Do you have an old iPod that's sitting around gathering dust? It might still have music you no longer possess in any other form. If that's the case, grab your old music player because you can transfer the music from your iPod to your computer.

To do so, you just need to consider your iPod as an external drive from which you can take music. Once extracted from the iPod, you can add music to your iTunes or Apple Music library and even sync it with your iPhone. We'll show you how below.

Step 1. Prevent iTunes or Finder From Automatically Syncing With Your Device

First, you'll need to make sure you can transfer the music on your iPod without iTunes or Finder erasing it while syncing.

When you connect a device to iTunes or Finder, the music in your library automatically syncs to your device. You cannot download music from an iPod (or iPhone or iPad) into iTunes or Music. So, if you connect an iPod to your computer, the music on the device will be overwritten with what's in your iTunes or Music library.

The method for preventing iTunes from automatically syncing with your iPod is mostly the same for Windows and Macs running Mojave or earlier:

  1. Make sure to disconnect all iOS devices from your computer. Then, open iTunes on your computer.
  2. In Windows, go to Edit > Preferences. On a Mac, go to iTunes > Preferences.
  3. On both platforms, click the Devices tab and check the Prevent iPods, iPhones, and iPads from syncing automatically box.
  4. Then click OK and close iTunes.
iTunes Device Preferences in Windows

However, Macs running macOS Catalina and newer use Finder instead of iTunes to sync iOS devices. Because of this, you'll need to open your device in Finder after connecting it using a USB cable and uncheck the Automatically sync when this iPhone is connected box.

Step 2. Copy Music From Your iPod to Your Computer

Now, you can connect your iPod to your computer. It should show up as a drive in File Explorer on Windows and Finder on a Mac. Open the iPod drive and navigate to the iPod_Control > Music folder. You'll see many folders labeled with an F and a number. If your iPod drive appears empty, you need to reveal hidden files and folders on your computer.

Windows users can click the View tab and select the Hidden items option. Mac users can hold down Cmd + Shift + Period (.) to toggle hidden folders on or off.

iTunes Nano hidden music folders

Now, select all the folders in the iPod_Control > Music folder and copy and paste them to a location on your hard drive. This will transfer your music from your iPod to your computer. The files all have random four-letter file names.

If you're on a Windows PC, you can see the tags for each music file in File Explorer. If tags aren't visible, enable them by holding down Alt + Shift + P to bring up the details pane. Alternatively, you can select it from the View tab. Unfortunately, you can't see the tag information on a Mac.

Itunes Nano example tag information on Windows

Once you've copied the files, you can eject the iPod and disconnect it. Right-click on the iPod drive in File Explorer on Windows and select Eject. Mac users should Control-click the iPod icon on the desktop and select Eject.

Before bringing your files into iTunes on Windows, make sure you know how to import invalid MP3 files into iTunes on Windows.

Step 3. Add Music to Your iTunes Library

After transferring the music from your iPod to your computer, you can start making adjustments. First, add the music from your iPod to your iTunes library on your Windows PC or Mac. Note that your music library appears in the Apple Music app since iTunes isn't available on macOS Catalina and newer versions.

To add some or all of the music from your iPod to your iTunes library, go to either File > Add File to Library or File > Add Folder to Library in iTunes for Windows. If you're using a Mac, go to File > Add to Library from the menu bar. Then, select the files or folder you want to add. You can also add music to iTunes by dragging music files from File Explorer or Finder to the iTunes window.

By default, adding items to your iTunes library on Windows creates a reference to the file's current location. The original file remains in its current location. Thus, if you were to move the original files, iTunes would no longer see them.

You can have iTunes for Windows make a copy of each file and place it into the iTunes media folder. Moving the original files would then not affect the music in your iTunes library.

To do this, open iTunes for Windows and go to Edit > Preferences. Click the Advanced tab and check the Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library box. To organize your iTunes Media folder into artist and album folders, check the Keep iTunes Media folder organized box. This option is checked by default in iTunes for Mac (on Mojave and earlier).

Once enabled, all media added to your iTunes library from then on will copy directly to the iTunes media folder. Now, you won't have to worry about moving the original files anywhere else. Just remember, media added to your iTunes library before enabling that checkbox still links to the original media files.

To copy the remaining media files linked to your iTunes library, go to File > Library > Organize Library and check the Consolidate files box. Then, click OK.

iTunes consolidating library for iPod Nano files

Step 4. Create a Playlist in iTunes

If you use playlists on your iPhone, you can create them in iTunes, which will sync to your iPhone. The procedure remains the same whether you're on a Mac or Windows PC.

To create a playlist, select the songs you want in the playlist. Then right-click (Control-click on a Mac) on the selected songs and select Add to Playlist > New Playlist.

Creating a new playlist on iTunes for Windows 10

For similar songs (such as an album), the playlist is created using the artist and album title as the name. You'll need to enter a custom name if you create a playlist from various songs. To change the playlist's name, click on the title and type a new one. You can also rearrange the songs in the playlist by dragging and dropping them to different positions.

Step 5. Transfer Music to Your iPhone

To transfer the added music to your iPhone, make sure iTunes or Finder is open and connect your device to your computer. Then, click the device icon in the iTunes toolbar or select your device from the Finder sidebar (on macOS Catalina and newer versions).

Sync Music option in iTunes

If you want to quickly sync content to your iPhone, you can use iTunes to sync your entire music library. Alternatively, it gives you the option to sync selected playlists, artists, albums, and genres.

In case you see a Replace and Sync message, remember that doing so will allow the iTunes library to replace everything on your iPhone.

To sync your entire library, click Music in the sidebar on the left under Settings. If you're using Finder on macOS, you'll find the Music option on the right pane after you select your device.

Then, make sure to select Sync Music on the right and select Entire music library. Now, press the Apply button in the lower-right corner. If syncing doesn't begin, you can press the Sync button.

Meanwhile, if you don't like iTunes and want to expand past your old library, check out the best music download apps for your iPhone and Android.

Transferring Music From an Old iPod to Your Computer Isn't That Hard

If your old iPod still charges enough to use, you can easily transfer music from that iPod to your computer with a little bit of time and effort. After all, we didn't have iCloud back in the iPod days for convenience.

After transferring music from your iPod to iTunes or your iPhone, give it a new purpose. Consider reusing your old iPod as an ebook reader or a secondary music collection holder.