Can I merge 2 Apple IDs?

OK you all seem to have been dealing with this for a while and I didn't read every post, too long. Kudos to ya.

I have one Itunes account with @aol.com (my original) and then of course another with the @me.com. I purchased the iphone 5 and synced etc and I need one of my paid for apps from the original account. It's a $10 app I use all of the time to create invoices. It shows up on my phone but no info is there. It's about 100 of my previous invoices.

Do I have to repurchase it with the @me account, as that is the one I decided to use for my iphone, ipad2 and ipods?

Tenpen,

Go to the itunes store, log off of your @me account. Log into your old account, and go to the purchases tab and redownload it. The log off and sign back in with the new login (just to be sure that new purchases are on tthe new login.) Or continue using the old one for purchases.

It's worked for me, anyway.

Ralph

I am new to the Apple world (ecosystem). For me, it started when I purchased an Ipad for my wife which she didn't want after about week. During that time she had setup an Apple ID (yahoo email) along with using the same logon with Itunes. She of course backed up her apps and contacts on Icloud under that ID.

I then decided that I wanted an Ipad and purchased one, so before I started the new Ipad out of the box I decided to change her Apple ID (email address) to one of mine. I wanted to keep the apps, since we did purchase one of the apps on the Ipad, the other apps were free. Well when I started the Ipad for the first time using the changed Apple ID, it wanted to refer back to her old email address when I logged into Icloud. The apps would not load onto the Ipad unless I used her old email address. So I had to go back into manage Apple ID's and change it back to her email address. After all the apps loaded onto the new Ipad I went back into manage Apple ID site and changed the ID to my email address again and deleted the IPad Icloud account and logged into the Ipad (Icloud/Itunes) with my email address Apple ID. Confusing to say the least!

Next, my wife decided she wanted an Iphone, after we got home I figured she should have an entire New Apple ID and hopefully avoid the chaos I went through. I didn't use her original email credentials to make the Apple ID. I made one with a new email address (gmail). I did so and logged into her phone with her new Apple ID. It automatically put the same apps and contacts on her phone even when I logged into Itunes using her new Apple ID. The phone then started asking for her original (yahoo email) to update apps that where under that old Apple ID.

Just last night, her phone needed one of the apps to be updated. I couldn't because it was an app that was downloaded under her old (yahoo) Apple ID. So I just deleted it since it wasn't a paid app. I figure I can just download it again under her new Apple (gmail (ID).

Apple should make this easier, not harder for especially newbie’s like myself and others using these devices. It should be one common ID to work with ALL services i.e. Apple ID, ICloud, ITunes, etc. If an ID is changed/updated that any service that you log into should also carry that same ID. No app or old logon should be carried after it is updated.

Bill

I'm having a similar issue where I would like to simply merge my 2 Apple ID's for the reason of using a new email. By no means do I wish to duplicate my rights to any content; contrarily I just want to unify my old account into my new one so everything can sync and connect together under one ID, because after all, I purchased a right to the content - I, meaning a human being. NOT a single email address. People change email addresses, or change ISP's; APPLE needs to realize this and make it possible to do the same. One more reason I refuse to purchase anything via iTunes, or any other account-based music service.

I followed your instructions, but I am not finding an upgrade to mail option, where did you find this?

The only solution is to take the account with the least purchases and re-purchase those songs and add them to your main apple id account. Forget about your second account or third account, let go and move on. Welcome to the new Apple.....there is no other choice.

I have an even better solution. I have completely ditched my iTunes and Apple ID for Spotify. I got completley fed up with the whole mobileme, icloud, etc thing. In short Apple is one of the best hardware companies on the planet converselty they could not write software (exception being the hardware OS) to save their soul. Apple, get a clue from history and get refocused on the customer experience, the bottom line will follow.

Just want to chime in -- I have this problem, too. For my, the main issue is Mac AppStore purchases. These are split across two accounts. And I'd like to do the rational thing, which is consolidate. Else, If I move forward only with one account, I will never get updates for the apps in the "orphaned" account. (This includes some purchases of note, like Aperature.)

As noted elsewhere, one gets pushed to create accounts at various points in the ecosystem (buying a new phone, getting a computer, migrating from mobileme, etc.); and there are clearly lots of people who don't understand the full context and end up in this situation. And it just can't be rocket science to add a "merge" feature, or a "move" feature to push assets from one account to another.

This blows.

I am trying to teach my mom to to facetime chat with me.

All of a sudden facetime rejects my apple id password (could be that I am in europe)

I discover that I have two ids that use the same email address, so I can't verify my email.

I didn't even know that was possible, but true.

WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE COMPLICATED?
I AM ME.

Google just merged all of my disparate accounts into one.

It's POSSIBLE.

Please Apple... Please.
I don't want to have a multiple personality disorder, put me back together.

It is very obvious that with 117 posts over several years, and 115681 views

APPLE JUST DOESN'T CARE ABOUT THEIR CUSTOMERS.

And this is not the only thread.

For people looking for the bottom line of this thread.

NO. YOU CAN'T MERGE TWO APPLE IDS. No how. No way. Apple will NOT allow it.

It is not a legal, copyright, or technical issue. It is simply Apple not caring about the customer.

That being said, you also should NEVER BUY AN iTUNES CARD. You can't use it for gifting apps, and if you add it to the wrong apple id, you can't transfer the balance bewteen apple ID Accounts. <SORRY. Off topic, but semi related>

I anxiously await the day that I can merge my accounts, like so many others. And while yes, it bothers me that I can't merge an account I've been using for an older business of mine with an existing updated account for a newer business, or even with my personal account, I wouldn't dare to say that:

APPLE JUST DOESN'T CARE ABOUT THEIR CUSTOMERS.

As a businss owner, I know how hands can be tied with the most ridiculous legal reasons. As a former Apple employee, I have found that Apple cares beyond your wildest imagination. Google Apple's Net Promoter Score, which is the industry standard for customer experience. Apple has ranked among the highest for years.

Wondering whether or not Apple is one's BFF isn't really the issue. The issue is that at various points (ex when getting a new device), users are asked to provide or to create an appleID. And it is not at all clear at that moment what the implications are of attaching to an old account vs creating a new one. (*Indeed, gven the somewhat haphazard way the concept of AppleID has evolved, this has changed over time -- and the average user tends to be a little behind the curve on such things).

One result is that users -- like many on this thread -- have purchase assets (songs, TV shows, iOS apps, desktop apps, etc) which end up in multiple accounts. And this leads to a serious usability problems -- I for one am having a tough time accessing and managing my purchases on my devices-- because they are balkanized across several accounts. It is an epic (and very un-apple-like) pain in the neck, and it is not a marginal concern for affected users-- We paid for stuff and these assets are stuck in a mad tangle of IP controls.

The fix doesn't seem to hard, and shouldn't concern the licensors of songs, shows, apps, etc: either {1} allow merging of accounts, {2} allow users to push assets from one account to another, or {3} allow devices to attach to more than one account.

The assets aren't stuck - as far as I'm concerned I have paid for access to my assets, as is the iTunes model, and they are denying my person access. Therefor I shall resort to torrenting better quality copies of items I have already paid for, and discover more than iTunes could ever show me along the way. I'm not pro piracy; I just won't buy things unless I can own DRM-free copies of the content to use accordingly in my own private life.

Well I guess this is an example that "APPLE" is NOT PERFECT. I and many friends and family members have the same problem of two identities. Love apple (Unix) products but they screwed us all up with this one and judging by the age of original post seems like they don't care to fix it. Hey Apple's visionaries!!!! What happened?? Will post solution soon if I can come up with one.

for what it's worth --

i updated to iOS6 and it seems to be better in this regard: seems to manage two accounts reasonably well.

also, i upgraded to macOS10.8 and it too is somewhat improved. you still need to sign out/sign in/sign out/sign in etc -- but it does seem to have one master list of your apps (ie from all accounts, shown together); and it also appears to tell you about apps that need updating in both accounts (regardless of which you're signed in to). so: would be nice if you could authenticate both accounts and then be done; but for me the issue is now downgraded from epic fail to occasional nuisance.