How do I sync my music to my Google account?

What is Google Music?

Google Music was a music streaming and locker service operated by Google as part of its Google Play platform. The service launched in 2011, allowing users to upload up to 50,000 songs to the cloud, stream music, and manage music libraries across devices (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Play_Music

).

Key features of Google Music included:

– Streaming music – Users could listen to millions of songs from the Google Music catalog on demand. Streaming was available across devices like mobile, desktop, and smart speakers.

– Uploading personal libraries – Users could upload up to 50,000 of their own songs to the cloud, even tracks not available on Google Music. This created a unified catalog of streaming songs and personal collections.

– Downloading for offline play – Songs could be downloaded for offline listening when an internet connection was not available. This allowed access to music on the go.

– Library management – Users could browse, search, play, create playlists, get recommendations, and manage their full music library across devices from one interface.

Why Sync Your Music Library?

Syncing your music library to your Google account provides some great benefits that make it worthwhile to take the time to set up. Here are two of the biggest advantages of syncing your music:

Access your music anywhere

Syncing to Google Music allows you to access your entire music library from any device – your phone, tablet, computer, etc. As long as you have an internet connection, you can stream your music from anywhere. This makes it easy to listen to your music collection no matter where you are (According to discussions on Apple forums, this accessibility is a major advantage over just downloading songs locally).

Built-in backup of your library

Having your music synced provides a built-in backup of all your songs. If something ever happens to the original files on your computer, you’ll have the entire library safely stored and accessible from Google’s cloud servers. According to iMore’s guide on iCloud Music Library, this type of backup is one of the biggest benefits of a synced music library.

Requirements for Syncing to Google Music

There are three main requirements for syncing your music library to Google Music:

• A Google account – You need a free Google account to use Google Music. This is the same account you use for Gmail, YouTube, etc.
• Desktop Music Manager app – Google provides the Music Manager app for Mac and PC that you must install to sync your music. This app uploads your music library to your Google Music locker.
• Storage space – Google Music offers free storage for up to 50,000 songs from your personal music library. You can get additional storage with a Google Play Music subscription, which offers space for up to 50,000 uploaded songs plus access to streaming music.

As long as you meet these requirements, you can sync your iTunes, Windows Media Player, or other desktop music library to Google Music using the Music Manager app. The app scans your music folders and uploads copies of your songs to your online Google Music locker.

Download the Google Music Manager

The Google Music Manager is a free desktop application you’ll need to download in order to sync your music library with your Google account. You can download the Google Music Manager application from the Google Music Manager download page.

To install the Google Music Manager on your Windows PC, simply click the Download button on the download page and run the executable file once it finishes downloading. Follow the prompts to complete the installation process. On Mac, download the DMG file, open it, and drag the Google Music Manager app into your Applications folder to install it.

The Google Music Manager is compatible with Windows 7 or later and Mac OS X 10.7 or later. It requires a Google account and internet access to sync your music library.

Select Music to Sync

Before syncing your music library to Google Music, you’ll need to choose which local folders you want to sync. Google Music Manager allows you to select specific folders on your computer containing the music you wish to upload.

To get started, open the Google Music Manager settings. In the Music locations section, click Add to choose folders on your computer to sync. Any eligible music files saved in these folders will automatically be uploaded to your Google Music library.

Google Music Manager supports common audio file formats including MP3, M4A, WMA, FLAC, OGG, and more. However, there are some limitations on which file types can be synced:

• Supported file types with bitrates up to 320kbps are fully compatible.
• DRM-protected files cannot be uploaded.
• FLAC files over 24-bit depth are not supported.
• ALAC and WMA Lossless formats are not supported.¹

With Google Music Manager properly configured, you’ll be able to automatically sync your favorite music library folders to the cloud.

Sync Your Library

The initial sync will upload your entire music library to your Google account. This may take some time depending on the size of your library. The Google Music Manager will upload songs in the background while you continue using your computer.

Once the initial sync is complete, the Music Manager will monitor your music folders for changes. If you add or delete music files, the Music Manager will automatically sync those changes to your Google Music library [1]. This makes sure your cloud library stays up to date with your local library.

The Music Manager runs in the background, so you don’t have to manually sync every time you add or remove files. Just let the Music Manager app run and it will automatically detect and sync any changes [2].

Manage Synced Music

Once your music library is synced to your Google account, you have several options for managing and editing the synced content. This includes adjusting playback options, editing metadata, and uploading cover art.

Google Music allows you to customize playback with options like shuffle and repeat. You can set your preferences in the Google Music app settings. Any changes will apply to music playback across synced devices. For example, turning on shuffle mode on your phone will also enable shuffle when listening to synced music on your computer or other devices.

You can also edit metadata like song titles, artist names, genres, and more. Simply find the song in your Google Music library, click the menu icon next to it, and select “Edit info.” Make any changes and they will sync across your library. This is useful for fixing incorrect or incomplete info.

To add or change album cover art, click the three-dot menu next to an album and choose “Edit info.” Click the camera icon to upload a new image file for the album cover. JPG, PNG, and BMP files are supported. The new cover art will then display in your synced library.

These options let you customize playback, fix metadata issues, and personalize synced content. Any changes apply across all synced devices and apps.

Syncing Changes and Additions

One of the great features of Google Music is that it can automatically sync any changes or new additions to your music library across your devices. This ensures that your music library stays up to date no matter where you access it from.

By default, Google Music Manager is set up to monitor your music folders and automatically upload any new tracks it detects. This means that as you add music on your computer, it will automatically be copied to your Google Music storage and made available on your mobile devices and the web player.

You can also manually initiate a sync in Google Music Manager by clicking on the sync button. This will force it to look for any changes since the last sync and upload anything new.

One important thing to be aware of is how Google Music handles deleted tracks. If you delete a file from your computer, the Google Music Manager will retain that file in your cloud storage. This prevents accidentally losing tracks. If you want to also remove it from your Google Music library, you will need to manually delete it through the Google Music Manager or web interface. For details see this Google forum post.

Access Synced Music on Mobile

Once you have synced your music library to your Google account, you can access that music through the Google Music app on your mobile device, even when offline. The Google Music app allows you to download songs, albums, playlists, and podcast episodes to your device so you can listen without an internet connection.

To enable offline listening in the Google Music app on Android or iOS:

1. Open the Google Music app and go to Settings.
2. Turn on “Downloaded Only” mode.
3. Download albums, songs, or playlists by tapping the download icon next to them.

Downloaded content will now be available for offline playback even without an internet connection. You can manage your downloaded content in the “Downloads” section of the app. Note that you need a YouTube Music Premium subscription for offline and background listening.

For more details on offline listening in the mobile app, see the Google support article “Download music and podcasts to listen to offline – Android” at https://support.google.com/youtubemusic/answer/6313535?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid.

Troubleshooting Tips

If you run into issues syncing your music library to Google Music, there are some troubleshooting steps you can take to fix common problems:

To fix sync errors where music is not transferring properly, first try clearing the app cache and data for the Google Music Manager app. Then reboot your device and reopen the Music Manager to retry the sync. This often resolves intermittent connectivity issues according to this article.

If some of your music files seem to be missing after syncing, you may be able to recover them by going into your Google Music library online and looking for the Downloads section. Google saves any files you have uploaded for up to 60 days after deletion there. You can also try checking your Trash folder within Google Music to see if your tracks ended up there.

For issues with music playback lagging or stuttering, especially with Google Home speakers, try adjusting the speaker and device volume levels to match more closely. This can help aligned delayed audio according to Google’s own troubleshooting tips.

As a last resort, you can try sending feedback directly to Google through the Google Music or Google Home apps. This will alert them to persistent sync problems that need further software updates or bug fixes.