How to Use iTunes as an Internet Radio Player

Listen to live radio stations for free on your computer.

by
Mark Harris
Writer
Mark Harris is a former writer for Lifewire who wrote about the digital music scene and streaming music services in an easy to understand, no-nonsense manner.
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Mark Harris
Updated on May 22, 2021

Internet radio streams are online versions of radio stations. You no longer have to use a car radio or AM/FM tuner to listen to radio because if a station broadcasts online, you can probably listen to it on iTunes as well. And like most other media players, iTunes can stream live music, weather, news, police radio, and podcasts.

Once a stream is added to iTunes, it's placed in its own "Internet Songs" playlist, and it works like any other playlist in your iTunes library.

Some radio streams may be identified as regular music files and located in the Library section of iTunes with the time listed as "Continuous."

How to Add Radio Stations to iTunes

Not all radio stations live stream, but you can search for radio stations that do offer live streams. Once you've found one, copy the URL for that stream.

  1. With iTunes open, navigate to File > Open Stream. Alternatively, use the keyboard shortcut Command+U on a Mac, or Ctrl+U on a PC.

  2. Paste the URL of the online radio station into the field that displays.

  3. Select OK to add the station to iTunes.

    To remove a custom radio station, right-click on the station and select Delete from Library.

Where to Find Internet Radio Streams

Below are two websites that have large collections of free internet streams with direct links to the URLs that you can copy and add to iTunes. However, your favorite radio station may also have a link posted on its website, so if you want to listen to a specific station, you should look there first.

Radio? Sure!

Go to Radio? Sure! and select Stations. Then, select Active and enter a keyword that can help find a station you want to stream. After you open the stream, copy the link from the Source section and paste it into iTunes.

Searching for music on "Radio? Sure!"

Icecast Directory

Go to Icecast directory and search by keyword or browse by genre. Right-click the MP3 link to copy and paste it into iTunes.

Searching for music on Icecast directory

Radio streams are typically in MP3 file format, but some streams are in playlist formats, like PLS or M3U. No matter the format, try inserting the link into iTunes as described. If it works, it will begin playing within seconds. If it doesn't work, it may be added to iTunes but never actually play.

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