Copying Songs from Your iPod to a Mac or PC

October 10, 2006 (Press Release) -- To share music back and forth between your iPod and a computer (Mac or PC) you need to set your iPod to update manually rather than to sync automatically with iTunes. Manual updating allows you to delete songs in iTunes while keeping them on your iPod, or to keep songs in iTunes and remove them from your iPod. To learn how to set your iPod to update manually, see the article Using Manual Updating with iTunes and iPod.

If at some time you wish to restore songs from your iPod back on to your computer, it is important to note that the ability to copy songs from your iPod back on to your Mac or PC is not supported in iTunes. There are many third-party applications available, however, that enable you to do this. These include:

Mac OS and Windows compatible:
iPodRip
iPodRip supports recovering your songs and playlists, playback of audio files and much more.


iPodRip is compatible with Mac OS X 10.2 and later, and Windows XP and 2000. iPodRip is shareware and will run without limitation for 10 sessions before registration is required.

PodUtil
PodUtil is a shareware utility for copying songs from your iPod to your computer. PodUtil is compatible with Mac OS X and 9.x, and Windows XP and 2000.

iPod Music Liberator
The iPod Music Liberator is a full-featured music-management utility that allows you to copy music from your iPod to a Mac or PC. It supports Mac OS X and Windows XP, 2000, NT and 98.

iPod Access
iPod Access allows you to copy music from your iPod to a Mac or PC. It supports Mac OS X 10.1 or later and Windows XP or 2000.

Mac OS only:
PodWorks
PodWorks allows you to copy songs from any Mac iPod to any Mac running OS X 10.2 or later. A free trial version (30 day time limit, 250 song copy limit) is available.

Senuti
Senuti reads the playlists on your iPod and allows you to transfer them back to your computer. Senuti is donationware and requires OS X 10.3 or later.

Windows PC only:
Anapod Explorer
Anapod Explorer (free version) allows you to view your iPod and copy files to it as a device in Windows Explorer. The full version allows you to transfer files from your iPod to a PC. Anapod Explorer requires a PC-formatted iPod and Windows XP, 2000, ME or 98SE.

CopyPod
CopyPod enables you to transfer your music library from your iPod to your PC without losing ratings and playlists. CopyPod requires Windows XP or 2000.

Xplay
XPlay provides a powerful Explorer-integrated drag-and-drop interface that makes transferring music to and from the iPod quick and simple. XPlay enables Windows users to use both Windows- and Mac-formatted iPods. XPlay requires Windows XP, 2000, ME or 98SE.

iGadget
iGadget is a utility for managing contacts, appointments, mail, notes, tasks, RSS feeds, weather and more. It is not a music manager but works alongside iTunes to enable you to transfer songs from your iPod to a PC. iGadget requires Windows XP, 2000, or 98 and Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1.