How to Share an iTunes Library with Family

To share music bought from the iTunes Store with relatives, set up Family Sharing and enable Purchase Sharing. Each person keeps their own Apple Account, then downloads eligible purchases from Family Purchases. If you mean a collection of imported songs on a home computer, use Home Sharing instead. An Apple Music family subscription is a third option for streaming music.

This guide covers iTunes for Windows, Apple Music for Windows and Mac, and setting up purchase sharing on an iPhone or iPad. “Apple Account” is the current name for an Apple ID. Start with the type of music you want to share so you do not change the wrong account setting.

Choose What You Want to Share

Music you bought: Family Sharing makes eligible iTunes Store purchases available to a family group of up to six people, including the organizer. It does not turn every file in your computer library into a shared purchase. Apple explains the account arrangement in its Family Sharing overview.

Apple Music streaming: A family subscription provides access for the group while keeping individual preferences and recommendations. An individual or student plan does not provide family access. It does not merge everyone’s personal music collection into one library.

A library on a home computer: Home Sharing provides local access to computer media, with up to five computers on the home network. It has different account and network requirements from Family Sharing. For example, a purchased album can appear in Family Purchases, while a CD you imported is not automatically an iTunes Store purchase. If bought songs are absent on an iPhone, see why purchased music may not show in the iPhone Music app.

Set Up Family Sharing and Purchase Sharing

Have each family member’s Apple Account ready. The organizer must be an adult. Use Apple’s current Family Sharing setup guide for invitations and child accounts.

1. On the organizer’s iPhone or iPad, open Settings and tap the organizer’s name.
2. Tap Family > Continue, then follow the setup prompts. If a group already exists, open Settings > Family to manage it.
3. Invite the intended members. To add someone later, use Family > Add Member > Invite Others. Each member accepts the invitation with their own account.
4. On the organizer’s device, open Settings > Family > Purchase Sharing, then tap Turn On. Review the displayed payment information before completing setup.

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Check the payment arrangement first. Purchase Sharing can make the organizer responsible for family purchases, subject to Apple’s account-balance and adult payment-method rules. It is more than a switch for viewing existing music. Apple’s Purchase Sharing instructions explain those rules and how to turn the feature off.

Download Family Purchases on Your Computer

iTunes for Windows

1. Open iTunes and sign in with your own Apple Account that belongs to the family group.
2. Choose Account > Family Purchases. Select Music if needed.
3. Use the name selector near the upper-left corner to choose the relative whose purchases you want to view.
4. Find the song or album and select its download button. Check that it appears in your downloaded music.

If the menu only shows Purchased, check family membership and Purchase Sharing first. Members must use the same country or region for purchase sharing. Apple’s iTunes Family Purchases guide covers the menu and regional requirement.

Apple Music for Windows or Mac

In Apple Music for Windows, click your name at the bottom of the sidebar, choose Family Purchases, choose a family member, and download the music. Apple’s Windows music download guide also covers computer authorization and hidden purchases.

On a Mac, open Music and choose Account > Family Purchases, select the family member, and use the download button. For shared streaming access, someone in the group needs an Apple Music family subscription or an eligible Apple One family plan. See Apple’s Mac family music guide.

If iTunes no longer shows your music, check whether Apple Music or Apple TV is installed. Those apps take over the corresponding media on Windows; iTunes remains available for audiobooks and podcasts. Apple explains this in how iTunes is changing. For your own purchases on a phone, see how to find past music purchases on an iPhone.

Use Home Sharing for a Computer Library

Use this route for local computer media rather than purchases shared between separate family accounts. The participating devices must use the same Home Sharing Apple Account and the same Wi-Fi or Ethernet network. Keep the source computer awake with iTunes or Music open. Home Sharing is not a way to reach a sleeping home computer over the internet.

1. On each participating Windows computer using iTunes, choose File > Home Sharing > Turn On Home Sharing. Sign in using the same Home Sharing account.
2. On the receiving computer, open iTunes and choose the shared library from the selector at the upper left.
3. To import eligible items into that computer’s library, use the Show selector at the bottom, choose Items not in my library, select the items, and click Import.

Apple documents the import route in its iTunes Home Sharing guide. To disable it, choose File > Home Sharing > Turn Off Home Sharing on each computer. For Mac setup and access from an iPhone, iPad or Apple TV, follow Apple’s Home Sharing device guide; those controls differ from the Windows menus.

If Shared Music Is Missing

Family member is absent: Check that the invitation was accepted and the listener is using the account that joined the group. In Settings > Family, the organizer can select a member to check invitation status. Do not sign everyone into the organizer’s main account to work around missing Family Purchases.

Only some purchases are absent: Hidden purchases and items no longer available in the store cannot be shared. Imported files also do not become shared store purchases. Apple lists the exceptions in what families can share. Changes to Family Sharing settings can take up to 30 minutes to appear.

Download button is missing: Check whether the song is already in your library and whether the PC is authorized for purchases. For hidden music, the purchaser can check Account > Account Settings > Hidden Items > Manage and unhide it if they intend to share it.

Home library is absent: Check the network, Home Sharing account, and source computer’s awake state first. Then turn Home Sharing off and on again on the participating computers. A local-network problem is separate from whether Family Purchases appears.

What Happens When You Stop Purchase Sharing?

Turning off Purchase Sharing removes access to other members’ purchases. Do not assume that downloading someone else’s purchase gives you permanent access after sharing ends. Eligible subscription sharing can continue separately; stopping purchase sharing does not by itself mean every shared subscription is canceled.

Confirm success with one album you know the relative bought and intends to share. If it appears under that person in Family Purchases and downloads, the purchase-sharing route is working. Use the Home Sharing selector separately when the music lives only in a computer library.