Why it doesn't just work

On an iPhone, OneDrive's folders live inside the OneDrive app, and the Music app can't play files from folders at all. It has no option to add them, so music you keep in OneDrive can't be played there.

On a Mac it's different. OneDrive shows up in Finder, and Mac apps can use its folders like any other folder. That's the way around the problem.

What works

Your Mac does the reaching, and your iPhone does the listening.

• 1On your Mac, make sure OneDrive is set up and your music folder is there. It appears in Finder's sidebar, under Locations.
• 2In Raza Songs on the Mac, import that folder, like any other.
• 3Switch on library sharing so your iPhone can find it. How library sharing works →
• 4Open Raza Songs on your iPhone. Your OneDrive music is there, played from your Mac. Nothing is copied to the phone.

Good to know

The Mac has to be on, as with any library, because it is the server.

OneDrive can keep files online-only until they are opened. That is a OneDrive setting and not ours, and we haven't tested every case. For the most dependable playback, right-click the music folder in Finder and choose Always Keep on This Device, so the files are on your Mac when your iPhone asks for them. Microsoft explains the options →

Dropbox, Google Drive and others

The same works for Dropbox, Google Drive, or any cloud storage folder that appears in Finder: import it on your Mac, and play it on your iPhone.

Want the music on the phone itself?

Apple's Finder sync copies music onto the iPhone instead, so it plays anywhere, at the cost of phone storage. Both ways, side by side → Sync versus streaming, explained →