How to copy music from an iPhone to a Windows PC

Last updated: 10 October 2026

Quick answer: songs you bought from the iTunes Store can be downloaded again for free on the PC. Songs synced onto the iPhone from an old computer can be copied back over USB with the right app. Songs downloaded from an Apple Music subscription are copy-protected by Apple and can only be played in Apple's apps.

First: where did the songs come from?

Bought in the iTunes Store: yours to keep, and since 2009 they have no copy protection.
Synced from a computer: for example from CDs you ripped years ago on a PC that no longer exists. Often the only copy left is on the iPhone.
Apple Music (the subscription): streamed or downloaded for offline listening. These files are protected and stop working without the subscription; no app can turn them into normal music files.

Free: download your purchases again

On the PC, install the Apple Music app (Windows 11) or iTunes.
Sign in with the Apple Account you bought the music with.
Open your purchased music (in iTunes: Store › Purchased) and download what you want.

This gets the full-quality files without involving the iPhone at all, but only for songs still available in the store, and only purchases.

Songs synced from a computer

Apple's own apps on Windows only sync music onto an iPhone, never back off it. Syncing with a new library can even erase the songs on the phone. To rescue them, you need an app that copies them from the iPhone.

Copy songs to the PC with PhotoFroggy

Connect the iPhone with a USB cable, unlock it and tap Trust.
In PhotoFroggy, open Music. It lists every song on the iPhone, with artist and album.
Tick the songs you want (or all of them), choose a folder and click Export.

Songs are saved as Artist › Album › 01 Title, the layout every music player understands, and songs that belong in an existing album folder are added to it. PhotoFroggy shows which songs are copy-protected (Apple Music) or only in the cloud, so you know why they're skipped.