Open Source VLC Media Player Alternatives for Android

There are many alternatives to VLC Media Player for Android if you are looking for a replacement. The best open source Android alternative is MPV. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to VLC Media Player and many of them are open source and available for Android so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting open source Android alternatives to VLC Media Player are Kodi, SpMp, Auxio and Elisa.

filter to find the best alternatives

VLC Media Player alternatives are mainly Audio Players, but if you're looking for Media Players or Music Streaming Services you can filter on that. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to VLC Media Player.
VLC Media Player iconVLC Media Player
  7609
  • ...

Cross-platform, free media player supports multimedia files, DVDs, streaming, offers hardware acceleration, 4K, lossless audio, and more.

More about VLC Media Player
More about VLC Media Player
VLC Media Player alternatives page was last updated Feb 13, 2025
Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard
  1. MPV icon

    MPV

     521 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    MPV 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.

    103 MPV alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • BSD
    • Xfce
    • F-Droid
    • Chocolatey
    MPV screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Minimalistic
    3.  Configurable

    Features

    1.  Integrated Codecs
    2.  Low resource footprint
    3.  Command line interface
    4.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    5.  Video playback
    6.  Drag and Drop
    7.  Lua scripting
    8.  HDR source support
    9.  GNU/linux-libre
    10.  Ad-free
    11.  Hardware Accelerated
    12.  Portable

    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 Comment
    kfua
    Jul 8, 2024
    1

    I 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 Comment
    Guest
    Positive Dec 8, 2024
    0

    In Linux, VLC sometime struggles playing MP4 videos & navigating within those MP4 videos. Celluloid (MPV frontend) works better in these regards.

    0x6A7232
    Positive Feb 21, 2024
    0

    VLC was having stuttering problems for whatever reason. Installed MPV and bam! Also love the UI, really well integrated for playing movies which is great.

    Show more comments
    3 of 25 comments
    VLC Media Player Icon
    MPV icon

    • Almost everyone thinks MPV is a great VLC Media Player alternative.

    • MPV is the most popular Android, Mac & Linux alternative to VLC Media Player.

    • MPV is Free and Open SourceVLC Media Player is also Free and Open Source
    • MPV is Lightweight and MinimalisticVLC Media Player is not according to our users
  2. Kodi icon

    Kodi

     1511 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Though 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.

    73 Kodi alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • GB flagUnited Kingdom

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • BSD
    • iPad
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    • Raspberry Pi
    • Fire TV
    Kodi screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Support for Themes

    Features

    1.  Media Streaming
    2.  TV Shows meta data support
    3.  Video library
    4.  Media Center
    5.  Media library
    6.  Support for IPTV
    7.  Media Server
    8.  Automatic subtitles download
    9.  Built-in Media Downloader
    10.  Ad-free
    11.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    12.  Portable

    Kodi VS VLC Media Player

     
    Comments about Kodi as an Alternative to VLC Media Player
    Top Positive Comment
    Guest
    Sep 8, 2015
    7

    Kody 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 Comment
    Lester Covax
    Feb 8, 2021
    5

    Kodi is a media server first and foremost. It's like comparing Google Docs to Microsoft Office.

    Most Recent Comment
    Guest
    Negative Jan 10, 2025
    1

    Too Bloated. Not really meant for playing local video files

    Show more comments
    3 of 6 comments
    VLC Media Player Icon
    Kodi icon

    • Most users think Kodi is a great VLC Media Player alternative.

    • Kodi is the most popular iPhone & iPad alternative to VLC Media Player.

    • Kodi is Free and Open SourceVLC Media Player is also Free and Open Source
  4. SpMp icon

    SpMp

     19 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    A YouTube Music client with a focus on customisation of colours and song metadata, built using Compose Multiplatform for Android and desktop.

    112 SpMp alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • CA flagCanada

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • Android Tablet
    • Flatpak
    • Flathub
    Android app #1

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight
    3.  Support for Themes

    Features

    1.  No Tracking
    2.  Dark Mode
    3.  No registration required
    4.  Personalized Recommendations
    5.  Works Offline
    6.  Cloud Sync
    7.  Ad-free
    8.  Collaborative Playlists
    9.  Support for Lyrics

    SpMp VS VLC Media Player

     
  5. Auxio icon

    Auxio

     16 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Auxio is a local music player with a fast, reliable UI/UX without the many useless features present in other music players. Built off of Exoplayer, Auxio has superior library support and listening quality compared to other apps that use outdated android functionality.

    44 Auxio alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Android
    • F-Droid
    Auxio screenshot 1
    Auxio screenshot 2
    Auxio screenshot 3

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Dark Mode
    2.  No registration required
    3.  Works Offline
    4.  Ad-free
    5.  Lossless Audio
    6.  Offline

    Auxio VS VLC Media Player

     
  6. Elisa icon

    Elisa

     29 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Elisa is a music player developed by the KDE community that strives to be simple and nice to use. We also recognize that we need a flexible product to account for the different workflows and use-cases of our users.

    62 Elisa alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • KDE Plasma
    • Flathub
    • F-Droid
    • Snapcraft
    Elisa Albums View

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Music Library
    2.  Playlists
    3.  Ad-free
    4.  Lossless Audio
    5.  Works Offline
    6.  Dark Mode

    Elisa VS VLC Media Player

     
    Comments about Elisa as an Alternative to VLC Media Player
    tvgoing1
    Negative Jan 7, 2023
    2

    Only a music player, it should not be part of VLC

    VLC Media Player Icon
    Elisa icon
    • Elisa is Free and Open SourceVLC Media Player is also Free and Open Source
    • Elisa is Lightweight and Privacy focusedVLC Media Player is not according to our users
  7. mpvKt icon

    mpvKt

     10 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    A media player for Android based on mpv-android aiming to provide a nicer user interface over the original

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Android
    • F-Droid
    mpvKt screenshot 1
    mpvKt screenshot 2
    mpvKt screenshot 3

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  Works Offline
    3.  No registration required
    4.  Support for 4K
    5.  Dark Mode
    6.  Hardware Accelerated
    7.  No Tracking
    8.  Media Streaming
    9.  Video playback

    mpvKt VS VLC Media Player

     
  9. Harmonoid icon

    Harmonoid

     25 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    🎵 Plays & manages your music library. Looks beautiful & juicy. Playlists, visuals, synced lyrics, pitch shift, volume boost & more.

    51 Harmonoid alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • Mac
    Harmonoid screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Works Offline
    2.  Music Library
    3.  Ad-free
    4.  Support for Lyrics
    5.  No registration required
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  Lossless Audio
    8. Last.fm icon  Integrated Last.fm scrobbler

    Harmonoid VS VLC Media Player

     
7 of 33 VLC Media Player alternatives