Apple Music on Spotify

Mirror what you’re playing in Spotify to Apple Music on macOS. Lightweight menu bar app that reads Spotify’s now playing, finds the matching Apple Music song, and opens it in Music.

• macOS: 15 Sequoia or later (my system)
• Architecture: Universal (Apple Silicon + Intel) if you build as such in Xcode
• No Spotify account keys: Uses AppleScript to read Spotify’s current track. No Spotify Web API, no client secrets.

Motivation

I love the high-quality audio that Apple Music offers, especially with support for lossless and Dolby Atmos tracks. However, I find that Spotify's recommendation algorithm is much better at helping me discover the music I actually like (very debatable ik). I wanted a way to enjoy the best of both worlds: listen to my Spotify recommendations & playlists, but hear them in Apple Music's superior audio quality. So I built this.

Features

• Menu bar toggle to enable/disable mirroring
• Now playing status in the menu
• Opens the matching Apple Music song using Apple’s Search API
• No Spotify or Apple Music Authentication needed

How matching works:

• Reads track name/artist from Spotify via AppleScript
• Queries Apple’s iTunes Search API (see: https://performance-partners.apple.com/search-api)
• Prefers a canonical song URL like https://music.apple.com/<cc>/song/<album-slug>/<trackId>
• Falls back to trackViewUrl or an album link with ?i=<trackId> if needed

Download

Prebuilt releases are published on the GitHub Releases page of this repository.

Because this app is not notarized (no paid Developer ID), macOS Gatekeeper will block it on first launch. See First Run below for how to open it.

First Run (Permissions and Gatekeeper)

1. Move the app to /Applications.
2. Right‑click the app → Open → Open. Alternatively remove quarantine:

   xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine "/Applications/apple-music-on-spotify.app"

3. On first use, macOS will ask you to allow the app to control other apps via Automation. Allow control for:
   • Music
   • Shortcuts
   • Spotify (to read now playing via AppleScript)
4. If you accidentally denied prompts, reset Automation permissions and try again:

   tccutil reset AppleEvents $(/usr/libexec/PlistBuddy -c 'Print :CFBundleIdentifier' "apple-music-on-spotify/apple-music-on-spotify/Info.plist")

Shortcuts helper:

• Install the Shortcut “Play Music From URL (new)”: https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/f96a19938bf9467f9ed9403547242852
• The app will prompt you to install it if not found. Without this shortcut, this app will not be aple to open Apple Music URLs.

Usage

• Launch the app: a link icon appears in the menu bar.
• Use the menu to toggle Enable mirroring.
• Start music in Spotify; the app mutes Spotify and opens the same song in Music.
• When the track changes in Spotify, it automatically plays the that new song in Apple Music in the background.

Build from Source

Prerequisites: Xcode 15+, macOS 15+

1. Open the project in Xcode.
2. Select the apple-music-on-spotify scheme.
3. Build and run.

Release build:

• Product → Scheme → Edit Scheme → set Build Configuration to Release.
• Product → Clean Build Folder, then Build.

Optional ad‑hoc signing (no certificate):

codesign --force --deep --timestamp=none -s - \
  --entitlements "apple-music-on-spotify/apple-music-on-spotify/apple_music_on_spotify.entitlements" \
  "/path/to/apple-music-on-spotify.app"
codesign --verify --deep --strict "/path/to/apple-music-on-spotify.app"

FAQ / Troubleshooting

• Nothing happens when mirroring is enabled
  • Ensure Spotify is running and playing a track (not a podcast episode).
  • Check System Settings → Privacy & Security → Automation:
    • Allow this app to control Music, Shortcuts, and Spotify.
  • Reset Automation prompts:

    tccutil reset AppleEvents $(/usr/libexec/PlistBuddy -c 'Print :CFBundleIdentifier' "apple-music-on-spotify/apple-music-on-spotify/Info.plist")

• Sandbox/Automation denial in Console
  • Ensure entitlements are present (they are in the app). If building locally, prefer running from /Applications and use the ad‑hoc signing step above.
• It opens an album URL instead of the exact song
  • The app constructs canonical song URLs using the album slug and trackId. Some rare tracks may still resolve to album pages; please open an issue with the track details.
• Right‑click on the status bar icon doesn’t open the menu
  • The menu opens on left‑click. If you need a context menu, please file an issue; we can add a right‑click handler if needed.

Project Structure

• AppleScriptBridge.swift: AppleScript helpers to read Spotify state and control Music
• AppleMusicLookup.swift: iTunes Search API client and canonical song URL builder
• SyncManager.swift: polling loop, resolution, menu status updates
• MenuContentView.swift: the menu bar UI
• apple_music_on_spotify.entitlements: sandbox entitlements for Automation and networking

Note: The app does not use Spotify Web API or OAuth.

Privacy

• No analytics, no telemetry, no servers. All lookups are sent directly to Apple’s iTunes Search API over HTTPS.
• The app requests macOS Automation permission to control Music/Shortcuts locally.

Contributing

Issues and PRs are welcome!

• Keep code clear and idiomatic Swift.
• Prefer small, focused PRs with screenshots for UI changes.
• For new features, open an issue to discuss the approach first.

Local development tips:

• Use Console.app to watch for messages from subsystem askck.apple-music-on-spotify.
• If Automation prompts don’t show, try resetting AppleEvents (see above).

License

GNU GPL. See LICENSE.

Disclaimer

This project is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Apple Inc. or Spotify AB. All product names, logos, and brands are property of their respective owners.

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