by Christine Smith • 2020-06-28 11:26:50 • Proven solutions
Apr 21, 2020 Other ways of opening AVI files on Mac. Another way to open AVI files on Mac is to convert them into formats that are supported by QuickTime. One of the most reliable software that we can recommend for Mac users is Movavi Video Converter, which is an intuitive encoding program for converting AVI, MTS, FLV, WMV, DVD VOB, MKV and MPEG to MPEG-4, MOV and a variety of other. However, even this popular format is not universally supported. For example, AVIs are not supported on Apple mobile devices. So, if you want to sync your AVI videos with your iPod Touch, iPad, or iPhone, you first need to convert the AVI files to MP4, M4V, or MOV to ensure compatibility with iOS devices, Mac OS desktop computers, and MacBooks.
Introduced by Microsoft Corporation in 1992, AVI (Audio Video Interleaved) is a very popular format for playing video files nowadays. If you want to watch a movie on your computer or mobile devices, it's as easy as falling off a log. People can find all kinds of AVI players in the market, but they'll come up with the video compatibility or quality issues while playing AVI on Mac. To save your time and give you a high-quality visual experience, we are going to share the top 11 popular AVI players Mac below.
Jan 14, 2019 Also Read: 5 Best Time tracking apps for Mac to boost your productivity. 3 Ways to Play MKV Files on a Mac. These were 3 ways with which you can play MKV files on a Mac. Installing a Plugin is the easiest way to play MKV files if you don’t want to move to a new media player considering QuickTime is already powerful. Jun 24, 2020 Install DivX for Mac free codec to fix AVI files in Quick time: While you can play the majority of AVI files after you install this free codec for Mac, its major disadvantage is that the audio sometimes might be distorted or only the video is played. For this reason, DivX codec for Mac is a secondary option when compared to 3ivx D4 codec.
1. Wondershare AVI Player and Converter
Now it’s time to discuss the 11 reliable AVI player for Mac computer, but before going for other players we will tell you about the best AVI player for Mac. Wondershare AVI Player and Converter. Equipped with a bundle of features, it's an all-round video player for Mac that plays AVI, MP4, MOV and any other 1000+ video/audio formats. In addition, it can help you convert AVI to other 1,000+ video formats and vice versa, even download videos from YouTube or other 10,000+ video sharing sites by pasting URLs and convert to AVI formats.
Key Features of Wondershare AVI Player and Converter:
- It is the best AVI player for Mac computers and enables you to play AVI, MP4 and other 1,000+ video, audio format files in high quality.
- It allows you to play HD videos up to 4K.
- Convert AVI videos to over 1,000 video/audio formats and vice versa.
- Download and record videos from more than 10,000 video sharing sites like YouTube by pasting URLs.
- Stream AVI videos to your Apple TV, Samsung TV, and others for playback.
- Additional media related functions like burning videos to DVD, transferring videos to devices, video compressor, etc.
- It's user-friendly and easy-to-use.
How to Play AVI Files on Mac with Wondershare .avi Player
Method 1: Play AVI videos on Mac directly with Wondershare AVI video player.
You're allowed to play AVI files via Wondershare UniConverter (originally Wondershare Video Converter Ultimate) directly. Just download and install this AVI player on your Mac first, and follow the simple steps below to play AVI videos.
Step 1 Add AVI Files to Wondershare AVI Player Mac
Launch the Wondershare .avi player for Mac, then directly drag and drop your target AVI videos to the best AVI video player for Mac.
Step 2 Play AVI Videos on Mac
Then the imported .AVI file will be displayed in thumbnail as the screenshot shows. Move the mouse over the video, you'll see the Play icon in the middle.
![Play avi videos on mac Play avi videos on mac](/uploads/1/2/6/3/126305318/219077218.jpg)
Click the Play icon and the selected AVI video will be played immediately on Mac.
Method 2: Convert AVI files to other formats and play on any devices. Free photo resizing software for mac.
If you want to play AVI videos on your Mac without any AVI player limitation, then you can convert your AVI videos to MP4 or MOV formats which supported by Mac default. Convert AVI videos and play on Mac with 3 simple steps below.
Step 1 Add AVI Videos to Convert
Download, install and launch Wondershare AVI player on your Mac, then you'll come to an interface named Convert like Method 1. Click the + Add Files button or simply drag and drop to add AVI videos.
Step 2 Select Output Video Format
From the right-top Convert all tasks to: drop-down option, choose output video formats as MP4 or MOV, or other formats you want from the Video tab.
Step 3 Convert AVI Videos on Mac
Finally, click the Convert All button to start converting your AVI videos to MP4 or MOV, and you can play the AVI files on Mac with the default player after the successful conversion. Hp solutions software for mac.
2. VLC Media Player
This .avi player is a widely-used popular media player among the Mac users of the whole world, which is open-source and totally free to use. VLC streams AVI videos to other devices directly in the interface. VLC AVI player for Mac doesn't contain any ads or malware, with it you're free to play AVI files on Mac.
Key Features of VLC Media Player
- VLC is a perfect media player to play AVI files on Mac computers.
- VLC AVI Player for Mac is a cross-platform software and available for Windows, Mac, Android, etc.
- VLC is open-source and available for free of cost.
- VLC can play AVI, MP4, MP3 and most of the popular video and audio files.
- It supports to embed subtitles into the video file.
- You can stream videos to other devices using VLC.
3. Wondershare Free Video Converter
Wondershare Free Video Converter is a free version of the best Wondershare AVI player and converter. This free AVI player has the very similar interface and functions with its ultimate version, such as play AVI videos easily, convert AVI videos to any other format, etc. Just follow the same steps of Wondershare UniConverter to achieve these functions. The only difference is that the converted AVI video will get a watermark on it like most freeware on the market.
Key Features of Wondershare Free Video Converter
- Play AVI videos on Mac with simple steps.
- Convert AVI videos to any other format you want and play on more devices.
- Support 1,000+ video formats including MP4, MOV, AVI, MKV, WMV, etc.
- Edit AVI videos with features of cropping, trimming, rotating, adding watermarks, and more.
- Download videos from YouTube and other video sites easily.
- Transfer AVI files to mmobile devices via a USB cable.
4. MPlayerX
MPlayerX is also a nice and clean AVI player for Mac. MPlayerX opens AVI and other files formats smoothly without any loss of the video quality. You just need to drop the target .avi video file into the player, and then the program will start playing AVI files on Mac. This AVI Player for Mac has FFmpeg and Mplayer which makes it compatible with all types of media files for playback. With this AVI player for Mac, you can search for the video you want within this video player and then play it directly.
Key Features of MPlayerX
- This software supports FFmpeg and Mplayer which makes it a great AVI player for Mac computer.
- MPlayerX can play AVI files very smoothly in high quality.
- MPlayerX is a piece of multilingual software, and supports up to 10 languages.
- MPlayerX is very helpful for you to handle the video playback process.
5. Elmedia
Elmedia player is another good AVI player for Mac, which play any file you import without any hassle. However, the Elmedia AVI player is not totally free that charges $19.99 and note that it's only available for Mac system.
Key Features of Elmedia
- This AVI player for Mac enables you to play AVI files with multiple audio-track selections.
- This program allows you to manage the volume easily.
- This AVI player for Mac offers various kinds of adjusting settings.
- Elmedia allows you to import subtitles into the player to play along with the video file.
- This program is fully compatible with AirPlay.
6. Plex
Plex is a helpful Mac AVI player that solves the problem of AVI won't play on Mac and enables you to open AVI on Mac smoothly. This AVI player makes it easy to play AVI, MP4 and several other popular video and audio formats on your Mac computers easily. Plex can easily manage your media files as well. If you have tons of photos on your Mac and stored in the different folders, Plex can select the photos easily and offer you an organized photo library.
Key Features of Plex
- It supports AVI video playback on Mac computers, and several other popular video and audio formats.
- This AVI player for Mac is fully compatible with other operating systems like Windows, Abdroid and so on.
- Plex can manage your media library with ease.
- This Mac AVI player allows you to search online videos for playback.
- Plex has a media sever which enables you to save your videos into the service.
7. Macgo Mac Media Player
Macgo Mac Media Player is a totally free media player software for Mac and Windows users. This software allows you to watch all kinds of videos files in high quality. With the support of AirPlay, This Mac AVI player streams the videos to your iOS devices easily. Playing Blu-Ray discs on Mac computers is also easy to be done with the help of this player.
Key Features of Macgo Mac Media Player
- This AVI player for Mac program can help you to play videos on Mac computers without any quality loss.
- Macgo Mac Media Player is a totally free video player to use.
- This Mac AVI player fully supports to embed subtitles.
- Mac users can play HD videos up to 4K.
- This AVI player for Mac allows you to search for the videos and play directly.
Apps To Play Avi Files On Mac
8. 5KPlayer
5KPlayer is a completely new type of video player software which enables users to play AVI on Mac computer. As the name indicates, this video player plays high-quality media files, including MP4, MPEG or other video and audio formats. This Mac AVI player program has downloading features as well which enables you to download online videos for free directly using the player. If you are going to send or receive videos from iPhone using streaming feature, then it's possible to get the work done with 5KPlayer.
Key Features of 5KPlayer
- 5KPlayer is a good AVI player for Mac and enables you to play AVI files on Mac computer and supports high-quality videos.
- 5KPlayer allows you to search for the videos you need and play the video within the player directly.
- This AVI player for Mac enables you to use the AirPlay feature to stream media files between iPhone and Mac computers.
- This software supports multiple online video sharing sites watch streaming videos directly.
- This Mac AVI player has a built-in radio player.
9. Cisdem VideoPlayer
Cisdem VideoPlayer is also helpful for playing AVI files on Mac computers. This AVI player for Mac also supports to play high-quality video files without compromising quality. This program is compatible with various kinds of video and audio formats, such as MP4, MP3, MOV, etc. It comes without any ads or malware in the interface, and you can enjoy videos with ease.
Key Features of Cisdem VideoPlayer
- This software can play AVI format files on Mac and supports up to 50 audio video format files.
- It can play 4K/5K/1080p HD videos without any issue of buffering crashed while playing.
- When you play any vide it will automatically load subtitles and if you want you can add subtitle later manually easily.
- This software is also completely free and without any ads or spyware.
- Play and pause your videos or take snapshot of video while playing.
10. QuickTime
QuickTime is the official Apple media player for Mac and iOS devices users from Apple officially. This player is also an AVI player for Mac computers. Previously it was supporting only MOV format but now a days it can handle so many other video formats as well. This software is good for basic operation related to player like playing videos but if we talk about the speed then it is still very slow in launching.
Key Features of QuickTime
- QuickTime plays videos on Mac devices and support AVI format as well.
- QuickTime records or edit your videos.
- QuickTime enables you to share your own videos easily.
- This AVI player for Mac enables you to record online videos.
- This Mac AVI player enables you to trim videos.
11. Movist
![Best app to play avi files on mac Best app to play avi files on mac](/uploads/1/2/6/3/126305318/877676806.png)
Movist for Mac is a FFMPEG-based video player for Mac devices which enables Mac users to play AVI videos on Mac devices very easily. This AVI player for Mac supports media keys of Mac, which means you can easily control your playing movie by using hard media keys of Mac. Mac users can operate this software in the single mode and multiple-document modes as well. This AVI player for Mac supports subtitles of the videos as well so you can easily enjoy videos with your customized subtitles.
Key Features of Movist
- Movist is an AVI player for Mac computer and allows Mac users to play AVI files on Mac devices.
- This software supports some other video formats as well including MP4 and AVI.
- Movist is only available for Mac users.
- Single and multiple Windows mode is supported by the program.
- This AVI player for Mac supports high quality subtitle and auto detection of subtitle encoding.
All the AVI video players for Mac mentioned above are of great help in playing AVI files on Mac (Mac OS 10.15 Catalina included). When speaking of what player plays AVI files on Mac, Wondershare AVI Player and Converter stands out as the best AVI player due to its powerful all-round features. To conclude, it is the only program that helps to convert, download, record and burn any videos you like. We highly recommend Wondershare AVI Player and Converter to all the Mac users that are looking for an all-in-one AVI player for Mac devices.
Playing AVI files is one of the biggest worries for a Mac user. None of the four major Indeo codecs that are required to decode AVI files have been integrated into QuickTime. In some cases, even if the required codecs are available, the AVI video file does not play due to corruption. So, before we get to know how to play AVI files on Mac or how to fix AVI files that are not playing on Mac, let’s get a quick look at Audio Video Interleave (AVI) format.
Image Source: support.apple.com
What is an AVI file?
The full form of AVI is Audio Video Interleave. Like any video file format, AVI is a container format that defines how video data is packed into a file. Unlike other video formats, it does not predefine or specify the protocol or procedure involved while recording or creating a file. As an AVI file structure has the organizational format of streams and stream data, it is defined by two lists namely List Chunk and Index Chunk.
List Chunk: The list chunk has metadata, the size of the file, frame rates and audio/video information.
Index Chunk: Index chunk is responsible for saving the locations of data within the container.
Note: If any of these crucial chunks is missing in your AVI video file, then your AVI file will not play.
What is a Codec?
A codec that is short from for compressor and decompressor is responsible for decoding the video and audio tracks that have been encoded or packed in the .avi file.
It is to be noted that an AVI file or any video file does not come with codecs. Codecs are a part of the video player package like QuickTime.
However, if the codec used to encode the AVI file is not available in the QuickTime player, then your AVI file will not play. Thus, you can expand the codec library of the player by downloading the specific codec required to play the AVI video file.
Problems Associated With Running AVI on Mac Using QuickTime
When an AVI file is opened using QuickTime player, it scans the file to see which codecs have been used to encode the data in the container/AVI file.
The AVI format video will play as expected if the video and audio in codec are compressed using a codec that exists in the QuickTime package. Nevertheless, problems arise while playing AVI files on Mac when the codec does not exist in the library and leads to an unplayable AVI file on Mac. The file may also refuse to play if the AVI file is corrupt. Fix corrupt AVI files on Mac before trying any workaround.
Unplayable AVI Files Return The Following Errors:
- “QuickTime is missing the software needed to perform this operation. Unfortunately, it is not available on the QuickTime server”
- 'You may experience problems playing a video track in 'file.avi' because the required compressor could not be found”
Additionally, the latest version QuickTime X does not have a few major codec’s like Indeo or native DivX support and you might end up with the question “How to play unplayable AVI file on Mac?”.
Now that you have understood the complications associated with AVI files that are unplayable on Mac, the following workarounds mentioned-below have been provided to help you fix unplayable AVI videos on Mac.
Methods to Fix Unplayable AVI files on Mac
Find the right codec to play AVI file on QuickTime:
Apps That Play Avi Files On Mac Computer
Find the codec used to encode the file using QuickTime by opening the file using QuickTime and select Show Movie Info option from the Window menu.
The video file information is listed, and you will be able to find codec information after format properties. Check if the QuickTime version supports the codec that is listed in the video properties.
Viewing Avi Files On Mac
If you don’t find the codec preinstalled with QuickTime, check on the QuickTime support site if the codec is supported by the player. If you don’t find the respective codec or if it is an unsupportive codec, then your AVI video won’t play. In case it is supported then you can go ahead and install the codec after downloading it from the author or the publisher’s site.
Note: Download the codec from genuine and trusted sources to avoid compromising your system security.
Download and Install Standardized Video Encoders:
There are two major industry-standard codecs for Mac that can extend the playback capabilities. The following codecs have been referred to as the most preferred codecs that enable you to open .avi files on Mac:
- Install 3ivx D4 codec:
This codec enables greater video quality at lower file size values up to fifty percent when compared to the MPEG-4 standard designed by Apple. This decoder increases the efficiency of the video storage and transmission of files that are rendered too large.It is an integration of a huge set of video and audio codecs that allow playback of almost all the AVI files with AAC audio and video of MPEG-4.You can fix your unplayable AVI file by installing 3ivx D4 on your Mac. There is no longer a need for downloading any other components like plug-ins to play the AVI file unless a proprietary codec is used to encode the file. - Install DivX for Mac free codec to fix AVI files in Quick time:
While you can play the majority of AVI files after you install this free codec for Mac, its major disadvantage is that the audio sometimes might be distorted or only the video is played. For this reason, DivX codec for Mac is a secondary option when compared to 3ivx D4 codec.
Note: Only one among the above two codecs are to be used at once as they share the same set of library files to decode the video. Hence it is recommended to install only one codec to avoid malfunction of QuickTime player.
Use an Alternate player to Play AVI files on Mac:
VLC or Video LAN Client is a cross-platform media player that supports a wide variety of AVI video and audio codecs. Therefore, choosing VLC as an alternative media player to play the unplayable AVI file on Quick Time is one of the easiest ways.
Because of its large library of free encoding and decoding libraries, you will no longer need any additional codec download or proprietary plug-ins.
Because of its large library of free encoding and decoding libraries, you will no longer need any additional codec download or proprietary plug-ins.
Play AVI Files By Converting Into QuickTime Supported MOV Files:
Another workaround to fix the unplayable AVI video on Mac is to convert the AVI file into a QuickTime supported file format like MOV.
Post conversion, the file is not only playable by Mac but also has improved the quality of audio and video. As most of the converters break the index of the AVI file while conversion, this method is least recommended. Lastly, if the converted video file stops playing halfway try AVI index repair on Mac.
Post conversion, the file is not only playable by Mac but also has improved the quality of audio and video. As most of the converters break the index of the AVI file while conversion, this method is least recommended. Lastly, if the converted video file stops playing halfway try AVI index repair on Mac.
Note: Have a copy of your AVI file before converting them to any other compatible format as your AVI file might get corrupt due to improper conversion and leads to permanent inaccessible AVI files.
AVI Still Not Playing In Mac?
If the AVI video file is unplayable even after updating the codecs or converting them to the MOV file, using a professional AVI video repair tool is suggested. Remo Repair AVI is the tool that you will be needing.
Remo Repair AVI fixes and works on a duplicate version of your original AVI file to prevent modification on the original file. The self-explanatory interface helps you to fix the video in just 3 clicks. Download the Remo Repair AVI tool now to fix your unplayable video and preview it for free before saving.
Remo Repair AVI Can Also:
- Repair AVI files that are corrupted
- Repair AVI files if their index is corrupted
- Repairs AVI files if there is no audio or playing only audio in the video file
Conclusion:
With the mentioned free workarounds or by using the above-mentioned AVI repair tool, you must have fixed your unplayable AVI videos on Mac. However, you can always make use of Remo Software’s technical assistance team as they will guide you with the repairing process of the software if needed.