Listen to Apple Music on Linux in Style with Cider – Addictive Tips Guide

Linux users have a reputation: if there’s a setting, we’re going to tweak it. If there’s a theme, we’ll recolor it.
If there’s a music app, we want it to look gorgeous, integrate with our desktop, and absolutely not be trapped
in a sad little browser tab. The one holdout for years has been Apple Music, which stubbornly ignored Linux
even while many of us quietly kept family plans alive in the background.

Enter Cider – a stylish, cross-platform Apple Music client that makes streaming on Linux feel
like a first-class experience instead of a hack. In this Addictive Tips–style guide, you’ll learn how to install
Cider on popular Linux distros, how to customize it so it feels native on your desktop, and what its strengths
and limitations are compared with other ways to listen to Apple Music on Linux.

Why Apple Music on Linux Is Still Weirdly Hard

Let’s start with the unfun truth: Apple still doesn’t ship an official Apple Music app for Linux. You basically
get three main options:

• The Apple Music web player in your browser.
• Third-party desktop clients like Cider that wrap the web backend and add native features.
• Workarounds (Wine, virtual machines, or downloading DRM-free copies and playing them locally).

The web player works in modern browsers, but it’s not exactly “desktop-quality.” Keyboard media keys can be flaky,
notifications are browser-dependent, and the UI doesn’t feel like part of your Linux environment. That’s exactly
the gap Cider tries to fill: it takes Apple’s web technology and wraps it in a fast, desktop-friendly experience
with a heavy focus on design, customization, and integration.

Meet Cider: A Stylish Apple Music Client for Linux

Cider started life as a community project aimed at bringing a full Apple Music experience to Windows, macOS, and
Linux using Electron and Vue.js. Over time, it evolved from its early “Classic” open-source version into a more
polished, actively developed client with a strong focus on UI, performance, and extra features that Apple’s own
app doesn’t always prioritize.

On Linux, Cider feels a lot like a native player with extras. Depending on the version you’re using, you’ll typically get:

• Cross-platform support for Windows, macOS, and Linux from the same codebase.
• Theme support with dark mode, accent colors, and sometimes glassy/translucent designs.
• Equalizer and audio tweaks so you can dial in your sound beyond the basic Apple Music web player.
• Discord Rich Presence and Last.fm scrobbling for sharing what you’re listening to and tracking your history.
• Mini-player and full-screen modes that fit both tiling window managers and more traditional desktops.
• Lyrics view and a more immersive “now playing” experience than the simple web layout.
• Plugin support (in newer versions) so power users can extend the app further with community add-ons.

Under the hood, Cider still relies on Apple’s streaming infrastructure. You sign in with your Apple ID and need an
active Apple Music subscription, but the day-to-day experience feels closer to a native player than to a web page
pinned in your browser.

What You Need Before Installing Cider

Before you get fancy with themes and equalizers, make sure you have the basics covered:

• Active Apple Music subscription. Cider is a client, not a replacement for Apple’s service.
  You log in with your Apple ID just like you would on other platforms.
• A reasonably up-to-date Linux distro. Recent versions of Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, Manjaro, Debian,
  openSUSE, and their derivatives work well, especially if they support Flatpak or the AUR.
• Flatpak, Snap, or an AUR helper installed, depending on your distro and how you prefer to manage apps.
• Decent system resources. Cider is an Electron app, so it’s not feather-light. A modern CPU and
  at least 8 GB of RAM will keep things responsive, especially when juggling browsers, IDEs, and containers alongside your music.

How to Install Cider on Popular Linux Distros

Method 1: Flatpak via Flathub (Recommended for Most Users)

For many users, Flatpak is the simplest and most future-proof way to install Cider. Flathub hosts an official build,
and updates are handled for you in a sandboxed environment.

1. Enable Flatpak if you haven’t already. On Ubuntu-based systems, that usually means:

2. Add the Flathub repository (if it’s not already configured):

3. Install Cider:

4. Launch Cider from your app menu, or by running:

This route works great on Fedora, Debian, Linux Mint, Pop!_OS, and pretty much any distro that supports Flatpak.
You get a consistent build and predictable updates without worrying about distro-specific packaging quirks.

Method 2: Arch Linux and Manjaro with AUR Helpers

If you’re on Arch or Manjaro, you can install Cider directly from the AUR. A lot of Addictive Tips–style tutorials
walk through this by using helpers like trizen or yay to fetch and build the package.

1. Install an AUR helper if you don’t already have one. For example, with yay:

2. Install Cider from the AUR. The package name is typically cider or similar:

   or, if you prefer trizen:

3. Run Cider from your launcher or with:

The main trade-off with AUR packages is build time and the usual “rolling release” caveats. On the plus side,
you stay close to the bleeding edge. On the minus side, you occasionally get to play “debug the PKGBUILD” when
upstream changes something.

Method 3: Ubuntu & Other Distros via Snap or Direct Download

Depending on when you read this, Cider may also be available through Snap or direct downloadable packages.
Snap support comes and goes for some apps, so the most reliable approach is:

• Check if a Snap named cider or similar exists in the Snap Store.
• If not, fall back to Flatpak, which is the most consistent option for Ubuntu users.
• For more advanced users, you can also grab builds or AppImages from Cider’s official download channels.

In practice, Flatpak is still the easiest way to keep Cider updated and working across a wide mix of distros,
so even Ubuntu users are usually better off going that route.

Updating and Uninstalling Cider

Once you have Cider installed, keeping it up-to-date is just a matter of using your package manager:

• Flatpak: flatpak update
• AUR (yay): yay -Syu

To remove it:

• Flatpak: flatpak uninstall sh.cider.Cider
• AUR: yay -Rns cider

First Run: Signing In and Getting Oriented

When you fire up Cider for the first time, you’ll be greeted by a sign-in flow that looks familiar if you’ve ever
used Apple Music elsewhere. You log in with your Apple ID, and if you have two-factor authentication enabled, you’ll
need to approve the login and enter the verification code.

Once you’re in, Cider pulls in your:

• Apple Music library and playlists.
• Recently played tracks and recommendations.
• Curated sections like Listen Now, Browse, and Radio.

Take a moment to poke around the settings. Common things worth tweaking on day one include:

• Theme and appearance (dark mode, accent colors, layout density).
• Audio output and output device selection if you use external DACs or pro audio gear.
• Media key integration so your keyboard’s play/pause/skip buttons control Cider instead of random tabs.
• Scrobbling and presence for Last.fm and Discord.

After a couple of minutes of setup, Cider feels less like “an Electron wrapper” and more like a full-blown Linux
music player that just happens to speak Apple Music.

Make Cider Feel Native on Your Linux Desktop

One of the best reasons to use Cider instead of the web player is how well it can blend into your desktop environment.
A few quick tweaks can make it look and behave like it was designed for your setup.

Theme It to Match GNOME, KDE, or Your Tiling WM

In the appearance settings, experiment with:

• Dark vs. light mode to match your system theme.
• Accent colors that align with your GTK/KDE palette.
• Rounded vs. sharp corners, compact layouts, or more spacious designs.

If you’re running a tiling window manager like i3, Sway, or Hyprland, Cider’s minimalist layouts and mini-player
mode work nicely in a small tile, letting you keep your queue visible while terminals and editors take center stage.

Use the Mini-Player and Notifications

The mini-player mode shrinks Cider down to a tiny bar with controls, artwork, and basic track info. That’s perfect
for docking on a secondary monitor or in a corner of your workspace. Combined with desktop notifications, you can
keep track of what’s playing without losing focus.

Map Your Media Keys and Shortcuts

Cider integrates with standard media controls, but behavior can vary depending on your environment. If your keys
aren’t working:

• Check your desktop’s media key configuration (GNOME, KDE, etc.).
• Ensure no other app (like a browser or another player) is claiming the keys.
• Review Cider’s own shortcut settings, where supported, to customize keybindings.

Power Features That Make Cider Addictive

Beyond simply “playing Apple Music on Linux,” Cider adds a few power-user tricks that are easy to get hooked on:

• Visual equalizer & audio tweaks: Adjust bass, mids, and treble directly in the app. Great if your
  headphones or speakers lean bright or boomy and you want a quick correction.
• Immersive “Now Playing” screens: Full-screen layouts with artwork, color-matched backgrounds, and
  sometimes synchronized lyrics turn your monitor into a modern “now playing” wall.
• Discord Rich Presence: Show your friends exactly which track you’re playing. Perfect for social music nerds.
• Last.fm scrobbling: Keep your listening history centralized even if you hop between devices and platforms.
• Plugin system (in newer builds): Extend Cider with community plugins, custom UI elements, and deeper
  integrations as the ecosystem grows.

Some builds of Cider also support features like Spatial Audio or enhanced audio metadata where the underlying platform
and output chain can handle it. The experience varies by system, but it’s far beyond what you’d get from a generic web tab.

Limitations, Quirks, and Realistic Expectations

No matter how stylish Cider is, it still has to play by Apple’s rules. That means a few important limitations:

• No true offline downloads. Cider doesn’t function like the official mobile apps, where you can store
  protected tracks locally for offline playback. If your internet connection dies, so does your stream.
• Lossless audio support is limited. Many Linux setups end up streaming Apple Music in standard AAC quality,
  not full lossless or hi-res, because the web backend and rights management aren’t fully exposed for native Linux clients.
• Occasional breakage when Apple changes things. Since Cider relies on Apple’s APIs and web infrastructure,
  major changes on Apple’s side can temporarily cause login issues, crashes, or glitches until the Cider devs catch up.
• Resource usage. Because Cider is based on Electron, it uses more RAM and CPU than a very lightweight
  native player, especially on older hardware.

None of these are deal-breakers for most users, but it’s worth going in with realistic expectations. Think of Cider as
“the best desktop shell for Apple Music on Linux,” not a magic way to bend Apple’s DRM rules or unlock native features
that don’t exist yet.

Cider vs Other Ways to Listen to Apple Music on Linux

If you’re still deciding whether Cider is right for you, here’s how it stacks up against other common approaches:

Apple Music Web Player

• Pros: No installation, just use your browser; officially supported; simple to access anywhere.
• Cons: Weak desktop integration, no system-wide media keys in many setups, clunky notifications, limited
  customization, and performance can suffer when you have 47 other tabs open.

Running iTunes or Apple Music via Wine or a VM

• Pros: Closer to the “official” experience, sometimes better library management options.
• Cons: Heavy, complex, and often fragile. You’re debugging Wine or virtual machines instead of listening
  to music. Definitely not a “just works” solution for most people.

DRM-Free Downloads and Local Players

• Pros: Once tracks are DRM-free and in formats like FLAC or MP3, you can use any Linux music player
  (Rhythmbox, Clementine, VLC, etc.) with full offline and library control.
• Cons: Extra steps, extra tools, and you lose some of Apple Music’s dynamic features like recommendations,
  radio, and instant playlist syncing across devices.

For most Apple Music subscribers who live on Linux, Cider strikes the nicest balance: modern interface, good performance,
strong desktop integration, and far less hassle than coaxing Apple’s own apps to run under Wine.

Quick Troubleshooting Tips

A few common issues and fixes to keep your listening as smooth as your playlists:

• Stuck at login: Make sure system time and timezone are correct (Apple is picky), and confirm that
  pop-ups or embedded login windows aren’t being blocked by a system-wide privacy or ad-blocking tool.
• Blank or black window: Try disabling hardware acceleration in Cider’s settings, or run it with a
  flag that turns that off, then restart.
• No sound: Confirm your output device in your desktop’s audio settings and in Cider’s preferences,
  especially if you hot-swap USB DACs or Bluetooth headphones.
• Random crashes after an Apple Music update: Check for a newer Cider build or Flatpak updatethese
  usually get resolved quickly once the devs see what changed.

Real-World Experiences: Living with Cider on Linux

So what is Cider actually like to live with day to day on a Linux machine? Imagine booting into your favorite distrosay,
Fedora with GNOME or EndeavourOS with Hyprlandand having a dedicated Apple Music app pinned to your dock or bar, ready
to go the moment you log in. You open your terminal, start your development environment, spin up a couple of Docker
containers, and Cider quietly sits in the corner, providing a soundtrack without demanding attention.

One of the nicest things about Cider is how quickly it becomes part of your workflow. On a tiling window manager, you
might dedicate a narrow vertical tile to the mini-player, so you can see album art and track info at a glance while you
work in Vim, VS Code, or a browser. On GNOME, it fits nicely on a second workspace, responding instantly to media keys
and showing up in the system’s media control pop-up just like a native player.

The visual polish also makes a difference. Instead of staring at a generic browser tab with a big white page, you get
a dark, cohesive interface with color accents pulled from artwork. When you’re listening to a new album, full-screen
mode feels like a digital “now playing wall” that transforms a spare monitor into a dedicated music screen. If you’re
the kind of person who likes ambient visuals while working or hanging out, that alone can make Cider worth using.

Over time, you start to appreciate the integrations. If you’re active on Discord, Rich Presence will quietly broadcast
what you’re playing to your friendshandy if you’re the unofficial DJ of your group. Last.fm scrobbling means your
listening history doesn’t vanish into Apple’s silo; it becomes part of a long-term profile you can use to discover
new artists and keep track of old favorites.

There are a few rough edges, of course. Every once in a while, an Apple-side change or a slightly cranky update can
cause a login hiccup or glitch. If you live in a region where internet connections are inconsistent, you’ll feel
the lack of offline downloads more acutely than someone with fiber to the home. And if you’re extremely particular
about true hi-res lossless, you may find that Linux is still not the most straightforward platform for squeezing
every last bit of fidelity out of Apple Music’s catalog.

But for most users, especially those who are already deep into the Linux ecosystem and just want Apple Music to “feel right”
on their desktop, Cider hits a very sweet spot. It respects the way Linux users like to workcustomizable, scriptable,
theme-ablewhile still talking fluently to Apple’s streaming service and keeping your playlists and library in sync
across devices.

In other words: if you’ve been stuck on the web player, trying Cider on Linux feels a bit like finally getting a real
remote for a TV you’ve been turning on with a stick. Same content, very different experience.

Final Thoughts

Cider won’t magically turn Apple into a Linux-first company, but it does give you something that’s been missing for a
long time: a stylish, highly usable Apple Music client that feels at home on your distro of choice. With easy
installation via Flatpak or AUR, strong desktop integration, and thoughtful extras like themes, scrobbling, and
rich now-playing screens, it’s arguably the best way to listen to Apple Music on Linux today.

If you’re already paying for Apple Music and you live on Linux, there’s no reason to suffer with a bare-bones web
player anymore. Install Cider, tune a theme that matches your setup, hook up your media keys, and enjoy Apple Music
on Linuxfinallyin style.