How to Transfer Music from Mac to iPhone With or Without iTunes

In this guide, you will learn four proven ways on how to transfer music from Mac to iPhone. Read on and learn how to sync music between your Mac and iPhone or iPad within minutes.

To freely enjoy music whenever you want and wherever you go, you will need to transfer music from the computer to a more handy device, like the iPhone in your hands.

In our another article, we have detailed how to transfer music from PC to iPhone. Here I'd like to further introduce four effective ways on how to sync music from Mac to iPhone or iPad, with which you will be able to sync music to your iPhone from Mac effortlessly.

Method 1. How to Transfer Music from Mac to iPhone Without iTunes

When it comes to data sharing between your Mac and your iOS device, you can surely use iTunes to get things done. However, iTunes will cause data loss on your iPhone by replacing the existing content with the newly synced items. It's no exception when you transfer music from Mac to iPhone. Given that, many users prefer to sync music to iPhone without using iTunes.

How to transfer music from Mac to iPhone without iTunes? Many users choose to use the iOS data transfer software - EaseUS MobiMover to get things done.

With EaseUS MobiMover installed on your Mac or PC, you are able to:

• Transfer data between an iPhone/iPad and a computer or between two iOS devices.
• Manage the files on your iPhone/iPad by deleting, adding or creating new items.
• Download online videos from YouTube and other sites to your computer or iPhone/iPad.

With it, you can not only transfer songs from Mac to iPhone but also do many things related to iOS data transfer.

To transfer music from Mac to iPhone without iTunes:

Step 1: Connect your iPhone to the Mac with a USB cable and tap "Trust This Computer" on your device if a pop-up occurs and asks. Run EaseUS MobiMover free for Mac and choose "Mac to iDevice" on the main screen.

Step 2: Go to your Mac to find the music files/folders you need to transfer to your iPhone. Or drag & drop files to the window directly. The music formats supported by MobiMover are M4A, M4B, M4P, M4R, WAV, WMA, MID, and AAC.

Step 3: If you choose a folder that contains other compatible file types, MobiMover can check and send them all together with music. If you need music only, uncheck others and keep Music in Audio box selected.

Step 4: If you don't need other files, click "Edit" and select wanted files.

Step 5: Click the "Transfer" button to transfer music from Mac to iPhone with MobiMover. You are free to add batches of music files at a time. When the transferring completes, open the Music app on your iPhone to check the data.

Other than music, EaseUS MobiMover also supports photos, videos, contacts, audiobooks, contacts, and other file types on your iPhone or iPad. Download it now and apply it to sync music to your iPhone, safely and quickly.

Method 2. How to Sync Music from Mac to iPhone via iTunes

iTunes is Apple's official way to back up the iOS device and sync data from Mac to iPhone/iPad. If you don't mind the files on your iPhone to be replaced by the songs that will be downloaded to your iPhone, using iTunes could be a choice for you. 

If you have added the songs you want to transfer to the iTunes library, follow the steps below directly. If not, there is one more step for you before you start: In iTunes, go to "File" > "Add File to Library" to add the items you'd like to sync to iTunes.

To download music from Mac to iPhone with iTunes:

Step 1. Connect your iPhone to your Mac and run iTunes if it doesn't launch automatically.

Step 2. In iTunes, click the device icon. If your iPhone can't connect to iTunes or is not showing up in iTunes, you need to solve the problem before you continue.

Step 3. Choose "Music" from the left side panel and click the checkbox next to "Sync Music".

Step 4. Select the items you want to transfer from Mac to your iPhone, "Entire music library" or "Selected playlists, artists, albums, and genres". If you choose the latter, you need to further select the specific items to copy.

Step 5. Afterward, click "Sync" to start adding music from your Mac to your iPhone using iTunes. When it has done, you can check the songs on your iPhone music library.

Method 3. How to Copy Music from Mac to iPhone via Finder

If your Mac is running the latest macOS Catalina, there will be no iTunes anymore. Instead, Finder now works to sync data and back up your devices. With Finder, you are able to sync the following files from Mac to your iPhone or iPad:

• Albums, songs, playlists, movies, TV shows, podcasts, books, and audiobooks
• Photos and videos
• Contacts and calendars

To sync music from Mac to iPhone with Finder:

Step 1. Connect your iPhone to the Mac with a USB cable and open Finder.

Step 2. Unlock your iPhone and trust the computer. If asked, enter your iPhone password to continue.

Step 3. In the Finder window, click your device under the "Locations" section and select the "Music" tab.

Step 4. Check the option "Sync music onto [your iPhone name]" and select what to sync, "Entire music library" or "Selected artists, albums, genres, and playlists".

Step 5. Make sure the songs you want to copy are selected and then click "Apply" to start transferring music from Mac to your iPhone.

Method 4. How to Transfer Music from Mac to iPhone with Cloud Services

Cloud services like Google Play Music, Dropbox, and Amazon Music also enables you to transfer music from Mac to iPhone by syncing. These cloud-based music streaming services not only help to sync your data across your devices but also allow you to enjoy songs without downloading the items, and thus save your iPhone storage. Of course, you can download music to your iPhone to listen to it offline.

These cloud services work in a similar way. Let me take Dropbox as an example:

To sync music to iPhone from Mac with Dropbox:

Step 1. Download and install Dropbox on your computer and iPhone.

Step 2. Sign in to Dropbox with the same account on your devices.

Step 3. Upload the songs from the computer to Dropbox.

Step 4. Go to Dropbox on your iPhone and you will see the items you uploaded. 

Step 5. Download music from your Mac to your iPhone according to your needs.

Other Tips to Put Music on iPhone

In addition to moving music from Mac to iPhone, there are other ways for you to put music on your iPhone. You can download music on your iPhone directly from the iTunes Store or subscribe to Apple Music. You can also transfer music from one iPhone to another to enrich your iPhone music library. For more details, refer to the guide on how to download music onto iPhone.

The Bottom Line

These are the common ways to transfer music from Mac to your iPhone or iPad. If you have subscribed to Apple Music, you don't need to perform the data transfer and your music from Mac will be synced to your iDevice automatically. If not, using one of the tips above should help you copy songs to your iPhone successfully.