Clickwill

How to put songs on an iPod classic from a Mac

Clickwill adds songs straight to your iPod. They don't have to be in the Music app first, and nothing already on the iPod changes.

Short answer

In Clickwill, click Add Songs or Albums, choose the folder with your album and click Add to Library. Then click 1 change pending at the bottom of the window and choose Write to iPod.

What you need

Step by step

  1. Connect the iPod and open Clickwill

    Your iPod appears at the top of the sidebar, with the space left on it.

    Clickwill sidebar with an iPod classic 160 GB at the top, 144.9 GB free, and Add Songs or Albums under Library
  2. Click Add Songs or Albums

    It's in the sidebar, under Library. Choose the songs, or the folder an album is in.

  3. Check the album and click Add to Library

    The Add Songs window lists every song with its format and size. An album that isn't on your iPod yet is marked New Album. If it has no cover, click the empty thumbnail to choose one.

    The Add Songs window with Whole Lotta Red by Playboi Carti marked New Album, a note that it has no cover, and the Add to Library button
  4. Click 1 change pending

    Your album now stands in Cover Flow, where it will be on the iPod, marked Added on Write to iPod. Nothing has been copied to the iPod yet. To put it there, click 1 change pending at the bottom of the window.

    Whole Lotta Red in Cover Flow among Playboi Carti's albums, marked Added on Write to iPod, with 1 change pending at the bottom of the window
  5. Click Write to iPod

    Clickwill takes a fresh backup of the iPod's library, checks the new one twice and only then puts it on the iPod, together with the songs.

    Pending changes: Add 24 songs, 1 album, 90.6 MB, with Discard All, Close and Write to iPod
  6. Eject the iPod

    Use the eject button next to its name in the sidebar, then unplug it.

If the album is already on your iPod

Clickwill compares song titles and lengths, so it spots the album even when the files have no tags. Instead of New Album, the Add Songs window then asks what to do:

This looks like Patient Number 9 by Ozzy Osbourne, already on your iPod. 13 of 13 songs match. Replace Files, Skip, Add as a Separate Album

Files the iPod can't play

FLAC, WAV and AIFF, and files above 16 bits, are converted to Apple Lossless when you add them. The Add Songs window shows it next to each song, for example Converted to Apple Lossless 16-bit 44.1 kHz. Your own files on the Mac stay as they are.

Download Clickwill Free alpha for macOS 26 or later.