Are you the one who is looking for alternatives to Windows Media Player? You have come to the right place as you are going to get the best options here. The major let-down with WMP is that it is available for Windows users only and lacks so many desirable features which other players provides and that too for free.
And this is the main reason, we need an alternative to WMP and that too ASAP. So, this article is dedicated to all the replacements media players which you can use instead of WMP and not only for Windows but for other Operating Systems too.
Top 10 Alternatives to Windows Media Player
The major issue with Windows Media Player is that it demands a paid upgrade if you want to access better features. And of course, why would you do that when other Windows Media Player alternatives are offering the same services for free? And this is why I chose these 10 amazing options of media players which are going to replace WMP very well in your system that you would never want to use it again.
1. VLC Media Player
Website: https://www.videolan.org/vlc/index.en-GB.html
We are talking about the best media player for windows 10 here. As everyone would know, VLC is a free and open source cross platform media player supporting plenty of operating systems as well as mobile platforms too.
I think this is the simplest of all and this is why I chose to mention it on top of this list. This media player literally supports everything like streams, files, discs, devices and even webcams too.
You would be glad to know that VLC also support various file formats too and completely free of charges. In fact, you won’t even have to come across any spyware or ads too. And trust me, this is a media player which offers the most features by far.
It makes one of the best alternatives to Windows Media Player and even allows you to customize its platform according to your taste. This includes changing skin and adding extensions and much more.
Compatible With – Windows NT, Windows Phone, Mac OS, Linux, Android, iOS, Apple TV, Tizen, Xbox One System Software
2. MediaMonkey
Website: https://www.mediamonkey.com/
Media Monkey is the next pick for best Windows Media Player alternative and serve as a media library application as well as digital media player. However, a big disappointment here is that it is compatible to Windows operating system only.
I personally think that MediaMonkey is for those kind of music addicts who just can’t keep their collection clean and organized. This tool is definitely going to help you to become way more organized.
Available for free but it offers an upgrade in form of its Gold version which is going to cost you $49.95 for lifetime license. I really liked that just like other media players you can use plenty of add-ons to improve the functionality of Media Monkey.
It supports various formats of music as well as video files and the intuitive platform automatically tag files on the basis of lyrics, albums etc. By MediaMonkey you can manage more than 100,000 music and video files easily.
Compatible With – Windows
3. MPlayer
Website: http://mplayerhq.hu/
MPlayer is a media player for Windows and various other operating systems working as a free and open source software. This media player is capable of playing variety of formats of media files and can also transform them into other output formats too.
You can further improve the functioning of this program via adding a lot of add-ons into it. And of course, this is also available for free.
The interface of the media player remains simple which provides several tools on a tool bar which can be easily accessed. Apart from the usual options, you can access to a variety of shortcut keys which directly perform the required tasks without much of hassle.
You can easily install this media player and thankfully this lightweight program does not even slow down the performance of your system too. Furthermore, you can use a lot of external GUIs to improve system’s front end.
Compatible With – Windows, Mac OS, Linux, iOS, Android
4. Real Player
Website: http://www.real.com/
What I liked the most about Real Player is its cross-platform functioning. This feature is actually missing from most of the alternatives to Windows Media Player and you are getting it for free here. And of course, like the other software here, Real Player is capable of running multiple media formats on its platform.
However, the basic plan of Real Player is available for free. While there are some paid plans too like Plus for $39.99 as one-time fee, Premium for $4.99 per month and 100 GB plan for $9.99 per month.
Real Player has tons and tons of high-end features to offer for its users. Some of them are organizing your media collection like a pro, marking videos private, storage facility, video conversion, downloading of media files, editing and trimming etc.
You can even create a backup of your files through Real Player. So, basically this is not just a media player but a complete package for the mass media streamers.
Compatible With – Android, Windows, Linux, Mac OS, Symbian, Solaris, Palm OS
5. KMPlayer
Website: http://www.kmplayer.com/
The KMPlayer or KMP is another one of media player alternatives which can play a number of media formats on its platform. But of course, this is not the only feature that it has. You can use it for absolutely free as there are no subscription charges.
However, what you are not going to like is that there are plenty of ads and pop-ups in this software which are the only possible way for the developers to earn.
But thankfully, you can play wide range of audio, video and subtitle formats on KMP and can also click screenshots of them too. It also has multiple filters and also support splitters and decoders too. I really liked that you can also capture audio and video through KMP and then can use various effects on them.
In fact, this media player also support 3D format along with low CPU memory share which is by far the only option amongst the list of alternatives to Windows Media Player to do so.
Compatible With – Windows
6. GOM Player
Website: http://player.gomlab.com/?language=eng
GOM Player is actually short form for Gretech Online Movie Player which is one of the most popular alternatives to Windows Media Player. It is extensively used for playing even broke media files and missing codecs which other players usually do not support at all.
The software is especially created for Windows and works on freemium model. While the basic version is available for free, you can use GOM Player Plus for $24.99 as one-time fee.
I personally think that it is the most advanced media player option to use and support both 32 bit and 64 bit Windows OS. And of course, GOM Player also support multiple file formats which is by default so basically you won’t have to use any third party tools here.
Other features of GOM Player are strong subtitles functionality, 4K media quality in GOM player plus, support for even VR videos, screen capture, multiple video effects, playback speed control, interface customization options and much more.
Compatible With – Windows
7. Media Player Classic
Website: http://mpc-hc.org/
For die-hard Windows users, I think Media Player Classic is their favorite Windows Media Player alternative. It is just like its name and this classic software acquires such a less size in your system and supports both 32 bit and 64 bit formats.
And of course, like most of the options mentioned here, MPC is also a type of free and open source program and the lightweight software does not even troubles you system at all.
MPC support all your general and common audio and video formats which can be playback too. And the best part about it is that it is completely spyware free and does not even contain any ads too. So, basically you are getting the best services here.
The platform is totally customizable like the rest of the alternatives to Windows Media Player and it fits well to all of your needs. Also, MPC contains all the required tools and shortcuts to improve the functioning while playing media files on it.
Compatible With – Windows
8. BS Player
Website: http://bsplayer.com/
BS Player is another alternative to Windows Media Player, available to use in more than 90 languages for users from around the globe. You can use it to stream media files like audio, video, webcam, DVD, YouTube, movies and much more.
This one is a really lightweight service which does not acquire much space in your system and also, it has minimal system requirements too.
Although the basic version is for free but it is not capable of supporting some of the classic features. Hence you need BS Player Pro which is going to cost $29.90 as one-time fee. However, good thing is that it supports all sorts of media formats even in free version only.
If you want to customize it according to your taste then you would have to download the skin additionally. However, this add-on is available in the player only and you do not need any third party tool to improve its functionality.
Compatible With – Windows
9. MusicBee
Website: https://getmusicbee.com/
MusicBee is one of the best music player providing its services as a freeware. You can use it as a tool for not only playing the desired media file but to also organize your collection and library really well. And of course as it supports variety of formats, you have the liberty to play all sorts of media on it.
Apart from audio and video, MusicBee also supports web radio stations, podcasts and even integrates to services like SoundCloud too.
However, a big aspect about MusicBee is that it is built to support mainly audio formats only and for videos you would have to use certain add-ons inside it. Apart from this issues, I am sure you won’t come across any other.
And one thing which I really loved about MusicBee is its interface. It is modern and intuitive and put other alternatives to Windows Media Player on shame for sure. I am sure you will love the simple yet fast media playing service of MusicBee with tons of features to explore.
Compatible With – Windows XP
10. PotPlayer
Website: https://potplayer.daum.net/
Available for both 32 bit and 64 bit Windows versions, PotPlayer emerges as a simple yet powerful media player. This is the last addition to this list of alternatives to Windows Media Player and provides maximum performance.
It can utilize a number of resources like CUDA, QuickSync, DXVA etc. to import files and this also provides a service to explore the best of everything to you.
One thing which you will absolutely love about PotPlayer is that it supports variety of 3D glasses too so you can have the best experience of watching 3D movies on it. Apart from supporting various formats of media files, PotPlayer can also convert media files into various other formats too.
Surprisingly, all of these services come for totally free of cost and you won’t even have to come across a single ad in the interface of this software at all.
Compatible With – Windows XP
Conclusion
If you are thinking that how you are going to access the simple format of WMP in other Windows Media Player alternatives then let me tell you that these options given above offer simple format with so many additional features. And of course, I think you should better get changed with the growing technology.
Apart from the one I mentioned, I would like to recommend Kodi and Plex media player and streamer for this section too. Well, of course they are operated on a very different level but I think if you are tired of the similar formats and features, you can surely give them a try.
