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Migrate · iTunes to Traktor

Move from iTunes to Traktor.

Moving an iTunes collection into Traktor brings it into a laptop rig built for effects-heavy mixing. 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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A DJ library organized in Vibes with BPM, key, and vibe tags intact after moving from iTunes to Traktor

Bring your collection across without losing your work.

Your music already lives in iTunes, the Music app on current macOS, and Traktor 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 Traktor.

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 Traktor without the XML.
Key & BPMiTunes stores no DJ analysis; Traktor analyzes tracks fresh after the import.
Hot cuesiTunes has no cue points, so you start clean rather than losing anything.
BeatgridsCreated by Traktor'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 Traktor'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 Traktor, step by step.

Traktor 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

Export the XML from the Music app

Traktor's iTunes node runs on the library XML, and the Music app on current macOS does not produce one automatically. Export it manually via File, then Library, then Export Library, and remember this is a snapshot: when your Music library changes, you export again and right-click the iTunes node in Traktor to refresh its playlists. Only local, DRM-free files carry; protected tracks show up greyed out.

02

Point Traktor at the XML

In Traktor, open Preferences and go to File Management, then set the iTunes Music Library XML path to the file you exported. Your iTunes playlists appear under the iTunes node in Traktor's browser.

03

Import into the Track Collection

The iTunes node is read-only: you can browse and load from it, but you cannot edit tags, and Smartlists ignore tracks that only live there. Drag the playlists you keep into Traktor's own playlist tree so the tracks enter the Track Collection and become fully Traktor's.

04

Analyze and pick your key notation

Run Analyze (Async) on the imported tracks so Traktor detects BPM, key, and beatgrids; iTunes stored none of that. Set the key notation to Open Key if you mix harmonically: Traktor offers Musical and Open Key notations, and Open Key follows the same wheel logic as Camelot with different labels.

The XML link is manual on current macOS: no export, no update. And everything DJ-specific, cues, grids, and energy tags, still has to be created in Traktor 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 Traktor, 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 Traktor

Organize once, export to Traktor.

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, via the library XML. Set the iTunes Music Library XML path in Traktor's Preferences under File Management, and your iTunes playlists appear under the iTunes node in the browser. Import the ones you keep into Traktor's own playlists so they live in the collection itself.
Because the Music app on current macOS no longer maintains a live XML. Traktor reads the file you exported, which is frozen at export time. When your Music library changes, export the library again from the Music app and right-click the iTunes node in Traktor to refresh the playlists. If you find yourself doing that weekly, it is a sign the playlists should move into Traktor's own collection instead.
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 Traktor.

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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