MOV format is commonly used to store high-quality video, audio, and text files developed by Apple. Additionally, MOV files use a compression algorithm that sustains good video quality while keeping file sizes manageable. This makes MOV popular for professionals and casual users who want to store and share videos. However, not every media player supports the MOV format. That's why you need a specialized MOV player to ensure smooth playback without any issues. A free MOV player is a great option to enjoy your favorite videos without spending money. These players are easy to use, and many come with additional features like subtitle support, playlist creation, and video editing options. In this article, we'll provide six MOV players that can enhance your video-watching experience.
Benefits of MOV Format
The MOV format has several advantages, making it popular for video and audio files. One of the main benefits is its high-quality video and audio output. Even though MOV files are compressed to save space, they still maintain excellent quality. MOV files are also very versatile; they can store different types of multimedia content like video, audio, and text all in one file. This makes them great for complex projects like video editing or creating presentations. Additionally, MOV files are compatible with both Windows and Mac systems, especially with Apple's QuickTime player.
Features of Free MOV File Player
When looking for the best free MOV players, you should look for several features. See them below.
- High-Quality Playback: Free MOV players should offer smooth and clear playback of MOV files. This ensures you can enjoy high-quality videos without any lag or glitches.
- Support for Multiple Formats: Many MOV video players support other popular video file formats, such as MP4, AVI, FLV, and MKV. Thus, you can store all your video files in one player.
- Subtitle Support: These players often include built-in support for subtitles, allowing you to load and display subtitles in various languages, which enhances the viewing experience.
- User-Friendly Interface: Free MOV players typically come with a simple and easy-to-navigate interface. This makes them suitable for all types of users, even those who are not tech-savvy.
- Playlist Creation: Many MOV media players allow you to create and manage playlists, which allow you to organize your videos and watch them in a specific order.
- Customizable Settings: You can often adjust video playback speed, screen size, brightness, and other settings to suit your preferences.
Best 6 MOV Media Player for Your MOV Files
| MOV Players | Highlighted Features | File Format Support |
|---|---|---|
| QuickTime Player | High-quality playback, basic video editing tools, and subtitle support | MOV, MP4, M4V |
| VLC Media Player | Advanced playback controls, extensive format support, and cross-platform compatibility | Almost all formats |
| Windows Media Player | Media streaming, burning/ripping CDs, ease of use, and subtitle Support | MP3, WMA, WMV, AVI, MPEG, MOV, MP4 |
| Jumpshare Online MOV Player | Web-based player, embed MOV file, safe and secure, and basic editing features | MOV, MP4, MKV, and other formats |
| MOV Player by VEED | Compress large files, generate shareable link, web-based MOV player, and basic editing features | MOV, MP4, AVI, MKV |
| PotPlayer | Supports a wide range of video formats, advanced playback controls, and Customizable interface | Almost all formats |
1. QuickTime Player
QuickTime Player is a video player for Mac devices that has various features. Since Apple develops MOV files, this means that the built-in media player of Mac can play MOV files. Additionally, while primarily designed for MOV files, QuickTime Player also supports other formats like MP4, AVI, and MPEG. Furthermore, you can load and display subtitles in different languages in formats like SRT, SSA, TXT, etc. Besides, it has a clean and straightforward user interface that makes it easy to play, pause, fast-forward, and rewind videos.
Key Features:
- The player offers excellent video and audio quality, making it ideal for watching high-definition movies and videos.
- It includes a screen recording feature to capture your screen activities.
- As a default media file player on Mac, QuickTime Player integrates seamlessly with other Apple software and services.
- QuickTime also allows you to trim, split, and combine video clips without advanced editing software.
- QuickTime is also available on Windows.
2. VLC Media Player
Can VLC play MOV? Of course, yes! We all know that VLC Media Player is an open-source media player with many video codecs. This means that any video format, such as MOV, FLV, MP4, WMV, AVI, and other file formats, can be played with this video player. Furthermore, it works on multiple operating systems, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iPhone. Moreover, it provides advanced playback control that can easily control playback speed, create loops, and adjust audio and video synchronization. VLC also offers a range of customization options for video and audio filters.
Key Features:
- You can download free MOV Player on any device you have.
- Unlike many free media players, VLC does not have ads, spyware, or user tracking.
- VLC can convert MOV to MP4 media files or in different formats and stream media over a network.
- It also allows you to manually load external subtitle files and customize their appearance.
- This MOV player can play DVDs and Blu-ray discs, providing a full-featured media experience without the need for additional software.
- When you have a large number of MOV files, you can drag and drop your video files in its interface to create a playlist.
3. Windows Media Player
Another free MOV player for Windows is Windows Media Player. It is the default player of Windows PC that can also play MOV file with relative codec installed. Furthermore, supports various audio and video formats, including MP3, WMA, WMV, AVI, and other common formats. Additionally, offers a media library where you can organize and manage your music, videos, and photos. The library feature allows you to easily create playlists, rate songs, and sort media files. Besides, you can play the downloaded YouTube to Windows Media Player with high quality. However, Windows Vista, 12, and higher versions of Windows Media Player can play MOV video file.
Key Features:
- This best MOV player has a user-friendly interface with easy-to-navigate controls for playing, pausing, and stopping media.
- The player offers basic playback controls like fast-forward, rewind, shuffle, and repeat.
- This MOV video player lets you rip music from CDs to your computer and burn your playlists onto CDs.
- Windows Media Player can automatically download album art, track information, and other metadata for your media files from the internet.
4. Jumpshare Online MOV Player
Jumpshare Online MOV Player is an online-based MOV file player and a free MKV player that can play videos online. It is perfect for users who don't want another installation on their PC. You can also use this free tool without creating an account. Additionally, it lets you upload your file through the drag and drop method or click the Choose MOV File button. Furthermore, you can access this player on any web browser, such as Firefox, Opera, Chrome, Edge, and more. Likewise, you can ensure that your MOV videos are completely safe and secure, as this tool uses AES-256 military-grade technology, and the file you upload can be deleted after 24 hours.
Key Features:
- You can upload files up to 100MB in size, but if you have a larger MOV file size, you can sign up to increase the file size limit.
- It lets you embed your MOV file online to your personal website or for product pages.
- This best free MOV player online lets you add customized thumbnails to your file.
- Jumpshare has editing features that let you trim, shorten, and edit videos.
5. MOV Player by VEED
VEED's MOV Player is an online tool, so there's no need to download or install software. You can play MOV files directly from your web browser. In addition to MOV, VEED has also players for other popular video formats like MP4, AVI, and MKV. Likewise, you can use this free tool without creating an account or logging in. However, if you want to save your progress in case something happens, you need to register for the program. Furthermore, it lets you easily add subtitles to your videos by uploading a subtitle file or using VEED's auto-generate subtitle feature.
Key Features:
- VEED ensures smooth and high-quality video playback, offering an enjoyable viewing experience without buffering issues.
- You can use this to compress larger file sizes of your MOV files.
- It allows you to create or generate a shareable link for your MOV videos for easy sharing.
- Being web-based, the player works on any device with internet access, including Windows PCs, Macs, tablets, and smartphones.
- The tool provides additional features like trimming, cropping, and adding text or filters to your videos.
6. PotPlayer
Another lightweight MOV player free download that is lightweight and supports almost all media formats is PotPlayer. Media formats supported by this tool are MOV, AVI, MP4, WMV, and many more. In addition, it can play MOV files up to 4K UHD. Furthermore, this player includes fast-forward, rewind, frame-by-frame playback, and playback speed adjustment. In fact, it also supports subtitles in various formats like SMI, SRT, ASS, and SSA. You can also adjust the subtitle appearance, sync timing, and customize fonts. Moreover, you can bookmark favorite scenes and create chapters within a video for quick access.
Key Features:
- The player supports streaming from online sources, including YouTube and other video platforms, directly within the player.
- PotPlayer includes basic editing features like trimming video clips, taking screenshots, and extracting audio from video files.
- It also provides advanced playback controls, such as fast-forward, rewind, frame-by-frame playback, and playback speed adjustment.
- It allows you to apply various audio and video effects, such as noise reduction, sharpening, and deinterlacing.
How Can I Play MOV Files on Windows and Mac?
To play MOV files using a MOV Player, we will use VLC Media Player as an example since the steps are the same for Windows and Mac computers.
Step 1 Download and Install VLC
To get the VLC installer file, go to its official website and click the Download VLC button. Once downloaded, navigate to the installer file and double-click on it. A wizard prompt will appear on your screen, which you can follow to install the tool successfully. After that, launch the MOV player and familiarize yourself with its interface.
Step 2 Upload the MOV Video
Next, upload the MOV video by clicking the Media tab and selecting the Open File option. Then, find the MOV file on the files that appear on your screen. On the other hand, you can directly drag and drop the file VLC's interface.
Step 3 Preview the MOV File
After adding the file, the video will start playing automatically. Then, you can see the various buttons on the lower part of the media player. These are play, stop, forward, backward, loop, and more.
Extra Tips: Why is .MOV not playing?
There are many reasons why your MOV file is not playing on any media player. It should be because the file is corrupted, missing codecs, outdated software, unsupported players, and more. But there is one solution for these issues, which is converting MOV files into MP4 or other formats to avoid playback issues. One of the best converters on the internet is AceThinker VidElement. It can convert videos, audio, and images from any output format like GIF, PNG, MP4, MKV, AAC, MP3, etc. Furthermore, you will experience a 50x faster conversion speed using this tool as it adopts the leading Blu-Hyper technology that can increase the conversion speed of your computer. In addition to that, this converter tool can also be your video editor since it also comes with various editing features. This includes merging, cutting, filtering, adding watermarks, and more. Moreover, it allows you to choose a designation folder for the converted file. So what are you waiting for? Install AceThinker VidElement now!
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Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better, MOV or MP4?
MOV and MP4 are popular video formats, but MP4 is more widely supported across different devices and platforms. MOV files usually offer higher quality but are mainly used in Apple's ecosystem, like on Mac and iOS devices. On the other hand, MP4 is more versatile and compatible with almost all devices, making it a better choice for sharing and streaming videos.
How to convert MOV to MP4?
To convert a MOV file to MP4, you can install AceThinker VidElement. Then, upload the MOV file to the converter, choose MP4 as the output format, and tap the Convert button. Afterward, you can download the MP4 file and play it on most devices.
Why MOV file is not playing?
A MOV file might not play if your media player does not support the MOV file format. It could also be due to missing codecs needed to decode the video and audio in the file. Lastly, the file might be corrupted or incomplete, causing playback issues.
