How to Improve and Reset Apple Music Recommendations

Part 1. Are Apple Music Recommendations Good or Bad?

Short answer: they can be hit or miss. Apple Music does a good job introducing unique discoveries, but it takes time to fully match your taste, which can frustrate new users.

When you first start using Apple Music, you're asked to choose favorite genres and artists on the Home screen. That step matters more than it seems. It's how the algorithm gets its first impression of you, and that impression tends to stick. If you mainly pick big names like Taylor Swift, those choices can shape your recommendations for a long time. Even if you later tell Apple Music what you actually love, early suggestions often lean toward mainstream hits simply because there isn't much listening data yet. For listeners with niche or specific tastes, this phase can feel awkward, as Apple Music is still figuring out who you are.

Part 2. How Apple Music Algorithmic Recommendations Work

Apple Music's recommendation system feels familiar, but it works differently from many other streaming services. It blends algorithms with human curation to understand your listening habits. The trade-off is speed. Unlike some platforms, Apple Music does not adapt instantly.

Here's the key idea. The longer you use Apple Music, the better it gets. Long-term subscribers tend to see far better results than users on free trials. For new users, the Home tab is where most recommendations appear. This includes playlists, albums, and songs based on your early choices. Over time, the app builds a detailed listening history, which allows it to suggest tracks that feel like a natural extension of your music taste.

Apple Music refines its recommendations by tracking a few core signals, including:

Apple Music recommendations appear in multiple sections, and understanding each helps you make the most of them:

Part 3. How to Improve Your Apple Music Recommendations

To get better recommendations, you need to actively engage with the app. The more consistent you are, the faster Apple Music learns your taste. By favoriting songs, albums, and playlists, and using Suggest Less, the algorithm can suggest music you're more likely to enjoy instead of random tracks.

1. Favorite Albums, Songs, and Playlists

When I first started using Apple Music, the recommendations were okay because I had already selected the genres and artists I love. However, I started getting a lot of mainstream pop, which wasn't really my thing. I prefer more niche genres, so I knew I had to make some changes.

Here's what I did: I already had my music collection on another streaming service. Thankfully, you can easily bring that over to Apple Music with services like ViWizard. After that, I went through all my bulk content - like playlists and albums - and favorited them. You can access the "Favorite" feature on your iPhone by tapping on the menu button > Favorite. All the favorited tracks are accessible in your "Favorite Songs."

Step 1 Open the Apple Music app on your device. On a Mac, find it in the Dock; on iPhone or iPad, it's on your home screen.

Step 2 Play a song you like. The Now Playing screen will show the track title, album art, and icons underneath.

Step 3 Tap or click the heart or star icon. This tells Apple Music that you love the song and helps make future recommendations better.

Step 4 Repeat this for other songs or albums you enjoy. The more you mark, the more your Listen Now mixes match your taste.

2. Use the "Love" and "Dislike" Features

The first thing I did was start favoriting albums and playlists that matched my taste. Over time, though, I found some things I didn't want. A quick reminder: iTunes still uses "Love" for the "Favorite" feature, but they are the same thing. This helped Apple Music understand what I liked. I also began using the "Favorite" feature on tracks I really enjoyed, and the "Suggest Less" button when something didn't fit. It didn't take long before the system started to get the hang of my preferences.

Step 1 While a song or artist you don't like is playing, tap or click the three dots next to the track title.

Step 2 Select Suggest Less. This tells Apple Music to show fewer tracks like this in the future.

Step 3 Use this whenever a recommendation feels off. It helps clean up your Listen Now feed over time.

3. Curate Your Library Carefully

One thing I realized is that if you don't curate your library carefully, Apple Music will pick up everything you add - even if it's just for a listen or out of curiosity. I decided to clean up my library and only keep the music I actually loved, and that made a noticeable difference in my recommendations.

Step 1 Open Apple Music and find albums, songs, or playlists you want to save.

Step 2 Tap the Add or Save button next to the music. On Mac, it is near the track name; on iPhone/iPad, it is near the album title.

Step 3 Check your library to make sure the music is saved.

Step 4 Adding music to your library helps Apple Music learn your taste and improves your recommendations.

Part 4. How to Reset Your Apple Music Recommendations

While you can't reset your Apple Music recommendations directly, Apple lets you delete your profile, which removes your username and music activity but does not affect your subscription, library, or playlists. For most users, regularly using Love and Suggest Less is enough to reset recommendations over time. Deleting your profile is only needed if you want a fresh start.

Step 1 Open Apple Music and go to your profile by tapping your avatar or name at the top.

Step 2 Tap Edit at the top of your profile page.

Step 3 Scroll to the bottom and select Delete Profile.

Step 4 Confirm the deletion. This removes your listening history and resets recommendations.

Step 5 After deleting, you can start fresh with a new profile or rebuild your library.

Part 5. How to Control Apple Music Recommendations

If you share your Apple Music account, recommendations can get mixed up, showing genres or artists you don't usually listen to. You can also stop Apple Music from tracking your listening history, which affects future suggestions.

1. Manage "Use Listening History" and Recommendations

By enabling "Use Listening History," Apple Music tracks everything you listen to and uses that data to refine your recommendations. If you prefer more privacy, you can turn off this setting, but it will also limit how well Apple Music can suggest new music based on your taste.

Keep in mind that if you disable "Use Listening History," Apple Music won't track your listening habits, which means you'll miss out on features like your annual report and personalized recaps. But if you change your mind later, you can re-enable it and start getting those scrobbles again.

On iPhone/iPad:

Step 1 Open the Settings app.

Step 2 Scroll down to Apps.

Step 3 Tap on Music.

Step 4 Toggle off Use Listening History.

On Mac:

Step 1 Open the Music app.

Step 2 Click on Music in the menu bar and select Preferences.

Step 3 Go to the General tab.

Step 4 Uncheck Use Listening History.

2. Use Focus Filter

The Focus Filter lets you adjust Apple Music's recommendations based on your current activity.

Step 1 Open the Settings app.

Step 2 Tap Focus.

Step 3 Create a new Custom Focus.

Step 4 Name the Focus (e.g., "Private Listening").

Step 5 Tap Customize Focus.

Step 6 Scroll down to Focus Filters and tap Add Filter.

Step 7 Select Music and toggle off Use Listening History.

Step 8 Activate this Focus mode when sharing your device to prevent others' listening habits from influencing your recommendations.

3. Set Parental Control

If you're sharing your account with younger listeners, you can use Apple Music's parental control settings to restrict certain types of content.

Step 1 Open the Settings app.

Step 2 Tap your name and select Family Sharing.

Step 3 Follow the on-screen instructions to add family members.

Step 4 Ensure each family member has their own Apple ID.

Step 5 Encourage children to use their own accounts to maintain personalized recommendations.

Step 6 Use Screen Time to set content restrictions and monitor usage.

Part 6. Top Tips to Get Better Apple Music Recommendations

Beyond the basics, these habits make the biggest difference in real-world use:

Tip 1: Engage with Personalized Mixes

Apple Music suggests mixes like Favorites Mix and New Music Mix. I made a habit of engaging with these every week. The more I interacted with them, the more accurate the recommendations became.

Tip 2: Play Music You Love Often

Play the tracks you enjoy frequently. The more you listen to music you like, the better Apple Music understands your taste.

Tip 3: Refine Radio Stations

Fine-tune radio stations by liking songs that fit your vibe and skipping those that don't. This helps the algorithm learn what you truly enjoy.

Tip 4: Give It Time

Apple Music takes time to adapt. At first, recommendations may feel scattered or generic. But after a few weeks of consistent interaction, the system starts delivering suggestions that match your taste. Patience is key - the results are worth it.

Tip 5: Backup Your Apple Music Library

This is often overlooked. If your subscription ends or something goes wrong, you could lose your Apple Music library and related recommendations. A simple solution is to use ViWizard Apple Music Converter, which lets you download and save your favorite tracks or even your entire library in formats like MP3, M4A, M4B, WAV, FLAC, or AIFF. This ensures you always have access to your music, even outside Apple Music.

ViWizard Apple Music Converter

Keep Apple Music songs forever by saving them in formats like MP3 to play anywhere.

Available on:

Free Download

Free Download

Secure Download

Part 7. Apple Music Recommendations FAQs