Five Simple Steps to Convert iTunes Music to MP3

This article will show you how to change your iTunes music into an MP3 format. These instructions are for iTunes 12, available for both Windows and Mac, but the procedure shouldn't change much if at all in previous versions.

You'll need to convert your iTunes songs to MP3 format if you want to play them on a device that doesn't support Apple's proprietary format. To change music from the AAC format used by iTunes to the more widely supported MP3 format, you can use the in-built iTunes tool.

1. Using the audio converter in iTunes, you can customize a number of aspects of the conversion process, such as the output file type and quality.

   Choose MP3 Encoder from the drop-down menu under Import Settings in iTunes' General preferences on a Mac.

   Select MP3 Encoder from the Import Using drop-down menu in Windows' Edit > Preferences > General > Import Settings. You can get back to your books by clicking OK twice.

2. You can convert songs to MP3 with a simple click in iTunes.

   You can highlight a single song, an album, or a series of songs by clicking the first song, holding down the Shift key, and clicking the last song in the series, or you can highlight a series of songs that don't play one after the other by holding down the Command key on a Mac or the Control key on a PC and clicking the songs.

3. With the desired tracks selected, go to the File menu in iTunes.

4. Select Convert (or Create New Version in some earlier versions of iTunes) to begin the conversion process.

5. Select MP3 Format Creation The songs in iTunes are converted to MP3 format so that they can be played on non-Apple MP3 players.

   In iTunes, the newly created MP3 file will be displayed alongside the original AAC file.

Many people use the term "MP3" to refer to any digital music file, but this is inaccurate. The acronym MP3 actually denotes a very particular format for musical files. The AAC format is standard for iTunes and Apple Music purchases and downloads. While both AAC and MP3 are digital audio files, AAC is a newer format that was created to provide superior sound while using the same amount of space as MP3s, if not less.

Music purchased from iTunes is delivered in AAC, leading many to believe it is an exclusive Apple format. It's not Nearly everyone has access to AAC. All of Apple's products, as well as those from many other manufacturers, can play AAC files. Even so, not all MP3 players support them, so if you want to listen to your music collection on non-compatible devices, you'll need to export your iTunes songs as MP3.

This can be converted by a number of audio programs, but you may not need one. It is likely to be most convenient for you to use iTunes since it is already installed on your computer. This article will show you how to use iTunes to convert music from the iTunes format to the MP3 format.

There's no need to keep the AAC file around if you've already converted iTunes to MP3. If that's the case, you can remove the track from your iTunes library. It's easier to clean up when you use iTunes, where you can delete duplicate songs with a single click.

If you absolutely must delete the file, make sure you have a backup of the iTunes version first. In addition, you can use iCloud to redownload content from iTunes.

These guidelines pertain to songs downloaded from the iTunes Store onto your computer, but what about songs already in your library on Apple Music? Is there a way to get them into MP3 format?

Apple Music tracks are encoded in the AAC format, but due to their DRM, you cannot convert them to MP3. Digital rights management ensures that you have a current Apple Music membership. Apple (and other streaming-music companies) would rather you not download a bunch of songs, convert them to MP3, cancel your subscription, and then keep the music. So, unless you can crack the DRM, you won't be able to turn Apple Music into an MP3.

It's not clear which version of a song you have in iTunes once you've added both the AAC and MP3 versions. As far as I can tell, they're identical in every way except for the song title. However, iTunes keeps track of song details like the composer, duration, and file format for every single file. ID3 Tags like artist, genre, and other song Info can be accessed in iTunes to help you determine which file is the MP3 and which is the AAC.