Re-Downloading All iTunes Purchases
iTunes was split into separate apps — Apple Music, Apple TV, Podcasts, and Apple Books on macOS — in macOS Catalina (10.15) in 2019. iTunes continues to exist on Windows. The purchase history and re-download capability for content bought under your Apple ID survived this split and is accessible through each successor app by content type. The mechanics differ between content types: music purchases are reliably re-downloadable as DRM-free AAC files; movies and TV shows are governed by studio licensing agreements that can pull titles from availability; apps are re-installable as long as they remain in the App Store and support your current iOS or macOS version. This page covers where to find purchased content in each app, what reliably re-downloads and what doesn't, and practical considerations when doing a bulk re-download of a large library. Part of the how-to section. The adjacent macOS installer verification guide covers Apple software authenticity checking.
How purchases are still accessible
All content purchased under an Apple ID remains associated with that account permanently, regardless of where the purchase was made — iTunes for Windows, the old iOS App Store, an old iPhone, or the macOS App Store. Re-downloading requires being signed into the same Apple ID and using the appropriate app for each content type. On macOS: Apple Music for music, Apple TV for movies and TV shows, App Store for apps and games, Apple Books for ebooks.
iTunes era (pre-2019): All purchased content was accessible from a single iTunes library view. "Purchased" under the Store menu showed everything bought under the account across all content types. Downloading the full purchase history to local storage was one operation within one app. The local iTunes library file tracked what was downloaded vs. what was in the cloud.
Post-iTunes (2019 onwards): Content is split across separate apps by type. Music purchases live in Apple Music, films in Apple TV, etc. The iCloud Music Library may mix purchases with Apple Music subscription tracks, which requires filtering. On Windows, iTunes still handles all content types under one roof, though it has received fewer feature updates since the macOS split.
Re-downloading music purchases
Music purchased from the iTunes Store is stored as DRM-free 256kbps AAC. Purchases made before Apple dropped DRM in 2009 may be in the older DRM-protected AAC format — those can be upgraded via iTunes Match or can sometimes be re-downloaded in the DRM-free format if the same track is currently available DRM-free in the catalogue.
On macOS (Apple Music): Account menu → Purchases. The Purchases screen shows all purchased music not currently in the local library. Use "Download All" to pull everything locally, or select individual items.
On Windows (iTunes): Account menu (or Store menu) → Purchased → Music. Same functionality — download all or individually.
The "Not in My Library" filter on the Purchases screen is the most useful view for a bulk re-download scenario. Without the filter, the list includes tracks already present locally, making it hard to identify what's missing. After enabling the filter, the list shows only cloud-available purchases that aren't yet downloaded. The "Download All" button respects this filter — it only downloads tracks that aren't already local.
iCloud Music Library can confuse the purchase status display. If a track you purchased has a "matched" version in iCloud Music Library (from Apple Music catalogue matching), the iCloud version may show instead of the purchase. Matched tracks are separate from purchased tracks and may differ in encoding quality or mastering version. If precise download of the purchased version matters, filtering for "Purchased" tracks specifically (not just the full iCloud Music Library) ensures you're downloading the purchase rather than the matched version.
Re-downloading movies and TV shows
Movie and TV show re-download availability is not guaranteed. Studios can withdraw titles from the Apple TV catalogue through licensing decisions, and withdrawn titles are no longer available for re-download even if purchased. Apple's terms acknowledge this possibility. In practice, most mainstream titles remain available, but niche, foreign-language, and independently distributed content has a higher risk of becoming unavailable. If long-term offline access to purchased video content matters, keeping local copies is the only reliable approach.
On macOS (Apple TV): Account menu → Purchased. Filter by Movies or TV Shows. Downloaded content shows the download icon with a filled chevron; cloud-only shows an empty cloud icon. Download individually or use the "Download All" option per-title for TV series.
4K and HDR versions: Many standard-definition purchases from the iTunes era were upgraded to 4K and/or HDR versions at no additional charge when Apple introduced 4K titles. If a purchased film shows "4K HDR" availability, the higher quality version re-downloads under the original purchase.
Re-downloading apps and games
Apps are linked to your Apple ID purchase history. Re-installing works through the App Store → Account → Purchased tab, which lists all apps ever purchased or downloaded under the account.
App Store policy changes in 2020 allowed developers to remove 32-bit app support (following Apple's 64-bit mandate), which means many older apps purchased years ago no longer exist in a downloadable form. The App Store shows these in purchase history as unavailable. There is no workaround — if the developer hasn't updated the app, it cannot be downloaded to a modern iOS or macOS version. This is distinct from a developer removing their app: an app removed from the App Store entirely disappears from purchase history display (it's still technically associated with the account but is not shown).
Re-downloading books
Apple Books re-downloads via the Books app → Account → Purchased. Books purchased from the iBookstore (the predecessor to Apple Books) are in the same purchase history. DRM-protected EPUB files require Apple Books to open; purchases of DRM-free content may be more transferable.
Bulk strategy for a full library restore
For restoring a complete purchase history to a new Mac or after a disk failure, the most efficient approach is:
- Music: Enable iCloud Music Library, wait for sync, then use "Download All" in Purchased (Not in My Library).
- Movies/TV: Download selectively — downloading an entire purchased film library takes significant storage and bandwidth; prioritise titles you actively want offline.
- Apps: Use App Store Purchased tab; skip anything flagged as incompatible with current iOS/macOS.
- Books: Use Books Purchased tab; download all — ebook files are small.