iTunes Match Vs Apple Music: Which Offers Better In 2024?

Written By Robert Fabry Last updated: January 3, 2024

Apple Music and iTunes Match are both services created by Apple. This is the very reason why people are being confused if there is a difference between the two and how similar they are. Some of those who are using the Apple Music service for a long time now must be wondering about the changes that iTunes Match would bring. But since the two are quite alike, you are surely having a hard time choosing which to pursue using and not. So, let me help you with that by tackling about iTunes Match vs Apple Music.

As you continue reading this post, you will learn more details about each streaming service as well as their similarities and differences. See the complete guide about iTunes Match and Apple Music.

Contents Guide Part 1. What is Apple Music and How Does It Work?Part 2. What is iTunes Match and How Does It Work?Part 3. Apple Music Vs iTunes Match – Similarities and DifferencesPart 4. Bonus: How to Download Apple Music Tracks as Local Files on Your Computer?Part 5. Summary

Part 1. What is Apple Music and How Does It Work?

Before we proceed with tackling about iTunes Match vs Apple Music, let us know first about Apple Music service, including how it works, what are the services it offers and a lot more.

When it comes to music streaming, everyone would agree that Spotify is the most popular one. But in some regions, Apple Music is the most widely used one. If you are using the Apple Music service for the very first time, you will be offered a 3-month long free trial to test its features and services at first. With this trial, you can have an access to its music collection which is believed to be 60 million in total. In addition, users can listen to Beats 1, an Apple 24/7 internet radio station, and play back-catalog episodes of Beats 1's various programs shows.

If you are done with the trial, you can choose from the subscription plans that it offers. For every month, there would be a subscription fee that must be paid in order to continue streaming and downloading tracks for offline listening. Apple has made Apple Music available in all Apple devices such as iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, iPod Touch, Mac and more, except on iPod series. As you would know, iPod devices do not support the WIFI feature, and to access Apple Music, an internet connection must be present.

Part 2. What is iTunes Match and How Does It Work?

An addition to learning about iTunes Match vs Apple Music, you should know more about iTunes Match as well. iTunes Match is also a service in Apple Music which allows users to upload their favorite tracks to the iCloud Music library, which could amount to 100, 000 if you want to. In using this service, you are allowed to use up to 10 different devices and you can use them to share the tracks with others.

iTunes Match is different with Apple Music in a way that its subscription is annual and it gets renewed automatically. You must allot some attention on this because if you did not cancel it, it will just continue being renewed without you knowing.

Part 3. Apple Music Vs iTunes Match – Similarities and Differences

One of the major differences between iTunes Match vs Apple Music is the DRM protection on their items. Apple Music tracks and playlists are protected with DRM unlike that of the iTunes Match. Another one is that iTunes Match is backed up by iCloud while Apple Music is a streaming service wherein people can select which to stream or not.

In Apple Music, once the free trial given is finished, your subscription will automatically be changed to the Individual plan which costs $10.99 every month or $16.99 for those who got the Family plan. If you are still a student, you can avail its Student Discount plan which is only for $5.99 each month. With a stable internet connection, you can enjoy any music track offered in its music catalogue. If you cancel Apple Music, that DRM will render those downloads unplayable, and you'll no longer be able to stream the subscription tracks.

Apple Music Price

In iTunes Match, all you need is your Apple ID to get started with listening to music. As long as your iCloud is enabled, it wouldn’t be hard for you to access the songs on all devices connected. iTunes Match also allows the users to upload any kind of music to the cloud. These include the items you’ve purchased, tracks and albums from CDs and more. One great advantage of this service is that the total amount of money that you’ll have to pay is only $24.99 for every year. Also, even after unsubscribing, you can still stream the tracks that you’ve saved on your library.

iTunes Match Price

iTunes Match supports all the same audio formats as Apple Music: AAC, MP3, WAV, AIFF, and Apple Lossless. But if you have low-quality tracks, iTunes Match “upgrades” them, allowing you to download 256 kbps AAC files.

High Quality AAC

Part 4. Bonus: How to Download Apple Music Tracks as Local Files on Your Computer?

With the discussion above, you already have an enough overview about iTunes Match vs Apple Music, starting from their similarities down to their differences. For now, let me tackle with you the best music converter that can help you with downloading music from iTunes or Apple Music as local files on your device.

When it comes to downloading the Apple Music files into accessible formats, AMusicSoft Apple Music Converter would be the best. The formats that it supports include MP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, AC3 and M4A. All of them can be played without restrictions on all devices around. Through the help of the AMusicSoft Apple Music Converter, you can be able to remove all the legal restrictions or Digital Rights Management (DRM) that protects. Now you can add converted music to Google Slides, GoPro Studio, and TikTok to make your PPT or video more fun, or transfer them to other media devices to play.

In AMusicSoft Apple Music Converter, you will wait for only a few minutes until the entire procedure is done. It has a 16x faster working speed and the procedure to follow is only simple and easy. Check out the procedure below on how to use AMusicSoft Apple Music Converter.

  • Get the AMusicSoft Apple Music Converter application from the official website of AMusicSoft. Install it on your computer once done.

Free Download Free Download

  • Open the music converter and add the music files by simply ticking the selection box placed before your chosen song.

Select The Songs That You Want To Convert

  • From the formats mentioned, choose one to utilize for the conversion process.

Choose Output Format And Output Folder

  • Allow the process to start by hitting the Convert button.

Click The Convert Button

  • Lastly, download the converted tracks and save them as local files on your computer.

Part 5. Summary

Choosing between iTunes Match and Apple Music is hard especially if you do not have an enough background of the two. So, I would recommend using the guide above about iTunes Match vs Apple Music and see which service could give you better results and experience. On the other hand, to save the Apple Music files on your computer and use them for offline streaming anytime you want, AMusicSoft Apple Music Converter would be the best tool to use.

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