Open Source Windows Media Player Alternatives
The best open source alternative to Windows Media Player is VLC Media Player. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to Windows Media Player and loads of them is open source so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting open source alternatives to Windows Media Player are MPC-HC, MPV, Strawberry and Clementine.
Windows Media Player alternatives are mainly Audio Players but may also be Media Players or CD Rippers. Filter by these if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of Windows Media Player.
- Free • Open Source
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Android
- iPhone
- Chrome OS
- Windows S
- Android Tablet
- BSD
- Windows Phone
- iPad
- Blackberry 10
- Apple Watch
- Apple TV
- F-Droid
- Kindle Fire
- Haiku
- PortableApps.com
VLC is a free and open source cross-platform multimedia player and framework that plays most multimedia files as well as DVDs, Audio CDs, VCDs, and various streaming protocols.
VLC Media Player vs Windows Media Player opinions
It's efficient and the music is clear to listen to!
VLC media player is an excellent alternative to Windows Media Player. Although, its UI isn't appealing, neither is Windows Media Player's.
VLC, while an awesome media player, lacks WMP's library features. Thus, it is not an all-in-one system like WMP is.
The library features of WMP is far more intuitive.
RasheedAZCan actually play most media files and actually fulfil its purpose unlike wmp
VLC can play just about every video and audio file in existence.
This media player has so many features I don't know where to start. Half of the features I didn't even know existed before I started using it. Everything you will ever need in a media player, and more are packed into this gem. I can't believe its free, its unreal.
Media Player Classic Home Cinema (MPC-HC) is an extremely light-weight, open source media player for Windows®. Media Player Classic Home Cinema supports all common video and audio file formats available for playback.
Strawberry is a music player and music collection organizer. It is a fork of Clementine released in 2018 aimed at music collectors and audiophiles. The name is inspired by the band Strawbs. It's written in C++ using the Qt framework.
Strawberry vs Windows Media Player opinions
zokrisUnlike VLC, Strawberry is not a "file player" but a complete management software for your music collection. Very convenient UI, can rip CDs, gives you the choice of encoders/decoders, ...
Clementine is a cross-platform free and open source music player and library organizer. It is a port of Amarok 1.
Discontinued
No stable release since 2016. Newer release candidate seems to be available on Github.
Clementine vs Windows Media Player opinions
154pinkchairsone of the greatest FOSS players, but tbh I prefer quodLibet since it's more lightweight
- Free • Open Source
- Windows
- Linux
- BSD
- mpv
- PortableApps.com
- Haiku
- MPlayer
- Mac
SMPlayer intends to be a complete front-end for MPlayer, from basic features like playing videos, DVDs, and VCDs to more advanced features like support for MPlayer filters and more. SMPlayer remembers the settings of all files you play.
MPC-BE is a free and open source audio and video player for Windows.
MPC-BE is based on the original Guliverkli project and "Media Player Classic Home Cinema" project, contains additional features and bug fixes.
Media Player Classic was designed to look just like Windows Media Player 6.4, but with many additional new features.
Discontinued
The 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.com
Audacious is an advanced audio player. It is free, lightweight, based on GTK+, runs on Linux and many other *nix platforms and is focused on audio quality and supporting a wide range of audio codecs. There is also support for several visual styles from Winamp.
Audacious vs Windows Media Player opinions
Windows Media Player is not Light Weight and audacious is light weight and only an Audio player. Win Media Player is Multimedia Player/RIpper with library functions.
- Free • Open Source
- Linux
- BSD
Rhythmbox is an audio player for Linux that plays and organizes digital music. Inspired by Apple's iTunes, it is free software that is designed to work well under the .
