Having trouble with Apple Music Family Sharing not working? Apple Music Family Sharing allows you to share your subscription with up to six family members while each person manages their account.
However, I once added someone to my Family Sharing subscription, but it didn’t reflect on their end as they were still asked to start the free trial. I’ve also seen several reports of the issue by several Apple Music users online.
To help you, I’ve curated solutions that fixed the Apple Music Family Sharing issue for me and other proven methods that might help you. Before diving into the solutions, make sure you and the person you’re sharing Apple Music with are in the same region as that’s a requirement for it to work.
1. Ensure you are subscribed to Apple Music Family
One of the first prerequisites for sharing your Apple Music subscription is that you must subscribe to Apple Music’s Family plan. To check whether you’re subscribed or learn how you can upgrade your Individual plan to a Family plan, follow these steps:
- Launch the Settings app on your iPhone.
- Tap Apple ID banner → Subscriptions → Apple Music or Apple One.
- Check to see if the Apple Music card says Family to ensure you’re subscribed. If it says Individual, tap See All Plans.
- From the list of Apple Music plans, select Family.
- Authenticate the transaction by double-clicking the Power Button.
Some users may have to use Face ID or Touch ID, depending on their settings.
2. Sign out and sign in again to your Apple ID
Glitches in Apple ID settings can prevent you from enabling Apple Music sharing for your family members. To phase out such possibilities, try logging out and back into your Apple ID by following these steps:
- Launch the Settings app → Tap the Apple ID banner.
- Scroll down and tap Sign Out.
- Enter your Apple ID’s password → tap Turn off.
- Select the content you want to store offline. Then, tap Sign out.
- Sign in to your Apple account again.
3. Check if Apple Music sharing for your family is enabled
If you subscribe or upgrade to Apple Music Family, your Apple device will automatically include it in your family’s shared subscriptions. But if you accidentally turn it off, Apple Music Family Sharing won’t function. To verify that this feature is enabled on your device, follow these steps:
- Go to Settings → Family → Subscriptions.
- Tap Manage Subscriptions.
- Toggle on Share with Family.
Even if the feature is already turned on and you are not able to access it, toggle off Share with Family, restart your iPhone, and enable it again.
4. Ensure you are using the correct Apple ID for Family Sharing
In case you’ve created multiple Apple IDs to use on your device, you must ensure that you’re using the same Apple ID for Family Sharing and Media & Purchases. Here’s how you can quickly verify the same on your iPhone.
- Go to Settings → Family.
- Select your profile (the one that says Organizer).
- Note down the Apple ID you’re using.
- Go back to Settings → Tap the Apple ID banner.
- Tap Media & Purchases → View Account.
- Check if the Apple ID matches the one we noted earlier and tap Done.
If the Apple ID matches, you are good to go. If not, follow the next step. - Select Media & Purchases → Sign Out.
- Tap Media & Purchases again, and sign in with the Apple ID that you used for Family Sharing.
5. Remove and re-add your family members
Are you still struggling with the Apple Music Family Sharing not working issue in iOS 17? If yes, your best shot at fixing this problem would be to remove that person from family sharing and re-add them. While this process sounds lengthy, the steps given below can help you do it quickly.
- Go to Settings → Family.
- Select your profile (the one that says Organizer).
- Tap Stop Using Family Sharing.
- Again, tap Stop Using Family Sharing to confirm the changes.
- Now, tap the blue Plus icon at the top right corner.
- Select a Siri suggestion or tap Invite Others.
- Share the Family Invitation using a preferred option. Then, tap Done.
6. Check Apple’s System Status Page
Although uncommon, there is a possibility that Apple Music’s servers are experiencing an outage, which can prevent Apple Music from working for you, your family members, and everyone else.
To confirm that everything is working correctly, visit Apple’s System Status Page and check if there is a green indicator next to all the services related to Apple Music. If there is a red indicator, it means the servers are down, and you will need to wait until they are back online to access Apple Music.
Wrapping up…
Usually, when Apple Music Family Sharing fails to work, it’s a result of a glitch with syncing your settings. The most recommended solution is to sign out your Apple ID and sign back immediately. This helps several users who face the issue and should help you as well. If you found this guide helpful, let us know in the comments section.
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