Apple Music isn’t perfect on the iPhone, as you can run into several issues with music playback. Fortunately, they’re nothing you can’t fix. In this article, we’ll show you how to fix the most common Apple Music problems on iPhone.
Did you pay for an Apple Music subscription to unlock its extensive music library only to realize that you can’t download songs or songs won’t play? We understand just how annoying these problems can be.
Although there are several things that you can do to fix Apple Music problems on your iPhone, remember that the problems you face may vary.
So, below, we’ve compiled a list of the most common Apple Music problems on iPhone and some troubleshooting tips to help you fix them. Let’s take a look.
1. How to Fix This Song Is Not Currently Available In Your Country Or Region
You may suddenly receive an error message that says "This song is not currently available in your country or region" while trying to play certain sets of songs. It further seems that those problematic songs are also greyed out.
- This could be because you have changed your Apple ID country/region settings or because you are currently in another country.
- Also, Apple Music is not known to work with VPNs. If you use a VPN, you may need to turn it off in order to use Apple Music.
- However, some users have reported that they receive this message "out of nowhere." I have also seen this on a few songs — no VPN or changes to my country/region.
Here are some things to try:
- You can do a search in Apple Music for a different version of the same song and then add that to your library or playlist. Make sure you search the Apple Music catalog and not your own library; use the Search tab (iPhone/iPad)
- If you might have changed regions, check your Apple Music regions:
- Go to appleid.apple.com and select Sign In. Enter your password. Select PersonalInformation to see your Country/Region.
- Try closing the Apple Music app and then rebooting your device.
- Sign out of Apple Music and then sign back in. To sign out:
- Open Settings and select your Apple ID at the top. Tap on Media & Purchases, then select Sign Out.
2. How to Fix Apple Music Skipping Songs
You may have noticed a few times that the Music app on your iPhone suddenly starts skipping songs on your queue. This pesky problem usually occurs when your internet connection is not strong enough to stream a song.
So, make sure your internet connection is strong and stable. If your iPhone is connected to Wi-Fi, you should consider restarting your router. In addition, you can use our troubleshooting guide to fix the problem when your iPhone is connected to Wi-Fi but has no internet access.
Alternatively, when Apple Music fails to respond, a quick and effective fix is to force-quit and relaunch the Music app. Try this on your iPhone if your internet connection is stable, yet Apple Music keeps skipping songs.
First, you’ll have to open the app switcher on your iPhone. On an iPhone 8 or earlier, double-press the Home button. On an iPhone X or newer, swipe up from the bottom to the center of the display.
Swipe Music up and off the top of the screen to close it. Tap the app icon to reopen it. And if you still have the same problem after trying the fix above, you should sign out of your account, restart your iPhone, and sign back into Apple Music. Usually, Apple Music should start working fine on your iPhone.
3. How to Fix Apple Music Library Not Loading Issue
If your Apple Music library isn’t showing up on your iPhone, the problem might be a weak connection. Once connected to a strong internet connection, force-quit and re-open Apple Music on your iPhone.
You might also face this issue if you’ve recently updated your iPhone or restored a backup. So it’s best to wait a few hours before iCloud downloads everything to your phone.
If it doesn’t fix even after a few hours, try resetting network settings on your iPhone, which should solve almost all kinds of Apple Music problems.
4. How to Fix Apple Music Library Not Syncing or Suddenly Disappearing
Sometimes, the Apple Music library disappears or doesn’t sync with iCloud, but that might happen if you turn off Sync Library.
In this case, turn on Sync Library on your iPhone.
- Open Settings and tap on Music.
- Turn on the switch next to Sync Library.
If the toggle is already on, try turning off Sync Library and then turn it back on.
If there is no option to Sync Library, it means you do not have an Apple Music subscription.
You can also try downloading the songs manually again.
5. How to Fix Apple Music Playing Without Sound
If you pressed play, and your iPhone indicates the song is playing, yet you can’t hear a sound, check your volume controls.
Make sure you haven’t turned your volume all the way down. A quick fix is to hit the Volume Up button on your iPhone to increase the volume.
6. How to Fix Fluctuating Volume on Apple Music
You may sometimes struggle with your iPhone’s volume when using Apple Music. When you pause and resume a song after playing music for a short while, the volume is much louder than your initial settings.
However, your volume indicator does not move up, but the music sounds much louder than it should. This may occur while using external speakers with your iPhone.
If Apple Music volume is constantly changing, check to see if you turned on Sound Check. Sound Check is an Apple Music feature designed to adjust the sound level of different songs. For example, some songs may be too quiet while others may be louder. Sound Check makes the adjustments so that the volume level of your songs is consistent.
Turn off Sound Check to see if this fixes the issue. Here is how you can access this setting:
- Open Settings.
- Go to Music.
- Turn off the switch next to Sound Check.
7. How to Fix Apple Music Not Loading Issue
Sometimes, Apple Music on your iPhone might refuse to load.
The first thing you should do when you notice this problem is to check Apple Music’s server status. Whenever there’s a service downtime on Apple’s end, you may be unable to use Apple Music.
To be sure this is why your Apple Music won’t load, visit Apple’s System Status page and confirm that every corresponding service for Apple Music is available. Unfortunately, if the service is unavailable, there’s not much you can do until Apple fixes the problem from its end.
You can also force quit the Apple Music app and relaunch it. And if nothing worked, you might have to update your iPhone to the latest version of iOS because Apple occasionally releases software updates to fix software bugs that often affect its apps. You can update your iPhone by going to Settings > General > Software Update.
8. How to Fix Apple Music Keeps Freezing or Crashing
If Apple Music keeps freezing or crashing on your iPhone, it’s probably a software bug. You can fix these problem in a few simple ways. The first and foremost thing you need to do is restart Apple Music on your iPhone, which should fix it immediately.
Alternatively, you can restart your iPhone or update your device to the latest version of iOS.
9. How to Fix Apple Music Won’t Download Songs Issue
If Apple Music won’t download songs and albums on your iPhone, you should first make sure that you have the right Apple Music plan. At the time of writing, Apple Music Voice is the only subscription plan that doesn’t let you download songs to your device. If that’s the plan you’re using, then you won’t be able to download any songs until you subscribe to a different Apple Music plan that’s best suited for you.
If your subscription isn’t the problem, there could be two main reasons why Apple Music isn’t downloading songs on your iPhone: poor internet connection or storage space. First, check that your internet connection is strong enough to download songs.
If your internet connection is working properly, check whether your iPhone has enough storage space. If not, you’ll need to create free space on your iPhone and try downloading songs again. Also, disable the Optimize Storage option by going into Settings > Music.
If, after all that, you still can’t download any songs on your iPhone, remove and add the songs to a different playlist and download the whole playlist, which should work.
10. How to Fix Apple Music Not Playing Songs on iPhone
Several users have reported that Apple Music songs won’t play on iPhone after iOS 17 update. If songs are not playing on your iPhone, check if you still have an internet connection. This can easily be seen by looking at the status bar to find the Wi-Fi signal icon.
Just toggle off the Wi-Fi and toggle it back on again. If songs are still not playing, restart your router.
You may also try removing the album or song that doesn’t play and immediately re-add it. Sometimes there is a glitch that stops some albums from playing, and usually, deleting it and re-adding it removes the blockage.
11. How to Fix Apple Music Keeps Deleting Downloaded Songs Issue
Is Apple Music deleting downloaded songs from your iPhone? Well, if your iPhone is running out of storage space, Apple Music will delete songs you haven’t listened to in a while to save some storage.
You can fix this issue by going to Settings > Music > Optimize Storage and turning off the toggle next to Optimize Storage. It’ll stop Apple Music from deleting downloaded songs from your iPhone.
Enjoy Your Listening Experience on Apple Music
Nothing is more annoying than having playback issues when you want to listen to your favorite song. Based on our research, these were some of the most common issues users have with Apple Music on iPhone. Thankfully, with this guide, you should be a step closer to enjoying music on your iPhone.
Next time you face any of these common Apple Music problems on your iPhone, you know how to fix the issue.