Share a DJ playlist with cue points with a friend

You have a playlist with the cues set just right and a friend who wants it, maybe to practise a b2b set before you meet. A plain M3U or a folder of files does not carry any of that: hot cues, memory cues, loops and beatgrids live in your DJ software's own database, not in the playlist. Here is what actually works, per pair of programs.

What travels and what does not

| Data | Rekordbox XML | Traktor NML | Serato | Engine DJ | |---|---|---|---|---| | Playlist order | yes | yes | crate file | yes | | Hot cues | yes | yes | in the audio file's tags | yes | | Memory cues | yes | as cues | converted to hot cues (8 max) | yes | | Loops | yes | yes | yes | yes | | Beatgrid | yes | yes | in the file's tags | yes |

Two things never travel: the audio files themselves (your friend needs to own the same tracks) and cue points on a different version of a track. A cue at 1:32 on the extended mix lands in the wrong bar on the radio edit. Check that you both have the same file, or at least the same length.

Same software on both sides

• Rekordbox to Rekordbox: File → Export Collection in xml format (or export only the playlist), send the XML. Your friend sets the XML as the "imported library" in Preferences → Advanced → Database, then drags the playlist into their collection. Cues, loops and grids come along; tracks are matched by file path, so a "relocate" step follows if the folders differ.
• Traktor to Traktor: the playlist export (.nml) carries cues and grids. Import via File → Import Collection, then relocate the tracks.
• Serato to Serato: Serato writes cues into the audio files (ID3/GEOB tags). Send the files and the crate; the cues are already inside the audio.
• Engine DJ: export the playlist to a USB drive with Sync Manager; the drive carries the database with cues and grids.

Different software

Rekordbox XML is the closest thing to a common language, and Traktor, Serato and Engine DJ can all read it one way or another, but each drops something. For a faithful transfer use a converter:

• Lexicon (Mac and Windows, subscription): import your library, sync out to your friend's format. The most complete cue and grid mapping in our experience.
• DJ Conversion Utility (Mac, one-time price): the long-standing option for Rekordbox, Serato and Traktor.
• DJ Cue Bridge (free, in the browser): converts cue points between formats without uploading audio; playlists and grids are not its job.
• Mixo and MixGoat offer cloud-based conversion with free tiers.

Whatever you use: convert one short playlist first, open it on the other side, and check three tracks: cue positions, loop lengths and the first downbeat of the grid.

The b2b case

For practising a set together you rarely need the whole library. Export just the playlist, make sure both of you own the exact same files, and send the XML or NML with a note on which version of each track you used. The receiving side relocates the files once; after that the cues sit where you set them.

What ryser.id does here today

ryser.id exports any analysed set as a Rekordbox XML, Serato or Traktor playlist, with the tracks in set order. Cue points are not part of that export yet; sharing a playlist with cues between two people, corrected for the version of the track each of you owns, is on our roadmap. If that is the thing you need, tell us which two programs you and your friend use.