How to Copy Music from Your iPod to Your Computer

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Easy steps to transfer music files from an iPod to a PC or Mac

Written by Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: September 12, 2025 Fact Checked

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Using Old iPods on Windows

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Using Old iPods on Mac

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Using Sharepod

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Using iMazing

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Q&A

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This wikiHow guide teaches you how to copy music from an iPod to a Windows or Mac computer. If you have an iPod Touch or just prefer a graphical program that's easy to use, you can use a program like Sharepod or iMazing. If you have an older non-Touch iPod, like an iPod Nano, Shuffle, Mini, or Classic, you can easily copy files from your iPod to your computer for free by putting your iPod into disk mode. Read on to learn how.

Transferring Music from iPod

Unlike copying music to your iPod, which is easy to do in iTunes and the Music app, you can't use those apps to get music off your iPod.
If you have an older iPod, like an iPod Nano, Shuffle, or one with a clickwheel, you can put the iPod into disk mode and copy music files to your PC or Mac.
If you have an iPod Touch, it's a little trickier to get music files off your iPod, but you can still get the job done using Sharepod or iMazing.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Using Old iPods on Windows

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1
Put your iPod into Disk Mode. If you have an iPod Nano, Shuffle, Classic, or any other non-touch iPod, you can copy music to your computer without any additional software. First, you'll need to put your iPod into disk mode, which you can do in iTunes if you're using Windows 10 or later. If not, there are other ways to do it:
- Most iPods (iTunes) — Open iTunes, connect the iPod to your computer, then click the iPod button at the top. Click Summary, select "Enable disk use," then click Apply.^{[1]
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- iPod Nano 6th or 7th Generation — If you couldn't do it in iTunes, press the Sleep/Wake and either Home (7th generation) or Volume Down (6th generation) buttons at the same time until the Apple logo appears, then hold down the Volume Down and Volume Up buttons until the Disk Mode screen appears.
- iPod with a Click Wheel — Switch Hold on and off, press and hold Menu and Select until the Apple logo appears, release the buttons, and hold down Select and Play until the Disk Mode screen appears.
- iPod with a Touch/Scroll Wheel — Switch Hold on and off, press and hold Play and Menu until the Apple logo appears, release the buttons, and press and hold Previous and Next until the Disk Mode screen appears.
If it isn't already, plug one end of your iPod's charger cable into your iPod, then plug the other end into one of your computer's USB ports. Once your iPod's icon appears in the upper-left side of iTunes, you can proceed.

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An easy way to do this is to right-click the Start menu and select File Explorer. You can also open it by pressing Windows key + E on the keyboard, or by selecting File Explorer from the Start menu.
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Click your iPod's name. Now that your iPod is in disk mode, you'll find it on the left side of the File Explorer window, though you may have to scroll down on the left-hand pane of the window to see it.
- If you can't find your iPod's name, click This PC on the left side of the File Explorer window, then double-click your iPod's name below the "Devices and drives" heading.
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Enable hidden folder viewing. The steps are a little different depending on your version of Windows:^{[2]
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- Click the View tab at the top.
- If you're using Windows 10, check the box next to "Hidden items."
- If you're using Windows 11, select Show > Hidden items.
Double-click this folder to do so.
You'll find it inside the "iPod_Control" folder. Doing so will bring you to a list of folders with similar names (e.g., "F00", "F01", "F02", and so on).
Click any folder in the "Music" folder, then press Ctrl+A.
Press Ctrl+C to do so.
Go to the folder where you want to save the music, then press Ctrl+V to paste in the music.
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Add the music to iTunes (optional). Once the music finishes copying onto your computer, you can add it to iTunes by doing the following:
- Open iTunes if necessary.
- Click File
- Click Add Folder to Library...
- Select your folder.
- Click Select Folder
- Since the music will be copied to the "iTunes Media" folder when you do this, you can delete the current folder after the music finishes adding to iTunes.

Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Using Old iPods on Mac

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Older iPods, such as the iPod Nano and iPods that have click wheels, store their music in a significantly easier-to-access format than do iPod Touches. There are a few changes you'll need to make in your settings before you can transfer music files to your computer. To get started, click the two-toned smiley face icon to open Finder.
This opens your Finder settings.^{[3]
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Edit which items display on the desktop. The goal here is to get your iPod to show up as a drive on your desktop. To do that:^{[4]
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- Check the box next to "External disks."
- Check the box next to "CDs, DVDs, and iPods."
- Close the window by clicking the red circle.
- You should now see an icon for your iPod on the desktop.
Use a USB cable to do so. After a moment or so, you will see an iPod icon on your desktop.
This displays some, but not all, of the folders on your iPod.
To do this, press ⌘ Command+⇧ Shift+. at the same time. Then, you will see some darkened icons–these are the hidden folders on your iPod.^{[5]
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Double-click this folder to do so.^{[6]
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To do this, right-click or control-click the desktop, select New Folder, give the folder a name (like "iPod Music"), then press ⏎ Return.^{[7]
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To do this, click the folder on your iPod called Music to select it, then press ⌘ Command+c to copy it. Then, click the new folder on your desktop to select it, and press ⌘ Command+v to paste.^{[8]
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Add the music to your Music library (optional). Once you've moved the music onto your computer, you can add it to your library by doing the following:^{[9]
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- Open the Music app.
- Adjust your media settings as needed:^{[10]
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  - Click the Music menu and select Settings.
  - If you want to copy the music files to your media folder while adding them to your library, check the box next to "Copy files to Media folder when adding to library."
  - If you want to keep the files in their current location (the folder you created on your desktop, uncheck the box.
- Click the File menu and select Add to Library or Import.
  - You will see "Add to Library" if you chose "Copy files to Media folder when adding to library." Otherwise, you will see "Import."
- Select the music folder you copied to your Mac and click Open.
- If you chose to copy the files to the media folder ("Add to Library"), you can safely delete the folder you created when the files are finished copying.
- If not, do not delete the folder.

Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Using Sharepod

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1
Install Sharepod on your PC or Mac. Sharepod makes it easy to copy music files from an iPod to your computer, whether you have an iPod Touch or an older iPod. However, Sharepod, which was once free, now costs $39.99 to use. Still, it may be worth it to you. You can download Sharepod from Macroplant's download page. Just scroll down to Sharepod and click the Download button.^{[11]
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- If you have a Windows PC, you must also have iTunes installed.
- If you have an older iPod, there's no need to buy software–jump down to Using Old iPods on Windows or Using Old iPods on Mac to learn how to copy music to your computer for free!
2
Install Sharepod. This process will vary slightly depending on your computer:^{[12]
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- Windows — Double-click the Sharepod installation file, then follow the on-screen installation prompts. Sharepod may ask to install QuickTime for you; if so, accept the installation.
- Mac — Double-click the Sharepod DMG file, click and drag the Sharepod logo onto the "Applications" folder icon, and follow any on-screen installation prompts. You may need to make an exception for Sharepod in your Mac's security settings.
3
Put your iPod in disk mode (older iPods). If you're using a non-Touch model of iPod, you'll need to enable your iPod's disk mode feature for your computer to recognize it. The process for enabling disk mode varies depending on the iPod:^{[13]
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- Most iPods (iTunes) — Open iTunes (or the Music app on a Mac), connect the iPod to your computer, then click the iPod button at the top. Click Summary, select "Enable disk use," then click Apply.^{[14]
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- iPod Nano 6th or 7th Generation — If you couldn't do it in iTunes, press the Sleep/Wake and either Home (7th generation) or Volume Down (6th generation) buttons at the same time until the Apple logo appears, then hold down the Volume Down and Volume Up buttons until the Disk Mode screen appears.
- iPod with a Click Wheel — Switch Hold on and off, press and hold Menu and Select until the Apple logo appears, release the buttons, and hold down Select and Play until the Disk Mode screen appears.
- iPod with a Touch/Scroll Wheel — Switch Hold on and off, press and hold Play and Menu until the Apple logo appears, release the buttons, and press and hold Previous and Next until the Disk Mode screen appears..
Plug one end of your iPod's charger cable into one of your computer's USB ports, then plug the other end of the cable into your iPod.
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Open Sharepod. Once Sharepod is installed, double-click its app icon. Sharepod will detect your iPod and scan your music library.
- Sharepod may open automatically at the end of the installation process.
- If prompted, tap Done.
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Select the music you want to copy from your iPod. Hold down Ctrl (Windows) or ⌘ Command (Mac) while you click each song that you want to select.
- If you want to transfer all of your iPod's music onto your computer, skip this for now.
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Select a transfer folder. The steps will be a little different depending on what you're transferring:^{[15]
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- If you want to transfer all your iPod's music to your computer, click TRANSFER, then click Transfer everything to a folder... from the drop-down menu. Select a folder, then click OK.
- If you're transferring selected files or playlists, click TRANSFER in the bottom-right corner of the window, click Transfer selected to a folder, select a folder on your computer, and click OK.
It's a green button in the bottom-right corner of the screen. Doing so will copy the selected music from your iPod to your preferred folder on your computer.^{[16]
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Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Using iMazing

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1
Install iMazing on your PC or Mac. iMazing is a well-known app that makes it easy to transfer music files from an iPod Touch to a Windows PC or Mac. Unfortunately, the app (like most other options) is not free, but because it's so easy to use, it may be worth the $29.99/year subscription fee.^{[17]
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- To install, head to iMazing's download page, click Download iMazing, and save the installer to your computer.
- During the installation process, you will be prompted to buy a subscription. Follow the on-screen instructions to do so.
- You can cancel the subscription after copying music from your iPod so you don't have to pay again.
- If you have a Windows PC, be sure to install iTunes and update it if needed.
- If you have an older iPod, there's no need to buy software–jump down to Using Old iPods on Windows or Using Old iPods on Mac to learn how to copy music to your computer for free!
You'll see it at the top-left corner of iMazing.^{[18]
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Once you choose this option, iMazing will ask you to connect your iPod.^{[19]
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Use a USB cable to do so. Then, once connected, unlock your iPod's screen and tap Trust This Device to pair it with your computer.^{[20]
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Once it's paired, it will appear as a connected device. iMazing will then display the music on your iPod.^{[21]
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First, if you want to export all the music from your iPod, don't select any files at all. If you just want to transfer certain songs or files, select those now.
You'll see it at the bottom-right corner. Now you'll see some export options.
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Choose what to transfer. If you want to copy all the songs from your iPod to your computer, select Library, then check the box next to Music. If you chose specific playlists, songs, or albums, select My selection.^{[22]
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- Note the location of the "Destination folder" at the bottom of the window–this is where your files will be transferred. The destination folder is the default iTunes or Music folder.
This copies the selected music from your iPod to your computer. Once the files are exported, you'll be able to find them in your default music folder, as well as in iTunes or the Music app.

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Question

Copy from iPod to PC worked, but the files are in code (F01, F05, etc.) and not the name of the song, and they are hidden. Can I copy them to an iPod, and will the song info display at that time?

Community Answer

You need to copy the database files in the iTunes folder as well.

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What does it mean when if iTunes does not provide the option to "Enable disk use"?

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This feature is not available on iPod Touch, iPhone, or iPad because they are not storage devices.

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How do I copy iPod music to iTunes without deleting the music on the iPod?

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You can easily add music to your iPod without losing any of the files currently on your iPod by going to your iTunes preferences and selecting "Prevent iPods, iPhones, and iPhones from syncing automatically." Next, plug in your iPod, and go to your device options in iTunes and select "Manually manage music and videos." This will allow you to drag and drop music onto your iPod without losing the contents on your iPod.

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You can sync iPod Touch purchases to your computer by opening iTunes or Finder and signing in with the Apple ID that you used to purchase the music. Once the music appears in iTunes, you can download it by right-clicking the album and clicking Download; when the download finishes, right-clicking a song in the album and clicking Show in File Explorer (Windows) or Show in Finder (Mac) will take you to the album's folder on your computer.

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Some music on your iPod (especially if you're using a classic iPod) may be encrypted. If so, you most likely won't be able to play it even if you can get it off the iPod.

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