What are the best video players for macOS?

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Jan 21, 2024

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Updated

IINA vs MPV vs VLC

vs Kodi vs QuickTime vs MplayerX vs 5KPlayer vs Infuse vs Elmedia Player vs iFunia Media Player vs Apeaksoft Blu-ray Player for Mac vs Stellarplayer - Media Player

Specs

Platforms

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

Windows, Mac, Linux, BSD, Android

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS, ChromeOS, AppleTV

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, AndroidTV, iOS, tvOS

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

Mac

License

Free/Pro

Platform

Mac

Embedded tracker

Yes

Download videos

Yes

Download Mp3

Yes

Play online videos

Yes

Platforms

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Platforms

License

Platform

Embedded tracker

Download videos

Download Mp3

Play online videos

Pros + Cons

Pro
Like MPV with better GUI and settings

It's like mpv, just more user friendly GUI and more settings available via UI.

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Pro
Extremely stable

Extremely stable, even while still in the beta.

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Con
Unstable

May crash unexpectedly, while clicking on something in the subtitles section in the right-hand panel, for example.

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Pro
Support for lots of codecs

Supports lots of video codecs, like mp4, mkv, etc, and lots of audio codecs including opus.

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Pro
Doesn't black out other displays when going full screen

It can black out other screens if you want, but out of the box it leaves your other displays alone.

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Pro
Runs on MPV so it's scriptable and runs any MPV script.

More information here. Tip: if you're doing a lot of cropping and slicing of videos and you thought the new quick tools in Finder / Quicktime Player are a great improvement, try setting up IINA with slicing.lua and some keybindings for navigating your video + setting the slicing positions. Make sure your ffmpeg command (in slicing.lua) is set to copy the original codecs and that it's using your GPU.

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Con
Will not correctly play 10-bit h265 full HD video files

Try skipping forward or backward and the playback fails.

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Con
Crashes repeatedly when playing .avi files

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Con
No reason at all, unless you prefer less CPU usage when seeking, as compared to mvp

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Pro
Minimal interface

The whole interface is just a video with a minimal OSD.

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Pro
Needs no additional codecs

Everything MPV needs to play media files is contained within which means no outside codecs are needed.

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Pro
Fast

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Pro
Open source

It's free, open source and works on many platforms

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Con
Lack of a typical GUI can be jarring to some

The minimal interface comes at the cost of beginner-friendliness. You need to know keyboard shortcuts by heart, settings are set in text files, right-clicking won't bring up a menu, etc.

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Pro
Up to date

Always up to date, rapid development.

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Pro
Best video quality

Offers better out-of-the-box video quality than VLC, and can be improved more by using the HQ profile option.

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Con
Not really meant to be a music player

VLC is made to be a video player. Therefore, it won't carry out actions such as managing your music library.

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Con
Not so great for audio files

While VLC is doing a good job with video reproducing, it is fairly suitable for audio files.

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Pro
Plays back almost everything

From basic .avi to .mov, VLC is capable of playing BluRay, HD and most common video format types used on Mac – .mp4 & .mov.

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Pro
Fast and light software

Players efficiency is based on good compatibility with OS X and light weight.

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Pro
No payment is required

VLC is free to download. Despite this fact, it is frequently updated just to correspond with users needs.

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Pro
Great ability to play content over the network

Software is capable of creating and connecting to a video stream.

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Pro
Vast amount of keyboard shortcuts

VLC player can be controlled with simple and customizable keyboard commands.

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Pro
Tons of advanced settings

Besides basic configurations, video player has great amount of adjustable settings.

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Pro
Simple to setup and use

VLC is an incredibly robust application but very simple on the surface. It makes playing music simple, yet still manages to give the user all the tools he/she wants in a music player.

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Pro
Can be almost completely keyboard-driven

VLC includes keyboard shortcuts for most actions. The video player can be controlled with simple and customizable keyboard commands.

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Pro
Chromecast support

Version 3 of VLC has built in support for Chromecast making it easy to play videos on a laptop and watch on a bigger screen connected to a Chromecast.

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Pro
Free, open source, and cross-platform

VLC is licensed under the CC-SA v3.0+ and available on Windows, OSX, and Linux with source code available here.

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Pro
Built-in audio equalizer

As sometimes audio track of a video file can be quieter than usual, it is possible to boost the sound a little bit without major distortion.

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Con
Some insignificant, but irritating flaws

Despite all keyboard shortcuts, the width of the picture can not be controlled by trackpad. Besides that, VLC start up window doesn’t open at the same place, or same width it was previously closed at.

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Con
Has problems with video formats used on iTunes

Unfortunately, if .mp4 & .mov is not a problem, then .m4P is. VLC video player can play .m4A and .m4V files, but .m4p audio files will be a problem.

Comment

Con
Limited personalization/customization available

Player has only one basic interface in white or black colour. There are a numerous skins available for VLC, but at the moment do not work with the OSX version of the application. There are some third-party skins that Mac users can download though.

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Pro
Can install on several devices

Apple TV (jailbroken), Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, Xbox, and more.

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Pro
Free

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Con
For some devices it requires them to be jailbroken or similar

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Con
Video player can interfere with other software

Leaving QuickTime's video player running in background doesn't play well with certain software, especially games and full-screen software.

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Pro
Recording and editing is possible

Unlike other video players, QuickTime offers recording and editing opportunity. To unlock this features QuickTime Pro 7 is required, which is a fee-based software (29.99$). Program features include possibility to record video and audio directly from microphone, FireWire camcorder and iSight camera. Speaking of video editing, cutting, deleting, resizing, flipping, or rotating a movie is possible.

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Pro
Easy to use streaming features

QuickTime video player has "Zero-configuration streaming" - video player automatically determines best connection speed. Plus, it can automatically reconnect, if the connection was lost. Step by step video file stream or broadcast guide can be found in the source.

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Con
Some common video file formats are not supported

QuickTime does not have native support for some common formats such as DivX, .wmv, and .mkvs.

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Pro
Screen recording is a easy

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Con
Can't play .srt subtitle files

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Pro
Elegant look and comfortable interface

QuickTime is developed by Apple, which is known for its plain, but gorgeous and user-friendly design. QuickTime is included in the list of default programs on macOS systems, so it is a good free option for beginners and users who love style and comfort.

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Pro
Posh smell

Look up Posh and see if you think a software movie player should be POSH. What a hoot.

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Con
Crashes after OS X update

Sometimes after an OS X update, if the video player wasn’t updated for a long time, QuickTime can crash for no reason

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Con
System crash is more frequent

MPlayerX creshes occur more often than in usual video players. They should be tackled properly.

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Con
High CPU usage is possible

Sometimes after the player or OS X update file reproduction can demand a significant part of CPU usage

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Con
No proper playlist feature

In spite of easy and comfy smart-play, in general playlist isn’t user friendly

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Con
No retina display support on old OSX

MPlayerX does not support retina display on OS X older than Mountain Lion, but amount of Mac’s with older OS X are quite rare nowadays

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Pro
Pleasant Mac Style view

MplayerX fits in OSX environment perfectly with it’s hot keys and plain, but stylish design, giving pleasure to work with

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Pro
Players “memory” of a last reproduced file

If turned off, player will start file reproduction from exact spot it was interrupted on

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Pro
Smart-play or automatic next video file search

For example, if number of files with sequent names are mashed up and thrown in the playlist, MplayerX is able to reproduce them in right order

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Pro
Smart multi-touch control

Convenient track pad commands, that allows user to toggle full screen, change frame size, aspect ratio and volume. To learn more, watch an easy and understandable "how-to" youtube video in the sources.

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Pro
Compatibility with other Apple products

File reproduction can be controled with an Apple remote, that awards user with more freedom. Furthermore, dirrect pass through is possible. Start streaming, connect and enjoy your home theatre

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Pro
Softwere was designed specially for OS X

As OS X is the only supporting system, the amount of bugs and problems is minimized. This also means, that player can play .m4p, .mp4 & .mov video files.

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Pro
Play online videos online without ads

You can open an online video with a URL and play it without Ads (like it usually happens on YouTube).

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Pro
Watch YouTube videos online without ads

It allows you to watch YouTube videos online without ads.

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Pro
It allows you to play almost all media formats

Elmedia supports almost all media formats like: FLV, SWF, MP4, AVI, MOV, MP4, DAT, MP3, etc.

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Pro
You can add and customize subtitles

You can add subtitles to your video in different languages and set up encoding, font, size, font color, and border color for them.

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Pro
Built-in web browser

The app features built-in web browser that allows you to watch online videos directly from the app, while Open URL enables you to do it without noisy ads.

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Pro
Add external audio tracks

Super cool feature for movie voice-over, if you need other language.

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Pro
Handy Open URL option

Open URL option allows watching YouTube videos without ads.

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Pro
Plays almost any video file

Elmedia Player is a free media player for Mac that supports various audio and video formats, including FLV, SWF, MP4, AVI, MOV, MP4, DAT, MP3, etc.

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Pro
Making screenshots

Making a screenshot of any moment in the movie or making the entire video a series of pictures with adjustable intervals.

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Pro
Makes screenshot series from videos

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Pro
Video & audio settings

Flip vertically, rotate, mirror videos or revert to original; adjust video brightness, contrast, saturation, and more, sync subtitles to the video, adjust the sound for different genres; set an output device for audio.

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Pro
Built-in subtitles search

For an effortless access to various subtitles Elmedia is integrated with the opensubtitles.org service, which lets users add desired subtitles to a movie without leaving the app.

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