1
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Rise Media Player brings together playback for videos, music, discs, and streaming services in a WinUI application.
Alternatives
The Best Vlc Alternatives in 2026
24 alternatives1 free · 24 open source
Looking for something like Vlc? Here are 24 alternatives, ranked by how closely they match it on purpose, features and platforms. Of these, 1 are free or have a free plan and 24 are open source.
VLC plays multimedia files, discs, streams, and devices, and can also convert, encode, and stream media.
Top picks at a glance
First suggestionRise Media PlayerRise Media Player brings together playback for videos…Free or freemium optionFramesFrames streams MP4 files from local storage and providers…Another optionPolarisPolaris streams a personal music collection to computers…
Quick comparison
| # | Alternative | Pricing | Open source | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rise Media Player | — | Yes | Windows |
| 2 | Polaris | — | Yes | Android, Linux, Windows |
| 3 | mStream | — | Yes | Android, iOS, Web |
| 4 | Ledfx | — | Yes | — |
| 5 | Dim | — | Yes | — |
| 6 | Frames | Free | Yes | — |
| 7 | Smplayer | — | Yes | Linux, macOS, Windows |
| 8 | Syncplay | — | Yes | — |
| 9 | gridplayer | — | Yes | — |
| 10 | Nagi | — | Yes | — |
All Vlc alternatives
2
Also covers open source · same kind of open-source project
Polaris streams a personal music collection to computers and mobile devices.
3
Also covers media and open source
mStream syncs and streams a personal music library between devices through a self-hosted server.
4
Also covers open source · same kind of open-source project
LedFx generates real-time audio effects for supported network-connected LED devices.
5
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Organize media collections and access or play them remotely with Dim, a self-hosted media manager.
6
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project · free
Frames streams MP4 files from local storage and providers such as S3, Dropbox, and Google Drive through a React and NestJS service.
7
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Play media on Windows, Linux, or macOS with SMPlayer, which also supports YouTube.
8
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Syncplay synchronizes playback position and play state across media players such as mpv, VLC, MPC-HC, and MPC-BE over the internet.
9
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Play multiple videos side by side with gridplayer, a desktop video player project.
10
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Nagi plays local music collections on Windows, with a focus on speed and simple operation.
11
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Use MPC-HC to play video and audio on Windows, with support for third-party filters in this free, open-source project.
12
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Browse and play movies and series from Jellyfin with Findroid, a native Android client.
13
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
MoonPlayer plays online videos from YouTube and Bilibili, can download them, and also opens local videos.
14
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Feishin provides a modern client for playing music from self-hosted services.
15
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Streama offers a self-hosted streaming media server, with setup instructions and documentation linked from the project.
16
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Dispatcharr describes itself as a companion for managing IPTV and streams.
17
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Astra plays music with gapless playback, parametric EQ, AutoEQ import, and real-time DSP visualizers.
18
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Jellyfin’s server backend and API support collecting, managing, and streaming personal media from a server.
19
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Streamlink pipes streams from supported services into a media player through its command-line utility and Python library.
20
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Black Candy runs a self-hosted music streaming server for listening to a personal music collection.
21
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
Extensions for PotPlayer to watch Twitch streams without streamlinks or any crap.
22
Also covers media and open source · same kind of open-source project
MovieNight provides a single-instance server for video streaming with integrated chat.
23
Also covers open source · same kind of open-source project
dizqueTV creates live TV channels from personal media and exposes streams through a simulated HDHomeRun tuner or generated M3U URL.
24
Also covers open source · same kind of open-source project
Homehost streams a personal collection of movies, TV shows, and music across a home network as a self-hosted app.
No alternatives match this filter.
Alternatives to similar tools
Dispatcharr24 alternativesMPC-HC24 alternativesTwitchPotPlayer24 alternativesRise Media Player24 alternativesBlack Candy24 alternativesmStream24 alternatives
TopicMedia Players & Servers · 194 sites Best-of listBest Free Media Players: 8 Choices for Files, Subtitles and TV ListingVlc details
What is the best alternative to Vlc?
Based on features, tags and platforms, the closest alternatives to Vlc are Rise Media Player, Polaris, and mStream.
Is there a free alternative to Vlc?
Yes. Frames is free or offer a free plan.
Are there open-source alternatives to Vlc?
Yes: Rise Media Player, Polaris, mStream, and Ledfx.
Alternatives are suggested from the purpose and features described in our listings. Different pages for the same product appear once. Read each description to check whether it fits your task. How we choose alternatives · Suggest an alternative