Guides
Where can I get a CD burned?
You have fifteen songs for someone you love and no CD drive in the house. Where can you burn a CD? Here are the places to get a CD burned, what each one needs from you, and how to pick.
Short answer
You can get a CD burned on any Mac or Windows computer with a disc burner: a friend’s, a work or school computer, or a public library computer (call ahead, many no longer have drives). You can also buy an external USB burner, or mail your playlist to an online CD burning service that burns and ships the disc.
- Need
- A burner + files
- Libraries
- Call ahead
- No files?
- Use a service
- Blank disc
- CD-R
Where can I burn a CD? Every option
Burning a CD takes three things: a computer with a CD burner, a blank CD-R, and the songs as files you own. Where you can burn a CD depends on which of those you’re missing.
| Option | Good for | You need the song files? | How fast |
|---|---|---|---|
| A friend's or work computer | One disc, soon | Yes | Same day |
| Public library | One disc, if they have a drive | Yes | Same day, if available |
| Local print, copy or photo shop | Copying a disc or files you bring | Yes | Call and ask |
| Your own external USB burner | Burning more than once | Yes | Once it arrives |
| Online CD burning service | Gifts, streaming playlists, no burner | No, a playlist link works | Ships in days |
The column that catches people out is the middle one. Songs from Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music or Amazon Music Unlimited aren’t files you can burn anywhere, on any computer. If that’s where your playlist lives, read our guide to getting a Spotify playlist onto a CD first.
A friend's, work or school computer
The quickest free option is someone else’s computer with a disc drive. Desktop PCs and older laptops are the likeliest to have one. A Windows PC with a burner can make an audio CD with Windows Media Player Legacy, and a Mac with a drive can do it from the Music app.
Ask first, especially on a work or school machine, where installing software or plugging in a USB stick may be restricted. Then bring everything with you (the checklist is below) so you’re in and out in 20 minutes. Our step-by-step guides for burning a CD on Windows and burning a CD on a Mac are worth opening on your phone while you do it.
One snag on newer Windows 11 PCs: the burning app, Windows Media Player Legacy, is an optional feature that may not be switched on. Adding it takes a minute in Settings, but on a work computer that may need the IT department, so check before you turn up with a stack of blanks. On a Mac, the Music app is always there; the question is only whether the Mac has a drive.
Public libraries
Some public libraries have computers that can burn CDs, especially branches with a media lab or digital studio. Many don’t, because newer computers rarely come with drives. It varies branch by branch, so call before you go and ask three questions:
- Does any public computer have a drive that can write (burn) CDs, not only read them?
- Can I use Windows Media Player or another burning program on it?
- Can I plug in a USB stick, and how long can I book the computer for?
Bring your own blank CD-Rs. A library is unlikely to sell them, and you’ll want a spare in case the first burn fails.
Local print, copy and photo shops
Some independent print, copy and photo shops offer CD or DVD copying, usually for duplicating a disc or burning files you bring in. Services and prices vary from shop to shop, and plenty of places that used to do it have stopped. Call and ask whether they can burn an audio CD from music files on a USB stick, since some only make data discs.
For many copies of the same disc, such as a band’s demo or a memorial service handout, look for a CD duplication company. They specialise in bulk runs.
Buy an external CD burner
If you’ll burn more than one or two discs, an external USB CD/DVD burner is worth owning. It plugs into a USB port on a Mac or Windows PC, works with the burning software that’s already there, and lives in a drawer between uses. Electronics shops and online retailers sell them; check that the listing says it can write CDs (a “burner” or “writer,” not just a “reader”) and that its plug matches your computer, or get an adapter for USB-C.
A burner won’t help on a Chromebook, which has no software for burning audio CDs. Once it’s plugged in, our main guide to how to burn a CD takes you from playlist to finished disc, and CD-R vs CD-RW covers which blank discs to buy.
A CD burning service by mail
Search “CD burning service near me” and you’ll find few local options. A mail-order CD burning service doesn’t need to be near you, and it’s the only option on this page that doesn’t need the music files. That’s the service we run:
- Send a public playlist link from Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music or Amazon Music, or type a numbered song list.
- We use studio versions by default. Tell us whether you want clean or explicit.
- Each disc is a real audio CD, filled to under 79 minutes (about 18 to 22 songs), that plays in any car or stereo.
- We burn it, test-play it, and ship in 1 to 3 business days by USPS.
- Choose a paper sleeve, a jewel case with a printed tracklist, or your own photo as the cover.
Making a CD as a gift? Send us the playlist and we’ll burn your custom CD mixtape, with the tracklist printed for the case.
We’re a small shop selling through Etsy, rated 4.9 stars from more than 50 reviews. See how our custom CD mixtapes work for every package, from a single sleeve to a five-disc road trip set.
Which option fits your situation
| Your situation | Best option |
|---|---|
| One CD, songs you own as files, needed today | A friend's or work computer, or the library |
| Songs only on Spotify, Apple Music or YouTube | A CD burning service, or buy the tracks first |
| A gift that should look finished | A CD burning service with a printed cover or tracklist |
| You'll burn a CD every month or so | Buy an external USB burner |
| Dozens of copies of one disc | A CD duplication company |
| Needed tomorrow | Burn it locally; mail takes shipping time |
What to bring if you burn somewhere else
- The songs as files on a USB stick (MP3, AAC or WAV), named so you can find them, and in one folder.
- A written song order. The burn list order becomes the track order on the disc.
- Two blank CD-Rs, one for a second try. CD-Rs, not CD-RWs, if it’s for a car.
- The total running time, under 80 minutes. Our playlist length calculator adds it up from a pasted song list.
- A felt-tip marker to label the disc. Never a ballpoint pen.
Questions people ask
Where can I burn a CD?
On any Mac or Windows computer with a CD burner: your own with an external USB drive, a friend's, a work or school computer, or a public library computer if it has a writable drive. Or mail your playlist to an online CD burning service.
Where can I get a CD burned near me?
Start with people and places that have a computer with a disc drive: friends, family, an office, a school media lab or the public library. Call ahead, because many libraries and offices no longer have drives. A mail-order CD burning service works wherever you live.
Do public libraries burn CDs?
Some do. Libraries with media labs or older desktop computers may have a drive that writes CDs, but many don't. Call and ask whether a public computer can burn an audio CD, and bring your own blank CD-R and music files.
Do I need the music files to use a CD burning service?
Not with ours. You send a public playlist link from Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music or Amazon Music, or a typed song list, and we burn it to an audio CD.
How long does a CD burning service take?
We burn and test-play each disc, then ship in 1 to 3 business days by USPS, plus delivery time. Etsy shows an estimated delivery date on the listing.
Can I burn songs from Spotify at a library or a friend's house?
No. Spotify and other streaming downloads can't be burned on any computer. You need the songs as files you own, or a service that makes the CD from your playlist.