How to Transfer Music from iPhone to iTunes

Step-by-Step Guide

1. 1

   Step 1: Understand what can and can't be done.

   iTunes is designed to transfer media to your iPhone, but it isn't really designed to go the other way.
   
   This means transferring content from your iPhone into iTunes can be difficult, especially if you're moving to a different computer.
   
   You can use iTunes to transfer any music purchases made on your iPhone, but you'll need a third-party program to extract any music files that you added from sources other than the iTunes Store. , You'll need to make an important change to the settings before connection, so hold off on plugging the iPhone in just yet. , You can find this in the "Edit" menu in Windows or the "iTunes" menu in OS X.
   
   If you don't see the menubar in Windows, press Alt. , This will keep your iPhone from erasing itself when you connect it to the blank library.
   
   You can close the Preferences menu to save your changes. , You should see it appear in the row of icons along the top of the window. , This will start the process of transferring your purchased content to the computer. , If you're using a computer that you haven't previously used with your iTunes account, you'll be prompted to log in and authorize it.
   
   Enter your Apple ID and password to authorize the computer to access your purchased content. , This may take a while, especially if you've purchased a lot of content.
   
   You can monitor the progress at the top of the iTunes window.
   
   Only purchases made on your iPhone will be transferred.
   
   You may have made iTunes purchases on another computer or a different device.
   
   These can be found by opening the Music section, selecting "iTunes Store"
   
   and then clicking "Purchased". , If you have music files that were copied to your iPhone but that weren't purchased in iTunes, you'll need to use a third-party program in order to retrieve and copy the files.
   
   Be careful when installing third-party programs, as many free ones come bundled with adware.
   
   Popular programs include: iPod Access TouchCopy iRepo/TuneJack Senuti , When you open the transfer program with your iPhone connected, you'll see a list of all of the songs stored on it.
   
   Select the songs you want to move to the computer and start the transfer process.
   
   This varies from program to program, but generally you simply select the files and then choose where you want to copy them to.
   
   You can then add these copied files to your iTunes library by dragging them into the iTunes window after copying them.
2. 2

   Step 2: Open iTunes before connecting your iPhone.

3. 3

   Step 3: Open the Preferences menu to the "Devices" tab.

4. 4

   Step 4: Check the "Prevent iPods

5. 5

   Step 5: iPhones

6. 6

   Step 6: and iPads from syncing automatically" box.

7. 7

   Step 7: Connect your iPhone to the computer.

8. 8

   Step 8: Click "File" → "Devices" → "Transfer Purchases from Device Name".

9. 9

   Step 9: Authorize the computer with iTunes.

10. 10

    Step 10: Wait for purchases to transfer.

11. 11

    Step 11: Install a third party music transfer program.

12. 12

    Step 12: Use the third-party program to transfer remaining music files.

Detailed Guide

About the Author