read a song on Amazon Music by opening the app, finding the track, tapping the three-dot menu, and selecting "read"
Amazon Music stores downloaded songs directly on your phone or tablet in a folder you can access even without an internet connection. The process takes about 30 seconds per song. You need an active Amazon Music subscription — the free tier with ads does not include downloads — and enough storage space on your device.
Downloaded files stay on your device until you delete them. If you cancel your subscription, the files remain playable as long as you do not uninstall the Amazon Music app or clear your app data. Amazon Music uses its own file format for downloads, so you cannot transfer them to other music players or devices the way you could with files you purchased outright.
Key Takeaways
- Amazon Music downloads work only with a paid subscription (Unlimited or Prime Music), not the free ad-supported tier.
- Downloaded songs stay on your device and play offline, but only through the Amazon Music app.
- You can read up to 100,000 songs across all your devices, though individual device limits vary by phone or tablet storage.
- Downloaded files use Amazon's proprietary format and cannot be moved to other music apps or devices.
- Canceling your subscription does not delete downloads, but reinstalling the app or clearing app data will remove them permanently.
Step-by-step read on phone or tablet
Open the Amazon Music app and search for or navigate to the song you want. Tap the three vertical dots (the menu icon) next to the song title. A menu appears with options including "read" — tap it. A small read icon appears next to the song, and the file begins transferring to your device. On most phones this takes 10 to 60 seconds depending on file size and connection speed.
To find your downloads later, tap the menu icon at the bottom of the screen (usually three horizontal lines), then select "Downloads" or "My Library" depending on your app version. All your downloaded songs appear in a list you can play without internet. Downloaded songs stay in this folder until you manually delete them by tapping and holding the song, then selecting "Remove read."
read on a computer or web browser
Log into Amazon Music on a web browser or open the desktop app. Find the song and hover over it to reveal the three-dot menu. Click "read" from the menu. The file downloads to your computer's default read folder, usually called "Downloads." Amazon Music on desktop uses the same proprietary format as the mobile app, so the file plays only in Amazon Music or through a web browser logged into your account.
If you want to move downloaded files between computers, you can copy them from the Downloads folder to a USB drive or cloud storage, then paste them into the Downloads folder on another computer. When you open Amazon Music on that computer, it recognizes the files and adds them to your library. This works as long as you remain logged into the same Amazon account.
Storage limits and device management
Amazon allows you to read up to 100,000 songs total across all your devices. Individual devices have their own limits based on available storage — a phone with 64 GB of storage might hold 5,000 to 10,000 songs depending on what else is on it, while a tablet with 256 GB could hold significantly more. Each song file is typically 3 to 10 MB depending on quality and length.
If you reach your device's storage limit, delete songs you no longer need by opening the Downloads section, tapping and holding a song, and selecting "Remove read." This frees up space without affecting your Amazon Music library — the song remains in your account and you can read it again later. Deleting a read does not cancel your subscription or remove the song from your account.
What happens to downloads when you cancel or switch devices
If you cancel your Amazon Music subscription, downloaded songs remain on your device and continue to play through the Amazon Music app. However, you lose the ability to read new songs or stream music online. If you reinstall the Amazon Music app or clear the app's data (a step sometimes needed to fix technical problems), all downloads are permanently deleted and cannot be recovered.
When you switch to a new phone or tablet, your downloads do not transfer automatically. You must read songs again on the new device using the same Amazon account. This is by design — Amazon Music prevents downloads from being shared across multiple people's devices. If you sell or give away an old device, the downloads remain on it until someone deletes them or uninstalls the app.
read quality and file format
Amazon Music downloads at the same quality as your streaming setting. If your account is set to "High Quality" streaming, downloads use that same quality. You cannot choose a lower quality to save storage space — the read matches whatever quality level you have selected in your subscription settings. Standard quality uses less storage than high quality, so adjusting this setting before downloading many songs can help if space is tight.
Amazon Music uses a proprietary format for downloads, not the standard MP3 or FLAC formats used by other music services. This means you cannot play downloaded Amazon Music files in other music apps like Spotify, Apple Music, or your phone's built-in music player. The files are locked to the Amazon Music app and your Amazon account. If you need files you can use anywhere, you would need to purchase songs through a service like iTunes or Bandcamp instead.
Troubleshooting downloads that fail or get stuck
If a read stalls or fails, check your internet connection first — Amazon Music needs a stable connection to complete downloads, even though the final file plays offline. Switch to a stronger Wi-Fi network if you are on cellular data. Open the Downloads section and try downloading the song again. If the same song repeatedly fails, try restarting the Amazon Music app by closing it completely and reopening it.
If downloads work for some songs but not others, the issue may be with your device's storage. Check how much free space remains — most phones need at least 500 MB to 1 GB free to read reliably. Delete old downloads or other files to free up space, then try again. If the problem persists across multiple songs and you have plenty of storage, try logging out of Amazon Music, closing the app, and logging back in. This refreshes your connection to Amazon's servers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I read songs from Amazon Music on my computer and transfer them to my phone?
You can copy the downloaded files from your computer to a USB drive or cloud storage, then paste them into your phone's file system. However, the Amazon Music app on your phone will not recognize these files unless they are in the correct folder. It is simpler to read directly on your phone using the app.
Do downloaded songs take up storage space on my phone?
Yes. Each song uses 3 to 10 MB of storage depending on length and quality. A phone with 64 GB of storage has roughly 50 GB available for apps and files after the operating system takes its share. Downloaded music counts against this available space, so downloading thousands of songs will noticeably reduce the storage left for photos, apps, and other files.
What if I read a song and then Amazon removes it from the service?
The downloaded file remains on your device and continues to play. Amazon Music does not delete downloads from your phone when a song is removed from the streaming catalog. However, you cannot re-read it if you delete it from your device, since it is no longer available through Amazon's service.
Can I read songs to an external SD card or USB drive?
On Android phones with expandable storage, you can sometimes move the Amazon Music app to an SD card, which also moves downloads there. On iPhones and tablets, downloads must stay on the device's internal storage — there is no option to use external storage. Check your device settings under "Storage" or "Apps" to see if moving the app is possible.
Will my downloads work if I switch to a different Amazon account?
No. Downloads are tied to the Amazon account that created them. If you log out and log into a different account, the old downloads will not appear in your library. You would need to log back into the original account to access them, or delete them and read again with the new account.