Where are they stored? An external drive? I haven't use iTunes in years but I used to do this by managing the library manually rather than syncing.
this post was submitted on 27 Oct 2025
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SaltyCaramelApple
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I’m not aware of a way to do what you’re asking, but you can move your music library to an external volume connected to your Mac, and then sync it to your device.
That volume could be a USB stick or if you have an SD card slot that would work.
https://support.apple.com/guide/music/change-where-music-files-are-stored-mus69248042d/mac
Apple also offers a subscription service to sync your music library to the cloud and then sync it across your devices and save storage space.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/108935
Also, if already you’ve ripped your CDs, where are those files currently stored? If it’s a NAS/networked volume, simply:
- mount the volume
- turn off the iTunes/Music setting “Copy files to Media folder when adding to library”
- import music
This will keep your music on the other volume, and you can still sync with your devices as long as that volume is mounted when you do it.
This is definitely one correct option that is available
Thank you for all the tips! I am storing the files both on a separate drive and on my mac, so I'll try setting my phone to sync to that external drive :)
A note to be careful to leave the “keep music folder organized” setting unchecked unless you really do want iTunes/Music rearranging all the files on your music drive.