Apple this month expanded its music transfer tool to almost all countries where Apple Music is supported, simplifying the transition from services like Spotify to Apple Music.
The transfer tool lets users import their playlists and libraries from competing streaming services into Apple Music.
Apple initially began testing the transfer tool in Australia and New Zealand in May, and then expanded it to the U.S. and six other countries in late August. It’s now available worldwide, with the exception of China Mainland, Myanmar, and Russia, according to a new Apple Support document.
To use the Transfer to Apple Music feature, iPhone and iPad users can go to Settings > Apps > Music and tap on the Transfer Music from Other Music Services option. From there, choose a music service, sign into the service, and decide what to transfer.
Apple says that what can be transferred will vary by music service and what is available in the Apple Music catalog, but it is designed to transfer songs, albums, and playlists. In addition to Spotify, the transfer option works with streaming music services from Amazon, Deezer, Tidal, and YouTube. Apple partnered with SongShift for the transfer functionality.
In cases where an exact match for a song isn’t able to be located, Apple will flag the music as Needs Review, displaying alternate versions that can be selected. Apple warns that some content might not be available or have an exact match in Apple Music, and the company also says that only user created playlists can be transferred, not playlists created by another music service.
When going through the transfer process, source playlists and libraries in the other music service are not impacted and remain available.
(Thanks, Erdinc!)
