Add Any Music to iMovie on iOS and macOS Right Now

iMovie is a free video editing application on iOS devices and macOS desktop, so you can simply edit the video clip and share daily life with your family on iPhone or make a professional video project on your Mac.

Are you new to the iMovie? Do you want to add music to an iMovie project right now? You have come to the right place, we let you know how to add any music to iMovie on iOS and macOS devices.

Don’t worry if you have no idea about where you can find the music files. We have sorted the three kinds of resources and the downloading procedures for you. Then, you will be able to pick the song that fits for your project.

Actually, adding music to iMovie is not difficult. Once you have learnt some tips, the adding procedure will be fairly smooth.

How to Add Music to iMovie on iPhone/iPad

How to Add Purchased Songs from iTunes Store

First, make sure you have downloaded the song from iTunes Store.

Then, open a project on iMovie, look for and press the plus icon (it will show on the top right of the iPad and under or on the left of the video while on your iPhone)

Choose Audio > My Music, type the song’s name in the search box. Next, touch the song then it will be inserted to your video.

If you find the song is protected by DRM so you can’t add it, then it should be an Apple Music song. Yes, buy it on the iTunes store then it will be addable, however, downloading the DRM-free song from Apple Music or Spotify also will help)

How to Add Other Audio Files

If you have stored other music files in your devices, open iMovie on your device. Select plus icon, select Audio > File, find the songs by scrolling the screen or directly type the songs’ name on the search bar. Then, tap the song and it will be added on video.

How to Add Music Files to iMovie on Mac

Press “Command + space bar” to open the Spotlight, search the songs you want to add, find the songs and drag it into the timeline of the project.

Then, the song will become the background music of your iMovie project.

Tips: How to show iTunes Store on Apple Music

If you have updated the operating system to the macOS Catalina or later, iTunes is no longer available and its feature has been taken over by several apps. For example, the local music files and Apple Music are shown in the Music app.

Launch the Music app, click Music > Preference, find the show area, select the checkbox of iTunes Store, and the iTunes Store will present on the left sidebar.

See, it is quite easy to add music to an iMovie, the more difficult is you can’t find the background music on your devices, while the one you love is unavailable to download. Considering the resources are varied, we have listed three methods for you.

Method 1. How to Download Songs from YouTube

The songs on YouTube are protected by DRM, so you can’t save the DRM-free music by yourself, and you need to convert it to audio files with a music downloader.

Musify Music Downloader is the best choice for you, since its intuitive designs. For instance, copy the link of the YouTube video and click a button then you will get the DRM-free audio files.

Moreover, it offers 5 formats which are compatible with iMovie such as MP3, WAV, M4A, AIFF and AAC. Furthermore, the quality of the songs is adjustable.

By the way, if you want to download songs from other websites and streaming platforms such as Spotify/Soundcloud, this downloader also works.

Steps to Download Songs from YouTube

Step 1: Copy the Share Link from YouTube

When you find the song on YouTube, copy the link from the address bar of the browser.

Step 2: Download and Find Music Files

Launch Musify, click the Paste URL button, the downloading process will begin.

When songs have been downloaded, click the Downloaded tab, press the folder icon on the right of the song, then the folder includes the DRM-free will pops up.

Method 2. How to Download Music Files from Artlist

For those who don’t want to download songs from streaming music or plan to monetize their video on YouTube, royalty free music is another option. Artlist is a soundtrack provider, which offers users the most generous licences.

For example, the licence is lifetime even if the subscription is out of time. Also, it doesn’t limit project type and platform. Now, we will illustrate how to download songs from Artlist:

First, create an account and subscribe to get the licence.

Second, you can browse the songs directly or click the list icon on the top left to search for the song you want. If you find the one you’re interested in, click the playback icon to preview the song, when you want to download, just click the download icon.

Choose the song’s location on the popping window, after that you can add the song to your project.

Note: When you receive a copyright warning from YouTube, you can go through the steps below to prtect your right.

Log in to Artlist and find the song you used in the video, click the Licence button and you will get your own licence in pdf format.

Then, go to the YouTube Studio > Content, and you will see all your videos. Look for the restrictions and see which one involves copyright claim, select it and click SEE DETAILS > SELECT ACTION > Dispute > My dispute isn’t based on any of the reasons above.

Next, you will need to select the reason, click the Licence > CONTINUE. Choose I have permission to use the content and press CONTINUE.

Now, you can type your licence information: I have artlist license number(xxxx). Then, enter your legal name and click SUBMIT. YouTube will reply to you in 30 days.

Method 3. How to Download Music Files from Audio Library

If the budget is limited and you want to find royalty-free music which can be used on commercial projects, go to the Audio library. There are 1517 DRM-free songs in it. Select the playback button beside the song.

Then, a web player will show on the bottom and the song will be played at the same time. When you want to download the audio, press the download icon on the player.

Once it has been downloaded, you can add it to your iMovie project in a second.

Now, adding a song to iMovie for you is a piece of cace, since you already know how to add the music on iOS devices and macOS devices.

Besides, with the 3 resources we mentioned, you will easily find the suitable song, which will help you arouse the audience’s emotion and elevate the watching experience.

Whatever the project’s type is, a small presentation or commercial project, you will decorate it perfectly, good luck!