MP3 is a lossy audio format. Because of small data, it is much easier to download and storage on portable devices. For example, a 4:50 min song on MP3 format uses only about 10Mb of data, while it takes almost 200Mb in WAV format. As one of the best entertainment devices, iPad is excellent in listening to music, especially the iPad Pro with 4 stereo Dolby speakers. Therefore, if you have a lot of MP3 music on your computer and you want to transfer them to iPad for portable listening, you may need to know some effective methods. This tutorial will introduce 3 methods on how to transfer MP3 to iPad. Whether you want to transfer MP3 to iPad with or without iTunes, with wire or wirelessly, you can find a way out.

Related reading:

How to Download Music from YouTube to iPad?

How to Transfer Videos from Computer to iPad?

How to Transfer MP3 to iPhone?

Part 1: How to Transfer MP3 to iPad with iTunes?

iTunes, developed by Apple and released in 2001, is a piece of software that lets you add, organize and play your digital media collection on your computer, as well as sync it to your iOS devices. With iTunes, you can sync MP3 from computer to iPad easily. However, it has obvious disadvantages. For example, you have to sync the whole music library with iTunes, which may cause existing data loss. What’s worse, iTunes only supports limited kinds of music formats, which means that you need to convert music format before sync. Fortunately, MP3, as the most popular audio format, is supported by iTunes. You can follow the steps below to transfer MP3 to iPad with iTunes.

  • Step 1: Download and install the latest version of iTunes from its official website to your computer.
  • Step 2: Launch it after installation. Then, connect your iPad to computer with a USB cable. iTunes will recognize your iPad immediately.
  • Step 3: On the top menu bar, go to File > Add File to Library, and choose MP3 files to transfer from local drive to iTunes.
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  • Step 4: Click your iPad icon, and click Music tab in the left column.
  • Step 5: On the right pane, check Sync Music and Selected playlists, artists, albums, and genres. Then, choose MP3 files imported just now.
  • Step 6: After selection, click Apply in the bottom-right corner to transfer MP3 to iPad.
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Part 2: How to Transfer MP3 to iPad Without iTunes?

Your MP3 files will disappear forever if you do not carefully check all target MP3 files, because iTunes will erase existing data on your iPhone before syncing. Many iOS users are distressed on iTunes for the syncing issues. Fortunately, there are some third-party iOS transfer software can solve this problem. Leawo iTransfer, as the best iPhone, iPod and iPad transfer software, provides perfect solutions to transfer up to 12 kinds of files between iOS devices, computer, and iTunes, including photos, videos, music, contacts, ringtones, etc. In addition, it is also an excellent tool to manage your iOS devices on computer. Without risk of data loss and overwriting, the transfer process will be done rapidly and safely. Below are detailed steps to transfer MP3 to iPad without iTunes but iTransfer.

Step 1: Download Leawo iTransfer

Click either button below according to your computer system to download and install Leawo iTransfer on your computer.

  • itransfer
  • Leawo iTransfer

    - Transfer files among iOS devices, iTunes and PCs with ease.
    - 6x faster than iTunes
    - Transfer up to 14 kinds of data and files without iTunes.
    - Support the latest iOS devices like iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, etc.
    - Play back, view, and delete data and files on iOS devices.
    - Support Windows & Mac OS

Step 2: Connect your iPad to computer

Launch iTransfer after installation. Then, connect your iPad to computer with a USB cable. The software will recognize your iPad automatically as iTunes does.

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Step 3: Choose MP3 files to transfer

On the left column, click Music tab, and all music on your iPad will be listed in the right pane. Click File > Add File/Add Folder to browse and choose MP3 files to import from local drive.

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Step 4: Start to transfer MP3 to iPad

After selecting MP3 files, this software will begin to transfer MP3 to iPad immediately. A window will pop up to indicate the transfer process.

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Part 3: How to Transfer MP3 to iPad Wirelessly?

If you don’t have a USB cable to connect your iPad and computer, you can consider to transfer MP3 to iPad wirelessly. Actually, you don’t need to install any extra app to get this work done. All you can rely to is the email – add MP3 files to attachment. However, there is also limitation – the size. Generally speaking, the maximum size of total attachment is 50Mb, and for single attachment is 10MB. Thanks to the small size of MP3, you can transfer at least 5 songs in one time. If this meets you need, read the following steps to transfer MP3 to iPad wirelessly.

  • Step 1: On your computer, go to any mail service provider on the browser.
  • Step 2: Create a new email and add MP3 files to attachment. Enter your another email account as receiver and send it.
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  • Step 3: On your iPad, log into the receiver email account, and tap those songs in attachment. After the download is complete, share the song to any of a music app on your iPad and save it for offline listening.
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Part 4: Comparison Between 3 Methods to Transfer MP3 to iPad

The above-mentioned methods are all good ways to transfer MP3 to iPad. iTunes is the only official way to transfer files between iOS devices and computer, but there is risk to get data lost. iTransfer is an excellent third-party iOS transfer program to transfer files between iOS devices, computer and iTunes quickly and safely. Email is another free way to transfer files between two devices wirelessly, but there is size limitation. If you still can’t make up your mind, here is a comparison table between 3 methods to transfer MP3 to iPad.

Features iTunes iTransfer Email
Transfer MP3 to iPad Yes Yes Yes
Transfer wirelessly No No Yes
No need for Wi-Fi Yes Yes No
No risk of data loss No Yes Yes
Various formats supported No Yes Yes
No size limitation Yes Yes No
Transfer speed Low High Low
Manage iOS data on computer Yes Yes No
Ease of use No Yes No