The Best Open Source VLC Media Player AlternativesTop Audio & Media Players like VLC Media Player
The best open source alternative to VLC Media Player is MPC-HC. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to VLC Media Player and loads of them is open source so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting open source alternatives to VLC Media Player are MPV, SMPlayer, IINA and Kodi.
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VLC Media Player alternatives are mainly Audio Players, but if you're looking for Media Players or Internet Radio Services you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Android + Open Source. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to VLC Media Player.- Audio Player
- Free • Open Source
129 MPC-HC alternativesMPC-HC's biggest advantage is arguably just how lightweight it is. Not only is it small in terms of hard drive space, but its CPU and overall system resource use is incredibly small compared to other video players, VLC included.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
Poland
EU
Platforms
- Windows
- PortableApps.com
MPC-HC VS VLC Media Player
Comments about MPC-HC as an Alternative to VLC Media Player
Comment summary: MPC-HC is highly praised as a lightweight and superior alternative to VLC Media Player. Users commend its efficient performance, especially in handling subtitles and various formats like .mkv and HEVC, without the need for external codecs. Its interface is noted for being clean and user-friendly, although less customizable than VLC's. MPC-HC is appreciated for better streaming, compatibility with modern codecs, and seamless playback on less stable networks, making it the go-to choice over VLC for many users.Top Positive CommentMost Recent CommentveddevIts light-weight, included with the K-Lite codec pack... so awesome media player!
TPNAnyone can point me to the .exe download? How yall running this thing? I dont see a program to run.
102 MPV alternativesMPV is an MPlayer-based video player that is available on all major desktop operating systems. Linux users in particular cite MPV as one of the best alternatives to VLC. Its interface is extremely minimal, though with that comes extraordinary stability.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
United States
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Android
- BSD
- Xfce
- F-Droid
- Chocolatey
MPV VS VLC Media Player
Comments about MPV as an Alternative to VLC Media Player
Comment summary: MPV is frequently praised as a lightweight, customizable, and reliable alternative to VLC Media Player. Users note that it handles AV1 encoded videos and other formats more smoothly, overcomes playback stuttering issues, and offers better battery usage. Its minimalistic design with practical shortcuts is favored, though some users miss a conventional UI. Despite VLC's established reputation, MPV is recognized for its strong performance on multiple platforms.Top Positive CommentkfuaI tried to play a movie encoded to 1080p av1 but vlc was struggling on my device. I used this website to find an alternative MPV plays av1 encoded movies smoothly.
Most Recent CommentIn Linux, VLC sometime struggles playing MP4 videos & navigating within those MP4 videos. Celluloid (MPV frontend) works better in these regards.
0x6A7232VLC was having stuttering problems for whatever reason. Installed MPV and bam! Also love the UI, really well integrated for playing movies which is great.
121 SMPlayer alternativesLike MPV, SMPlayer is based off of MPlayer, but unlike MPV, it's more focused on accessibility with its user interface. Out of the box, users cite SMPlayer as having the versatility and stability of MPV with the ease of use of players like VLC. It also supports add-ons such as a YouTube search.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
Spain- EU
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- BSD
- mpv
- PortableApps.com
- Haiku
- MPlayer
- Snapcraft
SMPlayer VS VLC Media Player
Comments about SMPlayer as an Alternative to VLC Media Player
Comment summary: Comments highlight SMPlayer's advantages over VLC Media Player, emphasizing ease of use, customization, and versatility. Users appreciate its ability to sync settings across devices, intuitive GUI, and handling of subtitles and incomplete files better than VLC. While generally viewed as superior, a concern over stability on Windows is noted. SMPlayer is praised for being resource-efficient, supporting diverse video files, and providing enhanced playback quality.Top Positive CommentArminIt has beautiful skins and is suitable for weak systems.
Most Recent CommentMayank-AroraI have stopped using VLC, since I came across SMPlayer. It works seamlessly on all my devices. I once made keyboard shortcuts, and saved it on cloud. Now, it is very easy to copy that file and have same settings and same shortcuts across all devices. For me, this is better than VLC media player and it is so easy to set aspect ratio, increase and decrease volume, manage video speeds and sync audio/subtitles.
It is the best mpv frontend in my opinion. having such powerful media player engine such as mpv + a user friendly ui. built-in subtitle search engine makes you like a lot easier too.
36 IINA alternativesThough it's exclusive to macOS, IINA's users swear by it for being lightweight, efficient, and performative. Minor annoyances such as performance-based audio-video-subtitle desyncs that can be found on VLC are not a problem when using IINA. Additionally, its interface is neat clean, with clearly labelled settings. This ease of use combined with its excellent performance makes it an easy recommendation for macOS users looking for a media player.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
- International
Platforms
- Mac
- mpv
IINA VS VLC Media Player
Comments about IINA as an Alternative to VLC Media Player
Top Positive CommentPaulGreat alternative to VLC if you're on macOS. It's lightweight, the UI is very clean, and has even more functionalities than VLC.
Top Negative CommentLai Curagastill no RTSP support (for local webcam/small cctv)
Most Recent CommentnicolaspatateIINA is the best modern player out there
74 Kodi alternativesThough Kodi can function as an alternative to VLC, its strengths lie in its robust cataloging of media and robust sorting and organization options for TV shows, movies, and music. Its media server capabilities are front and center, its playback functionality is nothing to sneeze at, and it can be used for that exact purpose.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
United Kingdom
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Android
- iPhone
- Android Tablet
- BSD
- iPad
- Flathub
- Flatpak
- Raspberry Pi
- Fire TV
Kodi VS VLC Media Player
Comments about Kodi as an Alternative to VLC Media Player
Top Positive CommentKody is more oriented to being a fullscreen video/music cataloguing application, but it has an internal video/audio/iptv playing system with very good decoding capabilities like VLC and can be windowed as well
Top Negative CommentLester CovaxKodi is a media server first and foremost. It's like comparing Google Docs to Microsoft Office.
Most Recent CommentToo Bloated. Not really meant for playing local video files
111 MPC-BE alternativesMPC-BE is another fork of Media Player Classic (specifically of the Home Cinema fork) with a focus on bug fixes and for automatically mounting ISO images. It is actively updated and performs really well for video playback. Users do not recommend it for music playback, as it lacks support for playlist looping and includes odd behaviors for shuffling media playback.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
Russia
Platforms
- Windows
MPC-BE VS VLC Media Player
Comments about MPC-BE as an Alternative to VLC Media Player
thumbnail view, available on MS store
rapheal dowryI haven't tried it until now but will try it soon and will update the reviews too.
thanks!
127 Media Player Classic alternativesThough it's been discontinued and almost entirely superseded by successors like Media Player Classic Home Cinema, some users still swear by it as a sort of "old reliable" video player that can play most files people throw at it with no issue. However, it's been 10 years since its last release, so it's highly recommended to look at MPC-HC and other forks actively in development.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application type
Country of Origin
Hungary- EU
Platforms
- Windows
DiscontinuedThe project is no longer developed. The currently active fork is
MPC-HC . Latest version, 6.4.9.1, released in April 2011, can be still downloaded from FreeCodec.comMedia Player Classic Features
Media Player Classic VS VLC Media Player
Comments about Media Player Classic as an Alternative to VLC Media Player
It doesn't feature an online streamer...
Very light-weight. With super easy interface and without any bugs.