8 Ways to Spend the iTunes Gift Card You Unwrapped Today - MacRumors
Skip to Content

8 Ways to Spend the iTunes Gift Card You Unwrapped Today

by

santa itunes gift cardApp Store & iTunes gift cards have been a popular tech-themed stocking stuffer for years. If you unwrapped one today, we have eight ideas for what to buy across the App Store, iTunes, Apple Books, and beyond in 2018.

Start with Apple's instructions for redeeming App Store & iTunes gift cards.

1. Apple Music subscription

App Store & iTunes gift cards can be used to fund an Apple Music subscription, which costs $9.99 per month for individuals, $4.99 per month for students, and $14.99 per month for families of up to six people in the United States. Apple Music offers a free three-month trial in most countries.

Apple Music provides unlimited streaming of over 50 million songs with an active subscription and is available on an iPhone or Android smartphone, iPad, Mac or PC, Apple Watch, Apple TV, HomePod, Sonos, and Amazon Echo speakers.

apple music devices
To pay for Apple Music with an App Store & iTunes gift card, simply redeem the card and the monthly or annual subscription cost will be drawn from any store credit tied to your Apple ID. If the balance is zero, then Apple Music will be billed to another valid payment method on file, such as a credit card.

2. Other subscriptions

App Store & iTunes gift cards can be used towards a variety of other subscription-based services available on the App Store, such as Netflix, Hulu, Spotify, ESPN+, Tidal, and Dropbox. These subscriptions are available within the apps.

Note that Netflix has experimented with removing the option to pay for a subscription via iTunes for new customers in certain countries.

3. iCloud storage

When you sign up for iCloud, you automatically get 5GB of free storage for photos, videos, and other files. If you need more space, you can upgrade to a larger storage plan, including 50GB for 99 cents per month, 200GB for $2.99 per month, or 2TB for $9.99 per month in the United States. Prices vary in other regions.

icloud storage plans
To pay for iCloud storage with an App Store & iTunes gift card, simply redeem the card and the monthly cost will be drawn from any store credit tied to your Apple ID. If the balance is zero, then the iCloud storage plan will be billed to another valid payment method on file, such as a credit card.

4. Popular paid apps and games

Nowadays, many apps and games are free and rely on in-app purchases, but these are some of the most popular paid titles on the App Store:

Prices are based in U.S. dollars and vary in other regions.

5. In-app purchases and game currencies

Spend your App Store & iTunes gift card balance on in-app purchases and game currencies, be it V-Bucks in Fortnite, PokéCoins in Pokémon GO, extra moves in Candy Crush Saga, gems in Clash of Clans, or something else.

6. Holiday movies on sale in iTunes

Many holiday movies are on sale in iTunes for a limited time, including classics such as Home Alone and A Christmas Story.

$7.99:

  • Arthur Christmas

  • Gremlins

  • The Night Before

  • A Christmas Carol

  • Edward Scissorhands

  • Happy Christmas

home alone
$9.99:

  • Home Alone

  • Elf

  • National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

  • Die Hard

  • A Christmas Story

  • The Polar Express

  • How the Grinch Stole Christmas: The Ultimate Edition

  • The Santa Clause

  • It's a Wonderful Life

  • Planes, Trains and Automobiles

  • A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas

  • Jack Frost

  • The Nativity Story

  • Miracle on 34th Street

  • The Nightmare Before Christmas

  • Scrooged

Prices are based in U.S. dollars and vary in other regions.

7. Disney audiobooks

Disney has a variety of audiobooks available on the Apple Book Store, with some free and others priced under $20 in the United States.

8. iMessage sticker packs

imessage stickers
If you still have a dollar or two left in store credit after working through this lift, elevate your iMessage game with some sticker packs.

If you have any other ideas, let us know in the comments section!

Tag: iTunes
Related Forum: Mac Apps

Top Rated Comments

simonmet Avatar
simonmet
96 months ago
In-game currencies? You mean borderline gambling! No, these should not be supported and I’ve long argued Apple are abhorrent for allowing them in the App Store. They’ve ruined the ability to find decent games that don’t use them.

Subscriptions and expansions sure, but don’t support scammy freemium in-game currencies MacRumors. Take a stand!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Z
ZipZap
96 months ago
I would add info on how to pay for Apple Music on a yearly basis at the end of the trial, which saves money.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Z
ZZ Bottom
96 months ago
How about transferring to and from my Apple Pay Cash account?
Likely not since these cards often sell for 10-15% off. Apple is fine with that since they get ~30% cut of store sales, but if you could buy an App Store card for 15% off, then convert to currency, you’d be instantly getting 15% free. Obviously Apple’s not interested in giving money away.

I’m bummed they still can’t be used for Apple Store purchases, but it’s the same reason as above.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pat500000 Avatar
pat500000
96 months ago
Great way to spend that gift card? Mail it to me.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
B4U Avatar
B4U
96 months ago
It is sad to have to advertise for Apple Music like this!
The number 1 should have been In-app purchases, given the crappy business model of the gaming industry right now.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments

Popular Stories

Apple Event Logo

Apple's Next Era Begins September 1

Thursday May 7, 2026 10:36 am PDT by
Apple recently announced that Tim Cook will be stepping down as CEO later this year, after 15 years of leading the company. Effective September 1, Apple's hardware engineering chief John Ternus will become the company's next CEO, while Cook will become executive chairman of Apple's board of directors. In his new role, Apple said Cook will assist with "certain aspects" of the company,...
Read Full Article
Four iPhone 18 Pro Colors Mock Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Launching in September With These 10 New Features

Saturday May 9, 2026 6:03 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not launching until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. It was initially reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models would have fully under-screen Face ID, with only a front camera visible in the top-left corner of the screen. However, the latest rumors indicate that only one Face ID component will be moved under the...
Read Full Article
Apple Watch Series 10 Jet Black Touch ID

Apple Watch Series 12 and watchOS 27: What to Expect Later This Year

Friday May 8, 2026 2:07 pm PDT by
While not too much has been reported about the next Apple Watch models, there are a few rumors about potential design changes and watchOS 27 features. Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 models are expected to be released in September, and we have outlined some of the key rumored hardware and software changes below. A new Apple Watch SE is not expected this year, as that model was...
Read Full Article • 59 comments