You might be wondering how to get a refund for iTunes or App Store purchases. It's not as straightforward as returning an unwanted item to your local Apple Store, but it can be done. We've all had a situation where we accidentally tapped that purchase button with a slip of the finger. Or a child who managed to make a purchase without parental permission. Or even a case where a purchase didn't work as advertised. But all is not lost, you can request a refund from any of Apple's digital stores. 

You'll need good reason, though. This process isn't for creating your own free trials of apps, games, books, music, or streaming content.

What you'll need

To get an App Store refund you'll need an iPhone, iPad, or Mac. Here are the best models currently available:

How to get an iTunes or App Store refund via the web

Apple's refund system is web-based rather than being built directly into any of Apple's in-app storefronts, so you may as well start your refund process directly at the right website.

1. Go to Apple's Report a Problem page.
2. Log in with your Apple ID user name and password.
3. From the drop-down menu, select Request a refund.
4. Select the reason for your refund request from the list in the drop-down menu.

5. Hit Next.
6. Select the item you wish to request a refund for from the list of purchases.
7. Hit Submit. 

This process is the same regardless of whether you use the browser on your favorite iPhone, your iPad, or your Mac. You should hear back from Apple within a few days about whether your request for a refund is approved.

How to get an iTunes or App Store refund on iPhone or iPad

Though Apple hasn't built a way to request a refund directly into apps like the App Store or iTunes Store even on iOS 17, you can at least start the process there if you prefer. The below steps show the process for the App Store specifically, though the process is much the same in Apple's other digital stores.

1. Open the App Store.
2. Tap on your photo in the top right to view your account. If you don't have a photo set, this will be your initials.
3. Tap Purchased. If you have Family Sharing enabled, you'll then need to hit My Purchases or the name of the person in your family who made the purchase you wish to seek a refund for.

4. Tap on the app you want to claim a refund for.
5. Scroll down the app's listing and tap on Report a Problem. You'll then be taken to Apple's refund site in Safari.
6. Sign in to Apple's site with your Apple ID user name and password.

7. From the drop-down menu, select Request a refund.
8. Select the reason for your refund request from the list in the drop-down menu.
9. Tap Next.
10. Tap Submit.

You should hear back from Apple within a few days about whether your request for a refund is approved. Note that if you are not eligible for a refund for the item you have selected, the final button to submit your claim will be grayed out.

How to get an iTunes or App Store refund on Mac

If you're on your Mac or Windows PC and want to seek an iTunes or App Store refund, you can do just that. Like on iOS, the process will boot you out to a web browser to complete the claim, but you can at least start the process in one of Apple's storefront apps. The steps below apply to the Mac App Store, though you can also start the process via the Music, TV, or Books apps.

1. Open the App Store app.
2. Click on your photo to view your account. If you don't have a photo set, this will be your initials. 
3. In the Music and TV apps, a faster way to get to your account is by clicking Account in the menu bar and selecting Account settings from the drop-down menu.
4. Click on the app you wish to claim a refund for.

4. Scroll the app's listing and click on Report a Problem. You'll then be taken to Apple's refund site in Safari.
5. Sign in to Apple's site with your Apple ID user name and password.
6. From the drop-down menu, select Request a refund.
7. Select the reason for your refund request from the list in the drop-down menu.

8. Tap Next.
9. Tap Submit.

Again, you should hear back from Apple within a few days as to whether your refund has been approved.

A note on refunds

As we mentioned at the beginning of this article, Apple only gives refunds in cases where you made an honest mistake in purchasing. Or, the purchase you made was never received, or it doesn't work as expected. Refund requests are not for trying out the best iPhone apps or best iPad apps or any digital content as a free trial.

If your reason for requesting a refund isn't in the drop down menu, you'll have to select Other and plead your case. Apple does have the right to deny your claim; approval is not automatic.

If you do realize you've made a purchase in error or otherwise need to request a refund, be sure to do so immediately. The time frame for requesting a refund is limited and can vary by region. 

Once you've made your refund request, you can expect it to take a business day or two for Apple to process it. If Apple needs to speak with your further about your claim, it might even take a bit longer. You can check the status of your claim at any time by logging back in to Apple's Report a Problem site.

If you're unfortunate enough to still be using iTunes on Windows, you might want to make sure that you're running the latest version. Apple has released iTunes version 12.13.2, a release that has one job and one job alone — fix a security flaw.

That security flaw is actually one of note, with Apple saying that users of previous versions of iTunes could find that passing a file could "lead to an unexpected app termination or arbitrary code execution." That's sup-optimal, for sure.

The fix? Apple says that it's dealt with the problem by improving the checks that are carried out when files are passed to iTunes, which is a good thing. So Windows users, make sure that you're using iTunes version 12.13.2 just to be safe. And maybe run an antivirus sweep and check your software firewall settings as well. Those are still things, right?

iTunes, remember that?

Snark aside, it's always worth making sure that you're using the latest versions of any software and the same goes for your operating system, whether that's macOS or Windows. Bug fixes and security updates are as vital today as they've ever been and it's always good to see Apple and other companies push new updates out like this — even for apps that it's done its best to kill off in recent years.

Windows users who want rid of iTunes can of course download the Music app, but you'll need to be running Windows 10 or later. There are dedicated Apple TV and Apple Devices apps as well, for that matter. Apple has a handy support page detailing the situation, including some caveats you might want to take note of, too.

More from iMore

• How to download and start using iTunes on Windows
• iTunes for Windows, RIP: Apple TV and Music apps for Windows now available
• After 20 years of iTunes, Apple Music is finally on Windows — with one major catch

When TV shows and movies got incorporated into iTunes 6 back in October 2005, it streamlined a more messy process. Now, with the launch of iOS 17.2, Apple has finally outgrown it, and iTunes may be on the way out too. 

As we originally reported last week during the tvOS 17.2 RC, iTunes Movies and iTunes TV shows purchased before now can be found in the Apple TV app, as it aims to replace all these services with just Apple TV. You won’t miss out on any purchases made until now and can, instead, buy any new shows or movies through the app. This change has now not only gone live on tvOS17.2 but iOS 17.2, automatically moving where you can purchase your TV shows and movies. Devices that have not yet been updated will still be able to purchase and view TV shows and movies from the iTunes Store. 

tvOS now has a much cleaner interface with a brand new menu bar on the left-hand side, which includes other video apps, subscriptions, and more. Though the inclusion of movies and TV in iTunes was iconic, it made the browsing experience tedious and bloated, which explains this new setup. 

All good things must come to an end – iMore’s take

Just like it can be hard to justify putting resources into iTunes TV shows when Apple TV exists as a service, iTunes feels like it has been made mostly obsolete by Apple Music, an app that could easily incorporate iTunes’ best features. Though Apple Music is all about streaming music, you can download your favorite music in lossless quality to listen to on the go. 

This is a step that Apple has needed to take for a while but likely hasn’t due to the history of the brand itself. iTunes is an iconic service and this feels like one of the final steps before it ends entirely. Like the iPod and iBook, it will be fondly remembered when it becomes fully redundant. 

More from iMore

• Apple Music vs iTunes Match: What's the difference?
• How to back up your iTunes or Music library
• How to get a refund for iTunes or App Store purchases

If you're a Windows user, you can become a new iTunes user by following just a few steps. From there, you can purchase an iTunes Match or Apple Music subscription. Once you do, you can use these features on other devices, including Android. If you were previously using Windows 10 but have since upgraded to Windows 11 be aware that the process has changed. We've updated the steps below to reflect how to install and use iTunes on your Windows 11 PC. 

How to download and install iTunes on Windows

You can download the free iTunes app through the Microsoft Store. To get started:

1. Open the Windows Store on your PC. 
2. Search and find the iTunes app. 
3. Click Get to download iTunes. 

Apple iTunes is now installed on your PC. It looks very similar to the iTunes feature in the Music app on the best Macs, including the 2022 MacBook Air.

How to create an Apple ID account through iTunes on Windows

To use iTunes, you must create an Apple ID. You can complete this process when going into iTunes for the first time. If you already have an Apple ID, you can proceed to the next section of this guide. 

1. Open iTunes and agree to the presented terms. 
2. Click Sign in to the iTunes Store.
3. Choose to Create New Apple ID.

4. Choose Continue.
5. Add your email in the box provided. 
6. Add a password in the correct box.
7. Type that same password again in the following box. 
8. Check the terms and conditions box. 
9. Click Continue.

On the next page, you'll be ask to add key information, including: 

• First Name
• Last Name
• Birthday
• Three security questions and answers that you can use if you ever forget your Apple ID.

From there: 

10. Add your credit card information if you intend to make purchases in the iTunes Store. You can also select "None" if you don't plan on buying anything. 
11. Next, add your address information, including your phone number
12. Click Continue.

13. Add the verification code you received through your email.
14. Click Verify.
15. Choose to Continue to finish the process. Once finished, you're already looked into iTunes with your Apple ID.

How to authorize your computer in iTunes on Windows

You can only authorize up to five devices with the same Apple ID. In addition, you can't play downloaded or streamed content from iTunes on unauthorized devices. 

To authorize your PC:

1. Open iTunes. 
2. Choose Accounts > Authorizations > Authorize This Computer from the toolbar.
3. Log into your Apple ID, then click Authorize. Your computer is now authorized.

How to import your media library into iTunes on Windows

You can import supported media into iTunes by following these steps:

1. Open iTunes.
2. Go File > Add File to Library if you're planning on only adding one supported file. 
3. Go File > Add Folder to Library to add a folder.
4. Choose the files or folders you wish to add. 
5. Click Open or Add Folder, depending on your selection. 
6. Repeat steps to add more files or folders to iTunes.

How to buy content from iTunes on Windows

To purchase content in iTunes, follow these steps:

1. Find the content in iTunes you wish to purchase. 
2. Click the price button for the item.
3. Log into your Apple ID. 
4. Click Buy.
5. Repeat these steps to purchase additional items.

How to subscribe to iTunes Match on iTunes on Windows

In iTunes, Apple offers two by-subscription music services, iTunes Match and Apple Music. With iTunes Match, you can match or upload up to 100,000 tracks from your Mac's library (or libraries) to iCloud Music Library, where you can stream or download DRM-free tracks to up to nine of your other devices (a total of 10). 

To sign up for iTunes Match via iTunes:

1. Open iTunes. 
2. Click on Store in the middle menu.
3. Scroll to the bottom, then select iTunes Match.
4. Click Subscribe to iTunes Match and follow the additional directions on the screen.

How to subscribe to Apple Music on iTunes on Windows

Perhaps a better solution would be to subscribe to Apple Music. The premium service offers the same service as iTunes Match and unlimited music streaming and downloading. 

Note: If you are an Apple Music subscriber, don't also subscribe to iTunes Match.

To sign up for Apple Music in iTunes for Windows:

1. Open iTunes. 
2. Click on Store in the middle menu.
3. Scroll to the bottom, then select the link to subscribe to Apple Music.
4. Follow the additional directions on the screen. In addition, Apple will offer a free trial if you've never subscribed to Apple Music. 

Now, start listening to your music

As you can see, you can run iTunes on your Windows computer. To get started, you need to set up an Apple ID account, add personal information, and more before getting started. You can also subscribe to iTunes Match or Apple Music from the iTunes for Windows app. 

Updated August 2022: Completely redone for Windows 11.

What you need to know

• Apple has released iTunes 12.12.4 for Windows.
• The latest software update addresses some security vulnerabilities.
• It is only available for Windows 10 and later.

The music lives on in iTunes. On Windows, anyway.

Today, Apple released iTunes 12.12.4 on Windows. The new software update addresses some security concerns but does not appear to add any new features. That isn't necessarily surprising since iTunes has technically been a legacy piece of software ever since Apple broke it apart years ago into the Apple Music, Apple Podcasts, and Apple TV app on the Mac.

According to the Apple Support document that was published earlier today, the software updates offers security updates in the following areas:

• AppleGraphicsControl
• ImageIO
• iTunes
• Mobile Device Service
• WebKit

Apple says that all of the updates are only valid for Windows 10 and later versions of the operating system. The update from today is only needed for iTunes on Windows. The Apple Music, Apple Podcasts, and Apple TV apps for macOS do not currently have new versions for users to download.

iTunes hasn't existed on the Mac for a few years now since Apple separated it into three different apps for music, podcasts, and TV. While Apple has supported iTunes on Windows since then, Apple will most likely sunset it on Windows as well at some point and bring Apple Music and the other apps to the operating system.

WWDC 2022 is just around the corner, so everyone on Windows can cross their fingers!

What you need to know

• Dr. Dre's Super Bowl Halftime Show is the talk of the town and it's lighting up iTunes.
• Seven of the top-10 songs in the iTunes charts are from Dre or those who appeared on stage with him this weekend.
• BTS' Jung Kook, Ed Sheeran, and Jennifer Lopez make up the numbers.

The Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show featured Dr. Dre and those who he's worked closest with over the years — Eminem, Snoop Dog, and more — and all of them are reaping the benefits in the iTunes music charts.

The Halftime Show was a blast for those of us who are of a certain age and while Dre was undoubtedly the star of the show there was an all-star supporting cast. Each and every one of them are now benefiting from their appearance with seven of the iTunes top 10 songs currently theirs.

As Variety notes, while BTS' Jung Kook's Stay Alive still sits pretty at the top of the pile, it's all about Dre after that — bar two spots taken by Ed Sheeran and Jennifer Lopez.

Beyond the top ten chart, we find more of Dre's influence. 50 Cent makes an appearance at number 11 while Snoop's in at number 14. And it continues as you move down the list.

Poor old Kendrick Lamar has to make do with number 54 for his 2015 anthem Alright.

Which song were you blasting on Apple Music this Monday morning?

What you need to know

• A couple of Apple services are experiencing issues.
• Users on Twitter and DownDetector are reporting outages on Apple Music, iTunes, and the App Store.

Users of Apple Music, iTunes, and the App Store are reporting problems using the service, according to both DownDetector and Twitter.

As you can see from DownDetector users there is a large spike in users reporting outages on iTunes, the App Store, and Apple Music as of Saturday afternoon, at around 1 pm ET:

Searches of all three services on Twitter also indicate that users are experiencing issues. Apple has confirmed on its system status page that the iTunes store and App Store are down, noting both services may be slow or unavailable to some users.

Interestingly Apple has only just resolved outages on the App Store and iTunes, as well as Apple Pay, on Friday. On Thursday a large outage on Snapchat occured, and some Apple services were impacted too, from that report:

If there are ongoing issues at Apple, there's nothing we can do except wait it out until the services come back online.

What you need to know

• iTunes Match users are reporting issues with the service.
• Specifically, it seems to be very slow in uploading music.

iTunes Match users are reporting issues with the service, stating it is extremely slow when it comes to uploading music on the platform.

A couple of threads on the Apple Communities support forums indicate users are having issues with uploading, and that they seem to be persisting on and off.

One user on July 18 stated:

93 users have indicated they have the same issue, as have 30 others in a separate thread. Whilst some users have reported that since raising the issue their service appears to have been restored, posts as recent as Wednesday and Tuesday of this week say that users are still having issues:

iMore has done its own testing and can confirm that uploading is extremely slow, with songs hanging on whilst waiting on iCloud. Users on reddit have also recently reported the issue.

Apple's iTunes Match service lets users upload their music library to the cloud so that they can listen to it across all of their devices. The service is now included as part of Apple Music, bringing the benefits of iTunes Match and the Apple Music library.

What you need to know

• A new internal email has revealed how Bill Gates reacted to Apple's iTunes store back in 2003.
• He said the deal Apple was struck was better "than anyone else has gotten for music", and that it was "very strange" to him.
• He also said Microsoft needed to move fast in order to generate a competing product.

A newly-uncovered internal email sent from Bill Gates to Microsoft employees has revealed how he was seemingly awestruck by the deal Apple struck with the music industry for iTunes, and how he thought Microsoft needed to move quickly to keep up.

The email comes from the Comes vs Microsoft antitrust case and was uncovered by Internal Tech Emails. Bill Gates sent the email on April 30, 2003, subject title 'Apple's Jobs again... and time to have a great Windows download service...'. The email states:

Gates goes on to reference Microsoft discussions around "EMusic" and how that would be better than a subscription because users would know what they were paying for before stating:

Gates also told employees We need to move fast to get something where the UI and Right are as good", describing how Jobs "has us a bit flat-footed again".

Gates sent the email just two days after Apple announced the launch of its iTunes Music store, at the time Apple stated:

At launch, iTunes had more than 200,000 songs, as well as exclusive tracks. At the time Steve Jobs said "The iTunes Music Store offers the revolutionary rights to burn an unlimited number of CDs for personal use and to put music on an unlimited number of iPods for on-the-go listening... Consumers don't want to be treated like criminals and artists don't want their valuable work stolen. The iTunes Music Store offers a groundbreaking solution for both."

iTunes has since been superseded for the most part by Apple Music, its all-you-can-eat streaming service that now features Spatial Audio and Lossless audio for premium listening on headphones likes its AirPods Max and AirPods Pro.

What you need to know

• Apple has rolled out its unified gift card to Canada and Australia.
• It lets customers purchase from both the Apple store and iTunes using just one type of gift card.
• Apple introduced the new cards last year.

Apple has today rolled out its unified Gift Card to Canada and Australia, letting users make purchases in the Apple store and on iTunes with a single gift card.

As noted by Basic Apple Guy:

As Apple says the cards can be used to buy products and accessories from the Apple store, but also apps, games, music, movies, TV shows, iCloud and more.

Apple rolled out the new Apple Gift Card last year, from our report:

Customers in Canada will soon be able to spend their cards in the new Toronto Apple store which is beginning to take shape. As reported earlier this week the store's trademark glass panels are slowly being installed. The new store will occupy the first three floors of Toronto's new The One tower at Yonge and Bloor.

What you need to know

• German iTunes store users say the service is "fundamentally broken".
• They took to Reddit to complain about the lack of 4K content, original language versions of shows, and pricing issues.

Users of Apple's German iTunes service have taken to Reddit to complain that the store is "fundamentally broken" in a scathing tirade.

The initial post that sparked the discussion reads:

The post says TV shows are the worst culprit, and that users are unable to by shows in multiple languages, having to pay twice for the dubbed and original versions.

The rant also says that iTunes offers shows at the wrong price "over and over again", with the price of show seasons simply the cost of individual shows added together, rather than as the standard cheaper bundle:

The complaint also states that iTunes customer support "is the opposite of helpful", and insists it has no control over pricing and copyrights for dubs, etc.

Other users soon chimed in to share their experiences:

What you need to know

• Music Widget is a macOS app that mimics the popular iTunes widget from Mac OS X of yesteryear.
• The free download acts as a remote for the Music app on macOS Big Sur.

If you've been using a Mac for a while you might remember the iTunes widget that let us control our music from the Dashboard back in the day. Back in 2005, to be specific. Well, iTunes might be dead and buried on the Mac, but that widget lives on in the form of a free app called Music Widget.

Created by developer Mario Guzman, the app mimics that Max OS X Tiger widget and lets you control playback from the Music app just fine. It won't work with Spotify though, so that's something to keep in mind.

The app runs fine on macOS Big Sur — and the macOS Monterey beta, if you're so inclined — and can be downloaded in its beta form now. It's a great trip down memory lane for those of us who have been around a little longer than others. But it's also functional, letting you put the Music controls anywhere you want without taking up too much screen space.

Now that we have music control taken care of, it's time to find you some good headphones for listening with. These are the best AirPods Max deals we've come across, so why not treat yourself?

What you need to know

• Apple is facing a class-action lawsuit in California over its iTunes 'Buy' button.
• It is alleged the button is misleading because Apple can terminate access to content on the platform at any time.
• Apple has reportedly stated that "no reasonable consumer would believe" content stays on the platform indefinitely.

A new lawsuit against Apple alleges that the company's 'Buy' button on iTunes content is misleading and deceptive because Apple can terminate your access to content at any time.

From The Hollywood Reporter:

Apple filed a motion to dismiss the suit, however, Judge John Mendez rejected the attempt (in part), after finding cause to disagree with Apple's defense that "no reasonable consumer would believe" content on the platform would remain there indefinitely:

The judge also rejected Apple's claim that the alleged injury was speculative in the case, stating that "the injury is that at the time of purchase, he paid either too much for the product or spent money he would not have but for the misrepresentation. This economic injury is concrete and actual, not speculative as Apple contends, satisfying the injury in fact requirement of Article III."

The judge did dismiss the claim of "unjust enrichment", but the door is still wide open for the possibility of court measures that might force Apple to make changes to how it sells content on its platforms, perhaps by changing or removing the word 'buy'.

Whilst the case refers to the 'iTunes platform', Apple split iTunes into separate Music, TV, and Podcasts apps a couple of years ago, however, the principles of the suit and users 'buying' content remain.

Although the new MacBook Air and MacBook Pro officially support Touch ID authorization of both App Store and iTunes purchases, setting it up can be a bit of a process. When you're having trouble, check out these troubleshooting ideas for macOS Big Sur.

Troubleshooting Mac: First — Check your software

To use Touch ID for iTunes and Mac App Store purchases on your MacBook Air or MacBook Pro, you need the latest software. If you're having trouble getting Touch ID to work with iTunes or the App Store, make sure your Mac's operating system is up to date.

1. Click on the Apple icon in the upper left corner of your Mac.
2. Select About this Mac. You should see macOS Big Sur with the version number under it. If you are running an older version of macOS, update it now.

To update macOS:

1. Click on the Apple icon in the upper left corner of your Mac.
2. Click on **System Preferences.

3. Click on Software Updates.
4. Click on Update Now. Enter your password if prompted.
5. Click on Restart when prompted.

Troubleshooting Mac: Second — Re-trigger permission to use Touch ID for iTunes and Mac App Store purchases

1. Click on the Apple icon in the upper left corner of your Mac.
2. Click on System Preferences.

3. Select the Touch ID preference pane.
4. Uncheck the iTunes & App Store checkbox under "Use Touch ID for".
5. Re-check the iTunes & App Store check box.
6. Enter your computer password (not the password for your Apple ID).

7. Visit iTunes or the Mac App Store apps and navigate to an item you'd like to download.
8. Press the Buy button on an app or song you'd like to download.
9. Enter your Apple ID password.
10. Press Yes when it prompts you to use Touch ID for future purchases.

The item you've chosen will begin to download; afterward, you'll be able to use Touch ID for all future purchases in that app.

The iTunes Store and Mac App Store have separate Touch ID authorizations, so you'll need to repeat steps 7 - 10 in the other app if you'd like to use Touch ID in both stores.

Troubleshooting Mac: Third — Give permission to use Touch ID to make purchases for iTunes and the Mac App Store

1. Visit iTunes or the Mac App Store apps and navigate to an item you'd like to download.
2. Press the Buy button on an app or song you'd like to download.
3. Scan your fingerprint on your Mac's Touch ID sensor when prompted.

Questions?

Let me know in the comments.

Updated December 2020: Updated for macOS Big Sur.

Apple Gift Cards deals aren't as big this Cyber Monday as they have been in previous years (at least not so far), but we tracked down an Apple Gift Card Black Friday deal that offers a $20 Best Buy gift card, plus some free subscriptions to Apple services for new subscribers, which adds up to a pretty fantastic deal if you're eligible. Even if you already subscribe to Apple Music and New+, though, the $20 digital gift card to Best Buy is like getting free money.

Maybe it's because Apple's Cyber Monday deals include up to a $150 Apple Gift Card with eligible purchases, or maybe we'll see new gift card deals tomorrow, but I haven't seen a whole lot of discounts on Apple Gift Cards this year for Black Friday or the past couple of days. This Best Buy Apple Gift Card deal is the first one I've come across so far.

In previous years, you could usually find a $100 Apple Gift Card for $80 — that's the standard discount — but this year, it looks like Best Buy is capitalizing on that popular discount with a deal of its own; a $20 gift card to its own store.

For people that have never subscribed to Apple Music or News+, this deal also includes four months for free, that's for new subscribers only. Both Apple Music and News+ costs $10 per month, so you're getting $80 worth of Apple services for free if you're eligible.

Both the Apple Gift Card and the Best Buy gift card are digital-only and you must provide an email address for the gift cards to be delivered.

Even if you don't qualify for the four months of free Apple Music and News+, the $20 Best Buy gift card is a nice deal. It's like getting $20 for free.

After decades of digital music, it's not unlikely if you've amassed quite the collection of music on your computer's hard drive. If your iTunes library (found in the Music app is taking up too much space, you can move it off of your local drive and onto an external hard drive without breaking your music collection.

You can also transfer your entire iTunes library from one computer to another if you migrate to one of the best new Macs on the market.

Here's how to move your iTunes library to an external hard drive.

Before you start: Back up your Mac

Before making major changes to your computer, it's always a good idea to back up your data: The best way to back up your Mac is with a Time Machine routine in place, but you can choose an alternate backup option that's right for you.

What you will need

You will, of course, need the computer your iTunes library is currently on. You will also need the following:

• An external hard drive (and power source, if applicable)
• A USB cable to connect the hard drive to your original Mac
• A power source for your original Mac
• If you're moving to a new computer, your new Mac (and its power cable)

Step 1: Consolidate your library

Over time, it's easy for your music, movies, apps, and other iTunes content to end up stored in various places throughout your computer's hard drive. To ensure that you copy everything from iTunes over to an external hard drive, you should first consolidate your library. Even if you think your library has all your information consolidated already, it can't hurt to do a manual check before moving any data.

1. Launch the Music app on your Mac.
2. Click File in the upper left corner of your Mac's screen.
3. Choose Library in the dropdown menu.
4. Select Organize Library from the secondary menu.

5. Tick the box for Consolidate Files in the window that appears.
6. Click OK.

This process makes a copy of all files in the iTunes media folder and leaves the original files in their current location.

Step 2: Move your iTunes Library to an external hard drive

1. Quit the Music app on your Mac.
2. Connect your external hard drive to your computer using a USB cable.
3. Click on Finder and highlight the external hard drive. In the example, it's called Music.
4. In a separate window, select your Mac's hard drive.
5. Click on the Music folder.

6. Select iTunes and drag it to the external hard drive.
7. Click Authenticate when prompted to permit to move the iTunes folder, if applicable.

This process could take a while, depending on your iTunes Music library's size on your Mac.

Step 3: Redirect iTunes to the new location

Once you've transferred a copy of your iTunes library onto an external hard drive, you will need to set a new path for the Music app by redirecting it to search the external hard drive for content rather than your local drive.

1. Launch Music and hold down the Option Key at the same time.
2. Click on Choose Library when the window appears.
3. Select your external hard drive under Devices in the Finder sidebar.
4. Click on iTunes.
5. Select Choose.

6. Select iTunes Library.itl.
7. Click Choose.
8. Add a name for your file next to Save As.
9. Click Save.

Note: Until you delete the iTunes file on your local hard drive, you can switch which libraries iTunes uses by launching the app and holding down the Option key simultaneously.

Step 4: Make sure it worked

If you performed the first three steps correctly, it should look the same as it did before when you open iTunes. You can double-check to make sure the migration worked by checking the info of any content.

1. Launch the Music app.
2. Select a song, podcast, movie, app, or other content.
3. Right-click or Control-click on the song.
4. Select Get info from the drop-down menu.

5. Click on the File tab in the info window.
6. Look under Location to ensure that the content is now being stored under /Volumes/external hard drive name/... instead of Users/local hard drive name/...
7. Choose OK to exit the window.

Step 5: Delete the old iTunes library

Once you have transferred a copy of your iTunes library onto an external hard drive and redirected iTunes to the new location, you can delete the iTunes folder on your local hard drive, freeing up space on your Mac.

Note: If you are making a copy to transfer to a new computer, you don't need to perform step 5 unless you want to remove your iTunes library from the old computer.

1. Quit the Music app.
2. Click on Finder to open a Finder window.
3. Select your Mac's hard drive.
4. Click on the Music folder.
5. Select iTunes and drag it to the trash.

Make sure your external hard drive is connected to your Mac when you launch iTunes from now on. Otherwise, iTunes won't be able to find the files. If that happens, quit iTunes, connect your external hard drive to your computer, and reopen iTunes.

Step 6 (optional): Move your iTunes library to a new Mac

Once you have your iTunes library on an external hard drive, you can relocate it to a new Mac.

1. Quit the Music app on your new Mac.
2. Connect your external hard drive to your new Mac using a USB cable.
3. Open the external hard drive once it appears on your new Mac's screen.
4. Click on Finder on your new Mac to open a Finder window.
5. Select your new Mac's hard drive.
6. Click on the Music folder.
7. Drag the iTunes folder from your external hard drive into the Music folder on your new Mac.

Finally, redirect:

1. Launch Music and hold down the Option Key at the same time.
2. Click on Choose Library when the window appears.
3. Select your external hard drive under Devices in the Finder sidebar.
4. Click on iTunes.
5. Select Choose.

6. Select iTunes Library.itl.
7. Click Choose.
8. Add a name for your file next to Save As.
9. Click Save.

Any questions?

Do you have any questions or issues with moving your iTunes library to an external hard drive or onto a new Mac? Let us know in the comments, and we'll help you out.

What you need to know

• Disney has begun offering its movies in 4K HDR on iTunes.
• The company began rolling out the higher quality versions of its films today.
• Customers who already purchased a Disney film will be upgraded to 4K HDR if available.

Reported by 9to5Mac, Disney is finally offering its movies in 4K and 4K HDR through iTunes. For films that support it, Disney is also rolling out support for Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos.

Users with access to Disney movies through Vudu and Disney+ have had access to the higher quality on the Apple TV 4K already, but anyone who has Disney films through iTunes will now benefit as well. As Apple does with all of its iTunes films and TV shows, it appears that if you already own a Disney film through iTunes, you will be automatically upgraded to the 4K HDR version.

The rollout is happening right now and appears to cover a bunch of different content that Disney oversees like Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars.

According to the report, only users in some countries are reporting the changes, so the deal between Apple and Disney could be limited to certain regions.

What you need to know

• Some Disney movies are starting to appear in 4K HDR in iTunes.
• We've seen 4K Disney movies in the UK, US, and Canada.
• Not all Disney movies are in 4K. Yet.

More than a year ago we saw signs that 4K Disney movies were coming to iTunes. Today, they actually are. We've seen 4K movies appear in the TV app and iTunes in the UK, Canada, and the United States.

So far it doesn't appear that everyone is seeing these 4K movies, or indeed that all Disney movies are available in 4K just yet. As an example, "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" is in 4K, but "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" is not.

Those movies that do support 4K appear to offer Dolby Vision as well, giving viewers the best possible image where available.

I'd suspect that Apple is still updating the files on its servers to support the 4K versions of the movies that are still only available in 1080p. As an example, Black Panther isn't available in 4K just yet – I'll be keeping my eyes on that one in particular!

Until now, anyone wanting to watch Disney movies in 4K HDR needed either Vudu or Disney+ to get in on the act. That's now changing.

I first spotted that some people were seeing 4K Disney movies over in the Movies Anywhere subreddit and Twitter seems to be lighting up, too. Whatever's going on – it's no accident!

Let me know in the comments below if you're seeing your favorite Disney movies in 4K!

What you need to know

• Universal films will release on iTunes just 17 days after theatrical release.
• AMC Theaters and Universal Pictures have reached a deal on the schedule.
• This has moved the theatrical release window down from 75 days.

Your most anticipated movies may start to come to iTunes a lot faster.

Reported by The Wall Street Journal (via MacRumors), AMC Theaters and Universal Pictures have reached a deal that will allow films released in theaters to come to digital services like iTunes just 17 days after release. Previously, films had to stay in theaters for at least 75 days before becoming available on streaming services.

After Universal Pictures saw a major success with the digital-only release of "Trolls World Tour", AMC Theaters threatened to never show Universal films in its locations if the company continued to release films that way. This led to discussions which resulted in an agreement to shorten the theatrical release window.

The deal between the two companies, according to The Wall Street Journal, could result in similar deals between other companies to bring titles to digital release earlier.

Currently, most films are seeing delays due to the pandemic. If more deals like the one between Universal and AMC happen, we could hopefully see some of these new movies hit the small screen sooner than later.

There are plenty of reasons why you should save on iTunes gift cards when you can. From discounts on services like Apple Music to saving on mobile games and more, anyone who regularly finds themselves browsing the App Store or iTunes and making purchases, or even making purchases within apps, can save quite a bit this way.

For whatever reason, finding a discount on Apple App Store & iTunes gift cards is more difficult in 2020. Luckily, Best Buy is giving customers an opportunity to save while reloading your Apple ID funds,, though not by discounting an Apple iTunes gift card directly. Instead, buying the $100 iTunes Gift Card will score you an additional $10 gift card to Best Buy. Not only will you be receiving a gift card that's as good as free cash, but Best Buy also includes free four-month trials of Apple Music and Apple News with the purchase — and since both gift cards are digital, you'll receive the codes to redeem them via email within about one hour after placing your order.

Scoring a discount on an iTunes gift card means you'll be saving on anything you purchase with it, whether that be an app, a digital movie, an album, or even an in-app purchase on your favorite mobile game. These gift cards can even be used to pay for subscriptions which you've signed up for through iTunes or the App Store, such as Apple Music, Hulu, or Apple TV+. For even more ways to save on iTunes gift cards daily, check out this list of the Best Credit Cards for Savings.

This deal is part of Best Buy's 3-day weekend surprise sale, so be sure to place your order before Monday and get a look at the full sale before it comes to an end on Sunday night.

What you need to know

• Apple is discontinuing iTunes U and no longer updating iBooks Author.
• iBooks Author won't be available to new users starting in July.
• Both programs have transitioning alternatives.

As first discovered by Apple analyst Rene Ritchie, Apple is transitioning its iBooks Author program to Pages and it will no longer be available to download by new users as of July 1, 2020, and will discontinue iTunes U at the end of 2021. Fear not, my friends. Your niche needs will be met. Apple is already preparing transitioning tools for Pages, so you can continue your book writing process there.

iTunes U will continue to be publicly available until the end of 2021, but after that, Apple recommends that you switch to Schoolwork for private publishing and Apple's various services (Apple Podcasts and Apple Books) for public content instead. Apple's support document has more information.

In a tweet, Ritchie notes that an import tool will be added to Pages in the near future, which will allow users to easily transfer materials you're working from iBooks Author.

Ritchie also notes that ClassKit support will be added to Schoolwork to help transition out of iTunes U.

https://twitter.com/reneritchie/status/1270772016732307463?s=20

After July 1, 2020, you won't be able to download iBooks Author if you've never downloaded it before. However, you can still install it on your device if you've previously downloaded it. You'll find it in your App Store purchase history. Apple clarifies that books you've published to Apple Books from iBooks Author will continue to be available.

The ability to create and publish ebooks using Pages has been available for iPhone, iPad, and Mac since 2018. It looks like Apple may have decided that merging into Pages is more effective than keeping two different programs updated that share the same features.

• How to create ebooks in Pages on iPhone and iPad
• How to create ebooks in Pages on Mac

If you're a regular shopper at Target and iTunes, this gift card deal is perfect for you. Right now, you can snag an App Store & iTunes gift card from $15 to $100 and score a $15 Target gift card at no extra cost. They are both digital gift cards that you'll receive via email, so you can use them pretty much straight away.

Since that Target gift card can be used for almost any future Target purchase, it's as good as getting a 15% discount on the iTunes credit itself. App Store & iTunes gift card deals have been few and far between recently, so you should take any chance you can get to save. Even better, Target RedCard holders save 5% on the purchase too, meaning the total cost is only $95.75 for $115-worth of gift card credit.

It's never a bad idea to have your Apple ID filled with credit for any new apps, games, and other content you might want to purchase. Your funds on the App Store and iTunes can even be used towards digital subscriptions, not just Apple Music but any other which is billed through iTunes. That includes Apple TV+ and Apple Arcade, Spotify, Netflix, Hulu, and more. You can also use the credit to make purchases within apps and games.

Another great way to use these savings is during iTunes' weekly digital HD and 4K film sales, which offer prices as low as $5 on classics, recent releases, and everything in between. Our best iPhone games in 2019 guide can help you find a way to spend your new funds, too.

It's rare that iTunes gift card deals come around that are this worthwhile. For every other day, this list of best credit cards for savings can help you earn the most cashback when shopping for gift cards.

If you don't have a Target RedCard, you can sign up for one for free. There are credit and debit card versions that offer basically the same benefits, though the debit version doesn't have any fees attached like the credit version as it links to your existing checking account for purchases. If you shop at Target even infrequently, it's worth having one.

iTunes makes it easy to have a local backup of an iOS device on a machine you control. But those backups can take up precious space, especially if you have more than one. Good news then that iTunes lets you delete your excess backups reasonably quickly. You can also get rid of unnecessary iOS software updates after you've used them, as well, which should also free up a little bit of room.

Here's how you can go about getting rid of old backups and iOS software updates on your Mac.

• How to delete an iPhone or iPad backup on macOS Catalina
• How to delete an iPhone or iPad backup from iTunes on macOS Mojave and earlier
• How to delete iOS software update files

How to delete an iPhone or iPad backup on macOS Catalina

iTunes as we've known it has split up into multiple apps in macOS Catalina, and the iPhone and iPad backup and update capabilities have made their way to the Finder. Here's how to delete a backup through the Finder on macOS Catalina.

1. Click on the Finder icon in the Dock.
2. Click on your iPhone or iPad in the sidebar.

3. Click Manage Backups...
4. Click on the backup that you want to delete.

5. Click Delete Backup.
6. Click Delete.

How to delete an iPhone or iPad backup from iTunes on macOS Mojave and earlier

1. Open iTunes from your Dock or Applications folder.
2. Click iTunes in the Menu bar.

3. Click Preferences.
4. Click on the Devices tab.

5. Click on the backup you want to remove.
6. Click Delete Backup.

How to delete iOS software update files

Even though iTunes doesn't exist as its own app in macOS Catalina, you'll still find the Software Update file you want to delete in the iTunes folder in Library, just like you did in previous versions of macOS.

1. Go to Finder.
2. Click Go in the Menu bar.

3. Hold down the Option key (maybe labeled 'Alt') on your keyboard.
4. Click Library, which should appear when you hold down Option.
5. Open the iTunes folder.

6. Open the iPhone Software Updates folder.
7. Drag the iOS update file to the trash. Its name should end in "Restore.ipsw".

Questions?

If you have any more questions about removing old device backups or iOS update files from iTunes, let us know in the comments.

Updated April 2020: Updated for macOS Catalina.

What you need to know

• Paramount is releasing 'Sonic the Hedgehog' on digital early.
• The film is available for preorder on iTunes now.
• 'Sonic the Hedgehog' will release on iTunes and other streaming platforms on March 31st.

A number of movies have been coming out on digital release early due to theaters being closed worldwide as the coronavirus pandemic continues. This weekend, Disney released 'Onward' to iTunes and Disney+ after only being in theaters for just over two weeks. Universal also released a handful of films including The Invisible Man, The Hunt, and others for rent on iTunes.

On Friday, Variety reported that Paramount would be following suit and is now releasing 'Sonic the Hedgehog' to iTunes and other streaming platforms on March 31st. The film would have only been in its 46th day of theatrical release at that time.

Films normally have a ninety-day window in which they are in theaters before moving on to a digital release, but circumstances have obviously made that impossible for most, if not all, films currently in theaters.

The movie will be available for purchase through iTunes for $19.99 and its already available to preorder on iTunes. This is a nice move by Paramount, as some of the other movies made available for digital release early are priced at the same amount to only rent. The physical Bluray disc will still be released to stores on May 19th.

'Sonic the Hedgehog' has grossed $146 million in the United States and $306 million globally, becoming the highest-grossing video game film in U.S. box office history. If you buy the movie through iTunes, it will be available to stream through Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, Mac, and more.

What you need to know

• Movies Anywhere now lets you share movies with friends.
• The Screen Pass feature allows three shares per month.
• It is currently in beta and limited to 6000 titles.

Movies Anywhere is a unique service during a time when many companies are trying to lock customers into their ecosystem. The service, which is backed by Disney, allows users to bring all of their digital movies, purchased across multiple platforms, into one place.

Now, Movies Anywhere is going to let you share your movies with your friends and family. Reported by The Verge, the service is releasing a new feature called "Screen Pass" that allows users to share up to three films per month to one another. Those that accept a movie from a friend will have access to start it for fourteen days and, once started, given seventy-two hours to watch it.

According to the service, there are no limits to how many times you can share one of your titles or who you can share it to. This will allow you to theoretically share one movie with three friends and watch it all together.

The "Screen Pass" feature will start as a beta today and be limited to six thousand titles at launch, but Movies Anywhere says that covers around eighty percent of the films currently on its service. Even better, non-beta users can still have films shared to them until the feature comes to all users later this year.

Movies Anywhere currently connects with movie services like iTunes, Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, and Vudu, and more.

What you need to know

• Apple has launched a new movie bundle sale.
• Class trilogies are being discounted as much as 50% off.
• There are also a number of single titles on sale as well as a $1 movie rental.

Apple had launched a huge app sale recently, and now it has turned its eye to iTunes. The company has launched a new, limited-time promotion that discounts a number of movie bundles for all of us who are now practicing social distancing.

A lot of the titles are discounted by as much as 50% off, and almost all bundles are at least 33% off their normal price. From Batman to the Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings to Back to the Future, there are a ton of classic trilogies and more that are being discounted for the sale.

• Batman 4 Film Collection: $20.00 at iTunes
• IT 2-Film Collection: $15.00 at iTunes
• Hobbit Motion Picture Trilogy: $20.00 at iTunes
• Lord of the Ring Trilogy: $20.00 at iTunes
• Dirty Harry Collection: $20.00 at iTunes
• Planet of the Apes Trilogy: $20.00 at iTunes
• John Wick Chapter 1-3: $25.00 at iTunes
• Ocean's 8 & Ocean's 11 2-Film Collection: $15.00 at iTunes
• Back to the Future Trilogy: $20.00 at iTunes
• Meet the Parents Trilogy: $20.00 at iTunes
• Star Trek 3-Movie Collection: $20.00 at iTunes
• Shaggy And Scooby-Doo 3-Film Collection: $10.00 at iTunes

If one of the above collections doesn't suit your fancy, iTunes also has plenty of individual titles for sale. Currently, every Star Wars movie is $5 off and available for $15. You can also rent The Goldfinch for $1.00 as the title is the iTunes promotional rental of the week.

What you need to know

• Universal Pictures is making theatrical releases available on iTunes this Friday.
• "The Invisible Man", "The Hunt", and "Emma" will all be available.
• Rentals will be watchable for 48 hours and be priced at $19.99.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across the world, one of the first businesses to be forced to close is movie theaters. In response to the problem, Universal Pictures is taking an unprecedented step.

As reported by Deadline, NBCUniversal's Universal Pictures will be making its current and future theatrical releases available to rent on streaming services like iTunes by this Friday.

Some of the titles currently in theaters include Blumhouse's "The Invisible Man" and "The Hunt", as well as Focus Features' "Emma". All three films are expected to be available to rent on iTunes, Amazon Prime Video, and more. The company is going even further and plans to release "Trolls World Tour" to both theaters and streaming services on April 10th.

The rentals will be available for 48 hours and are currently expected to cost $19.99. While that is a hefty price for a rental, it is still more affordable than going to the theater and the first time a studio has broken the cinematic window in this way.

Jeff Shell, CEO of NBCUniversal, said in a statement that the company is continuing to monitor the changing landscape and adapting its strategy to best serve its audiences.

No decisions have been made as to what theatrical films will be available for rent on video-on-demand services after "Trolls World Tour" premieres on April 10th.

What you need to know

• Apple has debuted a new 4K movie sale on iTunes.
• The sale discounts a number of award-winning movies to $5.
• A number of films in 1080p are also included in the sale.

Apple just launched its latest weekend movie sale on iTunes. Reported by 9to5Toys, the sale is discounting a number of award-winning films in 4K resolution to just $5. Many of these movies normally go for $10 or even upwards of $20, so this sale is bringing some to the lowest prices we've seen yet.

The films featured in the sale vary in the genre as well, offering anything from a tense drama to a heartfelt musical. Below are some of the top films featured in the limited-time sale:

• Moonlight
• Darkest Hour
• The Hangover
• The Disaster Artist
• La La Land

A notable film not included in the $5 sale but worth mentioning is Ad Astra. The movie is apparently seeing its first discount from its usual price of $20 down to only $9.99.

There are a ton of other movies included in the sale that, while not in 4K resolution, still are worth a watch at the price.

• American Beauty
• The Aviator
• Lady Bird
• The Truman Show
• Lost in Translation

You can find the full sale of all movies and shows on the iTunes or Apple TV app on your iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV.

If your computer uses macOS Mojave or earlier, these are the directions you need to manage your iTunes account on Mac. Your Apple ID is used for a lot of things in the Apple ecosystem, including syncing content in iCloud and making a purchase in iTunes, which can be accessed from multiple devices. Here's how to manage your Apple ID and iTunes account on your Mac.

• How to change your credit card and account information
• How to see your app purchase history
• How to manage apps you've given permission to access your Apple Music account
• How to change your Apple ID Nickname
• How to deauthorize devices associated with your iTunes account

Check out our newer guide if you're on macOS Catalina or later:

• How to manage your Apple ID account on Mac

How to change your credit card and account information on your Mac

If you move or get a new credit card, you can manage your account information in iTunes on your Mac.

1. Launch iTunes on your Mac.
2. Click on Accounts in the app menu in the Menu Bar at the top of the screen.
3. Click on View My Account.
4. Sign in with your Apple ID and password.

5. Click Edit next to Payment Type to change your credit card information.
6. Click on Edit next to your billing address to change your address.
7. Click on Change Country or Region to change the country or region your App Store is located.Note: You may have to cancel your Apple Music subscription, enter a new billing address, or change your credit card information if you change your App Store's country or region.

How to see your purchase history on your Mac

You can see all of the App Store purchases you've ever made using your Apple ID from your purchase history. If you're anything like me, you have a lot of them.

1. Launch iTunes on your Mac.
2. Click on Accounts in the app menu in the Menu Bar at the top of the screen.
3. Click on View My Account.
4. Sign in with your Apple ID and password.

5. Click See All to browse your purchase history.You can filter your search by month and year if you're looking for something specific.Click on the arrow next to a single-date purchase to see more details.

6. Click on Manage Gifts next to Gifts in your purchase history section to see what apps you've gifted to others.

How to manage apps you've given permission to access Apple Music and your music library on Mac

As of iOS 10 and macOS Sierra, Apple implemented a permission requirement for apps that want to access your device's media library. It makes it so we know, and have given express permission, to apps that want to access our Apple Music account, including music activity and media libraries. You can see which apps have permission, and revoke that access at any time in iTunes on the Mac.

1. Launch iTunes on your Mac.
2. Click on Accounts in the app menu in the Menu Bar at the top of the screen.
3. Click on View My Account.
4. Sign in with your Apple ID and password.

5. Click on Manage next to App Permissions.
6. Click on Revoke next to any apps that you no longer want to have access to Apple Music and your music library.

How to change your Apple ID nickname on your Mac

You can change the name that appears when others see when you're reviewing apps and games in iTunes. This does not affect your Apple ID. It is only to change what name the public sees when you're posting reviews.

1. Launch iTunes on your Mac.
2. Click on Accounts in the app menu in the Menu Bar at the top of the screen.
3. Click on View My Account.
4. Sign in with your Apple ID and password.

5. Click on Edit Nickname next to your nickname.
6. Enter a new nickname.
7. Click on Submit.

How to de-authorize devices associated with your Apple Music account on your Mac

You can have up to 10 devices associated with your Apple ID and Apple Music account. You'd be surprised at how fast you get up to 10. If you have an older device that you don't use anymore, you can de-authorize it, clearing up room for a new device you'd like to add.

1. Launch iTunes on your Mac.
2. Click on Accounts in the app menu in the Menu Bar at the top of the screen.
3. Click on Authorizations.
4. Click on Deauthorize this computer.

Any questions?

Do you have any questions about managing your iTunes account on the Mac? Put them in the comments and we'll help you out.

Updated December 2019: Includes link to article for macOS Catalina.

Amazon's having a gift card blowout sale this morning with savings of 15% off select Apple App Store and iTunes gift cards while supplies last! One deal brings this $50 iTunes gift card down to $42.50 with promo code ITUNESSAVE. These gift cards offer the perfect chance to show your appreciation for a friend or family member this holiday season, and the discounts are also a nice way to score yourself some savings on any purchases you make using your Apple account. You can save on physical $50 gift cards or $100 worth of digital gift cards in today's sale, though you'll need to use the appropriate promo code during checkout.

Amazon is also taking $15 off $100 or more in digital Apple App Store & iTunes gift cards when you use promo code ITUNESPROMO. You can grab a few different digital gift cards with this offer, though they'll have to add up to at least $100 to receive the discount.

$899.99 $1299.00 Save $399 1623157769

Having now been replaced by the 24-inch M1 iMac, Apple's 21.5-inch iMac has been discontinued. That means big savings at third-party retailers including at Amazon where it's discounted by $399.

Prices Vary 1622214797

This sale includes iPhone models, the Apple Watch, iMac and iPad devices, Beats headphones, Apple services, and more. The deals vary by product, so be sure to check them all out now.

$103.99 $129.99 Save $26 1621604395

Change how you use your iPad with the Apple Pencil. This stylus lets you use your iPad as a notepad, a canvas, or a drawing board for all of your ideas. Today's deal saves you 20% instantly at Verizon.

$599.99 $699.00 Save $99 1621519150

Updated in late 2020, the Mac Mini has Apple's M1 chip that combines CPU, GPU, and machine learning for faster performance, better graphics, and an all around streamlined device. This version has 8GB RAM and a 256GB solid state drive.

From $329 1621244196

Apple Watch Series 6 models are available for some of their best prices ever right now. The lowest price is on the red 40mm version which is $70 off with 44mm and cellular models seeing discounts of up to $91.

These deals are both limited to one redemption per account, though you can choose to purchase both deals. That would score you $150 in credit for just $127.50 today.

Once you're done shopping at Amazon, head to Walmart where you can grab the $50 iTunes gift card for $40. There are some fun holiday designs to choose from there too, and since this is an offer for digital gift cards, you'll be able to receive the gift card immediately and use it now or print it out and save it for a gift.

Snagging a discount on an iTunes gift card means you'll be saving on anything you purchase with it, whether that be an app, a digital movie, an album, or even an in-app purchase. For even more ways to save on iTunes gift cards daily, check out this list of the Best Credit Cards for Savings.

What you need to know

• The new service has the backing of Hollywood's largest studios.
• The price for film rentals and purchases are in line with other services like iTunes.
• Thousands of titles are available at launch.

AMC Entertainment will introduce an online video store today, Oct. 15. The service, AMC Theaters On Demand, was first announced by Adam Aron, AMC's president and chief executive officer, according to The New York Times.

Featuring about 2,000 films for sale or rent at launch, the new service will compete with Apple iTunes, Amazon, and other video-on-demand retailers. Hollywood's five largest film studios are already on board, including Disney, Warner Bros., Universal, Sony, and Paramount.

Ron Sanders, president of worldwide distribution and home entertainment at Warner notes:

Movies, like at other outlets, will cost around $3 to $5.99 to rent and $9.99 to $19.99 to buy.

Studios still make billions on DVD sales. However, most of the profit now comes from digital downloads and rentals. As Aron explains, "Our theater business is mature. There is a high-growth opportunity in this digital expansion."

AMC Entertainment is the largest multiplex operator in the world and the first major exhibitor in the United States to offer a video-on-demand service. Aron says the project has been in development for more than two years. It was initially supposed to launch in the summer. However, it was put off to "fine-tune the technology and online store design," according to the article.

It hasn't yet been announced when AMC Theaters On Demand will launch.

What you need to know

• A zero-day vulnerability in iTunes and iCloud for Windows allowed ransomware to be installed on Windows PCs undetected.
• Unquoted service path allowed hackers to run malicious apps that wouldn't trigger antivirus software.
• Vulnerability was actively being exploited to run ransomware BitPaymer.

A report from Cybersecurity company Morphisec via ArsTechnica has revealed how a zero-day vulnerability in iTunes and iCloud for Windows allowed hackers to infect Windows computers with ransomware without triggering antivirus software.

According to the report:

Whilst the exploit was patched on Monday in iTunes 12.10.1 and iCloud 7.14 for Windows, anyone who has installed and then uninstalled iTunes on Windows could still be a risk, due to the fact that Bonjour is not automatically removed. Morphisec CTO Michael Gorelik wrote:

According to Morphisec, Apple has not fixed all of the vulnerabilities it reported, only the one that was "abused by the attackers". Morphisec also states that it did not publish the vulnerability until the update was released to fix the problem, and that it "prevented the attack before any damage could have been caused."

The news comes in wake of analyst predictions that hacks targeted at Apple products and software are likely to increase as Apple expands its reach. In the meantime, users of iTunes and iCloud can steer clear of this latest exploit by updating to the latest release of both.

What you need to know

• macOS Catalina has created a big problem for DJs.
• Along with marking the death of iTunes, it also marks the end of XML file support, which is popular among DJs.
• Apple recommends people who use XML files not to upgrade to macOS until developers roll out upgrades

Apple today is rolling out macOS Catalina that along with adding many impressive new features, is also serving as the death of iTunes. However, this is having an inadvertent affect on the lives of DJs.

According to The Verge:

That has led to a big issue for DJs as popular apps like Serato and Traktor that relied on XML files won't be able to access the music. As The Verge notes, there is no fix and if you've used iTunes playlists to sort music for just about any software, Catalina will likely erase all that.

If you are a DJ who used XML files for playlists, do not upgrade to macOS Catalina for the time being. At least not until developers roll out updates for their apps.

After 18 years, Apple is finally getting ready to break up iTunes into individual, dedicated apps. While it's hard to imagine iTunes being no more, nixing the app makes a lot of sense with the addition of the dedicated apps for podcasts and video content like TV shows and movies — not to mention the rise in popularity of music streaming on Apple Music. With iTunes going away the question remains, where does all your music, movies, and TV shows go?

Apple's official upcoming changes to iTunes on Mac

Apple's support webpage was updated to include information on the upcoming changes to iTunes on Mac in macOS Catalina. While most of the information is the same as we had previously heard, there a great list of important changes that Apple published.

• Music that you've imported or purchased will be in the new Apple Music app.
• The iTunes Store will still be available to buy music on Mac, iOS, PC, and Apple TV.
• iPhone, iPad, and iPod backup, restore, and syncing will move to Finder.
• Movies and TV shows that you purchased or rented from iTunes will be in the new Apple TV app.
• Use the Apple TV app for Mac for future movie and TV purchases or rentals.
• Podcasts that you subscribed to or added to iTunes will now be in the new Apple Podcasts app.
• Audiobooks that you purchased from iTunes will now be in the updated Apple Books app.
• Use Apple Books for Mac for future audiobook purchases.
• iTunes Gift Cards and iTunes credits will be maintained and can be used with the new apps and the App Store.

Where's your iTunes library in macOS Catalina?

The good news is macOS Catalina should roll your entire iTunes library into the Music app. There you should be able to see any music you've purchased on iTunes, tracks you've ripped from CDs, MP3s you've imported into your library from outside sources, and any other files (like recordings) that you've had in your library. Nothing should be lost, just moved to a new centralized location in Music.

Same goes for your movies and TV shows, but in the TV app. You have a Library section in the TV app on Mac in Catalina that stores all of your purchased movies, ripped DVDs and Blue Ray discs, and movies you downloaded by other means. If it was in iTunes, it's now in the Library section of your TV app.

• How to use the Music app in macOS Catalina
• How to use the TV app in macOD Catalina

Syncing your iPhone or iPad to macOS Catalina

In prior versions of macOS, when you'd connect your iPhone or iPad to your Mac, iTunes would launch and you could check for updates, sync your information with your Mac, manage your data, and create backups. Instead of doing all this in iTunes, macOS Catalina instead moves this to Finder.

In Finder you'll see your iPhone or iPad pop up in the sidebar when you connect it to your Mac, and when you click on it, you'll see an interface very similar to the one that was in iTunes before. Here you can sync your iPhone or iPad, create backups, manage your data, and all of the other things you used to do through iTunes.

How to sync your iPhone and iPad to your Mac in macOS Catalina

What happens to iTunes on Windows?

iTunes was so popular and big that many people did and still do use it with Windows, so it begs the question how iTunes shutting down in macOS would affect those users using the software on other platforms. According to Ars Technica, they asked Apple at WWDC and there's wasn't a ton of information.

It appears for right now, iTunes in Windows will remain unaffected, but there's no clear indication of how long iTunes will continue to be supported on other platforms, now that Apple has decided to kill off the program for its own operating system.

Sad about iTunes leaving?

Are you sad about iTunes leaving? Let us know in the comments down below!

Updated September 2019: Updated for release of macOS Catalina.

What you need to know

• The latest iTunes movie sale is focusing on iconic movies.
• The list of movies that come in under $10 includes countless classic movies from the 70's to the 00's.
• Some of the most famous ones are Titanic, E.T., and The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

If you are a fan of great movies, then the latest iTunes movie sale will appeal to your movie love. Dubbed "Iconic Roles," the current movie fire sale iTunes is offering discounts countless classics like Forrest Gump, Titanic, The Matrix and many more.

The sale has a little bit of everything and should help movie fans out there beef up their collection while saving a few bucks. It's not often classic movies go on sale, so when they do, you better jump on it. Most movies come in at $10, but some go as far down as $7.

There's plenty to choose from, but we're highlighting a few that caught our eye and thus deserve a spot in everybody's movie library.

• Forrest Gump
• Titanic
• The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
• The Matrix
• Blade Runner
• Back to the Future
• The Shawshank Redemption
• E.T.
• Fight Club
• Clueless
• Saving Private Ryan
• The Godfather

If none of those caught your eye, there's plenty more where those came from. You can see the whole slate of movies on sale at iTunes.

Thanks to Apple's Up Next queue, it's easier than ever to check what tunes are coming up on the Music app. When you're in the middle of a playlist or album, you can quickly stack other tracks to listen to right away. You can also adjust the menu on the fly without interrupting your jams! Up Next also keeps track of your play history, whether you're listening to songs from your music collection, Apple Music, Beats 1, or Apple Music radio stations. Here's how you can use it!

How the Up Next queue works

When you launch the Music app on your Apple device and begin playing a song, Up Next creates a queue of songs to follow. It creates a queue of upcoming music based on the source of the original track:

• If you randomly picked a song on shuffle from your library, your Up Next queue will pull from My Music.
• If you're jamming out to an album, Up Next will add the remainder of that album.
• If you're listening to an entire artist's collection, Up Next will pull other songs from that artist.
• If you searched for a specific song, Up Next will repeat that song forever until you tell it otherwise.
• If you're listening to Beats 1 or Apple Music radio, you won't see anything in the Up Next queue.

Your queue can hold hundreds of songs, so don't worry about overloading it, and it will automatically pause if you switch to a non-queue part of Music (Beats 1 or Apple Music radio, for example), to resume when you return to My Music or the Apple Music catalog.

How to view your Up Next queue

You can see what's queued in Up Next at any time by tapping the Up Next button in the Music app for either mobile or Mac.

1. Locate the Mini Player at the bottom of the screen, just above the tab bar.
2. Tap on the Up Next icon at the bottom right of the screen.

1. In the Music app on your Mac, click on the Up Next at the top right.

How to add music to Up Next

When you add a song to Up Next, you have the choice of either adding it to the top of the queue (it will play after the currently-playing track) or bottom (it will play after everything else in your queue). From there, you can pop into the Up Next queue to adjust further (say, if you want your new song to play after a particular track in your queue).

On your mobile device:

1. Browse to the track, album, or playlist you want to add to Up Next.
2. Tap the More button (looks like •••).
3. Tap Play Next to add the music to the front of your Up Next queue, or Add to Up Next to add the music to the end of the queue.

1. In the Music app, choose the track you want to add to Up Next from your library.
2. Click the More button (looks like •••).
3. Select Play Next to add the music to the front of your Up Next queue, or Add to Up Next to add the music to the end of the queue.

If you find a track, album, or playlist you want to listen to immediately, you can start playing it right away without losing your existing Up Next queue.

1. Find the item you want to listen to immediately.
2. Tap the item to start playing it.
3. Tap Keep Up Next to preserve your existing queue.

How to rearrange your Up Next queue

Whether you added tracks to Up Next as fast as you could find them, or your mood has changed since you added them, you can easily rearrange their order so you hear exactly what you want, when you want.

1. Go to the Up Next screen.
2. On the Mac, click and hold to select a track; on iPhone, iPad, or iPod, touch and hold the grabber button to the right of the track you want to move.
3. Drag the track to the desired position.

You can reorder tracks as often as you want, and any time the mood strikes you.

How to quickly clear Up Next

If you want to remove everything from your Up Next list all at once, you can easily do that too.

If you add a track to Up Next and later change your mind about that song, it's easy to delete it.

1. Go to the Up Next screen.
2. On your Mac, hover over a track to reveal the Remove button. On iPhone, iPad, or iPod, swipe left on the track to reveal the red Remove button.
3. Click or tap on the Remove button.

If you want to clear your queue entirely, you can do that directly from the Up Next screen, too.

1. Find an item—anything will do.
2. Tap the item to start playing it.
3. Tap Clear Up Next from the menu.

The track, album, or playlist will start and your Up Next list will be completely cleared at the same time.

How do you jam out?!

Are you a big fan of features like Up Next? Are you more of a random song-shuffler? Let us know about your listening habits in the comments down below, and let us know if you have any other questions!

What you need to know

• The latest iTunes sale is focusing on everybody's favorite Hollywood star and all-around good guy, Keanu Reeves.
• You can grab many of his classic movies for just $5.
• That includes The Matrix movies, Point Break, Speed and more.

This is turning out to be a great week for Keanu Reeves. First he saw the return of his most successful franchise with the announcement of Matrix 4. And now, he is the spotlight of the latest iTunes movie sale that offers some of his most iconic movies for just $5.

The Keanu Reeves-centric sale is a continuation of an earlier sale iTunes offered that focused on action movies. That naturally included a lot of Keanu movies.

In case you haven't noticed, he has been around for a while now. His career spans over three decades and has delivered some outstanding gems like Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Johnny Mnemonic and My Own Private Idaho.

Of course, that doesn't even get to his biggest hits like The Matrix movies, Speed or Point Break. And that still leaves off a ton of movies. With this movie sale, you're going to want to pick up a Keanu movie or two just for fun. Here are some of our recommendations.

• The Matrix
• Speed
• Point Break
• The Replacements
• Constantine
• My Own Private Idaho
• Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
• The Lake House
• The Devil's Advocate
• The Matrix Reloaded
• The Matrix Revolutions
• Johnny Menemonic

Just in case none of those struck your fancy, there's plenty more to choose from. Enjoy your time with Keanu Reeves.

iTunes Match and Apple Music both allow you to sync your tracks to iCloud Music Library, where you can stream and download them to any iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV without having to take up physical storage space.

While both services are incredibly convenient when they work, they aren't completely error-proof either. Whether they're hanging up while trying to sync, or your music isn't showing up on your iPhone or iPad, here are some steps you can take to try and remedy your issue.

Check iCloud's service status

Sometimes Apple does routine maintenance on specific iCloud services. If you're getting stuck with iCloud Music Library giving you an endless "Sending information to Apple" error, this is most likely the reason. Before trying to log in, log out, or troubleshoot elsewhere, try checking Apple's Services, Stores, and iCloud system status website.

If the indicator next to Apple Music, iTunes Match, and iTunes in the Cloud is green and you're still having trouble, try the next step listed below. If it's showing up as yellow or red, Apple may be doing a system update; check the status page again later.

Turn iCloud Music Library on and off on all iOS devices

If you're missing a bunch of music that should be there, turning it on and off again in Settings could resolve the issue.

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Music.
3. Tap the iCloud Music Library switch to turn it to the 'off' position.

4. Turn back On the option for iCloud Music Library.
5. Tap Keep Music or Delete & Replace.
6. Launch the Music app on your iPhone or iPad.

If you still aren't seeing the music you want synced, there may be a problem with iTunes. Continue on to the next step to try and resolve it.

Update iCloud Music Library within iTunes

Even though iCloud should update itself regularly, there are occasions that it doesn't happen for one reason or another. Before trying anything else within iTunes, try updating your iCloud Music Library manually.

1. Open iTunes.
2. Click File.

3. Hover your cursor over Library.
4. Click Update iCloud Music Library.

Turn iCloud Music Library on and off in iTunes

If you absolutely want to force iCloud Music Library to re-sync all your music, turning it on and off is the way to go. I'd recommend this step for anyone who is experiencing freezes or hangups when trying to sync with iTunes Match or Apple Music, especially if you've already tried all the above steps. Just be aware that your whole library may have to be scanned again and, depending upon its size, this could take hours or even days.

1. Open iTunes on your Mac.
2. Click iTunes in the Menu bar.

3. Click Preference.
4. Click the checkbox next to iCloud Music Library to uncheck it.

5. Click the checkbox again to re-check it.

Sign in and out of iTunes on your Mac

If simply turning iCloud Music Library itself off and then back on doesn't seem to fix the issue, try signing out of iTunes completely on all your devices, including your Mac or PC. Then sign back in and try syncing your iCloud Music Library again.

1. Open iTunes on your Mac.
2. Click Account in the Menu bar.

3. Click Sign Out to sign out of your iTunes/Apple Music account.
4. Click Account in the Menu bar again.

5. Click Sign In….
6. Sign in to your account.

More iCloud Music Library help

If you're still experiencing trouble with iCloud Music Library after trying all of the above steps, our iTunes forums are a great place to ask for help. If you still can't find what you're looking for, it may be time to contact Apple to see if they can directly solve your problem.

What you need to know

• iTunes is holding its latest movie sale discouting movies by up to $10.
• Among the movies included in the sale are 90s and animated classics.
• Some of the movies include Clueless, The Sixth Sense and Goodfellas.

Apple is having one of its iTunes movies sales again. This time around, it is focusing its discounts, which can net you up to $10 off a movie, on 1990s classic, 2000s animated movies and few other flicks that might be of interest to you.

Most movies are now $10 after seeing a 33% discount from their normal $15 price tag, but some get as low as $5. This is a great time to add some of those missing movies to your library. If you are thinking of doing just that, we'd suggest you start with the 90s movies cause there are a whole lot of them. Here are our top 10 picks, but there are many more you should check out.

• The Waterboy
• Clueless
• The Sixth Sense
• Dumb and Dumber
• Sleepless in Seattle
• My Best Friend's Wedding
• Wayne's World
• Happy Gilmore
• Ace Venture: Pet Detective
• Goodfellas

On the animated movies side, there is also a healthy dose of selections. Here are our favorites, but again, there are many more available.

• The LEGO Batman Movie
• Ice Age
• Rio
• Happy Feet
• Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
• Hotel Transylvania
• Horton Hears a Who!
• Chicken Run
• The Emoji Movie
• The Book of Life

Let us know if you pick up any of these movies.

Apple has two subscription services: iTunes Match, and Apple Music. Both offer access to iCloud Music Library, the company's cloud-based music storage system, which lets you stream and download tracks from your Mac's music library on up to ten of your devices.

If you're curious about iTunes Match — what it is, why you'd use it, how to set it up, and how to ditch it for Apple Music — here's the skinny.

What is iTunes Match?

For $25 a year, Apple's iTunes Match service lets you match or upload up to 100,000 tracks from your Mac's library (or libraries) to iCloud Music Library, where you can then stream or download said tracks — DRM-free — to up to nine of your other devices (a total of 10). That's it: There aren't any weird quirks, hidden features, or other bonus options.

For more about iCloud Music Library and how that works:

How to use iCloud Music Library: The ultimate guide

What's the difference between iTunes Match and Apple Music?

Apple has two subscription services: Apple Music and iTunes Match. If you're considering getting into streaming music, want to listen to your Mac's music collection on all your devices, or you're simply wondering what that giant "Three months free!" banner is atop the Music app, here's everything you need to know about Apple's two subscription services and what each can offer you.

Apple Music vs iTunes Match: What's the difference?

How do I sign up for iTunes Match?

After you subscribe to iTunes Match, you can stream or download any songs on up to ten of your devices, DRM-free — but before you get to do that, you need to sign up. Doing so is simple — you just need a Mac. Unfortunately, you can't sign up for iTunes Match on your iPhone or iPad.

How to sign up for iTunes Match

How do I use iTunes Match if I have too many songs?

Want to use iCloud Music Library with iTunes Match or Apple Music but have too many songs? You will need to create a second iTunes library to get those extra songs uploaded. Here's how to create a sub-library to use with the service.

Over 100,000 tracks? Here's how to create a secondary iTunes library for iTunes Match

How do I see which songs are uploaded or matched?

Thanks to iTunes Match, your iCloud Music Library may contain songs you've purchased from iTunes, uploaded from your Mac, or matched to the iTunes Store catalog. With all of these different types of music files, it's easy to confuse how your songs are stored in iCloud. Here's a quick tip for seeing which is which.

How to check if your Mac's songs are uploaded, matched, or purchased

How to unsubscribe or cancel iTunes Match

With the news that Apple is integrating iTunes Match's DRM-free track-matching functionality for Apple Music subscribers, those subscribed to both services may want to save the $25/year by turning off automatic renewal. Here's how you go about doing so on an iPhone, iPad, or Mac.

How to unsubscribe from and cancel iTunes Match

Questions?

Let us know in the comments.

August 2019: Updated for Apple's latest software updates.

Serenity Caldwell contributed to an earlier version of this guide.

If you're considering getting into streaming music, want to listen to your Mac's music collection on all your devices, or you're simply wondering what that giant "Three months free!" banner is atop the Music app, here's everything you need to know about Apple's two subscription services and what each can offer you.

What Apple Music offers

For $9.99/month (or $14.99/month for a family plan), Apple Music gives you access to its full music streaming catalog on all of your devices. Subscribers can play any song in the Apple Music catalog, whether they own it or not. They also get two customized playlists delivered each week, a New Music Mix, Favorites Mix, Friends Mix, and Chill Mix based on user taste and past-played songs, along with a variety of daily playlist suggestions put together by Apple's music curators. In addition, users can listen to Beats 1, Apple's 24/7 internet radio station, and play back-catalog episodes of Beats 1's various programmed shows.

Outside of the subscription service, Apple Music lets its users match up to 100,000 songs from their iTunes library (or libraries) to the DRM-free iTunes Store catalog; these tracks can then be streamed or downloaded to up to 10 of your other devices. (If Apple Music can't match a track to a song in the iTunes catalog, it'll manually upload it, instead.) Purchased iTunes content doesn't count toward that 100,000 song limit.

Note: Your iCloud Music Library doesn't count toward your iCloud storage, as your Photo Library does; it's only based on the number of songs, rather than gigabytes.

Here's a quick explanation between the different kinds of content stored in iCloud Music Library:

• Matched content: If you bought Styx's Mr. Roboto on Amazon and added those MP3s to your music library, those recordings are "matched" to the Mr. Roboto iTunes tracks, rather than manually uploading tracks that the iTunes catalog already has. You can then stream the iTunes versions of these tracks on any device, or download them to your other devices.
• Purchased content: If you bought Taylor Swift's 1989 on iTunes, you can instantly stream it or download it to any device, with no upload time needed. It also doesn't count toward your 100,000 song limit.
• Uploaded content: If you recorded covers of 1989 and Mr. Roboto and added those songs to your music library, those recordings will need to be uploaded to iCloud Music Library first before you can play them or download them on other devices.
• Apple Music content: If you add an Apple Music subscription track (or a playlist) to your music library, that song can now be streamed or downloaded to any of your other devices. It also won't count toward your 100,000 song limit.

Matched, uploaded, and purchased tracks reside in iCloud Music Library, Apple's cloud-based music locker. Users can stream or download these tracks from iCloud Music Library as long as their Apple Music subscription remains active; downloaded tracks will either show up as a 256kbps matched DRM-free AAC file or an AAC-converted file of tracks you uploaded.

If you cancel Apple Music, any matched, uploaded, and purchased tracks you've downloaded will remain on their various devices and fully playable, but you'll lose your ability to stream any non-downloaded matched or uploaded tracks and access iCloud Music Library. (You'll still be able to stream your purchased content from up to 10 devices.)

Any songs you choose from Apple Music's subscription catalog also get saved to iCloud Music Library, where you can stream and download them, as well as add them to playlists. When downloaded, Apple Music files show up as DRM-encrusted AAC files; if you cancel Apple Music, that DRM will render those downloads unplayable, and you'll no longer be able to stream the subscription tracks.

If you want access to Apple's gigantic subscription streaming library and your music library available across all your devices, subscribe to Apple Music.

What iTunes Match offers

Unlike Apple Music, iTunes Match has no music subscription aspect — the $24.99 a year cost is solely for activating and maintaining your iCloud Music Library.

iTunes Match lets its users match up to 100,000 songs from their iTunes library (or libraries) to the DRM-free iTunes Store catalog; these tracks can then be streamed or downloaded to up to 10 of your other devices. (If iTunes Match can't match a track to a song in the iTunes catalog, it'll manually upload it, instead.) Purchased iTunes content doesn't count toward that 100,000 song limit, nor do they need to be uploaded because Apple has the track on its servers already.

Note: Your iCloud Music Library doesn't count toward your iCloud storage, as your Photo Library does; it's only based on the number of songs, rather than gigabytes.

Here's a quick explanation between the different kinds of content stored in iCloud Music Library:

• Purchased content: If you bought Taylor Swift's 1989 on iTunes, you can instantly stream it or download it to any device, with no upload time needed. It also doesn't count toward your 100,000 song limit.
• Matched content: If you bought Styx's Mr. Roboto on Amazon and added those MP3s to your music library, those recordings are "matched" to the Mr. Roboto iTunes tracks, rather than manually uploading tracks that the iTunes catalog already has. You can then stream the iTunes versions of these tracks on any device, or download them to your other devices.
• Uploaded content: If you recorded covers of 1989 and Mr. Roboto and added those songs to your music library, those recordings will need to be uploaded to iCloud Music Library first before you can play them or download them on other devices.

Matched, uploaded, and purchased tracks reside in iCloud Music Library, Apple's cloud-based music locker. Users can stream or download these tracks from iCloud Music Library to any of their 10 devices as long as their iTunes Match subscription remains active; downloaded tracks will either show up as a 256kbps matched DRM-free AAC file or an AAC-converted file of tracks you uploaded on devices other than the Mac or PC from which tracks were uploaded. If you uploaded music in WAV, ALAC, or AIFF formats, then they will remain in those formats on the Mac or PC from which they were uploaded.

If canceled, any tracks you've downloaded will remain on their various devices and fully playable, but you'll lose your ability to stream any non-downloaded tracks or access other iCloud Music Library songs.

If you use another subscription service (like Spotify) and only need your music library available across all your devices, subscribe to iTunes Match.

Do you need both?

Nope: Apple Music essentially includes the iTunes Match service inside its subscription fee.

• Do I still need iTunes Match if I have Apple Music?
• How to unsubscribe from and cancel iTunes Match

If Apple Music duplicates iTunes Match's feature-set, why is Apple keeping Match as an option?

Some users aren't interested in adding the cost of a music subscription service to their monthly bills, or they already use a subscription service like Spotify or Google Play Music. For those users, Match makes much more financial sense: iTunes Match is just $24.99/year, while an Apple Music subscription runs you $119.88/year. If streaming services don't appeal to you, but having on-the-go access to your local music library does, iTunes Match appears to be a good alternative option.

Other questions?

Any other questions about iTunes Match vs Apple Music? Sound off in the comments.

Updated August 2019: Additional context provided to how content is stored and distributed in iTunes Match.

Serenity Caldwell contributed to a previous version of this article.

Apple currently offers two music subscription services: Apple Music, and iTunes Match. Both services match and upload your Mac's music to iCloud Music Library, the company's cloud-based music storage locker.

You can read a bit more about the differences between Apple Music and iTunes Match elsewhere; simply, you're likely to be in the market for iTunes Match if you already use Spotify or a different subscription service but want your previously-purchased music wherever you go, or you simply don't want to pay for a subscription service at all.

After you subscribe to iTunes Match, you can stream or download any songs on up to ten of your devices, DRM-free — but before you get to do that, you need to sign up.

How to subscribe to iTunes Match

Note: You can't enroll for iTunes Match on an iPhone, primarily because the service needs a computer-based music library to get started.

1. Launch iTunes.
2. Make sure the Music dropdown is highlighted in the toolbar, and click on the Store button.
3. Under the sidebar, find the Music Quick Links section, and select iTunes Match. It should be directly beneath Beats 1.
4. Click the Subscribe button. Prices will vary based on region; in the U.S., it's $24.99.

5. Enter your Apple ID and password.
6. Click Subscribe once more to confirm.
7. Click Agree to agree to Apple's terms and conditions. iTunes will now scan for matches and upload any unmatched songs.
8. Click Done when the scan is finished.

Beginning this fall, Apple is changing the name of iTunes to Music in macOS Catalina only. The iTunes name will remain on Windows-based computers. We'll update this post once macOS Catalina is released to note any changes to the iTunes Match process.

How to add an additional computer to iTunes Match

1. Launch iTunes.
2. Make sure the Music dropdown is highlighted in the toolbar, and click on the Store button.
3. Under the sidebar, find the Music Quick Links section, and select iTunes Match. It should be directly beneath Beats 1.
4. Click on Add This Computer.
5. Enter your password.
6. iCloud Music Library will then upload or update your library.

How to troubleshoot signing up for iTunes Match

If you're not seeing an iTunes Match option under Quick Links, check your Apple ID's region settings: You may not be eligible to use iCloud Music Library in your country.

If you're country-eligible but still can't find iTunes Match, you can try this alternate method to subscribe:

1. Launch iTunes.
2. Click Account in the menu bar at the top left of your screen.
3. Click View My Account....

4. Enter the password for your Apple ID.
5. Hit return on your keyboard or click View Account.
6. Click the Learn More button next to iTunes Match under iTunes in the Cloud.

7. Click Subscribe.

8. Add a valid payment method if asked to update.
9. Click Agree to agree to Apple's terms and conditions. iTunes will now scan for matches and then upload any unmatched songs.
10. Click Done when the scan is finished.

Get started with iCloud Music Library

Once you've finished signing up for iTunes Match, you'll want to get familiar with iCloud Music Library and what you can (and can't) do with the service.

• How to use iCloud Music Library: The ultimate guide

Enhance your Mac with these solutions

Your Mac could be even more useful with one of our favorite accessories.

Beats Studio3 Wireless Headphones ($350 at Amazon)

These over-ear headphones provide a significant sound alternative to AirPods while being just about as easy to use. Like the AirPods, connect easily to your Apple devices thanks to the built-in W1 chip, which allows the pairing to sync across devices logged into iCloud.

Samsung T5 SSD (From $88 at Amazon)

This solid-state drive from Samsung is speedy, tiny, and portable. It also connects using USB-C, making it a perfect companion for your new Mac.

Apple Magic Keyboard ($89 at Amazon)

Apple's official Bluetooth keyboard is a great basic option that provides a consistently solid typing experience and pairs easily with your Mac or iPad.

Questions?

Let us know in the comments below!

Updated July 2019: Includes latest macOS information. A previous version of this post was written by Serenity Caldwell.

All the Prime Day deals this month could drive a person mad, especially if you're Prime-less and miss out on a product on sale that you really wanted. Thankfully, eBay is getting in on the sales today too, and you don't need a membership to shop any of its deals. There are even discounted gift cards like the $100 iTunes Gift Card for only $85, though these prices won't last for long. This deal is for a digital gift card which will be delivered to your email, usually within a few hours after purchase, offered by PayPal's official Digital Gifts store.

Amazon has an even better deal on iTunes gift cards for Prime members, which saves them 20% off the $50 gift card. If you don't have a Prime membership, you can start a free 30-day trial to get in on all of Amazon's exclusive discounts. We're rounding up the best of them at our Prime Day hub if you're wondering what's available.

$899.99 $1299.00 Save $399 1623157769

Having now been replaced by the 24-inch M1 iMac, Apple's 21.5-inch iMac has been discontinued. That means big savings at third-party retailers including at Amazon where it's discounted by $399.

Prices Vary 1622214797

This sale includes iPhone models, the Apple Watch, iMac and iPad devices, Beats headphones, Apple services, and more. The deals vary by product, so be sure to check them all out now.

$103.99 $129.99 Save $26 1621604395

Change how you use your iPad with the Apple Pencil. This stylus lets you use your iPad as a notepad, a canvas, or a drawing board for all of your ideas. Today's deal saves you 20% instantly at Verizon.

$599.99 $699.00 Save $99 1621519150

Updated in late 2020, the Mac Mini has Apple's M1 chip that combines CPU, GPU, and machine learning for faster performance, better graphics, and an all around streamlined device. This version has 8GB RAM and a 256GB solid state drive.

From $329 1621244196

Apple Watch Series 6 models are available for some of their best prices ever right now. The lowest price is on the red 40mm version which is $70 off with 44mm and cellular models seeing discounts of up to $91.

Grabbing a discount on an iTunes gift card doesn't just let you save on apps and digital music or movies. You can also be billed for subscription services like Hulu or Apple Music (which can now be streamed via Amazon Echo devices) through iTunes, and any iTunes gift cards you have can be applied to those subscriptions. If you have a favorite game on your mobile device which gets you to spend on in-app purchases, these savings can be passed along there as well.

For even more ways to save on iTunes gift cards past today's sale, check out this list of Best Credit Cards for Savings.

Exclusively for Prime members, Amazon is offering 20% off the Apple iTunes $50 Gift Card as a 12-hour Lightning deal, dropping its price to just $40 while supplies last. Since this is a Prime Day deal, you'll have to start a free 30-day trial of Prime to snag the discount if you're not a member yet.

Prime Day is just beginning, and to make sure you don't miss any of the best deals, visit our Prime Day hub during the event for live coverage throughout.

$899.99 $1299.00 Save $399 1623157769

Having now been replaced by the 24-inch M1 iMac, Apple's 21.5-inch iMac has been discontinued. That means big savings at third-party retailers including at Amazon where it's discounted by $399.

Prices Vary 1622214797

This sale includes iPhone models, the Apple Watch, iMac and iPad devices, Beats headphones, Apple services, and more. The deals vary by product, so be sure to check them all out now.

$103.99 $129.99 Save $26 1621604395

Change how you use your iPad with the Apple Pencil. This stylus lets you use your iPad as a notepad, a canvas, or a drawing board for all of your ideas. Today's deal saves you 20% instantly at Verizon.

$599.99 $699.00 Save $99 1621519150

Updated in late 2020, the Mac Mini has Apple's M1 chip that combines CPU, GPU, and machine learning for faster performance, better graphics, and an all around streamlined device. This version has 8GB RAM and a 256GB solid state drive.

From $329 1621244196

Apple Watch Series 6 models are available for some of their best prices ever right now. The lowest price is on the red 40mm version which is $70 off with 44mm and cellular models seeing discounts of up to $91.

Discounted iTunes gift cards can help you save on in-app purchases, digital media, Apple Music (which can now be played on Amazon Echo devices), and other services which can be billed directly through iTunes. That's part of why discounts like these should never be taken for granted.

There are plenty of other ways to score discounted iTunes gift cards on a daily basis, and this list of Best Credit Cards for savings can help you decide which would work best for you.

For a limited time, iTunes has a few great offers to help you bolster your collection of digital films, including a variety of 10-film bundles for $20 each. That's an insane price considering most digital films are priced at $10 and up when not on sale; this deal brings them down to just $2 apiece. Additional films from the past 50 years are also on sale for $5 each, such as School of Rock and The Terminator.

The 10-film bundles include:

2000s

• Action – Hancock, Black Hawk Down, Resident Evil...
• Iconic Comedies – School of Rock, Anchorman, Mean Girls...
• Must-Own Action - I Robot, The Transporter, Hitman...
• Romance - Hitch, Maid in Manhattan, The Wedding Planner...
• Must-Own Comedy - Napoleon Dynamite, Dude Where's My Car?, Borat...

90s

• Best of the 90s - Fight Club, Speed, There's Something About Mary...
• Iconic Classics - Clerks, Good Will Hunting, Basic Instinct...
• Iconic Collection - Wayne's World, The Truman Show, Clueless...

80s

• Best of the 80s - Commando, The Fly, Wall Street...
• Classics - The Karate Kid, Ghostbusters, Fright Night...
• Iconic Classics – Footloose, Pretty in Pink, Ferris Bueller's Day Off...
• Iconic Collection - Dirty Dancing, Endless Love, Evil Dead 2...

70s

• Best of the 70s - Alien, M.A.S.H., The Towering Inferno...
• Classics Collection - Taxi Driver, Shampoo, Midnight Express...

If you're not looking to purchase the full bundle, many of these films are available for $5 each (among some others). If you're interested, check out these other sales on films from the 2000s, 90s, and 80s.

I'm sure everyone has heard the big macOS Catalina iTunes news by now — as the old saying goes, any app sufficiently old becomes indistinguishable from an email client. Throw in a calendar and web browser and wow, howdy has Apple just absolutely been there, nailed that.

Kidding. It's being broken up. Sundered. But not decimated. Let me explain.

Apple isn't really killing iTunes as much as setting it free. It's as if Voltron had been stuck in its combined form for decades and now, finally, the Lions were being released to do what each can do far better alone. Especially if Voltron had had everything from a trash compactor to literally the kitchen sink welded to it over the years.

Now, before anyone panics, nothing is being deleted. Nothing is being canceled. Apple isn't closing the iTunes Music or Movie or TV Store. Tim Cook isn't coming to your house to delete all your downloads.

Everything you could do in iTunes yesterday you'll still be able to do with macOS tomorrow. And anyone that tries to scare you otherwise, unsubscribe or block their site at local.hosts.

What's happening is this: Apple is deprecating iTunes. They're retiring it. Letting it go off into the country to fish and swim and karaoke and otherwise do whatever it is old apps do when no one needs to launch them anymore.

And then Apple is bringing up some new apps in its place.

Exit iTunes. Enter Music, TV, and Podcasts, and oh, hey, look, Books and Finder with some fresh functionality!

So, immediately, anyone already familiar with how content works on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch will feel right at home with what's happening now on the Mac.

Instead of a single, monolithic, iTunes app to get, keep, and manage everything, Apple's broken things out into separate apps just like they've always been on iOS.

Music for macOS

There's a new Music app that does pretty much everything you'd expect a Music app born of iTunes to do. And yeah, you heard that right. This isn't the iOS Music app catalyzed over to the Mac. This is all the Music stuff from iTunes for Mac cut free and finally left to fly in its own Mac-as-in-AppKit app.

Launch it and you'll find exactly what you'd expect to find: All your Apple Music, if you subscribe, all your iTunes Match music, also if you subscribe, all your music videos — yup, they're in here too, all your existing downloaded and ripped Music, and, of course, the ability to download more from the iTunes Store and rip more from any CD, new or old, convert to AAC, AIFF, Apple Lossless, or Wav, and even burn a new, hot CD mix all your own… if you still have a CD Drive.

(Wikipedia it kids, it's listed right after turntable, 8-track, and cassette deck.)

Also, all of your playlists. So. Many. Playlists.

The Apple Music section includes For You, Browse, and Radio, where you can find Beats 1, featured stations, and all the Apple stations. The Library section contains Recently Added, Artists, Albums, Songs, and Music Videos. The Playlist section has all your playlists and the ability to turn on Genius if that floats your machine-learned music boat.

Search also seems to be better, showing you not only suggestions but what items match in which part of your library.

Now, real talk, pretty much everything I went looking for from iTunes I found in Music. So, come this fall, when you update to Catalina, you should find the transition not just easy but totally uneventful in the best possible way.

Like I said, Apple won't be ripping iTunes off anyone's machines. It'll still be there if only to reassure you that you have a safety net in the remote chance you need one. I mean, you can still run iPhoto on Mojave if you really want to, even though you shouldn't, because Apple is super slow and gentle about this stuff. But, my guess is, from the moment you update you'll be able to leave iTunes behind and never look back. Even when, one day, you update to a new Mac and don't even realize iTunes was never installed.

Yeah, all the feels, but like the Ikea lamp, iTunes has no feelings and can't see you crying.

Device Management

You probably noticed I didn't mention device sync anywhere in there. I noticed you noticing. Maybe you noticed that… Anyway, yeah, if you just want to manage your iPhone or iPad manually and over a hardwire, the way Neo and the Matrix intended, or you still have old school iPods knocking around, fret not. All the device backup, update, and restore functionality previously shellacked onto iTunes has now been blessedly moved to where it's always meant to have been — the Finder.

Just plug in and… that's it. No more iTunes popping up all eager on your face or over your desktop. Serenity now and forever more. When and if you want to do something, click the device in the sidebar and get to. The interface looks pretty much the same as it did in iTunes, so there's no getting lost.

Its proper home has just been found.

Books for macOS

Books has gotten another makeover in Catalina, this time to better fold in the Audio Books content that used to live in iTunes.

You've got a new set of tabs up top, including Library for all your stuff, Book Store where you can buy new pages to read, and Audiobook store where you can buy new pages to listen to.

In the Library, the new Sidebar has a listing just for your Audiobooks. In the Audiobook Store, it has listings for featured, top charts, categories, and top authors.

It's everything you'd expect, just all up in its all new home.

Podcasts for macOS

Podcasts has come to the Mac. Hallelujah. If you've used Podcasts on iOS, especially on the iPad, you'll be right at home. Because Apple catalyzed this app from the iPad expressly for the Mac. But it's not a proof of concept like News, Stocks, Voice Memo, or Home were last year. This is using the shiny new version of UIKit on the Mac Apple is releasing as a beta for developers this year. And the maturity and consistency shows. The new UIKit-based Podcasts app is almost indistinguishable from the new AppKit-based Music app.

Top of the sidebar is Apple Podcasts, the service. That includes Listen Now, which has Up Next and Recently Played. There's also Browse, which lets you see the Apple Podcast Editors' picks as well as the categories. 700,000 shows strong, Apple is still the standard when it comes to podcast directories and it's all here for you to find, just like it was in iTunes before. Even Top Charts have made the transition over, though I've only seen the main chart so far, not any category charts. Which is a bummer.

Library has Recently Updated, which are the shows that you subscribe to that have pushed out new episodes in the last little while. There's also Shows, which lists everything you subscribe to in alphabetical order, and Episodes, which does the same but in reverse chronological order. Downloaded contains all the episodes you've recently made local.

Then there are any stations you've added, Family Fun or Comedy or True Crime. Basically talk radio for podcasts.

What's especially cool is the new search feature. Out of nowhere, Apple used machine learning to index the spoken content of podcasts, so you can search for more than just show titles or keywords.

It works pretty well, even if I'm not getting as many Vector results as I'd like.

Yet.

TV for macOS

Also new to the Mac is the TV app. Unlike Podcasts but just like Music, it's a Mac-as-in-AppKit app, but it's designed to bring you everything iOS and tvOS have been enjoying for a while now, even since the big new version launched last spring. More specific to my interests, the TV app, for the first time, lets you watch 4K HDR Dolby ATMOS movies and TV shows on the Mac. Are you feeling me, Netflix? HDR. ATMOS. Mac? You know what you need to do here.

Like the Apple TV version, you have Watch Now, Movies, TV Shows, Sports, Kids, Library, and Search across the top, though in classic Mac toolbar style. The Watch Now tab is supposed to always show you something you're going to want to see, but without making a fussy infinite scroll list out of it. It doesn't include all the updated, Apple TV-style options, though. At least not for me, not right now.

Up next is still first, which, front-loaded, has anything you started but haven't finished. Then, anything new that you typically watch immediately, for example a live sports event or the latest episode of your favorite show or the movie you pre-ordered and has just become available, in reverse chronological order. Because freshness counts here. But there's no What to Watch from the human editors or For You from the machine learning system, though I've seen the first one on some other people's lists. Either way, it doesn't feel like a one-on-one copy of the Apple TV version but something purpose-built for the Mac.

Channels are here too. They vary a lot based on region, with the U.S. having a ton of them and other places relatively few, if any. But I hope they grow because I like them a lot. Since there's no Apple Music for TV, you have to subscribe to a bunch of different services and that creates a lot of overhead.

With Channels, all the subscriptions can be added and managed in one place, all the content seen and viewed in one place, and much of it can even be downloaded for offline viewing, including, for the first time HBO. If only Netflix would smarten and realize that, with frequent price hikes and Disney+ on the horizon, some of our continued subscriptions depend on them learning to play nicely with Channels.

The Movies and TV Shows tabs focus on, surprise surprise, Movies and TV Shows specifically. Everything you've already bought on iTunes, along with anything from the iTunes catalog and anything available from your Channels subscriptions.

If you've previously been hoping between iTunes and HBO or CBS All-Access on the web, the increased convenience is simply terrific. Hear that, Netflix?

The Kids tab isolates out everything safe for your children to watch, organized, categorized, and editorialized. And, unlike YouTube, where a video that looks like a kid's show can end up being something completely different and inappropriate, this is all exactly what it says it is, so you can hit play without that constant sense of panic in the pit of your stomach.

The Library tab, as you probably guessed by now, is where you'll find all your existing and future iTunes Store purchases. You can see Movies or TV Shows, or a time-based Recently Added view.

To be continued...

About the only thing all these new apps still need is Continuity for media. They do sync your state, so whatever you listened to or watched in TV on iOS or Apple TV will be in the same place, at the same place, on your Mac.

But it would be even better if you could just click an icon in the Dock to handoff from another device, or use proximity-based handoff like HomePod is getting. I'd love it if Apple figured that out and soon.

All these new apps are still in beta so I'm going to hold off any judgments on quality or capability, design or implementation until they're ready for primetime.

But, it's already more than easy to see — and say — that pretty much anything you were able to do in iTunes pre-Catalina, you can now do in Music, TV, Podcasts, Books, and Finder in the age of Catalina.

Read the full macOS Catalina Preview

Apple isn't killing iTunes on Monday. Tim Cook isn't coming to your house and deleting all the music and movies you've bought and downloaded over the years. There will be no Thanos snap live on stage. No decimation around the world. None of that is true or real in any true or real way.

So, why are there so many headlines saying iTunes is ending and the age of digital downloads is over? Because, apparently, writers can't read, fact checkers can't check facts, and editors are too busy baiting clicks and not busy enough thinking about the needless stress and anxiety they're causing the audience that relies on their reporting.

Burn iTunes, burn

Nerds have been wanting Apple to tear down iTunes for a decade or more. It's big, it's bloated, and the iPhone has long shown that individual apps for Music, TV, and Podcasts were a better, sleeker, smarter way to go.

What about everyone who just wants to sync their iPad without using iCloud, or rip CDs onto their iPod nano from their Windows PC? Screw 'em. Who cares about their comfort level? iTunes has to burn.

This year, though, there have been credible rumors that Apple is getting ready to do just that. Kinda.

It started, as many things do, with Steven Troughton-Smith on Twitter.

Just a month before, at their March Show Time event, Apple had announced the TV app was coming too macOS, so it made the kind of sense that did.

Then, naturally, it escalated to Gui Rambo at 9to5Mac:

In May, though, Gui followed up on 9to5Mac saying Music wouldn't be a Marzipan app after all. I'll quote this part verbatim since it's important:

Mark Gurman had been saying similar things on Bloomberg as well.

And on Twitter clarified it wouldn't be a Marzipan app.

Then, just yesterday on Bloomberg, and again, I'll quote verbatim because important:

Now here's the LA Times's headline — and, to be 100% crystal clear, the LA Times is only one of the many terrible reports on this circulating today:

And the lede:

Oh, so clever. If only we cared as much about accuracy as cleverness, right?

Why accuracy? Because the report the LA Times cites and links to is Bloomberg's from Yesterday. The one I just quoted verbatim. The one that, if you command or control F and search for iTunes Store or downloads you know what you find? Nothing. Because Gurman didn't mention the store or the downloads. He only mentioned the app.

So, yes, the iTunes app for Mac is likely going to be replace by new Music, TV, and Podcasts apps. Deprecated might even be a better word, at least in the macOS 10.15 beta released to developers on Monday. But that has nothing to do with the iTunes store, potential rebranding to Music Store or whatever aside, or the downloads any of us have in our existing libraries.

Gui Rambo ended his last piece by positing:

When Photos for Mac launched a few years ago, Apple didn't eradicate the old iPhoto app immediately and Tim Cook didn't show up at to your house to delete all your photos off your drives.

The Times even says as much at the very end of its… whatever you want to call this word soup:

Good thing nobody just reads the headline and everybody skips right to the end, right? God.

Even if Apple announces the new apps on Monday, they won't be released to the general public until this fall and it will likely be years until the existing version of iTunes finally stops running on future versions of macOS. Again, if past is prologue and, in these cases, it pretty much always is.

If only because we haven't seen any reports yet of what's going to happen with iTunes for PC, which is a non-insignificant part of the install base.

So, if you've been at all stressed or worried about any of this, please don't be. And please tell your friends and family they don't have to be either. Hell, send them this video if it helps.

Just don't let the Times or anyone else steal your attention. It's our job to inform and empower our audiences, not panic them just for papers or cheap clicks. Because, the facts matter. Even and most especially in the age of clickbait and social, which has become more virus than viral anyway.

Before shelling out the big bucks at a theater, why not stay in for a more affordable movie night? No annoyances, no expensive sodas and candy, and no worrying about where you're going to sit is pretty nice, but what's even nicer is when you can save on your digital film purchases and make movie night even more affordable, like during iTunes' Bestsellers sale. Right now, the store is offering films in digital HD and 4K UHD for as low as $4.99, from recent flicks to classics and everything in between.

With 200 films down to $4.99 in today's sale, there really is something for everyone; you could pick up films like Pulp Fiction, Dodgeball, Hitch, and Over the Hedge. Meanwhile, for just a few dollars more, you can grab movies like Edward Scissorhands and La La Land in its $6.99 film sale.

The deals are only getting started though, as you can also find bestsellers for $7.99 like i, Robot and Drive, while its films on sale for $12.99 offers recent releases like Aquaman and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

You can also find sale selections like Films for $5.99 and Films for $9.99 that are full of great movies at great prices, so be sure to take a look and see if any films you might want to watch are included.

While supplies last, PayPal's official eBay store is offering the $100 iTunes gift card on sale for only $85. This $15 discount isn't as good as the 20% discount we saw during Black Friday weekend, but it's still a welcome offer. This gift card will be emailed to you within a few hours after purchase.

Grabbing a discount on an iTunes gift card doesn't just let you save on apps and digital music or movies. You can also be billed for subscription services like Netflix or Spotify through iTunes, and any iTunes gift cards you have can be applied to those subscriptions. If you have a favorite game on your mobile device which gets you to spend on microtransactions, these savings can be passed along to those purchases too.

See at eBay

On the desktop, changing your iTunes or App Store region is as simple as scrolling down, clicking on the current country flag icon and then choosing a new country flag. On iPhone and iPad, not so much. It's still possible to change store locality, it's just not as easy. If you really want or need to change, here's how!

• How to change your local iTunes Store and App Store country
• How to switch between multiple iTunes or App Store countries

How to change your local iTunes Store and App Store country

If you're moving or otherwise want to change your iTunes Store and App Store at least semi-permanently, here's what to do.

Note: If you have subscriptions to Apple Music, iTunes Match, or another service attached to your local Apple ID, you'll need to cancel those first, then re-sign after you've switched over.

1. Launch Settings from your Home screen.
2. Tap on iTunes & App Store.
3. Tap on Apple ID.
4. Authenticate with Password or Touch ID, if required.
5. Tap on Country/Region.

6. Tap on Change Country or Region.
7. Choose a new country or region.
8. Tap on Next.
9. Tap on Agree to consent to the terms and conditions.
10. Enter your payment details.
11. Enter your billing information.
12. Tap Next.

You'll now be set up in your new country and ready to go.

Of course, most people don't want to change countries as much as they want to switch back-and-forth between them. That's especially true of people outside the U.S. who often want to get their digital hands on the more plentiful content available inside...

How to switch between multiple iTunes or App Store countries

If what you really want to do is jump into the U.S. store — or another regional store — to grab an app, game, show, movie, etc. that's simply not available in your store, you can do that too. First, you need to log out of your current regional iTunes or App Store:

1. Launch App Store from your Home screen.
2. Tap on Apple ID: [your current email] at the very bottom.
3. Tap on Sign Out.

Next, you need to change the region on your iPhone or iPad:

1. Launch Settings from your Home screen.
2. Tap on General.
3. Tap on Language & Region near the bottom.
4. Tap on Region
5. Check off the new country you want to access (for example, Unites States).

Now, you need to create the new account for the new store you want to access. For that you need to find a *free** app that's only available in the U.S. store (or only available in the store you want to switch to). Network TV apps are often the best choice. I'll use Hulu, the U.S. streaming service, for this example.

1. Go to the Hulu listing on the App Store on your iPhone or iPad. (Tap that link!)
2. Tap Change Store if it stays stuck on your old region and says the item isn't available in the current store.
3. Go to the Hulu listing on the App Store again if it gets stuck on the feature page.
4. Tap Get.

5. Tap Install.
6. Tap Create New Apple ID.
7. Check United States if it isn't already checked.
8. Fill out the required information.

9. Tap None for billing information. You can get away with that for a free app, and you can always buy U.S. iTunes gift cards later if you want to purchase other content from the store.
10. Launch Mail to verify the email address you used for the U.S. account.

Finally, download Hulu (or your region-specific app of choice):

1. Go to the Hulu listing on the App Store on your iPhone or iPad. (Tap that link!)
2. Tap Get.
3. Tap Install.
4. Login to your new U.S. iTunes Account if you aren't already logged in.
5. Repeat the Get and Install steps if you have to.

That should start your Hulu download and, with it, your switch to the U.S. Store.

From this point on, you should be able to switch stores simply by logging into and out of your iTunes or App Store account for the appropriate region. You can then tap on your favorite region-exclusive app to high-tail it back into the proper store. (Bookmark 'em to make it fast and easy.)

Any questions on switching iTunes or App Stores?

If you have any questions on how to switch iTunes or App Store accounts, drop them in the comments below!

Updated January 2019: Updated for iOS 12.