How to Turn On/Off Shuffle on Apple Music

Shuffle is a mode that you can use to listen to songs in a randomized order, which will sometimes give you more surprise than using other playback modes. You are able to use shuffle mode for music playback on Spotify, Apple Music, and more streaming music services. In this article, you will learn how to use shuffle mode, how to turn off shuffle on Apple Music, and also what you should do when you are unable to turn on or turn off shuffle on your Apple Music app.

Part 1. How to Enable Apple Music Shuffle

You can use the Shuffle button to turn on Apple Music shuffle to listen to music in a random order. And you can also ask Siri or on iPhone.

How to turn on Apple Music Shuffle on iPhone/Android

On iPhone or Android devices: You can turn on shuffle on an album or playlist or all the albums and playlists in your library. Here is how to turn on shuffle on iPhone and Android.

To shuffle a playlist or an album:

Open the playlist or album on Apple Music. Tap on the Shuffle button at the top of the album. And you can make iPhone music turn off shuffle by taping this button again.

To shuffle all the playlists and albums in Apple Music:

Go to Library. Tap Songs or Albums and choose the Shuffle button.

On iPhone: You can also ask Siri to shuffle the Apple Music songs for you. Just say "Hey Siri, shuffle this album." or "Hey Siri, shuffle all of my songs".

How to turn on Apple Music Shuffle on Mac/Windows

On Mac or PC, you can also turn on the Apple Music shuffle. On Mac, you need to use the Apple Music app, while you can do that on iTunes on PC. But the methods are the same.

To shuffle a playlist or an album:

Open the playlist or album on the Apple Music app on Mac or iTunes on PC. Tap on the Shuffle button at the top of the album. If the icon changes color, you have turned it on.

To shuffle all the playlists and albums:

Open Apple Music on Mac or iTunes on PC, Go to Controls > Shuffle. Select Songs or Albums.

Part 2. How to Disable Apple Music Shuffle

When it is enough for you to listen to Apple Music songs in shuffle mode, you can turn Apple Music shuffle off easily whether you use iPhone, Android devices, or computers.

How to turn off Apple Music Shuffle on iPhone/Android

Tap the song that is playing on Apple Music. Tap the Playing Next button and the Shuffle button. If the shuffle mode is turned off, the Shuffle button will not be highlighted.

How to turn off Apple Music Shuffle on Mac/Windows

When you are playing a song, just click the Shuffle button to turn off shuffle Apple Music.

Fix: Unable to Turn on/off Apple Music Shuffle

Some Apple Music users find that the Shuffle button disappears from the Apple Music app. And there are also other problems that stop you from turning on or turning off the shuffle on Apple Music. When you meet these problems, how to turn off shuffle on Apple Music and how to turn it on?

You can update the Apple Music app to the latest version and restart your device to solve most of the related issues. Here is how to update the Apple Music app.

To update Apple Music app:

On iPhone: Go to App Store, and choose the Updates button. Find out the Apple Music app and click the Update button.

On Android: Go to Google Play Store app > profile icon > Manage apps & device > Apple Music > Update.

Note: If you are autoplaying Apple Music, you cannot shuffle and the Shuffle button will disappear. See how to trun off Apple Music Autoplay>>

To turn off Apple Music Autoplay:

On iPhone/Android: In the Apple Music app, go to a song's Now Playing. When you are in the Play View, go to Playing Next button (Music Inline icon) and scroll down to Autoplay. After that, tap the Autoplay button to turn off Apple Music AutoPlay (grey).

On Mac: In the Music app, go to a song's Now Playing. Click the Playing Next button (Music Inline icon) next to the volume slider. When you're viewing the drop-down Playing Next queue, click the Autoplay button to turn off Autoplay (grey).

Part 3. How to Fix Shuffle on Apple Music

In our exploration, we know Apple Music's shuffle well and how it can benefit or frustrate Apple Music users. Here're some issues we've identified and some fixes to them.

3.1 Fix: Apple Music Shuffle Not Working

If these steps are performed accordingly as you did previously, there shouldn't be any issue with the shuffle mode. However, if Apple Music still won't work, follow these steps to make it work for you again.

Step 1 Verify your steps to start Apple Music Shuffle on your device. You can follow the guide in this post to enable Apple Music Shuffle.

Step 2 Press on the power button to restart your current device.

Step 3 Remove the Music App (iTunes) from your devices. On your iPhone or iPad: Start from the Home screen to touch and hold the Music app > Delete App.

Step 4 Make sure your iOS or Android device is selected to play the current content. Or from here to tap your device to access Spotify Equalizer.

On your MacBook: Choose Go > Utilities > Activity Monitor, then select Music processes > Quit Process to full close the Music app. After that, click the black arrow icon > Application Support, then delete the Music app.

On your Windows PC: Start from the Start menu > Control Panel > Uninstall a program, then uninstall "iTunes".

3.2 Fix: Apple Music Shuffle Not Random

Apple Music Shuffle is not random for some particular reasons - low number in music library, Apple Music recommendation, Apple Music Shuffle algorithm and Apple Music cache.

1. Low Number in Music Library

If you are shuffling an Apple Music (or iTunes) content, such as an artist or album that has a low number of songs, chances are that Apple Music Shuffle turns out to stream some specific songs more often than a content that has a larger number of songs.

The best method is to create your own playlist to cover more songs instead. You can always find your loved songs on Apple Music, your top songs and the most-streamed Apple Music songs to add to your playlist.

2. Apple Music Shuffle Algorithm

Just like other music services, such as Spotify, Apple Music has its own shuffle algorithm. However, it's impossible to tell anything about the algorithm but Apple Music Shuffle is an incomplete mode and does care of another important on Apple Music - Apple Music recommendations.

3. Apple Music Recommendations

Apple Music offers its music recommendations for you based on your listening habits. A simple skip can make Apple Music stream this song less and stream others more often, especially in its shuffle mode.

4. Apple Music Cache

Apple Music cache will make it easier for Apple Music to load and stream some songs for you - even in the shuffle mode. So, if you find Apple Music is not random with this content, try to turn off the iCloud Music Library and back on to rebuild your Apple Music library. See how to turn off the iCloud Music Library>>

We've set out to find out some alternative ways to fix Apple Music Shuffle not random. See how to fix Apple Music shuffle play same songs.

3.3 Fix: Apple Music Shuffling Automatically

Step 1 Verify the steps to turn off Apple Music Shuffle. You can follow the guide in this post to disable Apple Music Shuffle.

Step 2 If you are sure the issues are with Apple Music's ends, the automatic issue might with Apple Music itself but not its shuffle mode. Please identify the problems with Apple Music further either on Apple devices, e.g., iPhone, iPad, Mac, AirPods or in a car. See how to stop Apple Music from automatically>>

Part 4. How to Make Apple Music Shuffle Better

If you still cannot let Apple Music turn off shuffle or turn it on, here is another method. Try to use an Apple Music alternative player such as Spotify to play Apple Music songs. But Apple Music songs or playlists are protected in M4P format. So you need an Apple audio converter to convert Apple Music to MP3 or other audios to upload to Spotify or other music players.

ViWizard Apple Music Converter is what you need for Apple Music songs converting. It will convert Apple Music to MP3, AAC, FLAC, WAV, or others with 30X faster speed. After the conversion, you can transfer and play Apple Music on any audio player that can upload local files including Spotify and Amazon Music. This converter also supports the conversion of iTunes audiobooks, Audible books, audios that are not protected like Apple Music. After the conversion, you are also able to play Apple Music even without the subscription. If you are interested in converting Apple Music songs to MP3, you can follow this tutorial: How to Convert Apple Music to MP3.