History of iTunes

iTunes v1.0 installer CD (2001)

The iTunes media platform was first released by Apple in 2001 as a simple music player for Mac computers. Over time, iTunes developed into a sophisticated multimedia content manager, hardware synchronization manager and e-commerce platform. iTunes was finally discontinued for new Mac computers in 2019, but is still available and supported for Macs running older operating systems and for Windows computers to ensure updated compatibility for syncing with new releases of iOS devices (refer to Devices section).

iTunes enables users to manage media content, create playlists, synchronize media content with handheld devices including the iPod, iPhone, and iPad, re-image and update handheld devices, stream Internet radio and purchase music, films, television shows, and audiobooks via the iTunes Store.

History

iTunes icon since version 12.2 on June 30, 2015

Apple based the initial release of iTunes on SoundJam MP, a program developed by Bill Kincaid and released by Casady & Greene in 1999. Apple purchased the program from Casady & Greene in 2000. At the time of the purchase, Kincaid, Jeff Robbin and Dave Heller left Casady & Greene to continue development of the program as Apple employees. At Apple, the developers simplified SoundJam's user interface, added the ability to burn CDs, and removed the program's recording feature and skin support.

Apple released version 1.0 of the program under a new name "iTunes" on January 9, 2001, at Macworld San Francisco. Macintosh users immediately began poking through iTunes's resource fork, where they discovered numerous strings and other resources that indicated that iTunes was a re-engineered Sound Jam MP. Casady & Greene ceased distribution of SoundJam MP on June 1, 2001, at the request of the developers.

Originally a Mac OS 9-only application, iTunes began to support Mac OS X with the release of version 1.1 in March 2001. Release 2.0 added support for the new iPod. Version 3 dropped Mac OS 9 support but added smart playlists and a ratings system. In April 2003, version 4.0 introduced the iTunes Store; in October, version 4.1 added support for Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows XP. Introduced at Macworld 2005 with the new iPod Shuffle, Version 4.7.1 introduced the ability to convert higher-bitrate songs to 128kbit/s AAC automatically, as these devices did not natively support audio encoded in AIFF or Apple Lossless formats, also improving the value proposition of the Shuffle's limited flash-only storage. Version 7.0 introduced gapless playback and Cover Flow in September 2006. In March 2007, iTunes 7.1 added support for Windows Vista, and 7.3.2 was the last Windows 2000 version.

iTunes lacked support for 64-bit versions of Windows until the 7.6 update on January 16, 2008. iTunes is currently supported under any 64-bit version of Windows, although the iTunes executable was still 32-bit until version 12.1. The 64-bit versions of Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 are not supported by Apple, but a workaround has been devised for both operating systems. Version 8.0 added Genius playlists, grid view, and a new default visualizer.

iTunes 9 added "Home Share" enabling automatic updating of purchased items across other computers on the same subnet and offers a new iTunes Store UI. Genius Mixes were added, as well as improved App synchronization abilities, extending the iPod Shuffle 128 kbit/s down-convert feature to all of Apple's AAC-capable devices. It also adds iTunes LPs to the store, which gives additional media with an album. Apple added iTunes Extras as well to the store, which adds content usually reserved for films on DVD and Blu-ray discs. Both iTunes LPs and Extras use web-standards HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.

On September 1, 2010, Apple held their annual music press event where they unveiled an updated version: iTunes 10. The new version was available for download later that day. One major feature includes the integration of "iTunes Ping", which brings a social factor to the iTunes experience. Apple CEO Steve Jobs also announced a new logo, one without a CD in the background because of the increasing popularity of iTunes digital downloads.

In October 2012, Apple announced the launch of the iPhone 5 and iPad Mini, the refresh of the iPod and Mac lines, and the upcoming release of iTunes 11. Slated for release by the end of October, the launch was pushed back to November 29, 2012. This version included tighter integration with iCloud, and a new user interface. Users' libraries now include all media they have stored in their iCloud account, along with any media unique to the device they are using. Media files stored in the cloud don't need to be downloaded before playing, allowing a larger collection to be accessible without increased disk usage. The new user interface includes a refreshed grid view, which replaces Cover Flow as the default layout method. With this change, Cover Flow is no longer available within the application. With the release of this software, the iTunes Store was redesigned to remain consistent with the new interface, and the stores available on iOS devices. The social element Ping was also removed and replaced by increased Twitter and Facebook integration. Other minor changes included disabling the sidebar by default, and slightly altering the icon to match that of the Mac App Store better.

On October 16, 2014, Apple released iTunes 12, with a redesigned icon and interface, inspired by OS X Yosemite. With iTunes 12.1 and later, there is a new widget for notification center in OS X Yosemite, which allows the user to see what's playing, skip ahead, and even buy songs from iTunes Radio, right from notification center. It also improves performance when syncing to an iOS device.

iTunes has been credited with accelerating shifts within the music industry. The pricing structure of iTunes encouraged the sale of single songs, allowing users to abandon the purchase of more expensive albums. This hastened the end of the Album Era in popular music.

On April 26, 2018, Apple released iTunes 12 for Windows 10 via the Windows Store. The Universal Windows Platform app retains all features available in the desktop version, but will be updated and available through the Windows Store.

On June 3, 2019, Apple stated that they would no longer include iTunes with future Mac computers. Starting with the operating system macOS Catalina, Apple instead split iTunes into separate apps: Apple Music, Apple TV, and Apple Podcasts. iTunes continues to be available on Windows and on macOS operating systems prior to Catalina. Users can also still install iTunes versions 10, 11, and 12 on macOS Catalina and macOS Big Sur using the Retroactive app.

Compatibility

Operating system versions

Obsolete Discontinued, still can access the store Current
Operating system version Original version Latest version Support start Support end
Mac
Mac OS 9 1.0 (January 9, 2001) 2.0.4 (March 20, 2002) 2001 2002
Mac OS X 10.0 "Cheetah" 1.1 (March 24, 2001) 1.1.1 (May 1, 2001) 2001
Mac OS X 10.1 "Puma" 1.1.2 (September 25, 2001) 4.7.1 (January 11, 2005) 2005
Mac OS X 10.2 "Jaguar" 3.0 (July 17, 2002) 6.0.5 (June 29, 2006) 2002 2006
Mac OS X 10.3 "Panther" 4.1 (October 16, 2003) 7.7.1 (requires Mac OS X 10.3.9) (July 31, 2008) 2003 2008
Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" for G3 4.7.1 (January 11, 2005) 9.1.1 (April 27, 2010) 2005 2010
Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" for G4, G5 9.2.1 (July 19, 2010)
Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" for Intel 6.0.2 (January 10, 2006) 2006
Mac OS X 10.5 "Leopard" 7.4.2 (September 17, 2007) 10.6.3 (June 11, 2012) 2007 2012
Mac OS X 10.6 "Snow Leopard" 8.2.1 (August 28, 2009) 11.4 (requires Mac OS X 10.6.8) (September 9, 2014) 2009 2014
Mac OS X 10.7 "Lion" 10.4 (July 19, 2011) 12.2.2 (August 13, 2015) 2011 2015
OS X 10.8 "Mountain Lion" 10.6.3 (June 11, 2012) 12.4.3 (requires OS X 10.8.5) (August 2, 2016) 2012 2016
OS X 10.9 "Mavericks" 11.1.2 (October 22, 2013) 12.6.2 (July 19, 2017) 2013 2017
OS X 10.10 "Yosemite" 12.0.1 (October 16, 2014) 12.8.1 (February 5, 2019) 2014 2019
OS X 10.11 "El Capitan" 12.2.2 (August 13, 2015) 12.8.2 (January 23, 2019) 2015 2019
macOS 10.12 "Sierra" 12.5.1 (September 13, 2016) 2016
macOS 10.13 "High Sierra" 12.7 (September 12, 2017) 12.8.3 (April 26, 2021) 2017 2021
(still receiving driver updates)
macOS 10.14 "Mojave" 12.9 (September 12, 2018) 12.9.5 (May 13, 2019) 2018
Windows
Windows 2000 4.1 (October 16, 2003) 7.3.2 (August 2, 2007) 2003 2007
Windows XP 12.1.3.6 (September 17, 2015) 2015
Windows Vista 32-bit 7.2 (May 29, 2007) 2007
Windows Vista 64-bit 7.6 (January 15, 2008) 2008
Windows 7 9.0.2 (October 29, 2009) 12.10.11.2 (April 23, 2021) 2009 2021
Windows 8 10.7 (September 12, 2012) 2012
Windows 8.1 11.1.1 (October 2, 2013) 2013
Windows 10 12.2.1 (July 13, 2015) 12.13.1.3 (December 15, 2023) 2015 present
Windows 11 12.12.1 (September 23, 2021) 2021
  • iTunes 2.0.4 can only run if Classic is installed. Otherwise, Mac OS X 10.0 can only run iTunes 1.1.1 natively.
  • iTunes Store requires at least version 12 for a user to sign in and make purchases, dropping support for earlier versions.
  • On May 25, 2018, Apple dropped support for Windows XP and Vista, no longer allowing new purchases or re-downloading of previous purchases.
  • On June 30, 2018, TLS 1.0 was discontinued, affecting devices on iOS 4.3.5, OS X 10.8.5 Mountain Lion and earlier. On both Windows and Mac computers, the minimum version able to manage accounts & edit payment information are iTunes 12.6.4 (released in April 2018) and 12.7.5 (released in May 2018).
  • Although new versions of iTunes have not been released for Mac computers since May 2019, mobile device driver updates for new iOS releases (iOS 13, 14, 15, 16) have been backported to iTunes 12.8.2 (for OS X 10.11 El Capitan, macOS 10.12 Sierra, 10.13 High Sierra) and 12.9.5 (for macOS 10.14 Mojave). iPhone 14 raised the minimum OS requirement to at least macOS 10.13 High Sierra.
  • The last devices to support Windows 7 for iTunes syncing were iPhone 13, iPad (8th generation), iPad Mini (5th generation), iPad Air (4th generation), iPad Pro (5th generation). iPhone 14 requires at least Windows 10.
  • iTunes on Windows Home Server may cause data corruption, which Microsoft fixed in an update.
  • iTunes usually requires latest service pack or point release to function.
  • a. ^ Mac OS 9.1 is required to burn CDs.
  • b. ^ iTunes supports both 32-bit and 64-bit editions for Windows Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, and 10. iTunes does not support 64-bit editions of Windows XP.

Devices

Device Minimum version Minimum OS Latest firmware
iPod Classic (1st generation) 2.0 (Mac) 9/10.1 (Mac) 1.5
Rio One 2.0.3 (Mac) Un­known
iPod Classic (2nd generation) 2.0.4 (Mac)
4.2 (Win)
9/10.1 (Mac)
2000 (Win)
1.5
iPod Classic (3rd generation) 4.0 (Mac)
4.1 (Win)
10.1 (Mac)
2000 (Win)
2.3
iPod Mini (1st generation) 4.2 1.4.1
iPod Classic (4th generation) 4.6 3.1.1
AirPort Express 10.2 (Mac)
2000 (Win)
Un­known
iPod Photo 4.7 1.2.1
iPod Classic 4G (color display)
iPod Shuffle (1st generation) 4.7.1 1.1.5
iPod Mini (2nd generation) 1.4.1
ROKR E1 4.9 Un­known
iPod Nano (1st generation) 5.0 10.3 (Mac)
2000 (Win)
1.3.1
iPod Classic (5th generation) 6.0 1.3
SLVR L7 6.0.1 Un­known
RAZR V3i Un­known
Nike+iPod 6.0.5 Un­known
iPod Classic 5.5G 7.0 1.3
iPod Shuffle (2nd generation) 1.0.4
iPod Nano (2nd generation) 1.1.3
Apple TV (1st generation) 7.1 10.3.9 (Mac)
XP SP2 (Win)
3.0.2
iPhone (1st generation) 7.3 10.4.11 (Mac)
XP SP2 (Win)
iPhone OS 3.1.3
iPod Touch (1st generation) 7.4
iPod Classic (6th generation) 1.1.2
iPod Nano (3rd generation) 1.1.3
iPhone 3G 7.7 iOS 4.2.1
iPod Touch (2nd generation) 8.0
iPod Classic 6.5G 10.4.11 (Mac)
XP SP3 (Win)
2.0.5
iPod Nano (4th generation) 1.0.4
iPod Shuffle (3rd generation) 8.1 1.1
iPhone 3GS 8.2 iOS 6.1.6
iPod Touch (3rd generation) 9.0 iOS 5.1.1
iPod Nano (5th generation) 1.0.2
iPad (1st generation) 9.1 iOS 5.1.1
iPhone 4 9.2 iOS 7.1.2
iPod Shuffle (4th generation) 10.0 10.5.8 (Mac)
XP SP3 (Win)
1.0.2
iPod Nano (6th generation) 1.2
iPod Touch (4th generation) iOS 6.1.6
Apple TV (2nd generation) 10.0.1 6.2.1 (iOS 7.1.2)
iPhone 4 (CDMA) 10.1.2 iOS 7.1.2
iPad 2 10.2 iOS 9.3.5
iOS 9.3.6
iPhone 4S 10.5
iPad (3rd generation) 10.6
Apple TV (3rd generation) 7.5 (derived from iOS 8.4.1)
iPhone 5 10.7 10.6.8 (Mac)
XP SP3 (Win)
iOS 10.3.4
iPod Touch (5th generation) iOS 9.3.5
iPod Nano (7th generation) 1.0.4
iPad (4th generation) iOS 10.3.3
iOS 10.3.4
iPad Mini (1st generation) iOS 9.3.5
iOS 9.3.6
iPhone 5C 11.1 iOS 10.3.3
iPhone 5S iOS 12.5.7
iPad Air 11.1.2
iPad Mini 2
iPhone 6 / 6 Plus 11.4
iPad Air 2 12.0.1 iOS 15.8
iPad Mini 3 iOS 12.5.7
iPod Nano (7.5G) 12.2 (Mac)
12.1.3 (Win)
10.7.5 (Mac)
7 SP1 (Win)
1.0.4
iPod Touch (6th generation) 12.2.1 (Mac)
12.1.3 (Win)
iOS 12.5.7
iPhone 6S / 6S Plus 12.3 (Mac)
12.1.3 (Win)
iOS 15.8
iPad Mini 4
iPad Pro (12.9") (1st generation) 12.3.1
iPad Pro (9.7") 12.3.3 10.8.5 (Mac)
7 SP1 (Win)
iPhone SE (1st generation)
iPad (5th generation)
iPhone 7 / 7 Plus 12.5 10.9.5 (Mac)
7 SP1 (Win)
iPad Pro (12.9") (2nd generation)
iPad Pro (10.5")
iPhone 8 / 8 Plus 12.6.3 / 12.7 10.10.5 (Mac)
7 SP1 (Win)
iOS 17.2.1
iPhone X
iPad (6th generation) 12.6.4 / 12.7.3
iPhone XS / XS Max 12.6.5 / 12.8 (Mac)
12.6.5 / 12.9 (Win)
10.11.6 (Mac)
7 SP1 (Win)
iPhone XR
iPad Pro (12.9") (3rd generation)
iPad Pro (11")
iPad Air (3rd generation)
iPad Mini (5th generation)
iPod Touch (7th generation)
iPhone 11 12.8.2 (Mac)
12.10 (Win)
iPhone 11 Pro / 11 Pro Max
iPad (7th generation)
iPad Pro (4th generation)
iPhone SE (2nd generation)
iPad (8th generation)
iPad Air (4th generation)
iPhone 12 / 12 Mini
iPhone 12 Pro / 12 Pro Max
iPad Pro (5th generation)
iPad (9th generation) 12.8.2 (Mac)
12.12 (Win)
OS X 10.11.6 El Capitan
Windows 10
iPad Mini (6th generation)
iPad Air (5th generation)
iPad (10th generation)
iPad Pro (6th generation)
iPhone 13 / 13 Mini 12.8.2 (Mac)
12.10.10 (Win)
10.11.6 (Mac)
7 SP1 (Win)
iPhone 13 Pro / 13 Pro Max
iPhone SE (3rd generation)
iPhone 14 / 14 Plus iTunes 12.9 (Mac)
iTunes 12.12.10 (Win)
macOS 10.13 High Sierra
Windows 10
iPhone 15 / 15 Plus
  1. Wi-Fi iPads and GSM iPad 2 only

Version history

Obsolete Discontinued Current Beta Future Release

iTunes 1

iTunes 1 version history
Version Operating systems Release date Release notes / Features

1.0

Mac: 9 January 9, 2001 Original release based on SoundJam MP code.

1.1

Mac: 9-10.0 February 21, 2001 External burners, improved visual effects, more supported CD burners. Initial Mac OS X version. Bundled with Mac OS X v10.0.

1.1.1

May 1, 2001 Burning CDs, full screen visual effects, stability/performance improvements, available in Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish.

1.1.2.0

Mac: 9-10.1 September 25, 2001 Bundled with Mac OS X v10.1.
Version Operating systems Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 2

iTunes 2 version history
Version Operating systems Release date Release notes / Features

2.0

Mac: 9-10.1 October 23, 2001 iPod support, CD burning improvements, equalizer/cross-fader/sound enhancer added.

2.0.1

November 4, 2001 Fixes installer issue which may result in data loss. CD Burning updates.

2.0.2

November 16, 2001 Update German and French language support.

2.0.3

December 13, 2001 iPod synching improvements, support for Rio One MP3 player.

2.0.4

March 20, 2002 Improved stability/performance, expanded AppleScript support. Last version to support Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X 10.0.
Version Operating systems Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 3

iTunes 3 version history
Version Mac OS support Release date Release notes / Features

3.0

10.1-10.2 July 17, 2002 Smart playlists, more song list categories (including the My Rating column), Audible.com audiobook support.

3.0.1

10.1-10.2 September 18, 2002 Performance improvements, better Mac OS X v10.2 support.
Version Mac OS support Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 4

iTunes 4 version history
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

4.0

10.1-10.2 April 28, 2003 Music Store support, AAC audio codec, DVD burning, music sharing, GUI improvements.

4.0.1

May 27, 2003 Only allows music sharing on the local network.

4.1

10.1-10.3 2000XP October 16, 2003 Music store/CD burning improvements, Windows support added, voice notes, on-the-go playlists.

4.2

December 18, 2003 AOL accounts with music store, GUI changes.

4.5

April 28, 2004 iMix, party shuffle, CD insert printing, music store improvements, WMA to AAC conversion (Windows only), Apple Lossless audio codec.

4.6

June 9, 2004 AirTunes support.

4.7

October 27, 2004 Copying photos to iPod Photo, Windows taskbar minimizing.

4.7.1

10.1-10.4 January 11, 2005 iPod Shuffle support added, blocks DRM stripping applications, limited to 5 connections per day to networked music libraries. Last version to support Mac OS X 10.1. Bundled with Mac OS X v10.4 Tiger.

4.8

10.2-10.4 May 9, 2005 Video support, international music stores supported, security enhancements.

4.9

June 28, 2005 Podcasting, Motorola ROKR E1 mobile phone support added.
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 5

iTunes 5 version history
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

5.0

10.2-10.4 2000XP September 7, 2005 GUI refined, search bar improvements, parental controls, playlist folders introduced, smart shuffle, iPod Nano support.

5.0.1

September 20, 2005 Bonjour for Windows removed from bundle after DNS conflict problems, bug fixes.
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 6

iTunes 6 version history
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

6.0

10.2-10.4 2000XP October 12, 2005 GUI/music store changes, blocks DRM remover utilities, transfer videos to 5th generation iPod classic.

6.0.1

October 20, 2005 Bug fixes, Motorola SLVR L7 and RAZR V3i mobile phone support added.

6.0.2

January 10, 2006 Bug fixes, video conversion for home movies, AirTunes enhancements, iTunes MiniStore, now Universal binary (running on both Intel and PowerPC Macs).

6.0.3

February 15, 2006 Bug fixes

6.0.4

March 1, 2006 Stability and performance issues with Front Row.

6.0.4.2

March 3, 2006 Fixes possible playlist problems in 6.0.4.

6.0.5

June 29, 2006 Added Nike+iPod support and Nike Sport area on the iTunes Store. Last version to support Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar.
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 7

iTunes 7 version history
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

7.0

10.3-10.4 2000, XP September 12, 2006 Video playback/purchasing improvements, iPod games, Major GUI changes, gapless playback and album, sync purchased content from iPod to computer, Cover Flow added.

7.0.1

September 27, 2006 Bug fixes for Cover Flow, CD importing, iPod synching, one-click rating, Remote Desktop Protocol and Windows Live Messenger.

7.0.2

October 31, 2006 Support for second generation shuffle and nano, fixed stability/performance issues with 7.0 and 7.0.1.

7.1

March 4, 2007 Apple TV support, additional 2G shuffle support, GUI improvements, fixes Windows Vista issues, enhanced sorting options, full-screen Cover Flow.

7.1.1

March 16, 2007 Minor update.

7.2

2000Vista May 29, 2007 Fully supports Vista, iTunes Plus introduced with 256 kbit/s DRM-free music tracks, iTunes U introduced which offers free content from some of the top universities around the United States. Also included GUI Update for Windows Vista

7.3

June 29, 2007 Support for iPhone activation/synching, GUI changes/fixes. Changes sorting pattern.

7.3.1

July 11, 2007 Bug fixes.

7.3.2

August 2, 2007 Bug fixes. Last version to support Windows 2000.

7.4

XP-Vista September 6, 2007 Support for iPod Touch, Classic (6G), Nano (3G), adds a tagging feature for HD Radio and satellite radio and adds interface art for new iPod Shuffle colors. GUI improvements.

7.4.1

September 7, 2007 Blocks a workaround that allowed free ringtones. However, a new workaround was found within one day of release.

7.4.2

10.3-10.5 September 17, 2007 Bug fixes. Bundled with Mac OS X v10.5

7.4.3

September 27, 2007 Bug fix.

7.5

November 5, 2007 Allows activation of iPhones outside of the United States wherever activation is available, (e.g. United Kingdom and Germany) as well as security and stability fixes. Also included is a GUI update for Leopard, and the ability to add custom ringtones for free. Includes support for iPod game Phase. Shows iPod battery level in source list (iPod Nano 3G, iPod Classic, iPod Touch, and iPhone with 1.1.2 software). Last version to support Windows XP RTM and Service Pack 1 (32-bit).

7.6

January 15, 2008 Rent movies from the iTunes Store. Transfer Apple TV purchases to your computer. Allows manual management of music on iPhones. Added support for Windows Vista 64-bit.

7.6.1

February 21, 2008 Better compatibility with Apple TV "Take Two" (version 2.0)

7.6.2

April 2, 2008 Bug fixes.

7.7

July 10, 2008 Support for iPhone 3G, iOS 2.0 and the new App Store which features application downloads for the iPhone and iPod Touch as well as enabling the two products to act as remotes for wireless iTunes control.

7.7.1

July 31, 2008 Improved stability/performance. Last version to support Mac OS X 10.3 Panther.
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 8

iTunes 8 version history
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

8.0

10.4-10.5 XP-Vista September 9, 2008 Genius Sidebar and playlists, Grid View, HD TV shows, Shows capacity of Apps on iPhone/iPod Touch on device summary tab, new default visualizer, more flexible podcast options and support for second generation iPod Touch and 4th generation iPod Nano.

8.0.1

October 2, 2008 Kim, Arnold (October 2, 2008). "Apple Releases iTunes 8.0.1 (Stability and Bug Fixes)". MacRumors. Archived from the original on September 8, 2016. Retrieved December 10, 2009.</ref>

8.0.2

November 20, 2008 Adds support for iOS 2.2.

8.1

March 11, 2009 Adds support for the iPod Shuffle

8.1.1

April 6, 2009 Bug fixes

8.2

June 1, 2009 Supports iPhone 3GS and iPhone OS 3.0.

8.2.1

10.4-10.6 July 15, 2009 Bug fixes. Addresses an issue with verification of Apple devices. The latter refers to the disabling of iTunes' ability to sync with the Palm Pre; the Pre has a feature called "MediaSync" which allowed version 8.2 to register and sync songs and videos between iTunes and the Pre. This functionality has since been restored with the latest version of webOS. Bundled with Mac OS X v10.6. This is the last version that fully supports Macs with a G3 processor.
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 9

iTunes 9 version history
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

9.0

10.4-10.6 XP-Vista September 9, 2009 New UI and redevelopment of the iTunes Store using WebKit. Genius Mixes were added, as were Home Sharing, iTunes LPs and iTunes Extras. Support for activation/syncing of iPod Touch (late 2009). Music is automatically added to the library from a watched folder. The shopping cart in the Store has been removed, replaced by a "Wish List." Some compatibility issues with the iPod Classic.

9.0.1

September 22, 2009 Bug fixes

9.0.2

XP-7 October 29, 2009 Supports Apple TV software version 3.0, supports dark mode in Grid View.

9.0.3

February 1, 2010 Bug fixes.

9.1

March 30, 2010 Adds support for iPad, adds the ability to sync downloaded books between iPad and the iTunes library, and Genius Mixes can now be renamed, rearranged, or removed. "Applications" are renamed "Apps".

9.1.1

April 27, 2010 Fixes issues with VoiceOver, Genius Mixes, song conversions to 128 kbit/s AAC while syncing, and conflicts with some third-party software which may cause iTunes for Windows to crash. Last version to support PowerPC G3.

9.2

June 16, 2010 Added ability to sync with iPhone 4. Also added ability to sync and read books with iPhone or iPod Touch with iOS 4 and iBooks 1.1. Added ability to organize and sync PDF documents as books, and to read PDFs with iBooks 1.1 on iPad and any iPhone or iPod Touch with iOS 4. Added option to organize your apps on iOS 4 home screens into folders using iTunes. Speed up back-ups while syncing an iPhone or iPod Touch with iOS 4. Album artwork improvements make artwork appear more quickly when exploring your library.

9.2.1

July 19, 2010 Bug fixes.Last version to support Mac OS X Tiger 10.4 on PowerPC G4, G5, and Intel Mac.
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 10

iTunes 10 version history
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

10.0

10.5-10.6 XP-7 September 1, 2010 Adds new social networking layer named "Ping". Adds support for fourth generation iPod Shuffle, sixth generation iPod Nano, fourth generation iPod Touch, and Apple TV (late 2010). AirTunes renamed to AirPlay. Adds support for VoiceOver Kit for iPod. Break compatibility with iTunes Server found on many NAS. New application icon.

10.0.1

September 24, 2010 Replace Genius sidebar with Ping sidebar. Bug fixes. Restore recognition of iTunes Server found on NAS Server.

10.1

November 12, 2010 Bug fixes. Streaming to AirTunes speakers working again. Adds Twitter connectivity to Ping. Adds printing support and support for devices running iOS 4.2.

10.1.1

December 15, 2010 Fixes playback, sync issues, and crash when connecting an iPod to a PowerPC Mac.

10.1.2

January 27, 2011 Adds support for CDMA iPhone 4.

10.2

March 2, 2011 Adds support for iPad 2, and iOS 4.3. Improves Home Sharing, allowing browsing and playback of entire iTunes libraries on devices running iOS 4.3, and brings back the colored icons in the Preferences window.

10.2.1

March 8, 2011 No details about this update were released.

10.2.2

April 18, 2011 Fixes an issue with unresponsive iPad syncing. Fixes an issue with slow syncing of photos on iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. Fixes an issue with video previews skipping while playing on the iTunes Store.

10.3

June 6, 2011 Adds support for iTunes in the Cloud (beta), allowing automatic downloading of purchased content between iTunes and iOS devices, and downloading previously purchased music. Adds support for iBookstore on the iTunes Store.

10.3.1

June 7, 2011 Fixes iOS device syncing bug.

10.4

10.5-10.7 July 20, 2011 Adds support for Mac OS X Lion. It now allows users to take advantage of the Full-Screen App capability. GUI slightly improved. Better integration with Windows Vista and Windows 7 (Aero effects support). Many Windows users originally experienced problems with the iCloud purchased music feature on the iTunes Store soon after this update.

10.4.1

August 22, 2011 Fixes a problem where the media keys on non-Apple keyboards work inconsistently. Addresses issues with adding artwork to songs and videos. Resolves an issue which causes unresponsiveness when purchasing an HD movie. Fixes a problem where iTunes takes longer to open after waking the computer from sleep. Addresses issues with VoiceOver support.

10.5

October 11, 2011 Adds support for iPhone 4S, iCloud, iTunes in the Cloud, Wi-Fi Syncing, and iOS 5. QuickTime for Windows no longer bundled in the iTunes installer. Many users have had issues with MP3 playback on computers with processors that lack SSE2 instructions. Because of an oversight, the help wasn't originally available in this version.

10.5.1

November 14, 2011 Adds support for iTunes Match

10.5.2

December 12, 2011 Improves iTunes Match. Fixes an audio distortion problem when playing or importing CDs.

10.5.3

January 19, 2012 Adds support for syncing textbooks with iBooks 2.

10.6

March 7, 2012 Adds support for iPad (3rd generation). Adds the ability to play 1080p HD movies and TV shows from the iTunes Store. Higher bit rate songs can be converted to 128, 196, or 256 kbit/s when syncing to iOS devices or iPods. Improvements for iTunes Match.

10.6.1

March 28, 2012 Fixes possible crash when playing videos, changing artwork size in grid view, or at syncing photos to devices. Addresses issues with VoiceOver and WindowEyes. Fixes problems with iPod nano and iPod shuffle. Resolves an ordering problem with Apple TV.

10.6.3

10.5-10.8 June 11, 2012 Includes support for OS X Mountain Lion.

Last version of iTunes to support Mac computers with Mac OS X 10.5.8 or any PowerPC processors.

10.7

10.6-10.8 XP-8 September 12, 2012 Support for iOS 6, iPhone 5, fifth-gen iPod Touch and seventh-gen iPod nano. Added support for Windows 8.
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 11

iTunes 11 version history
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

11.0

10.6-10.8 XP-8 November 29, 2012

Interface redesign, redesigned iTunes Store, iCloud purchases are now shown in the library, queue management support with a new "Up Next" button, redesigned MiniPlayer, iCloud syncs playback position of movies and TV shows.

11.0.1

December 13, 2012 Fixes bugs with purchases in iCloud, slow search, AirPlay, and returns the ability to display duplicate items within one's library.

11.0.2

February 19, 2013 Adds a new Composers view, improves responsiveness when syncing playlists with a large number of songs, and fixes an issue where purchases may not show up in your iTunes library.

11.0.3

May 16, 2013 MiniPlayer can show album art with the player controls hidden, and regains the removed "seek" bar. Adds album art to the songs view, combines multiple disc albums together as one album when in album view, changes to app update management, and improvements in search performance and sorting of large libraries.

11.0.4

June 5, 2013 Fixes a problem when switching between wired and wireless syncing which causes iTunes to quit and a problem relating to repeated iTunes store logins.

11.0.5

August 16, 2013 Fixes issue with iTunes in the Cloud.

11.1

September 18, 2013 Support for iOS 7. Adds Apple's new radio service, iTunes Radio.

11.1.1

XP-8.1 October 2, 2013 Adds Windows 8.1 Support

11.1.2

10.6-10.9 October 22, 2013 Added Hebrew and Arabic language support, support for OS X Mavericks. Mavericks users are forced to use iCloud to sync an iOS device's Contacts and Calendars with the desktop OS, as the "local sync" option in iTunes was removed.

11.1.3

November 6, 2013 Fixes a bug in the equalizer, slowness when switching views in large iTunes libraries, and fixes to Sound Check.

11.1.4

January 22, 2014 Wish List can be access from the main iTunes library, improved Arabic and Hebrew support. The Windows installer now packages iCloud, increasing the installer size by around just under 40 MB for the 32-bit and just under 50 MB for the 64-bit.

11.1.5

February 26, 2014 Fixes a crash that occurred when a device is connected, compatibility improvements with iBooks for Mac on OS X Mavericks. This is the last version available to Windows XP SP2 32-bit.

11.2

May 15, 2014 Released alongside a new version of OS X Mavericks, this release revamped the "Unplayed" tab and made it easier to find podcasts which have not yet been played. Podcast episodes can be automatically saved locally and removed after being played. This version introduced an issue, which was quickly fixed, where the /Users folder became hidden. The ability to locally sync an iOS device's Contacts and Calendar with iTunes on Mavericks was re-introduced together with OS X Mavericks version 10.9.3.

11.2.1

May 16, 2014 Fixes a problem that may cause the /Users directory to become hidden on OS X Mavericks.

11.2.2

May 28, 2014 Fixes a bug with podcast episodes downloading against users' wishes

11.3

July 10, 2014 New iTunes Extras (behind the scenes, galleries, director commentary) for HD movies

11.3.1

August 8, 2014 Addresses a problem where subscribed podcasts may stop updating with new episodes, and where iTunes may hang while browsing podcasts episodes.

11.4

September 9, 2014 Support for iOS 8.

Last version to support Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard).

Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

iTunes 12

iTunes 12 version history
Version Mac OS support Windows support Release date Release notes / Features

12.0.1.26

10.7-10.10 XP-8.1 October 16, 2014

Family Sharing feature for iTunes purchases, new interface, new Recently Added view, removed ability to play .m4v iTunes files in QuickTime

12.1

January 29, 2015 New Notification Center widget, now a 64-bit app on Windows

12.1.1.4

February 19, 2015 (Windows only) Bug fixes with stuttering audio playback, Outlook contacts and calendar sync with iOS, and screen readers

12.1.2.27

April 9, 2015 Adds the ability to sync with the Photos app

12.1.3.6

September 17, 2015 (Windows only)

Adds support for iOS 9 for Windows XP and Vista, and this is last version to support for these version of Windows

12.2.0.145

7-8.1 June 30, 2015
  • Apple Music support
  • Adds iTunes Connect
  • New "Love" rating system
  • New icon
  • Updated user interface
  • Support for Windows XP and Windows Vista dropped, though iTunes 12.1.3 can be installed from the iTunes downloads page.

12.2.1.16

7-10 July 13, 2015 Fixes bugs with iTunes Match and Beats 1

12.2.2.25

August 13, 2015 New Beats 1 banner showing the current song, followed Apple Music artists are now available in a list, iTunes Connect supports artists sharing text, photos, music, and videos.

Last version to support Mac OS X v10.7

12.3.0.44

10.8-10.11 September 16, 2015

Adds support for iOS 9 and Windows 10. Fixes a bug with reordering songs in Up Next, radio stations not appearing in Recently Played, and songs 'loved' on iOS not appearing as 'loved' on iTunes

12.3.2.35

December 11, 2015 Adds the ability to view works, composers, and performers for some Classical music within Apple Music

12.3.3.17

March 21, 2016 Adds support for the 9.7-inch iPad Pro and the iPhone SE

12.4.0.119

May 16, 2016
  • Adds Back and Forward buttons for navigation between Library, Apple Music and iTunes Store
  • Adds Media Picker for easy switching between Music, Movies, TV shows and more
  • New ways to view Library with Sidebar

12.4.1.6

June 3, 2016 Bug fixes

12.4.2

July 18, 2016 Bug fix

12.4.3

August 1, 2016 Fixes bug with playlist syncing

12.4.3.1

August 2, 2016 Fixes bugs with screen readers and VoiceOver, and restores the option to Reset Plays

12.5.1.21

10.9-10.12 September 13, 2016
  • Adds iOS 10 support
  • Adds Siri integration for macOS Sierra
  • Adds Picture-in-Picture support for macOS Sierra
  • Action menu changes to bring iTunes in line with iOS music app ("Add to Up Next" is now "Play Later")
  • Removes "Music" (main music library) as an option for "Show in Playlist" from the contextual menu

12.5.2.36

October 28, 2016 Bug fixes

12.5.3.17

October 31, 2016 Bug fixes. Removes the ability to refresh a podcast from within a playlist in album view

12.5.4.42

December 13, 2016 Adds support for the TV app on iOS and Apple TV

12.5.5.5

January 23, 2017
  • Several security fixes.

12.6.0.95

March 21, 2017
  • The first public release with iPad (5th generation) and APFS (iOS 10.3) support

12.6.0.100

March 21, 2017
  • Returns option to open a playlist in a new window

12.6.1.25

May 15, 2017 Bug fixes

12.6.2.20

July 19, 2017 (Windows only) Supports high DPI displays

Last version to support OS X 10.9 Mavericks

12.6.3.6

10.10-10.13 September 22, 2017
  • Separate build to allow businesses and individuals to continue to manage apps using iTunes
  • Features removed in iTunes 12.7 are kept in this version
  • Adds iOS 11 support, as with iTunes 12.7
  • With the release of macOS High Sierra, iTunes is no longer given priority over media keys, rather they are confined to the current program

12.6.4.3

April 3, 2018
  • Adds iOS 11.3 compatibility
  • Updating devices from iOS 11.2.6 to 11.3 within the app is broken
  • Minimum version able to manage accounts & edit payment information (besides iTunes 12.7.5), as TLS 1.0 was discontinued.

12.6.5.3

September 12, 2018
  • Adds iOS 12 support, as with iTunes 12.9
  • Fixes a problem with iOS updates and version numbers
  • Last version to keep the built-in App Store browser (Still able to download apps, as of October 2023.)

12.7.0.166

September 12, 2017
  • Adds iOS 11 support
  • This update removes the built-in App Store browser; App Store URLs are no longer handled by iTunes
  • This update loses support for synchronization and streaming with the first generation Apple TV
  • This update removes synchronization of ringtones
  • This update removes local application management UI. Applications now need to be manually dragged and dropped onto a connected device to install.

12.7.1.14

October 31, 2017 Bug fixes

12.7.2.58

December 6, 2017 Bug fixes

12.7.2.60

January 9, 2018 Bug fixes

12.7.3.46

January 24, 2018 Bug fixes

12.7.4.76

March 29, 2018 Bug fixes

12.7.5.9

May 29, 2018 Bug fixes
  • Minimum version able to manage accounts & edit payment information (besides iTunes 12.6.4), as TLS 1.0 was discontinued.

12.8.0.150

July 9, 2018
  • On macOS, adds supports for multi-room audio and HomePod stereo pairs to AirPlay 2. AirPlay menu can be used to control the play queue.

12.8.1.3

10.10 February 5, 2019 macOS only (OS X 10.10), bug fixes.

Last version to support OS X 10.10 Yosemite.

12.8.2.3

10.11-10.13 January 23, 2019 Fixes bug with third-party AirPlay speakers not working

macOS only (OS X 10.11, macOS 10.12, 10.13) Last version to support OS X 10.11 El Capitan, macOS 10.12 Sierra.

12.8.3.1

10.13 April 26, 2021 Security update, macOS only (macOS 10.13)

Last version to support macOS 10.13 High Sierra.

12.9.0.164

10.14 September 12, 2018
  • Adds iOS 12 support
  • New features for Apple Music subscribers
  • Initially only available for Windows (Build 167); released for macOS as part of macOS Mojave on September 24, 2018.

12.9.1.4

October 30, 2018 Security update
  • Windows only

12.9.2.5

December 5, 2018
  • Minor app and performance improvements
  • macOS only (included with macOS 10.14.2 and 10.14.3)

12.9.2.6

December 5, 2018

Security update Windows only

12.9.3.3

January 24, 2019 Security update, Windows only

12.9.4.94

March 25, 2019 Fits more music on the Browse tab. macOS only (included with macOS 10.14.4)

12.9.4.102

March 25, 2019 Fits more music on the Browse tab

Security update Windows only

12.9.5.5

May 13, 2019 macOS only (included with macOS 10.14.5 and 10.14.6)

Final macOS version.

Windows-Only Versions

12.9.5.7

7-10 May 28, 2019

12.9.6.3

July 23, 2019

12.10.0.7

September 11, 2019 Adds iOS 13 and iPadOS 13 support.

12.10.1.4

October 7, 2019

12.10.2.3

October 30, 2019

12.10.3.1

December 11, 2019

12.10.4.2

January 28, 2020

12.10.5.12

March 24, 2020

12.10.6.2

April 16, 2020

12.10.7.3

May 21, 2020

12.10.8.5

July 30, 2020 Last version to bundle Apple Application Support

12.10.9.3

September 16, 2020 Adds iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 support.

12.10.10.2

October 21, 2020

12.10.11.2

April 23, 2021 Last version to support Windows 7 and Windows 8.1

12.11.0.26

10 November 17, 2020

12.11.3.17

April 22, 2021

12.11.4.15

August 9, 2021

12.12.0.6

September 20, 2021 Adds iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 support.

12.12.1.1

10-11 September 23, 2021

12.12.2.2

October 29, 2021

12.12.3.5

March 8, 2022

12.12.4.1

May 18, 2022

12.12.5.8

September 12, 2022 Adds iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 support.

12.12.6.1

October 24, 2022

12.12.7.1

December 15, 2022

12.12.8.2

March 29, 2023

12.12.9.4

May 23, 2023

12.12.10.1

September 13, 2023 Adds iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 support.

12.13.0.9

October 24, 2023

12.13.1.3

December 15, 2023

See also