CarPlay SharePlay: How to Let Passengers Control Music in Your Car

Road trips used to mean constant battles over music. Someone would pass their phone forward, or everyone would argue about whose playlist was better.

SharePlay for CarPlay fixes this. Now passengers can control music from their own iPhones without touching the driver's phone.

Here's everything you need to know to set it up.

Key Takeaway

• SharePlay lets passengers control Apple Music playback from their own iPhones
• Only the driver needs an Apple Music subscription
• Everyone needs iOS 17 or later and Bluetooth turned on
• Passengers can add songs, skip tracks, pause playback, and view lyrics
• The driver stays in control and can remove passengers or end the session anytime

What Is SharePlay in CarPlay?

SharePlay turns music control into a group activity. Everyone in the car can participate instead of one person controlling everything.

The driver connects their iPhone to CarPlay and starts playing music through Apple Music. Then they turn on SharePlay, which creates a session that passengers can join.

Once passengers join, they can search for songs, add tracks to the queue, skip songs, and pull up lyrics. Everything plays through the car's speakers at the same time.

Apple introduced this feature in iOS 17 back in September 2023. Before that, one person controlled all the music or everyone passed phones around the car.

Only the driver needs an Apple Music subscription. Passengers can join without paying for their own.

Who Can Use SharePlay in CarPlay?

You need a few things before SharePlay will work.

The driver needs an iPhone running iOS 17 or later with an active Apple Music subscription. Your car needs to support CarPlay through a wired USB connection or wireless.

Passengers need iPhones running iOS 17 or later. No subscription required.

Everyone needs Bluetooth turned on. There's also a setting called "Discoverable by Nearby Contacts" that needs to be enabled in Settings > Apps > Music for automatic joining.

One important note: SharePlay has age limits. Child accounts managed through Family Sharing might see an error saying "Your account doesn't meet the minimum age requirement for this feature." Apple hasn't shared the exact age requirement, but users report this affects accounts for those under 13.

Your car needs to support CarPlay. While over 800 car models support CarPlay, some older systems might not play nice with SharePlay. If you have CarPlay but SharePlay doesn't appear, your car's system might need an update. If your vehicle doesn't have CarPlay built-in, you can add one of our wireless Apple CarPlay & Android Auto modules or premium Android head units.

How to Set Up SharePlay as the Driver

Setting up SharePlay takes about 30 seconds.

Here's how:

1. Connect your iPhone to CarPlay
2. Open the Music app on your phone or through CarPlay
3. Start playing any song from Apple Music (the SharePlay icon only appears when music is playing)
4. Look at the Now Playing screen and tap the SharePlay icon in the top right corner (it looks like overlapping circles)
5. A QR code appears on your car's screen

Passengers scan this QR code to join your session.

If you and your passengers are already in each other's contacts and have the discovery setting enabled, they might get automatic notifications on their Lock Screens. Most of the time this doesn't work well, so the QR code is more reliable.

When a passenger scans the code and asks to join, you'll see their name with a green checkmark. Tap the checkmark to approve them.

Once you approve someone, they stay approved for future sessions until you remove them. You don't have to approve them every time you drive together.

How Passengers Join a SharePlay Session

Joining as a passenger is simple.

If you get an automatic notification on your Lock Screen, just tap "Connect." The Music app opens and you're in.

But automatic notifications often don't work. Here's the reliable way:

1. Open your iPhone's Camera app
2. Point it at the QR code on the car's screen
3. Tap the notification with the yellow Music icon
4. Tap "Connect" in the Music app
5. Wait for the driver to approve your request

Once approved, you'll see the Now Playing screen update with the current song and queue.

If someone else in the car is already connected, they can show you their QR code too. Scan it the same way and you're in.

What Passengers Can Do Once Connected

Once connected, you have pretty broad control over the music.

You can pause and play songs. You can skip forward or backward. You can turn on shuffle or repeat.

The queue is where it gets interesting. Open the Music app and you'll see what's coming up next. Tap the three dots next to any song and select "Add to Queue" or "Play Next" to add your picks.

You can also view lyrics if they're available.

Everything you do happens in real time through the car's speakers. If you skip a song, everyone hears the next song right away. If you add something to the queue, everyone sees it.

The driver always stays in control. They can remove you or end the session if needed.

Managing and Ending a SharePlay Session

As the driver, you control who's in your session.

To see who's connected, tap the SharePlay icon in the Now Playing screen. You'll see everyone who's participating.

If someone's adding songs you don't want, tap the X next to their name to remove them.

To end the entire session, tap "End" at the bottom of the SharePlay window. This kicks everyone out.

SharePlay sessions end automatically when you disconnect from CarPlay or turn off the car. When you reconnect later, you need to start a new session.

One thing to watch: if you approve someone during a session, they can join future sessions too. If you gave a friend a ride once and they joined SharePlay, they might join again weeks later if you both have SharePlay active. Remove them from the list if you want to stop this.

Common Problems and How to Fix Them

Here are the most common issues and how to fix them:

The SharePlay icon doesn't appear: Make sure you're running iOS 17 or later, music is playing, and you're connected to CarPlay. Your car's system might need an update.

Passengers aren't getting automatic notifications: Make sure everyone has "Discoverable by Nearby Contacts" enabled in Settings > Apps > Music. Even then, just use the QR code instead. It's faster anyway.

The Connect button doesn't work: Close the Music app completely (swipe up from the app switcher) and scan again. If that doesn't work, restart both iPhones.

"Feature Unavailable" error: This usually means age restrictions on a child account or that Apple Music isn't active on the driver's account.

Battery drains quickly: CarPlay drains battery faster than normal use, especially wireless CarPlay. Keep your phone plugged in during long trips.

If problems continue, disconnect from CarPlay, forget the vehicle in Settings > General > CarPlay, and set up the connection again.

SharePlay vs Spotify Jam: Which Is Better?

Spotify offers a similar feature called Jam that works on both iPhones and Android phones. If you have friends with Android devices, Spotify Jam is your only option for group music control.

SharePlay only works with iPhones running iOS 17 or later.

But SharePlay works better with CarPlay and feels more natural on iPhone. If everyone in your group uses iPhones and you have Apple Music, SharePlay is the better choice.

Spotify Jam supports up to 32 people joining a session. SharePlay's limit isn't officially listed but appears to be lower. This rarely matters since most car trips have fewer than five people.

Both require the host to have a paid subscription (Apple Music or Spotify Premium). Both let non-subscribers join once invited.

Pick SharePlay if you're all-Apple. Pick Spotify Jam if you have mixed devices.

Does SharePlay Make Driving Safer?

Apple markets SharePlay as a safety feature since passengers handle music instead of drivers. That's technically true.

Research from IAM RoadSmart found that using CarPlay's touch controls increased driver reaction times by 57% compared to driving without any interaction. Voice controls were better but still increased reaction times by 36%.

Those numbers are worse than texting while driving (35% slower reactions) or driving under the influence of cannabis (21% slower reactions).

SharePlay helps by letting passengers handle music controls. Drivers can keep their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road.

But the urge to adjust things yourself still exists. You might want to skip a song you don't like or add something to the queue.

The safest approach: set up SharePlay before you start driving, agree on music preferences, and resist touching controls once you're moving.

SharePlay is safer than passing your phone around or constantly reaching for the screen. But no interaction while driving is always safest.

Tips for the Best SharePlay Experience

Here's what works based on real use:

Set up the session before you leave. Getting everyone connected while parked gives you time to fix problems.

Talk about music preferences before the trip. If someone only wants death metal and everyone else wants pop, you'll have issues. Set some basic rules.

Remove passengers from the session if they leave the car. Otherwise they might add songs remotely later.

Keep a charging cable handy for long trips. CarPlay with SharePlay can drain batteries faster.

If you're the driver and you really hate a song, just skip it. You're driving, so you get the final say.

Trust the queue system. Once everyone adds a few songs, you'll get a good mix without having to manage every choice.

What's Coming Next for SharePlay

Apple keeps improving SharePlay with each iOS update. iOS 18 removed the requirement for passengers to have their own Apple Music subscriptions.

Apple's CarPlay Ultra promises deeper integration with vehicles. This next-generation system will extend across multiple screens in the car, including the instrument cluster.

SharePlay itself probably won't change much, but the overall CarPlay experience will get better. You might see SharePlay controls on passenger displays in cars with multiple screens.

For now, SharePlay works well for what it does: letting multiple people work together on music during car trips. It fixes the old "pass the phone around" problem and gives everyone a voice.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does SharePlay work with Spotify or other music services?

No, SharePlay only works with Apple Music. Spotify has its own feature called Jam that works on both iPhone and Android devices.

Can passengers join SharePlay without an Apple Music subscription?

Yes, as of iOS 18, passengers can join without their own Apple Music subscriptions. Only the driver hosting the session needs an active subscription.

Why can't my child join SharePlay in CarPlay?

Apple limits SharePlay access for accounts under a certain age (likely 13 based on user reports). Child accounts managed through Family Sharing with parental controls can't use this feature. Apple hasn't provided a way for parents to change this.

Does SharePlay work with wired and wireless CarPlay?

Yes, SharePlay works with both wired USB CarPlay connections and wireless CarPlay. The connection type doesn't affect how SharePlay works, though wireless CarPlay may drain your battery faster.

Can someone who left the car still control music through SharePlay?

If they were approved during a session and you haven't removed them, yes. They can join future sessions or stay connected even after leaving the vehicle. Remove them from the participant list to stop this.

How many people can join a SharePlay session at once?

Apple hasn't shared an official maximum. User reports suggest it's lower than Spotify Jam's 32-person limit, but most car trips have fewer than 5 people anyway.

What happens if the driver's phone dies during SharePlay?

The SharePlay session ends right away when the host phone loses power or disconnects from CarPlay. Music playback stops until the driver reconnects their iPhone and starts a new session.

Can I use SharePlay with non-CarPlay Bluetooth connections?

Yes, iOS 18 expanded SharePlay to work with standard Bluetooth speakers, HomePods, and Apple TV devices. It's no longer just for CarPlay.