# Harken Offline Music Player — Fastest way to listen to music

> Gesture-controlled offline music and podcast player for Apple Music library. (iPhone/iPad app by Ben Thomas.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/harken-offline-music-player/id640341465 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Ben Thomas](https://appshunter.io/developer/492594056)
- Category: Music, Entertainment
- Price: $9.99
- Rating: 4.40/5 from 9 App Store ratings · 14 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 14.0 · 8 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2013-05-03
- Data updated: 2026-07-04
- Monetization: paid
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/harken-offline-music-player/id640341465/reviews.md

## What is Harken Offline Music Player?

Rediscover your music collection with Harken, a beautiful yet simple music player for your iPhone or iPad that uses gestures to control playback of music and podcasts synched from Apple Music on your Mac or PC, or bought with the Apple Music app on your iPhone, iPod or iPad. 

Harken has a unique bottom-based navigation so you don't have to do gymnastics to reach buttons at the top of the screen - all the primary controls are located at the bottom of the screen.

Get super fast access to your music with the minimum number of taps needed to listen to albums, artists, compilations, composers, genres, playlists, songs or podcast episodes.

Create an on-the-go playlist* from a combination of albums, artists, compilations, composers, genres, playlists, songs or podcast episodes.

Sort your library to find music you haven't listened to in ages, or by rating or recently played to quickly find your favourites.

You can also shuffle all albums or songs by a single artist, composer or genre - see Settings to change between song and album shuffling.
 
Does your music have lyrics? Tap the lyrics button to see them.

Choose from dark or light themes, full-screen or small cover art, and even use your favourite font to make Harken *your* music player.

Harken For iPhone and iPad is perfect for use in the car or when your device is sitting in a dock and connected to your home stereo:
 - playback controls are so easy to use you don't need to look at the phone to play, pause, or skip tracks
 - larger than standard text is easy to read when the phone is mounted in a cradle on your wind shield or dash board
 - the screen does not turn off automatically**, so you don't have to unlock the phone to control playback

Podcast support - simply sync podcasts to your iPhone or iPad with the Apple Podcasts app.

You can also play iTunes Match items, or hide them via the app's settings, but due to a restriction with Apple's support libraries, the music does not get saved to your phone. Nor is there an indicator of the download progress. Songs will start playing once they've downloaded enough. I'll add better support for iTunes Match as soon as possible but it will depend on Apple choosing to enhance their developer kit.

Harken has loads of features, and I'm constantly adding new ones that my users request.

*On-the-go playlists are not stored. Use iTunes if you want to create permanent playlists.
**Battery usage will increase while the screen is on.

If you have any feature requests or feedback, I can be reached on Twitter: @iosdevben.

And if you like Harken, please take the time to rate and leave a review: it really helps independent developers like me.

## Key features

- Gesture-based playback control
- Bottom navigation for easy access
- On-the-go playlist creation
- Library sorting by various criteria
- Customizable themes and fonts
- Podcast playback support
- Car-friendly playback controls

## Recent user reviews (10 of 14)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/harken-offline-music-player/id640341465/reviews.md

### 5/5 — Pretty much perfect

*2026-02-05, version 5.0.0*

Nice, simple controls with a clean interface. Great for driving. If you dislike the native music app as much as me, which is to say… a lot. Check it out.

### 5/5 — Simple yet effective

*2025-01-06, version 5.0.0*

Great to see this app getting some love with an update. 
I thought it was EOL but I love the new interface and how easily you can switch ordering. 

I still use my default ‘last listened’ so I can dig out albums or playlists i haven’t enjoyed in a while 

Thank you for this app. Keep up the good work.

### 3/5 — Acceptable

*2022-05-04, version 4.7.1*

Sorry, some of the reviews i read said this app would cure my issue with the iPhone Apple app and cure the Cover Art issue. The Apple app has asssigned most of the Album Civer art completely wrong. This app did not help that issue.

### 5/5 — Works well, happy

*2020-11-01, version 4.6.0*

Good alternative to the standard music player, and most importantly, Podcasts + Music in one interface!!

Dig it.

### 5/5 — Excellent player

*2020-01-28, version 4.5.0*

I have tried several IOS music players and Harken comes out on top. I listen to my music through Smart playlists and the play count updating is essential for them to function. The artwork always displayed without shutting down as the Apple player does, is great. Ecoute is the only other player that has these functions, as far as I have found, but Harken has a much more user friendly interface. The stop/play tap on screen is great. Now if only Ben could implement the crossfade function he would get 5 stars.

### 1/5 — harken music app

*2019-11-07, version 4.5.0*

Not working

### 5/5 — The ONLY Music App I Use

*2018-06-01, version 4.3.1*

Simple, clean, easy to use interface.  I love the clean, uncluttered, easy-to-use interface with nice big album art.  This is perfect for use when in a vehicle because song play is controlled by taps and gestures anywhere on the screen.

### 2/5 — Can’t figure it out

*2018-05-07, version 4.3.1*

Not easy at all to download music from iTunes.   :(   I had high hopes but it’s back to the drawing board ...,,,,,

### 2/5 — Font very difficult to read

*2015-11-30*

IN theory looks  quite a nice app, but if you’ve ANY issues with eyesight, this will be impossible to read. All fonts in this are very thin and accessibility settings seem to be ignored.

**Developer response:** Hi Paul,

Please try the latest version. There are many fonts to choose from, and I've moved away from the thin ones so I hope that makes it easier to use.

Respecting your accessibility settings is a high priority for me and I hope to add that feature soon.

### 5/5 — One of the best replacement apps for music and podcasts

*2014-06-21, version 3.0.5*

I use Harken for iPhone pretty much everyday, especially to listen to podcasts while driving. It's easy to use, looks good, uses gestures that are natural, and the programmer responds positively to feedback. (For my part, I try to keep that feedback useful. :-) About the only thing I could ask for at this point is a universal app; I have it installed on my iPad anyway.

## Frequently asked questions about Harken Offline Music Player

### What is Harken's primary function?

Harken is designed to be a fast and intuitive music and podcast player for your existing Apple Music library. It focuses on gesture controls and a user-friendly bottom navigation to simplify playback and library management.

### How does Harken handle music synced from Apple Music?

Harken plays music and podcasts synced from Apple Music on your Mac or PC, or purchased through the Apple Music app on your device. It can also play iTunes Match items, though these are not saved locally to your phone.

### Can I create playlists with Harken?

Yes, Harken allows you to create 'on-the-go' playlists by combining albums, artists, genres, and more. Please note that these playlists are not stored permanently; for permanent playlists, you should use the iTunes app.

### Is Harken suitable for use in the car?

Absolutely. Harken is optimized for use in the car with easy-to-use playback controls that don't require looking at the screen. It also features larger text options and prevents the screen from turning off automatically.

### What customization options does Harken offer?

Harken allows you to personalize your experience with choices between dark or light themes, full-screen or small cover art displays, and the ability to select your favorite font.

### Does Harken have ads?

No, Harken is ad-free. As a paid application, it does not contain any advertisements, ensuring an uninterrupted listening experience for users.

### What is the price of Harken?

Harken is a paid application priced at $9.99. This one-time purchase grants you access to all its features without any recurring subscription fees.

### How often is Harken updated?

Harken was last updated on December 30, 2024, with version 5.0.0. The developer actively adds new features based on user requests, indicating a commitment to ongoing development and improvement.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 5.0.0 — 2024-12-30

This is a huge update with lots of small UI changes that should make Harken easier and more pleasurable to use, but the biggest change is that Harken now fully supports iPad too.

1. Refreshed the UI with more space for albums
2. New library mode menu
3. New sorting menu
4. Sort library by year
5. View the year that the song was released on the Now Playing screen
6. When sorting by anything other than A-Z, see the sort metadata on every album
7. Accessible font sizes on Now Playing screen
8. Did I mention it now supports iPad too? :)

### 4.7.2 — 2023-04-30

I've fixed a couple of crashes.

If you have any feedback, please go to the Settings screen in the app and press "Email your feedback".

And if you have time to leave a review on the AppStore, I would really appreciate it, because it really helps other people decide if they should download the app.

### 4.7.1 — 2022-03-02

Fixed some bugs:
- the track listing would show the wrong tracks when the Now Playing screen was first displayed
- the wrong track info would be displayed when shuffling from the library screen

Improvements:
- added support for dynamic fonts on the Now Playing screen

### 4.7.0 — 2020-11-27

Re-enabled the ability for you to choose the user interface theme independently.

### 4.6.0 — 2020-10-30

It's been a long time coming, but this release includes lots of changes

- press and hold on a playlist, album, shuffle artist, or shuffle genre buttons, to see the track listing and start playback from a specific track
- use system user interface style (dark/light mode)
- swipe left to go back to the start of the song instead of skipping to the previous track. Swipe again to go to the previous track.
- sort by date added to library (and renamed sort options)
- remember sort order between app launches
- remember selected library view mode between app launches
- updated look for the now playing screen

If you have any suggestions, questions, or bugs to report, please send me an email at support@thomases.id.au.

And if you love Harken, please leave a review on the AppStore. It really helps independent developers like me.

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## More apps by Ben Thomas

- [Simple Media Player Lite](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-media-player-lite/id494403408)
- [Harken Music Player Universal](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/harken-music-player-universal/id540251190)
- [Speedlimit 88 GPS Speedometer](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speedlimit-88-gps-speedometer/id999249503)
- [Simple Media Player for iPhone](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-media-player-for-iphone/id1069123431)
- [Harken Lite Offline Music](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/harken-lite-offline-music/id1139609293)

All apps by Ben Thomas: https://appshunter.io/developer/492594056

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-07-04.*