iTunes provides music and stream media downloading service, which allows users to listen to their favorite songs and albums offline. iTunes also has a bunch of other useful features; it enables iOS users to back up and restore iOS data and transfer files between Mac and iPhone, iPad, and iPod.
But many people start to complain about how bloated and not user-friendly the newer version of iTunes is. And iTunes is no longer available in the macOS Catalina. What to do if your Mac doesn't have iTunes? In this article, we will explore some iTunes alternatives for Mac that cater to diverse media needs.
What does Mac use instead of iTunes? If you are looking for effective software to manage your iOS data instead of iTunes, then Coolmuster iOS Assistant is the best alternative to iTunes for Mac, which is worth checking. It is a one-stop iOS data managing program that helps you better manage, organize, and even edit data on iDevices directly from your Mac.
There are two main sections of this software. On the My Device section, you can preview all the iOS data on your device and manage them without difficulty. You can export up to 10+ file types from iPhone/iPad/iPod touch to Mac and import various files from Mac to iDevice as well. The good part of using this software is that it enables you to save contacts and SMS to Mac in readable formats like CSV for easier reading and editing.
The iTunes Backup & Restore is another practical feature from Coolmuster iOS Assistant. It allows you to back up and restore your iPhone without launching iTunes on your Mac. The whole process is secure, smooth, and fast.
Key Features:
Pros:
* Easy-to-use & reliable.
* An effective solution to back up & restore iDevice.
* It allows you to create multiple iTunes backups.
* Manage iOS data easily using this tool.
Cons:
* It doesn't come with a built-in music player.
Price:
* $25.95 for a 1-year license and only $35.95 for a lifetime license.
You can download the free trial version of Coolmuster iOS Assistant for Mac from below:
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VLC Media Player is a secure, easy-to-use, yet very powerful media player that runs on all platforms, including Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, Unix, iOS, and Android. It can be a good iTunes substitute for Mac. It allows you to play almost all the media file types, DVDs, Audio CDs, VCDs, as well as streams. You can also create and customize the skins with its VLC skin editor. Besides, you can install various extensions to enrich the viewing experience.
Pros:
* It is completely free, with no ads or in-app purchases.
* It is cross-platform and can run on systems such as Mac, Windows, Linux, Android, and iOS.
* It is very lightweight, consuming minimal resources and running smoothly.
* It is extremely powerful and capable of playing almost all media formats, including damaged or incomplete files.
Cons:
* Its user interface is relatively plain, lacking much aesthetic appeal and personalization.
* Its settings options are somewhat complex and may not be very user-friendly for beginners.
Price:
* Free.
Download link: https://www.videolan.org/vlc/download-macosx.html
Musique is also a great iTunes replacement for Mac that comes with the basic features of a music player. The software has a very clean interface, and it is easy to operate. With it, you can browse and search for any songs or albums in your music library with ease. It supports many audio formats, including FLAC, OGG Vorbis, Monkey's Audio (APE), Musepack (MPC), WavPack (WV), and True Audio (TTA).
Musique also makes it easier for you to organize your music. You can browse music by artist photos, album covers, genres, and folders. If you like seeing pictures of your favorite artists and album covers, then this free iTunes alternative is very suitable for you.
Pros:
* Clean and organized user interface.
* Efficient music organization by artists and albums.
* Robust music player.
* Incorporated lyrics finder.
Cons:
* May experience inconsistent lyric extraction.
* Cannot open individual music files beyond the scanned music folder.
* Does not offer support for all common formats.
Price:
* Free.
Download link: https://www.videolan.org/vlc/download-macosx.html
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Spotify is a top streaming music service that offers free version and premium versions. It is one of the best iTunes alternatives for Mac for most music lovers. It is well-designed and provides stable and useful features, including smart playlists, podcasts, social sharing tools, etc. You can use its web player or download the desktop version.
The free version of Spotify allows you to listen to music on Mac, but it contains ads. To get rid of the ads, you can get the premium version, which unlocks all the useful features.
Pros:
* Sleek interface.
* Comprehensive music library.
Cons:
* Doesn't support Hi-Fi audio.
* The web player is slow.
Price:
* It's free to download.
* The premium version costs $9.99 per month.
Download link: https://www.spotify.com/
As a powerful music player for Mac, Vox Music Player is another best iTunes substitute for Mac. It supports not only common formats like FLAC, MP3, CUE, APE & M4A but also playback Hi-Res Audio (HD Audio) with up to 24bit/192kHz. It also comes with a wide range of settings and preferences for you to get full control of the music quality.
You can enjoy your iTunes and personal music with high quality using Vox Music Player. Moreover, if you get the pro version of Vox Music Player, you can connect to streaming services like SoundCloud, YouTube, and Apple Music.
Pros:
* Inclusion of a built-in equalizer.
* Capability to personalize with various skins and plugins.
* Compatibility with SoundCloud and YouTube.
* Compatible with various file formats.
Cons:
* The free version lacks the feature to add lyrics to the music.
* Occasional lag observed during playlist exports.
Price:
* It's free to download.
* The premium version costs $4.99 per month.
Download link: https://vox.rocks/mac-music-player
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Next on our list of iTunes replacements for Mac is iMazing. It's a great way to manage iOS devices. With this application, you can transfer multimedia content, files, messages, and other data, as well as backup the data on your iOS device on both Mac and PC.
Most importantly, it even allows you to schedule automatic backups of your data. You can back up and restore your device wirelessly or through a USB cable.
Pros:
* Offer diverse functionalities like backup and restoration.
* Enable one-click backup of iPhone data.
* Support wireless connection, eliminating the need for USB cables.
* Allow for easy iOS updates and reinstalls.
Cons:
* The free version imposes usage restrictions.
* The premium version comes with a relatively high price tag.
Price:
* Starting from $39.99.
Download link: https://imazing.com/download
Syncios Manager is a versatile iOS device management software that allows you to effortlessly transfer, backup, restore, and manage various types of data between your Mac and iOS devices. This includes music, photos, videos, contacts, messages, apps, books, voice memos, and more. You have the option to transfer entire folders or individual files, preview and edit data, and even export data in different formats such as PDF, TXT, CSV, etc. Syncios Manager also assists in installing or uninstalling apps, managing music playlists, cleaning up junk files, and optimizing the performance of your iOS device.
Pros:
* Transfer over 12 types of data between Mac and iDevice.
* Backup and retrieve data with lossless quality at any time.
* Create, view, edit, and manage notes, bookmarks, and contacts on your iDevice.
* Extract data from iTunes backups.
* Transfer data between multiple devices.
Cons:
* It does not support all audio and video formats.
* It occasionally crashes.
* The file transfer speed of Syncios is also slow.
Price:
* Free trial version, with the paid version priced at approximately $34.95.
Download link: https://www.syncios.com/download.html
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If you are a sophisticated music lover, Fidelia will be your great choice. Fidelia is a professional media player with an elegant and intuitive interface. It allows users to highly customize and organize the music collection, letting them enjoy the most of the music. As one of the great iTunes alternatives for Mac, it is easy to import your iTunes library with Fidelia, and it supports a wide range of high-quality formats, including FLAC, MP3, AIFF, WAV, AAC, Apple Lossless, Ogg Vorbis.
Pros:
* Provide music with high quality for users.
* Manage a variety of commonly used audio file formats.
* Include AirPlay support.
* Allow the importing of your iTunes library.
* Compatibility with all modern audio file formats.
Cons:
* The library window appears cumbersome.
* The user interface could be more contemporary.
Price:
* Free trial, $29.99.
Download link: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/fidelia/id416135376?mt=12
There are many great iTunes alternatives when it comes to music players and managing music collections. You can choose the one you prefer after reading this post. And if you are looking for an iTunes alternative for Mac to help you manage iOS data or back up & restore iDevice, Coolmuster iOS Assistant is definitely worth trying. You can download the free trial version of this tool on your Mac and give it a go.
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