Best Open-Source Video Players 2026: 6 Options Compared

Picking an open-source video player mostly comes down to two questions: which operating system you use, and whether you want buttons or a command line. VLC is the safe default because it runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS, so one program covers every device you own. mpv trades the menus for a configuration file and a scripting interface, which suits people who like to tune playback once and forget it. On Windows, MPC-HC keeps the classic lightweight layout that many people still prefer. SMPlayer and Celluloid are friendlier front ends built on mpv, so you get mpv's playback engine with ordinary menus, though Celluloid is a Linux desktop app only. Kodi is the odd one out: it is a media center meant for a living-room screen with a remote, not a quick player for a single file. The concrete trade-off is breadth against polish. VLC plays almost anything but its interface looks dated, while mpv looks minimal and rewards you only after you edit a text file. Every program below is free and licensed under GPL or LGPL, so there are no ads or paid tiers to dodge. Check the platform column before installing, since two of these are limited to one operating system.

VLC media player

Plays a very wide range of files and runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS, so it is the one player that follows you across devices. Licensed GPL-2.0 and LGPL-2.1.

Price: Free (VLC media player pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS. GPL-2.0 and LGPL-2.1 (open source) (license source).

Project activity: 20.3k GitHub stars · last commit Oct 27, 2026

Best for: Anyone who wants one player everywhere.

mpv

A command-line player configured through text files and scripts, licensed GPL-2.0 or later. You give up menus and gain fine control over playback; it needs Windows 10 1607 or macOS 10.15 or newer.

Price: Free (mpv pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. GPL-2.0-or-later (LGPL-2.1 build option) (open source) (license source).

Project activity: 37.6k GitHub stars · latest release v0.41.0 (Dec 21, 2025) · last commit Oct 27, 2026

Best for: Users who like to tune playback.

MPC-HC

Classic lightweight player for Windows 7 through 11, maintained as the clsid2 fork under GPL-3.0. No Mac or Linux version exists, so it only suits Windows desktops.

Price: Free (MPC-HC pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Windows. GPL-3.0 (open source) (license source).

Project activity: 16k GitHub stars · latest release 2.8.4 (Oct 18, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026

Best for: Windows users who want a plain layout.

SMPlayer

A graphical front end for media playback covering Windows, Linux and Mac, with YouTube support noted by the project. Licensed GPL-2.0, aimed at people who want menus instead of config files.

Price: Free (SMPlayer pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Windows, Linux, macOS. GPL-2.0 (open source) (license source).

Project activity: 1.1k GitHub stars · latest release v26.8.29 (Aug 30, 2026) · last commit Oct 25, 2026

Best for: People who want simple menus on any desktop.

Celluloid

A simple GTK front end for mpv under GPL-3.0, shipped as Flatpak, Snap and PPA packages. It is a Linux desktop app only, so skip it on Windows or macOS.

Price: Free (Celluloid pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Linux. GPL-3.0 (open source) (license source).

Project activity: 1.5k GitHub stars · latest release v0.30 (Mar 29, 2026) · last commit Oct 4, 2026

Best for: Linux desktop users who like mpv.

Kodi

A GPL-2.0 media center for Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS and tvOS. It organizes a library for a TV with a remote rather than opening single files quickly.

Price: Free (Free open-source media center; it plays and organizes media rather than acting as a Plex-style remote streaming server) (Kodi pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, tvOS. GPL-2.0 (open source) (license source).

Best for: Living-room media centers.

Which one to pick

• You want one player on phone, laptop and desktop: VLC media player
• You want to script and tune playback yourself: mpv
• You use Windows and want a light classic player: MPC-HC
• You run Linux with GNOME and want mpv with menus: Celluloid
• You want a library browser for the TV: Kodi