After launching it, enter the web player. Then sign in to Apple Music.

Step 2. Add M4P Songs/Playlists to the Converter

Next, enter the name of your purchased iTunes songs in the search tab. Then, drag and drop them to the conversion list on the right side. Alternatively, you can click on the red button saying "Add to the conversion list" over album/playlist/single to add them to the list.

Step 3. Select Output Settings

The default output format for this software is MP3, with a sample rate of 44,100 Hz and a bitrate of 256 kbps. If you don't need the highest quality MP3, you can simply click 'Convert All.' However, if you want MP3s at 320 kbps or even 48,000 Hz, you can adjust the settings in the conversion list and apply them to all. This will ensure that all converted songs are in the highest quality MP3 format.

Step 4. Convert iTunes Songs from M4P to MP3

Click the "Convert All" button and the app will start the conversion. With at least 20X conversion speed, the app will convert Apple Music and old iTunes songs to MP3 in a few minutes. After the conversion, you can transfer them to any device you like or play them on common media streaming players like VLC or DJ apps.

How to Convert M4P to MP3 via Burning to CD

If your computer has a DVD drive and you happen to have a blank CD, you can make full use of them to solve the problem. You can burn the songs to the CD and then re-add them from the CD back into your iTunes library. This method is recommended for users who are good at computers and don't want to download any other software on their computers.

Before converting iTunes M4P songs to MP3 in this way, you should learn:
● Only songs purchased from iTunes can be burned in this way.
● Those M4P songs bought from iTunes before 2009 are all DRM-protected and can only be burned up to seven times.
● After burning, the audio quality will be slightly impaired. If you mind the loss of sound quality, then using TuneFab Apple Music Converter is a better choice, M4P files that are converted by TuneFab keep the original quality.

Follow the below instructions to convert DRM-encrypted M4P to MP3 via a burned CD:

Step 1. Insert your CD into a CD reader or put it into your computer’s DVD drive. First, you need to create a new playlist. Open iTunes. Click File in the upper left corner. Choose New>Playlist. And add the iTunes songs you want to convert to MP3 from the library to the newly created playlist.

Step 2. To adjust CD burning settings, click File again and choose "Burn Playlist to Disc". Then, a Burning Settings window will pop up where you can configure the Burn Settings: select Audio CD as Disc Format and click "Burn". It will take a bit of time for iTunes to finish the process.

Step 3. When the burning is completed, open the CD in iTunes and select the song on the CD. Go to "File" > "Convert" > "Create MP3 Version" in the pop-up menu.

Step 4. When you're done, you will find all the tracks are in your iTunes library.

 

How to Convert M4P to MP3 Using iTunes Match

Apart from TuneFab Apple Music Converter, iTunes Match can also convert purchased M4P files from iTunes into MP3 format at the cost of $24.99/year. Better still, it can upgrade songs from old DRM-encrypted M4P format to 256 Kbps DRM-free AAC format. In this way, when you download these songs from the iTunes Match subscription, they are DRM-free copies of the previous songs. You can keep them on your device forever even if you cancel your subscription.

What’s more, it also can store all your music files in iCloud and enable you to always access your iTunes library on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or up to 5 computers.

NOTE: Make sure that you have subscribed to iTunes Match and that the M4P music is bought from the iTunes Store. Encrypted songs that are downloaded from Apple Music cannot be converted to MP3 with this method. At this time, you can use TuneFab Apple Music Converter or burn them to CDs with iTunes as an alternative.

 

Now follow the steps below on how to convert M4P to MP3 with iTunes Match.

Step 1. Subscribe to iTunes Match

• Open iTunes on your PC. Go to the Store menu and scroll to the bottom of the screen, click "iTunes Match".
• On the iTunes Match intro page, click the "Subscribe" button, then enter your Apple ID and password.
• Confirm the billing info and click "Subscribe" once again to confirm your subscription.

Step 2. Match or Upload Songs to iTunes Match

After you subscribe to it successfully, iTunes Match will scan your iTunes music library to see which songs in your library are currently available in the iTunes Store and which ones are not.

Songs in the iTunes Store will be added to iCloud automatically, while the other songs will be uploaded from your computer to iCloud. Once the uploading is done, you should see all the songs described as "Matched".

Step 3. Download and Convert Music to MP3

Click the "Download" icon to download the unprotected version of the old protected purchases. The songs will be saved as Matched AAC audio file (.m4a). Then you can convert them to MP3 audio files in iTunes with the following steps:

• Open iTunes and click "Edit" on the top menu.
• Click "Preferences" > "Import Settings" and select "MP3 Encoder" in the "Import Using" tab, and click "OK" to save the settings.

• Select the songs you want to convert to the MP3 format. You can simply hit "Ctrl" and click your mouse to select multiple songs. Or you can press the "Ctrl + A" key to select all songs at once.
• Go to "File" > "Convert" > "Create MP3 Version", the songs will be converted to MP3 immediately.
• When it's done, right-click on the converted songs and select "Show in Windows Explorer" or "Show in Finder" to get access to your downloaded music.

 

How to Convert Unprotected M4P to MP3 Free Online

A free and convenient way to convert M4P to MP3 is to use free online tools. These tools work on web browsers directly, making it possible to convert music without any software installation.

Of all available online M4P converters in the market, FileZigZag stands out for its efficient conversion feature, security, and user-friendly design. When converting your .m4p files, FileZigZag can convert them to MP3 at a fast speed while ensuring the best audio quality. As a totally free and reliable website, FileZigZag won’t ask you to pay for advanced features during the conversion process. To protect your privacy, it will delete your uploaded files 24 hours after the conversion is finished.

Here's how to convert M4P to MP3 online for free:

Step 1. Head to the FileZigZag and hit the "Browse for Files" button.

Step 2. After downloading your M4P songs, drag and drop them to “Drop your files here”. Alternatively, you can click “Browse for Files” to add them. You can upload more than one file at a time.

Step 3. Hit the "Start Converting" button and the files will be converted in a few seconds. After the conversion is complete, you can download the converted MP3 iTunes songs back to your computer.

 

FAQs About Converting iTunes M4P to MP3

What's M4P File?

When it comes to how to open iTunes and Apple Music M4P songs, have you wondered what M4P is and why you often fail to open M4P files?

M4P, standing for MPEG 4 Protected (audio), is a file extension created by Apple to store its audio files downloaded from iTunes Music Store. These iTunes files are encoded in advanced audio codec (AAC) and protected with proprietary DRM technology, making them exclusively streamed via iTunes or on Apple-authorized devices like iPhone, iPad, Mac, etc.

What’s more, the Apple devices you use to play iTunes songs must be authorized on iTunes or Apple Music with your Apple ID. On top of that, there is a limit on the number of devices. Up to 10 devices（no more than 5 computers) can be associated with the same Apple account.

In the past, this sort of protection perfectly prevented unauthorized use and content leaks for the benefit of Apple. But now iTunes has adopted the M4A format after Apple Music was launched in 2015. These old iTunes M4P songs only make listeners suffer. Let alone songs downloaded from Apple Music are also protected in M4P. After all, only a few devices and platforms can recognize and stream these protected songs.

 

How to Open an MPEG-4 Audio File (Protected)?

Windows users can download iTunes to play .m4p songs directly, or, like Mac users, they can also download Apple Music or QuickTime Player to recognize and play M4P audio files. If you want to play these songs on non-Apple devices, converting M4P to MP3 is also a perfect solution.

 

M4P, M4A, M4B, M4R, What Is the Difference?

All iTunes audio files sold by Apple are in M4P format and encoded with AAC. But their various filename extensions such as .m4p, .m4a, or .m4b are used to indicate different types of audio files. For example:

• M4P is an MPEG-4 container format. It is commonly used to store audio files encrypted with Apple FairPlay Digital Rights Management during 2003-09. Both old iTunes songs and Apple Music tracks are AAC files using the .m4p file extension.
• M4A is the file extension commonly used in iTunes Plus tracks, which are unprotected AAC audio files for iTunes Store songs.
• M4B is a specific filename extension used for audiobook files. It can store metadata including chapter markers.
• iPhone ringtone uses the .m4r extension rather than the .m4a extension.

 

Does Converting M4P to MP3 Lose Quality?

The answer actually depends on what tool you use to perform the conversion. The iTunes-protected M4P is the old DRM-protected AAC format with a 128 Kbps bitrate.

• With iTunes Match, as we mentioned before, you can upgrade the songs from 128 Kbps AAC to 256 kbps AAC format with no DRM restriction.
• While using the TuneFab Apple Music Converter, you can maintain the best quality by manually setting the bitrate and sample rate from the output setting section. When the song is converted, you can barely notice any difference between the converted song and the original one.
• If using the free audio recorder, you can hear the quality loss when listening back to your recording.

 

Conclusion

When it comes to converting M4P to MP3 on your Windows or Mac, there are multiple methods and tools available that might confuse you about which one works best for you. With the 4 methods and tools introduced above, you can choose a suitable one depending on your preferences. If you want to download multiple M4P songs quickly and effortlessly, TuneFab Apple Music Converter is the most workable and time-saving way to convert m4p to mp3.