How to import music from iPod to iTunes

Listening to music with iPod might seem like a no-brainer, but taking backups of music is not an easy task. Here's how to import music from iPod to iTunes for backing up.

What to know

• You can import all the music stored on your iPod to iTunes library for taking backups of them.
• It's easy to to copy purchased music to iTunes library via iTunes, but before you do, make sure to authorize your computer with the same Apple ID.
• iPhone Data Transfer works better if you also want to transfer the non-purchased music.

With a third-party tool, it is possible to transfer the non-purchased music collected on your iPod to iTunes.

After the sales were surpassed by the iPhone years ago, the once popular iPod has taken another big step on the road to a complete curtain call—it has become completely obsolete. You may want to transfer the precious tracks stored on your iPod to iTunes for backing up, managing your music library, or anything else.

As Apple's official media file management, iTunes offers you features to download music on iPod to iTunes to listen to. Unfortunately, the list is limited to the music that has been purchased. If you want to download the common music to iTunes as well, you will need to turn to third-party tools, among which iPhone Data Transfer is worth a try. In this post, we will show you how to import music from iPod, iPad, and iPhone to iTunes.

Import purchased songs from iPod using iTunes

iTunes itself allows you to import music from iPod to iTunes library. This is a traditional official method. As mentioned in the opening, only purchases can be transferred via iTunes. Apart from that, you need to use the same Apple ID on your computer as you do on your iPod.

Make sure that you are running the latest version of iTunes. To check that, open iTunes, go to the "Help" tab at the top menu bar. Then hit on the "Check for Updates" button from the list.

Follow these steps to import music from iPod to iTunes library:

Authorize the computer

1. At the top menu bar, go to Account > Authorizations > Authorize This Computer.

2. Enter your Apple ID and passcode to proceed.

3. Click on the "Authorize" button.

Add music from iPod to iTunes library

1. Connect your iPod to your computer using a USB cord.

2. Head on over to the menu bar at the top of the iTunes window and go to File > Devices.

3. Select "Transfer Purchases from [Your Device]."

Also read: How to transfer music from iPod to iPhone with 3 simple ways

A useful tool to transfer music from iPod to iTunes quickly

Your iPod may be also home to a large number of non-purchased songs. Would it be great if you could find iTunes alternatives to transfer all of them to the iTunes library without considering the purchasing issue? Well, you can perform that feat with assistance from iPhone Data Transfer.

Beyond helping you transfer music files across devices, iPhone Data Transfer can help you convert the music files to a format your device can play. In some cases, you may not know which format to convert. In other cases, you may not even have the necessary application to convert the music files. Besides, the data that can be transferred is not limited to music. Photos, videos, and any other data are supported to be transferred from iPhone to computer, computer to iPhone, and even iPhone to iPhone.

The interface of iPhone Data Transfer is beginner-friendly, feel free to click the green button above to download it and transfer music from iPod to the iTunes library according to the following steps.

Step 1: Launch the tool

After iPhone Data Transfer is downloaded and installed on your computer, connect your iPod to your computer using a USB cable and launch the tool.

Once iPhone Data Transfer has detected your device, it will show you the basic information about your iPod like the image above.

Step 2: Select the music files from your iPod

From the left sidebar, click on the "Music" tab. Within a matter of seconds, the tool will load up all your songs and playlists from your iPod.

Now you can select the music that you want to transfer. For that, you have the following options:

1. If you want to transfer all the music, right-click on "All Music (number)" which will open a pop-up context menu, and hit "Export to iTunes." Alternatively, you can check the small box above the first track (next to Type filter).

2. For copying a few songs, check the boxes right next to the songs you want to transfer. If you are having trouble finding a specific track, you can also sort and filter all the music according to the Name, Time, Size, Artist, and Album.

Step 3: Copy music from iPod to iTunes library

After selecting the music from your iPod, click on the computer icon in the toolbar at the top of the music list, and then select "Export to iTunes" from the drop-down menu.

Done! The transfer is in process. A small window will pop up indicating the progress. Once the transfer is complete, all the transferred music will appear in the "Songs" tab in the iTunes library.

One-click way to copy music to iTunes

With powerful features, iPhone Data Transfer also offers a shortcut to sync all the music from iPod to iTunes library. This shortcut will be especially useful if your iTunes library becomes corrupted or emptied after an iOS update/crash, or if you just want to build a new library in iTunes.

• Launch iPhone Data Transfer and plug your iPod into your computer.
• Click on "iTunes Library" on the "One-Click Operation" section located at the bottom of the main screen.

• A new screen should appear where you will have to open the "Sync Device to iTunes" tab.

• Another window should open up where all types of your tracks are selected by default, such as music, ringtone, audiobooks, movies, TV shows, podcasts, music videos, voice memos, playlists and iTunes U.

• You can check and uncheck a specific type of track. Make sure all types of tracks you want to transfer are selected.
• Hit "One-Click to iTunes" and the software will start to transfer music from iPod to iTunes library.

Depending on the size of the music files that you are transferring, it may take a few minutes and up to several hours.

Final thoughts

Losing all the music that you have been collecting on your iPod for several years is not something that anyone wants to deal with. For this reason, you may think about Importing them to iTunes to make a backup. But iTunes only support purchased songs. As for non-purchased music, iPhone Data Transfer might be worth a try.