Apple Music Users can now collaborate on playlists. This Is How You Use It

If You had to pick between Spotify and Apple Music, You would definitely choose Apple Music.

Not to disparage Spotify, but there are a few reasons why You favour Apple Music: You really enjoy the way Apple Music feels and looks; it blends in well with the rest of my Apple gadgets, and its high-definition streaming is excellent.

However, there’s one major feature kindly always desired that Spotify has had and Apple Music has never had: collaborative playlists.

We have a tonne of playlists in your Apple Music collection that you share with friends and family, but unlike Spotify, we’ve never been able to work together on those same playlists.

That is, up until this point in time.

On Monday, Apple released iOS 17.3, which includes a number of new features for the iPhone, such as improved protection against phone theft, Black History Month wallpapers, support for AirPlay in hotels, and, of course, group playlists on Apple Music.

Here’s all the information you need to join in on the fun of making playlists with others. See how to get iOS 17.3 and all of its new features for more details.

How to use Apple Music to make a shared playlist

When you make a playlist in Apple Music or access one you already have, a new icon with a person symbol and plus sign should appear in the top-right corner of the screen. This is the button to enable collaboration for your playlist.

Click it, then select Start Collaborating from the pop-up that shows up, allowing anyone who has the playlist link to change and rearrange the music. To approve collaborators, you may also turn on the feature in case the link is shared with any unauthorised people.

The share sheet will open and the Apple Music playlist link will be copied to your clipboard as soon as you make your playlist collaborative. The URL can then be copied and shared, for example, via email, text message, or AirDrop.

A collaborative playlist will be indicated by a new symbol with numerous individuals icons at the top-right of the playlist. To help you identify who added which music to the playlist, each song in the playlist will also have a user icon next to it.

You can copy the playlist link to your clipboard, view a QR code that someone else can scan with their phone camera to access the playlist, allow or refuse collaborators, and end collaboration on the playlist by tapping the collaborative playlist icon once more.