How to Download Apple Music Songs and Listen Offline
Updated October 8, 2026 · Marquee Guides
Quick answer
Turn on Sync Library in Settings, then Apps, then Music. Add a song, album, or playlist to your library, then touch and hold it and tap Download, or tap the Download button at the top of an album or playlist. Downloaded music plays with no internet connection, in airplane mode or anywhere without Wi-Fi, as long as your Apple Music subscription is active.
Apple Music streams by default, so a flight, a subway ride, or a patchy signal can stop your music. Downloading fixes that: once a song is on your iPhone, it plays whether you’re online or not.
Here’s how to download from Apple Music, how to download everything automatically, where to find your downloads, and how to listen to them in Marquee.
Turn on Sync Library first
Apple Music can only download music that’s in your library, and downloading needs Sync Library turned on. Go to Settings, tap Apps, then Music, and turn on Sync Library. Music you add on one device is then added to the others signed in to the same Apple Account.
How to download songs from Apple Music
- Find a song, album, or playlist in the Music app and add it to your library: tap the Add button on an album or playlist, or tap More next to a song and tap Add.
- To download it, touch and hold it in your library and tap Download. On an album or playlist, you can also tap the Download button at the top of the screen.
- To check progress, go to the Library tab, tap Downloaded, then tap Downloading.
If a song is available in Dolby Atmos, you can download it in Dolby Atmos or in stereo.
Download everything you add automatically
To skip the Download step, go to Settings, tap Apps, then Music, and turn on Automatic Downloads. From then on, every song you add to your library downloads to your iPhone.
Can you listen to Apple Music offline?
Yes. Anything you’ve downloaded plays with no internet connection at all: on a plane in airplane mode, underground, or anywhere without Wi-Fi or cellular service. To see what’s available offline, open the Library tab and tap Downloaded.
Downloads from the Apple Music catalog only play while your Apple Music subscription is active. Radio stations and music you haven’t downloaded still need a connection.
Play your downloaded Apple Music in Marquee
Marquee is a free Apple Music player, and it plays the music you’ve downloaded in Apple’s Music app, so your downloads work in Marquee too, offline.
When you lose your connection, Marquee’s library switches to your downloaded music on its own and shows “You’re offline — showing downloaded music,” so you only see what will actually play. On iPad, the sidebar has a Downloaded section of its own. Your player style, from Vinyl to Retro, works the same offline.
If you scrobble to Last.fm, songs you play offline are queued and sent when you’re back online, so your history stays complete. See how to scrobble Apple Music to Last.fm.
Try it with Marquee — free
The Apple Music player with themes, Last.fm scrobbling, Library Insights, and Upcoming Releases tracking. Requires an Apple Music subscription.
Frequently asked questions
Can you listen to Apple Music offline?
Yes, once you download it. Add music to your library, download it, and it plays with no internet connection, as long as your Apple Music subscription is active.
Does Apple Music work without Wi-Fi or in airplane mode?
Downloaded music does. Songs you haven’t downloaded, and radio, need an internet connection to stream.
Where do I find my downloaded songs on Apple Music?
Open the Library tab in the Music app and tap Downloaded. To see songs that are still downloading, tap Downloaded, then Downloading.
Can Marquee download songs?
Downloads happen in Apple’s Music app. Marquee plays everything you’ve downloaded there, and switches its library to your downloads automatically when you’re offline.
Do offline plays scrobble to Last.fm?
In Marquee, yes. Plays made offline are queued and submitted to Last.fm when you’re back online.