How to switch between Apple Music Individual and Family plans

Apple Music offers three different plans for its users—a $4.99 per month plan for students who sign up with a university email address, a $9.99 individual plan and a $14.99 family plan that supports up to six Family Sharing accounts (or devices connected concurrently on one account).

If you started on one plan but want to switch mid-subscription, or want to leave a Family sub-account to start off on your own, here's how to go about it. Don't worry: From my testing, you shouldn't lose your Apple Music library, likes, or data when switching between accounts.

How to move from an individual Apple Music plan to a Family plan

If you want to create your own family plan, keep in mind that you'll first need to be the Family organizer for your Family Sharing group. If you haven't already, go to Settings > iCloud > Set Up Family Sharing to start that process.

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Once you've set up your Family Sharing group, here's how to switch your account.

  1. Open the Music app on your iPhone or iPad.
  2. Tap For You.

  3. Tap the Account icon in the upper right corner.

    Open Music, tap For You, tap Account

  4. Tap Upgrade to Family Plan.

  5. Tap Upgrade.

  6. Confirm your purchase of a Family Plan upgrade.

    Tap Upgrade to Family Plan, tap Upgrade, confirm purchase

How to move from the head of a Family plan to an Individual plan

Remember: If you change your plan, as the head of household, it will also remove access for any Family Sharing users who are on your plan. Their Apple Music data will remain on Apple's servers for a short period of time, however, allowing them to each sign up for an Individual plan and restore their library and likes.

  1. Open the Music app on your iPhone or iPad.
  2. Tap For You.

  3. Tap the Account icon in the upper right corner.

    Open Music, tap For You, tap Account

  4. Tap Manage Subscription.

  5. Tap Individual (1 Month) or Individual (1 Year) to switch from a Family plan to an individual plan.

  6. Confirm the purchase of your plan.

    Tap Manage Subscription, tap Individual, confirm purchase

How to move from a sub-membership on a Family plan to an Individual plan

Note: You'll have to temporarily leave your Family Sharing group to switch your Apple Music account over to an Individual plan. You'll be able to rejoin your group after you switch your account.

Once you leave your Family Sharing group, your Apple Music data will remain on Apple's servers for a short period of time, allowing you to sign up for an Individual plan and your library and likes.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap the Apple ID banner.
  3. Tap Family.
  4. Tap Leave Family Sharing.
  5. Open the Music app. You should now be logged out of your Apple Music account, with the option to start a new free trial. Once you sign up, your Apple Music account should be restored.
  6. Have your Family Sharing organizer re-add you to your family (if applicable).

How to move from an individual Apple Music plan to a sub-membership on a Family plan

  1. First, make sure the head of the Family Sharing account has added you to their group, and that they have a Family plan in Apple Music.
  2. Open Music.
  3. Tap For You.

  4. Tap Account icon in the upper-right corner.

    Open Music, tap For You, tap Avatar

  5. Tap Manage Subscription.
  6. Tap Cancel Subscription.

  7. Tap Confirm.

    Tap Manage Subscription, tap Cancel Subscription, tap Confirm

At the end of the renewal period, when the plan expires, log out and back into Apple Music; you should now be on your Family Sharing head of household's Family plan.

Questions?

If you run into any trouble switching your accounts over, let us know in the comments. I've run through all of these scenarios above successfully, so hopefully, I'll be able to help out; if all else fails, you can always holler at Apple Support.

Update August 2019: Updated through iOS 12.4, with instructions still current in the iOS 13 beta.