Forum Discussion

Alexander95s's avatar
Alexander95s
Copper Contributor
Oct 14, 2026

How do you get apple music for free and keep it as mp3

Is this possible? I have a long playlist of my favorite songs on Apple Music and want to keep a local copy on my Windows laptop. These are totally free country music and podcasts. The problem is tha...
Yak's avatar
Yak
Tin Contributor
Oct 15, 2026

Applemusic-dl can download Apple Music tracks, but you generally need an active Apple Music subscription. The software itself is free, but the music access is not, which is why anyone searching for how to get Apple Music for free should understand that these tools do not bypass Apple's paywall.

How to get apple music for free:

1. Install the free software
The project is open source and offers command-line and desktop options.

2. Check your Apple Music access
Its documentation lists a valid Apple Music subscription and authentication cookies as requirements. A free software download does not provide a free subscription. 

3. If you don't have a subscription
Check whether you qualify for an official Apple Music free trial. Alternatively, use free music sources that provide downloadable MP3s.

You can use applemusic-dl without paying for the software, but it is not a reliable way to get Apple Music's full catalog for free without a subscription.

Add: A Python CLI tool supporting AAC download with MP3 conversion via FF mpeg. Install and use:

pip install applemusic-dl
amdl -c cookies.txt --audio-format mp3 "https://music.apple.com/..."

Requires: Active Apple Music subscription, Netscape cookies file, FF mpeg.