What an Apple Music Family Plan does and who can join
An Apple Music Family Plan lets up to six people in your household listen to Apple Music on their own devices, each with their own account and recommendations. Everyone gets the full Apple Music catalog — no ads, offline downloads, spatial audio — and you pay one monthly fee instead of six individual subscriptions. You set it up through Apple's Family Sharing feature, which also lets you share purchases, manage screen time, and control spending across the group.
The person who creates the Family Plan becomes the organizer and pays the monthly fee (currently $14.99 in the US, though this varies by country). The other five members can be anyone — family members, roommates, or close friends — as long as they have an Apple ID and you trust them with shared purchases and location data. Each person needs their own Apple device: an iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple Watch.
Key Takeaways
- You create a Family Plan through Settings on an Apple device, add members by their Apple ID email address, and they receive an invitation to join.
- All six members listen on their own devices with separate libraries and recommendations, even though one person pays the monthly bill.
- The organizer can remove members at any time, and members can leave the plan themselves without affecting the others.
- Family Sharing also shares App Store purchases and iCloud storage, so understand what gets shared before you invite someone.
How to create a Family Plan on your iPhone or iPad
Open Settings and tap your name at the top. Scroll down and tap Family Sharing. If you have not set up Family Sharing yet, tap "get your free guide" and follow the prompts to create your family group. If you already have Family Sharing set up, skip to the next step.
Once Family Sharing is active, go back to Settings, tap your name, then tap Subscriptions. Look for Apple Music and tap it. You should see an option to upgrade to a Family Plan or switch from an individual plan. Tap that option, confirm the monthly price, and complete the purchase. Your plan is now active, and the other five slots are ready for members.
How to add members to your Family Plan
Go to Settings, tap your name, then Family Sharing. Tap "Add Family Member" or the plus icon. You have two options: invite someone with an Apple ID, or create a child account if the person does not have one yet.
If you are inviting an adult, enter their Apple ID email address. They will receive an invitation on their device and can accept or decline. Once they accept, they are part of your Family Sharing group and automatically get access to the Family Plan. They do not need to do anything else — Apple Music will appear in their Music app with full access.
If the person does not have an Apple ID, you can create a child account for them. You will need their name and birthdate. They will receive a notification and can start using Apple Music when ready on their device. A child account comes with parental controls, so you can set screen time limits and approve purchases if you want.
What happens to individual plans when you switch to Family
If you currently have an individual Apple Music subscription, switching to a Family Plan cancels your individual plan and starts the Family Plan on the same billing date. You will not be charged twice. If other members of your family already have individual subscriptions, they should cancel those before joining your Family Plan, or they will be charged for both until they manually cancel the old one.
You can check active subscriptions in Settings under your name, then Subscriptions. If someone in your family has an old plan still running, they can tap it and select "Cancel Subscription" to stop the charge.
Managing who listens and removing members
As the organizer, you can see all six members in Family Sharing settings. If someone needs to leave — they move out, you want to remove them, or they request to leave — go to Settings, tap your name, then Family Sharing. Find their name and tap "Remove." They lose access to the Family Plan when ready, but their personal Apple ID and any purchases they made stay theirs.
Members can also leave on their own. They go to Settings, tap their name, then Family Sharing, and select "Leave Family." This does not affect anyone else's access or the organizer's billing.
What else gets shared in Family Sharing
When you set up Family Sharing, you are not just sharing Apple Music. App Store purchases, books, movies, and TV shows bought by any family member are shared with everyone in the group. iCloud storage is also pooled — if you have 200 GB, all six members can use it together. Location sharing is turned on by default, so family members can see where each other is in the Find My app.
Before you invite someone, understand that they will see purchases made by other members and can see their location. You can turn off location sharing for specific people in Find My settings if you want privacy. You can also manage app and content sharing separately in Family Sharing settings if you want to share music but not App Store purchases.
Troubleshooting common issues
If someone does not see Apple Music after joining, have them sign out of their Apple ID and sign back in. Sometimes the service takes a few minutes to set up. If they still do not see it, go to Settings, tap their name in Family Sharing, and check that their account status shows "Accepted."
If you are being charged for both an individual plan and a Family Plan, check Subscriptions in Settings. You likely have two active plans. Tap the individual one and select "Cancel Subscription." The Family Plan will continue, and you will not lose access.
If someone cannot join because they already belong to another family group, they need to leave that group first. Have them go to Settings, tap their name, then Family Sharing, and select "Leave Family." They can then accept your invitation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I listen to Apple Music on the same device as another family member?
Yes, but you each need to sign in with your own Apple ID. On an iPhone or iPad, go to Settings, tap your name, and sign out. Then sign in with a different Apple ID. On a Mac, use Fast User Switching or sign out of iCloud and sign in as a different user. Each person's library and recommendations stay separate.
What happens if I cancel the Family Plan?
All six members lose access to Apple Music when ready. If anyone had an individual plan before, they would need to resubscribe to that plan to keep listening. The organizer can switch back to an individual plan at any time.
Can I change who the organizer is?
No, the person who creates the Family Sharing group is the organizer permanently. If you want someone else to be in charge of billing and member management, you would need to set up a new Family Sharing group with them as the organizer and have everyone else join that one instead.
Do all family members have to use the same Wi-Fi network?
No. Family Sharing works over the internet, so members can listen from anywhere — different homes, different cities, different countries. They just need to be signed in with their Apple ID and have an internet connection.
Can I share a Family Plan with people who do not live with me?
Technically yes, but Apple's terms say Family Sharing is for people who live in the same household. Apple does not actively police this, but they reserve the right to remove accounts that appear to violate the policy. Use it at your own risk with people outside your home.