How to Sync an iPad With iTunes

By Daniel Nations

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How to Sync an iPad With iTunes

Photo © Apple, Inc.

Updated August 18, 2016.

Now that you can back up the iPad to iCloud, it is not as important to sync it to your PC. However, it can still be a good idea to sync to iTunes to make sure you have a local backup and to make sure the iTunes on your PC and your iPad have the same music, movies, etc.

You can also buy apps on iTunes and sync them to your iPad. This is great if the iPad is used by your children and you have set up parental restrictions on it.

Using iTunes as a go-between gives you full control over what is on the iPad and what is not allowed on it.

Before you sync your iPad with iTunes, you need to connect your iPad to your PC or Mac using the cable provided when you purchased your device.
If iTunes doesn't open when you connect your iPad, launch it manually.
iTunes should automatically sync your iPad based on the options you have set up or the default settings.
If iTunes does not automatically begin the sync process, you can manually start it by selecting your iPad from the devices section of the menu on the left side of iTunes.
With your iPad selected, choose File from the top menu and Sync iPad from the choices.

How to Sync Apps to iTunes | How to Sync Music to iTunes | How to Sync Movies to iTunes | How to Sync Photos to iTunes

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How to Sync Apps to iTunes

Did you know you can sync individual apps to iTunes? You can even purchase and download apps to iTunes and sync them to your iPad. And you don't even need to sync every single app on your system. You can choose which apps to sync, and even choose to automatically sync new apps.

You will need to connect your iPad to your PC or Mac and launch iTunes, as explained on the previous page.
Inside of iTunes, choose your iPad from the Devices list in the left-side menu.

At the top of the screen is a list of options ranging from Summary to Apps to Ringtones to Photos. Choose Apps from this list. (It's highlighted in the photo above.)
To sync apps to iTunes, check the box next to Sync Apps.
In the list below the Sync Apps check box, put a check mark next to any individual apps you want to sync.
Want to automatically sync new apps? Below the list of apps is the option to sync new apps.
You can also sync documents within apps by scrolling down the page, choosing the app and choosing which documents to sync. This is a great way to back up the work done on your iPad.

Did you know you can also arrange the apps on your iPad from this screen? It works similar to organizing apps on your iPad. Simply drag and drop apps from the pictured screen. You can choose a new screen below and even drop apps onto one of these screens.

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How to Sync Music From iTunes to the iPad

Photo © Apple, Inc.

Do you want to move music from iTunes to your iPad? Perhaps you want to sync an individual playlist or a particular album? While the iPad allows home sharing to listen to music from iTunes without downloading the songs to your iPad, it is also handy to sync some music to your iPad. This allows you to listen to music on your iPad even when you aren't at home.

You will need to connect your iPad to your PC or Mac and launch iTunes, as explained on the first page.

Inside of iTunes, choose your iPad from the Devices list in the left-side menu.
Choose Music from the list of options across the top of the screen. (It's highlighted in the photo above.)
Check next to Sync Music at the top. Syncing your entire library should be the default setting. If you want to sync individual playlists or albums, click next to that option just below the Sync Music checkbox.
This screen has four main options: Playlists, Artists, Genres, and Albums. If you want to sync an individual playlist, put a check mark next to it under Playlists. You can do the same for individual artists, genres, and albums.

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How to Sync Movies From iTunes to the iPad

The iPad makes a great device for watching movies, and luckily, the process of syncing movies from iTunes is relatively straight forward. However, because the files are so big, it will take some time to sync individual movies, and could take a considerable chunk of time to sync your entire collection.

Did you know you can watch movies on your iPad without downloading them from iTunes? Find out how to use home sharing to watch movies.

You will need to connect your iPad to your PC or Mac and launch iTunes, as explained on the first page.
Once iTunes has launched, choose your iPad from the Devices list in the left-side menu.
With your iPad selected, there is a list of options across the top of the screen. Choose Movies. (It's highlighted in the photo above.)
Put a check mark next to Sync Movies.
To sync your entire collection, check automatically include all moves. You can also change "all" to your most recent movies. But if you have a large collection, it might be best to simply transfer a few individual movies.
When the option to automatically include all movies isn't checked, you'll have the option to check individual movies from the list below. Each individual movie selection will tell you how long the movie is and how much space it will take up on your iPad. Most movies will be around 1.5 gigs, give or take some depending on the length and the quality.

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How to Sync Photos to the iPad From iTunes

You will first need to connect your iPad to your PC or Mac and launch iTunes. (See directions here.)
Once iTunes is running, choose your iPad from the Devices list in the left-side menu.
With your iPad selected, there is a list of options across the top of the screen. To start transferring photos, choose Photos from the list.
The first step is to check the Sync Photos from... option at the top of the screen.

The default folder for syncing photos is My Pictures on a Windows-based PC and Pictures on a Mac. You can change this by clicking on the drop down menu.
Once your main folder has been chosen, you can sync all folders under that main folder or select photos.
When you are choosing select folders, iTunes will list out how many photos the folder contains to the right of the folder name. This is a great way to verify that you have selected the folder with photos.