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Migrate · iTunes to Serato DJ

Move from iTunes to Serato DJ.

Bringing an iTunes library into Serato puts your collection in its controller and DVS world. Here is exactly what carries across, what gets lost, and how to bring your whole library over without starting from scratch.

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$49$79USD one-time purchase. First 250 licenses at this price. 14-day free trial.

A DJ library organized in Vibes with BPM, key, and vibe tags intact after moving from iTunes to Serato DJ

Bring your collection across without losing your work.

Your music already lives in iTunes, the Music app on current macOS, and Serato DJ can read that library directly. The real work is not the transfer. It is turning a listening library into a DJ library: analysis, organization, and playlists that survive on their own.

What transfers from iTunes to Serato DJ.

CapabilityCarriesWhat happens
Audio filesLocal, DRM-free files link up. Apple Music streaming tracks do not come across.
PlaylistsPlaylists appear via the iTunes import; make them native so they live in Serato DJ without the XML.
Key & BPMiTunes stores no DJ analysis; Serato DJ analyzes tracks fresh after the import.
Hot cuesiTunes has no cue points, so you start clean rather than losing anything.
BeatgridsCreated by Serato DJ's own analysis after import.
Star ratingsCarry where the app reads iTunes ratings; spot-check after import.
Comments & tagsComments saved in the file tags travel with the files themselves.

Using Serato DJ's built-in iTunes import. iTunes never stored DJ data like cues or beatgrids, so those start fresh no matter which path you take.

The easy way

Moving from iTunes to Serato DJ, step by step.

Serato DJ has a built-in iTunes import, so the native path genuinely works. It links your local files and playlists; it just does not create any of the DJ-layer data iTunes never had.

01

Let Serato see your library

On macOS, Serato reads the Music app library directly; allow access when macOS asks for permission to the media library, because denying it silently breaks the import. On Windows, Serato reads iTunes, so enable Share iTunes Library XML with other applications in iTunes Preferences under Advanced and keep the library in its default location. Only local, DRM-free files carry; Apple Music streaming tracks stay behind.

02

Show the iTunes library in Serato

Open the Setup screen, go to the Library + Display tab, and check Show iTunes library. Your playlists appear as a collapsible group under an iTunes icon in the crates panel, and tracks that only exist in iTunes carry a small iTunes logo.

03

Make the playlists real crates

The iTunes group is a window, not a home. For each playlist you keep, create a Serato crate with the same name, select all the tracks in the iTunes playlist, and drag them into the crate. The iTunes logo disappears from those tracks, and the crates survive even if you untick Show iTunes library later.

04

Analyze and set up your columns

Disconnect hardware so Serato opens its offline player, tick Set Key and Set Beat Grid next to Analyze Files, and run the analysis; iTunes never stored any of that. While it runs, set the key display to Camelot in the same Library + Display tab so harmonic browsing works from day one.

The import only covers local, DRM-free files, and the iTunes group in Serato stays read-only. Everything DJ-specific, cues, grids, and honest energy tags, still has to be created after the move.

DJ Software
Rekordbox
Rekordbox
Import XML or Database
Serato
Serato
Import Library Database
Traktor
Traktor
Import NML Collection
Engine
Engine
Import Engine Database
File System
Local Folder
Scan directory
Audio Files
Select files

The cleaner path

One library, every app.

Vibes does not need the XML: it imports the folders where your music already lives, analyzes BPM, key, and track sections, and adds the mood and energy organization iTunes never had. Then it exports playlists, tags, ratings, and cue points straight into Serato DJ, so you arrive with a DJ-ready library instead of a flat track list.

See the DJ Library
Import the folders where your iTunes media already lives, no XML needed
Analyze BPM, key, and sections across the whole collection
Add the mood and energy organization a listening library never had
Export playlists, tags, ratings, and cue points into Serato DJ

Organize once, export to Serato DJ.

Your playlists, tags, ratings, and cue points travel to the gear you play on, so nothing you do in Vibes is locked away.

Track 001 by Artist A

Track 001

Artist A

128
3A
Track 002 by Artist B

Track 002

Artist B

124
5B
Track 003 by Artist C

Track 003

Artist C

132
8A
Vibes App
Playlists
Vibes
Mood
Aggressive
Euphoric
Melancholic
Mysterious
Peaceful
Playful
Tense
Function
Arrangement
Sets
Club Night 12/28
NYE Closing Set
Rooftop 01/04

Frequently asked questions

The honest answers, including the trade-offs.

Yes. In the Setup screen's Library + Display tab, check Show iTunes library and your iTunes playlists appear inside Serato as a read-only source. Drag their tracks into Serato crates to make them native, so they no longer depend on the iTunes link.
Create a crate, open the iTunes playlist under the iTunes group, select all its tracks, and drag them into the crate. Serato copies the references into its own library, the tracks lose the iTunes logo, and the crate keeps working even with Show iTunes library switched off. Repeat per playlist you actually use rather than converting everything.
Not through the library import. Only local, DRM-free files you own, purchased or ripped, come across; Apple Music subscription tracks are protected streams and never become files in your DJ library. Rekordbox and Serato DJ offer separate Apple Music streaming integrations inside the app, and Engine OS players reach Apple Music through Connected Services on the hardware, not in the desktop app. Those tracks stay streams: they need a connection and cannot be exported, pre-analyzed offline, or moved between apps. Traktor has no Apple Music streaming. For music you rely on at gigs, owning the file is still the safe path.
There is nothing to lose: iTunes never stored cue points or beatgrids. Your destination app creates them fresh during analysis. If you prep in Vibes first, it can analyze tracks and export cue points along with your playlists, so you do not start from zero.

Methodology

How we keep this honest.

Verified against the apps

What transfers is tested against the current versions of iTunes and Serato DJ.

We own our bias

We make Vibes. We show the native process and its limits honestly, and we are upfront about what no tool can carry across.

Live pricing

The Vibes price shown comes straight from our checkout, never a hardcoded marketing number.

Kept current

Last reviewed June 2026.

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