Free AVI Player for Mac It shares many similar features to Elmedia Player like the ability to play HD quality videos, support for a long list of file formats, and high-quality audio output. You also get to run Blu-Ray and DVD files with ease and the ability to customize your viewing settings like screen size, subtitle options, brightness, hue. Free AVI Player for Mac. Free AVI Player for Mac provides the easiest and best way to play AVI and other frequently-used video formats like MP4, MKV, MOV, FLV and more with high visual and sound quality. Macgo Mac Media Player MacGo Mac Media Player is a Windows/iOS friendly Media Player which can slay its users by providing a. Free Media Player on Mac and Windows. HD video player This lossless HD media player supports video resolutions up to 4K from 1080p HD. High-quality audio player Supporting DTS-HD and Dolby TrueHD audio, it gives you lossless audio effect. Various video formats You can playback video formats in MP4, AVI, MKV, FLV, MOV, WMV, 3GP, MXF, etc. Devices and Mac OS X version. VLC media player requires Mac OS X 10.7.5 or later. It runs on any Mac with a 64-bit Intel processor or an Apple Silicon chip. Previous devices are supported by older releases. Note that the first generation of Intel-based Macs equipped with Core Solo or Core Duo processors is no longer supported.
Why AVI files do not play on Mac?
Although QuickTime has officially added support for AVI files, however, there are still many people complain that QuickTime on Mac does not work with AVI files. As a matter of fact, most of those issues arise with movies that have been compressed using CODECs (Compressor - Decompressor) that are unavailable for QuickTime in Mac OS X. In particular, the Indeo® CODEC, popular for video compression on PCs, has not been ported to Mac OS X. The same issue also happens on many Divx-encoded files carrying the .avi extension. QuickTime does not include native DivX support, even though QuickTime 6 and later support the ISO Standard MPEG-4 media compression format and DivX is based on the MPEG-4 standard.
3 free Methods to Play AVI files with QuickTime on Mac
To enable you play AVI files with QuickTime on Mac, we have listed 3 free methods, have a reference at them one by one.
Method one: Use VLC
The best and also the simplest way to play AVI files on Mac is to download and install the free and open source cross-platform multimedia player VLC media player for Mac OS X.
Method two: Install Perian
Perian is a free, open source, QuickTime component that supports many popular media types, including AVI, DivX, and XviD.
Method three: Divx for Mac Codec
Many Divx codec can be played with QuickTime on Mac with the help of installing a freeware codec called Divx for Mac. This plug-in has been improved continuously, the drawback when using this plug-in is the sound in some AVIs will sometimes be either missed or distorted.
Alternative method to play AVI files on Mac
Both the free methods listed can not ensure you a guarantee to play all AVI files with no failure, some AVI file still refuse to be played. In addition, if you have upgraded your Mac to the newest Mac OS X El Capitan, some freeware may not updated itself with support for this new Mac OS, you will definitely fail to play AVI files on them.
To eliminate your annoyance caused by all those issues, a more powerful AVI Converter for Mac OS X El Capitan - Pavtube Video Converter for Mac is recommended to you. The program has full range support for all AVI container formats compressed with various different codecs such as Divx, Xvid, etc. You can directly convert AVI to QuickTime native compatible MOV format for playback on your Mac computer, or transcode AVI to other popular formats, device preset file formats or FCP/iMovie/Avid MC/Premiere compatible professional editing codec.
Owing to minimal compression features to ensure the highest possible quality, AVI file are larger in size than other video formats such as MP4, AVI, FLV, etc. Fortunately, you can compress AVI files on Mac with our program with the following 3 different ways:
Trim: cut off unwanted parts from your AVI files to have only you wanted parts left, this method will not cause any quality loss.
File resolution: output avi file with a lower resolution for playing on smartphone or tablet, a medium resolution for streaming over the internet.
Bit rate: lower the bit rate 20-50% of the default to get small files.
How to convert and compress AVI files on Mac OS X El Capitan?
Step 1: Input avi files to the software.
Click 'Add Video' or 'Add from folder' icon to import source avi files to the program.
Step 2: Define output file format.
Click 'Format' bar, from its extended list, here, you can choose to play AVI files on Mac with QuickTime by selecting QuickTime compatible 'Common Video' > 'MOV - QuickTime(*.mov)' to output. You can also opt to select other file formats basing on your own needs.
Step 3: Compress AVI file size.
Trim video: Open 'Video Editor' window and switch to the 'Trim' tab, you can drag the slider bars to include the segment you want to remain, click the left square bracket to set start point, and click the right square bracket to set end point when previewing the video or directly input specific values to 'Start' and 'End' box.
Lower file resolution and bit rate: Click 'Settings' to open 'Profile Settings' drop-down window, from 'Size(pix)' drop-down list, select a small resolution to output, under 'Bit rate' drop-down option, choose a lower bit rate.
Step 4: Start to convert AVI files on Mac OS X El Capitan.
Go back to the main interface, press the right-bottom to start to convert AVI to QuickTime MOV for playing on Mac OS X El Capitan.
When the conversion is done, you will have no limitation to enjoy AVI files on Mac, iPhone, iPad or streaming to Apple TV for watching on TV.
There are a plethora of Mac video players on the app market. From my perspective, the best video player for Mac should support a vast assortment of formats, crisp visual display, and user-friendly operating features. In this huge and intensely competitive market, we can't figure out which free Mac video player is the best choice at once. If you have the same doubts, then you come to the right place. In this article, I'd like to show you the best media player for Mac that can give you excellent visual enjoyment.
4 Tips on Choosing the Best Media Player for Mac
The best video player for Mac is supposed to:
- Be free of ads, viruses, malware, and spyware.
- Born with a slick and directive interface, making the app simple to navigate.
- Come with strong coding skills and support wide-ranging video & audio format, so you can play any media file including 4K/5K video without losing quality.
- Have compact and basic video playback functions, like play/pause, time display, volume control, etc.
Well, I’ve listed and tested a bunch of Mac video players and screened out the top 10 best free video player for Mac with the above reference in mind.
Top 10 Best Video Player for Mac 2021
Video player software isn’t rare, but top free video player for Mac users is not easy to come by. Hence we picked out the 10 best video players for Mac and give you some detailed information below.
#1. Cisdem Video Player for Mac
Compatibility: macOS 10.10 or later
Cisdem Video Player is an incredible program playing a vast assortment of media file formats. It’s fully compatible with all popular video formats (e.g. WMV, AVI, MOV, MP4, M4V, FLV, MKV, RMVB, MPEG, etc.), as well as audio files (e.g. MP3, WMA, OGG, WAV, M4A, etc.). The software supports all those codecs ensuring the playback of high-quality video files a breeze.
This best video player Mac takes care of your local media files and the music/videos downloaded from YouTube, Vimeo, or others. You can automatically or manually add subtitles in .ass and .srt formats. It offers smoother playback while other media players show a video jitter, choppy, or stalling.
Cisdem best Mac video player contains a built-in video converter, allowing you to media files to MP4, M4V, MOV, MP3, M4A, iPhone, iPad, Samsung, and so on. It's totally free to play video & audio files but to unlock the conversion function, you need to upgrade to the pro version.
Best Video Player For Mac
Pros:
- Equipped with a concise and decent interface
- Play video/audio files in more than 100 formats
- Play 1080P, 4K, 5K, and even 8K videos
- Load subtitles in any language, or import subtitles, as you want
- Choose the audio soundtracks and stereo
- Capture snapshots of each frame
- Turn volume up or down
- Take less occupancy on CPU memory of your Mac
FAQ: What're the differences between Cisdem Video Player and Cisdem Video Converter?
Cisdem Video Player | Cisdem Video Converter | |
---|---|---|
Download | Free download | Download the free trial |
Price | Free ($9.99 to active conversion feature) | $49.99 |
Video Play | Dedicated video player (rich playback controls) | Inbuilt-in video player (non-primary function) |
Video Convert | Support 40+ output formats | Support 300+ formats |
Batch Convert | No | Yes |
Extra | / | Rip DVD movies and music Download online videos from 1000+ sites |
Both programs support playing and converting features. But as their names indicate, the former is mainly used to play videos, while the latter is a professional video converter & downloader. Easeus data recovery for mac full.
#2. VLC Media Player for Mac
Compatibility: Mac OS X 10.7.5 or newer
VLC Media Player, an uncluttered, open-source and cross-platform program, supports DivX and MPEG streaming. It can play DVDs, CDs, VCDs, network streaming protocols, and various types of video files. The best video player Mac offers playlist for viewing multiple videos one after the other.
Meanwhile, VLC empowers you to open Zip media files without unpacking them. And you can simply tweak the playback controls and audio volume (up to 200%). But it’s a little delayed while playing, 'Each time I click on run video network it plays other audio and DVDs, etc. and after a million times it finally plays the YouTube video.'
Pros:
- Help you enjoy Windows Media, MP3, QuickTime, and OGG files.
- Record the movies/music you are playing with VLC
- Adjust playback speed (slower, normal, and faster)
- Support external subtitles and Closed Captions
Cons:
- Outdated user interface
- Delay a little while playing the media files
#3. MPlayerX for Mac
Compatibility: Mac OS X 10.7 or above
MPlayerX is one of the fastest choices to play MPEG (damaged MPEG files included), MP4, AVI, ASF, WMV, MOV, WAV, OGG/OGM, CD audio, etc. Plus, this best media player for Mac supports multi-touch, gesture, auto-encode subtitles, and online YouTube/Vimeo playback. But don't confuse MPlayerX and MPlayer OSX Extended. They are two completely different programs.
Pros:
- Stand-alone video player for Mac
- Support various output formats and devices
- Auto convert subtitles for media files
Cons:
- Injects pop-up ads or advertising banners which may bring a virus
- Take up too much CPU
- Encounter problem when open the software and ask you to eject the disk image
#4. QuickTime Player for Mac
Compatibility: Mac OS X 10.6.6 or above
QuickTime Player, bundled with the Mac operating system, is Apple's flagship software. It ensures you to view Internet video, HD movie trailers, and personal media. This best media player for Mac is slick and easy to use. You can quickly export your videos to 4k, 1080p, 720p, 480p (based on original resolution) or extract them as M4A audio. It also functions as a screen recorder. You can record your playing movie, track, or anything on your current desktop.
However, it supports limited video formats. For more formats available like FLV, you have to install external plug-in Perian.
Pros:
- No additional installation required
- Provide you with advanced H.264 video compression technology to help deliver perfect HD video with less storage space.
- Record your Mac screen
Cons:
- A bit slow to launch
- Can’t work with common subtitle files
- Can’t open MKV, WMV, WMA, AVI, FLV, etc.
#5. Elmedia Player for Mac
Compatibility: OS X 10.9.0 or later Nostale level bot.
A multifunctional free media player for Mac, Elmedia Player supports a wide range of common and not so common audio & video formats, including FLV, SWF, WMV, AVI, MOV, MP4, MP3, DAT, FLAC, M4V, MPG, MKV, and more. It can play virtually all media files on your Mac. Although it has some other special features, such as downloading online videos from YouTube and adjusting audio settings, they are not free and need to be upgraded.
Pros:
- Play online videos without ads
- Support embedded and external subtitles
- Save and load playlist
- Reset audio delay
Cons:
- Consume major CPU
- Might lose video quality when swiping back and forth
- Only pro version allows to take screenshots
#6. 5KPlayer for Mac
Compatibility: OS X 10.8.0 or higher
5KPlayer is a mixture of free AirPlay media streamer, online video downloader, music player and movie player for Mac. All HD, 4K, 5K videos including MKV, MTS, AVCHD are supported. With AirPlay streaming tech, you can as AirPlay sender/receiver: stream video music from iPhone, iPad to PC or from PC to Apple TV. Although the best Mac video player lets you download videos from YouTube, Vimeo, Dailymotion, etc., the download process will be bit slower.
Pros:
- Embedded copious codecs for playing different audio, video, and DVD.
- No need to install additional codec or pack.
- Import subtitle and switch soundtrack
- Manage YouTube downloaded videos, DLNA server, and playlist in library
Cons:
- Install Bonjour voluntarily without any hint when you need to make AirPlay work
- The media player will get stuck when playing high resolution & long videos
#7. Realplayer for Mac
Compatibility: Mac OS X 10.9 or later
Realplayer can play all formats of videos. This best video player Mac is a universal media player that automatically recognizes the file format of the video or audio file you want to play. So you can count on it to reliably play the most popular audio and video file formats including AVI, MP4, MP3, WMA, WAV, FLV, MPEG, and more. It requires a fairly powerful machine for some functions. Several applications need to be installed in advance to launch the application properly.
Pros:
- Offer several visualization ways for listening and locates your media files automatically.
- Include handy downloading and conversion features that may benefit some users.
#8. DivX Player for Mac
Compatibility: Mac OS X 10.5.0 or above
DivX Player delivers high-quality video playback for AVI, DIVX, MKV, MP4, and more. It is the best video player Mac to watch DivX, MKV, and HEVC up to 4K films. You can use its built-in TransferWizard to burn videos to DVD/USB/computer. It also comes with DivX Codec Pack and a free 15-day trial of DivX Plus Converter for those who plan to convert.
Pros:
- Support playing HD 720P/1080P, UHD 4K video movies
- Open video directly with URL
- Import video files into library
Cons:
- Large installation file and install other software without permission
- Poor compatibility with the latest system
- Lack some key features, e.g. rewind and forward
#9. Movist Video Player for Mac
Compatibility: OS X 10.10.0 or late Madmapper windows full.
Movist, based on QuickTime and FFmpeg, is another best media player for Mac. It has the ability to encode/decode a multitude of formats and add subtitles. You can do some general and advanced settings for better and convenient video playback. However, the new versions like 2.4.2, 2.4.3 are not free now, which charge $4.99 or $7.99 (Movist Pro). To get Movist free video player for Mac, you should install the old version like 0.6.8 or before.
Pros:
- Simple to operate
- Support playlist
- Many customizable options
#10. NicePlayer for Mac
Compatibility: Mac OS X 10.5 or above
NicePlayer is the best Video Player for Mac with a multi-engine player designed for playing movies nicely. This program features full-screen or borderless floating windows, useful controls for scrubbing or queuing movies, and on-the-fly playlist creation.
Pros:
- Lightweight and compatible with most formats
- Can adjust the aspect ratio
- Make a suitable presentation with the aid of toolbar (Half Size, Double Size, Fill Screen, Fill Width, etc.)
Avi Player For Mac Free
Cons:
- Can’t handle AVI, MKV or MPG videos.
- No support for subtitles and changing audio sources, etc.
- Unable to play the videos by dragging it to the software
- Not convenient to switch to another video
What is Media Player (Software)?
We often need the best media player for Mac, but before installing new software it is good to get some knowledge about it.
According to the explanation from Wikipedia, a media player (software) is a handy program that can help you play videos, music, movies, and other multimedia files on the computer. All media players display standard media control icons: play, pause, fast-forward, back forward, and stop buttons.
How to Use the Best Video Player for Mac?
All video players mentioned above are easy to use. Let's take Cisdem Video Player as an example:
Step 1. Download and install the best free video player for Mac, then launch it.
Step 2. Drag and drop the video file you wish to watch to the interface of the software.
Step 3. Click button to start video play on Mac.
How to Change the Default Video Player on Mac?
QuickTime Player is the default Mac media player. You can change it into the best video player for Mac you think.
Step 1. Locate the media file you wish to play.
Step 2. Right-click on it, a drop-down menu will appear.
Step 3. Choose “Open With” > “Other”, which brings up a dialog for selecting the application to open your media file.
Step 4. Choose your best media player Mac, check the box- “Always Open With”, and click on “Open”.
Conclusion
I deem that you already have the best media player for Mac in your mind, just download it on Mac and have a try if it is right the thing as you expected. Here I advise those who still feel a little confused to choose from, I push Cisdem Video Player for Mac in front of you. it gets more and more reputation and becomes a stable status among the market. 4K video, 5K/1080p HD videos, all of popular SD & HD standard video formats which other free video player tools unable to support, or add subtitle files, Cisdem Video Player for Mac can all fix it. What’s the best I enjoy, it offers crisp and clear visual image, I feel the video playing quite high quality.