To get your music on Apple Music, you upload your finished tracks to a digital distributor — a service like DistroKid, TuneCore, CD Baby or LANDR — which then delivers them to Apple and every other major streaming platform. You cannot upload directly to Apple Music as an artist; the distributor is the required middleman that handles encoding, metadata and royalty collection on your behalf.
Getting your music on Apple Music is genuinely straightforward once you know the steps, and this guide walks through all of them: picking a distributor, preparing your audio and artwork, filling in metadata, setting a release date, and giving yourself the best shot at Apple’s editorial playlists. If you have a mastered track and a cover image ready, you could be live worldwide within a couple of weeks.
Violet Recording is reader-supported — we may earn a commission from links on this page, at no extra cost to you.
The short version: what you actually need
Here is the whole process in a nutshell before we dig into detail:
- A distributor account — DistroKid, TuneCore, CD Baby, LANDR, Amuse or Ditto. This is how your files reach Apple.
- A mastered audio file — ideally a WAV at 16-bit/44.1kHz or higher.
- Square cover art — 3000×3000 pixels, RGB, no blurriness or unauthorised logos.
- Complete metadata — track titles, artist name, songwriter credits, genre and any featured artists.
- A release date — set it three to four weeks out so you can pitch for playlists.
Do those five things properly and the rest is mostly waiting. Now let’s break each stage down.
Choose a distributor to put your music on Apple Music
The single decision that shapes everything else is which distributor you use, because that company is your bridge to Apple. Apple Music does not accept uploads from individual artists directly — you go through an approved distribution partner. The good news is there are several reputable options, and they mostly do the same core job of delivering your release to Apple, Spotify, Amazon, YouTube Music, Tidal and the rest.
Broadly, distributors fall into two pricing models. Some charge a flat annual fee per release or per artist and let you keep all your streaming royalties. Others take a percentage cut of your earnings instead of an upfront fee. Which is cheaper depends entirely on how much you expect to earn, so weigh the two against your own situation — and always check the provider’s current pricing, since plans change often.
A few of the best-known names worth comparing:
- DistroKid — popular with prolific independent artists for unlimited uploads under a yearly subscription.
- TuneCore — a long-established option covering distribution plus publishing administration.
- CD Baby — a veteran distributor that also offers physical and sync licensing services.
- LANDR — combines distribution with its well-known online mastering, so you can master and release in one place. If you haven’t mastered your track yet, this is a tidy one-stop route.
If your track still needs that final polish before it goes out, it’s worth mastering first — an all-in-one platform like LANDR can handle both steps. For a deeper comparison, see our roundup of the best online mastering services and our take on AI mastering vs human mastering.
Prepare your audio files to Apple’s standards
Apple Music is a lossless-capable platform, so give it the best source file you can. Distributors accept high-quality WAV or FLAC files; a 16-bit/44.1kHz WAV is the safe minimum, and a 24-bit master at 44.1 or 48kHz is even better if you have one. Avoid uploading MP3s — they’re already compressed, and you lose quality you can never get back.
Make sure the track is properly mastered before you upload. Mastering sets your final loudness, tonal balance and consistency so your song holds up next to commercial releases on the same playlist. If you’re mixing and mastering yourself, our guides on how to master a song for streaming and LUFS and streaming loudness will keep you out of trouble. Apple applies its own loudness normalisation, so chasing an ultra-loud master gains you nothing and often costs you dynamics.
Double-check the start and end of each file too. Trim any long silences, dead air or accidental clicks. A clean top-and-tail makes your release sound professional the instant someone hits play.
Get your artwork and metadata right the first time
Cover art is where a surprising number of releases get rejected. Apple requires a square image, and distributors typically ask for 3000×3000 pixels in RGB colour. Keep it sharp — no pixelation, no blur. Crucially, your artwork must not contain any website URLs, social handles, retailer logos, or the words “Apple Music” or “Spotify”. It also can’t include imagery you don’t have the rights to use. Design something clean and original and you’ll sail through review.
Metadata is the other common stumbling block. This is all the text information attached to your release: the track title, primary artist name, any featured artists, songwriter and producer credits, the genre, and the release date. Be consistent and accurate. If you spell your artist name differently across releases, Apple may create separate artist pages and split your catalogue. Enter featured artists in the dedicated “featuring” field rather than jamming them into the song title, and list real songwriter names so publishing royalties can be collected correctly.
If you want your releases to land under a single, unified profile, ask your distributor to connect your catalogue to Apple Music for Artists. That free dashboard lets you claim your profile, update your bio and photo, and see how many times your songs have been played.
Set a release date and pitch for playlists
Don’t hit publish for “as soon as possible” and hope for the best. Set your release date at least three to four weeks in the future. That lead time is the single most valuable thing you can give yourself, because it opens the door to Apple’s editorial team and to pre-saves.
Through Apple Music for Artists you can submit an upcoming song to be considered for editorial playlists — the human-curated lists that can put you in front of thousands of new listeners. There’s no fee to pitch, but you need to do it before the song goes live, which is exactly why the advance release date matters. Write a short, honest pitch describing the track’s mood, genre and story; curators read these.
While you wait for release day, build momentum. Set up a pre-add link so fans can save the song to their library before it drops, tease it on social media, and line up your own playlist adds. Streaming activity in the first week signals to Apple’s algorithm that your track has traction, which feeds into personalised placements like your listeners’ New Music and radio stations.
What happens after you submit
Once you finish uploading and hit submit, your distributor sends the release to Apple, where it goes through a review and ingestion process. This usually takes anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks, so the earlier you upload ahead of your chosen date, the safer you are. Most distributors show you a live delivery status so you can watch the track move from “processing” to “live”.
After it’s live, royalties from Apple Music streams flow back through your distributor, which then pays you according to its own schedule and model — again, exact rates and payout timings vary, so check your provider’s current terms. Keep your masters, artwork and metadata backed up; if you ever switch distributors you’ll want everything ready to re-upload cleanly.
From here, the real work is promotion. Getting your music on Apple Music is the starting line, not the finish. Explore the rest of our music business guides for playlist pitching, promotion and monetisation strategies to build on this release.
Frequently asked questions
Can I upload my music to Apple Music for free?
Not directly, and rarely completely free. Apple requires you to go through a distributor, and most charge either an annual fee or a percentage of your royalties. A handful of services offer a free tier that takes a commission instead of an upfront cost, so if budget is tight, look for one of those — but always check the provider’s current pricing, as terms change.
How long does it take to get music on Apple Music?
Plan for two to four weeks from upload to going live. The actual review and ingestion often takes only a few days, but you should set your release date three to four weeks ahead anyway so you can pitch for editorial playlists and set up pre-adds. Rushing removes those opportunities.
Do I keep the rights to my music on Apple Music?
Yes. Reputable distributors like DistroKid, TuneCore, CD Baby and LANDR are non-exclusive — you keep 100% ownership of your master recordings and songwriting. They only handle delivery and royalty collection. Always read the distribution agreement so you understand payout terms and how to take your catalogue elsewhere if you choose to.
