Requirements: OS X 10.12+
, 89.2MB free space
Version 8.15(3307) (22 Mar, 2023) Release notes
Nataliia Paraskeva
Apr 6, 2022
QuickTime is unable to play MKV files on Mac. Alternative players can open MKV and other formats not native to macOS. Our top 5 list will allow you to make an informed choice and pick a player based on its features and advantages. All players included in this list can open MKV without the need to install additional codecs.
Some of these players carry a large price, but even if it’s free, you’ll be investing your time, and it will be harder to move on once you’ve gotten used to it. Go for the players that have these important features:
Since it opens almost any codecs, Elmedia is an effective MKV player for Mac. It can save screenshots and playlists, create and edit bookmarks, and you can switch to the audio device you need. Elmedia Player is also fully compatible with subtitles, with a built-in function to search on OpenSubtitles.
After upgrading to Elmedia PRO, you can stream over AirPlay 2 and DLNA, tune audio and video, save your downloaded subtitles, enable deinterlacing, and loop fragments of your clips.
Pros
Cons
IINA is a Mac MKV player with an Apple-like UI. Use this player if you like using Force Touch, the Touch Bar, and Trackpad gestures. It also offers other unusual options, such as intricate playback speed controls. IINA is a rather universal player, so you’ll be able to play many different media files with it.
Pros
Cons
This player’s functionality is somewhat limited, but it will allow you to play MKV files on Mac. Cisdem can handle 50 formats in total, and it’s great for Ultra HD playback, showing high performance with 4K and 5K videos. Surprisingly, it can also convert some types of media files.
Pros
Cons
Omni Player is a premium-quality player that can be used for free, at the expense of features. It opens MKV easily, and has countless settings for every aspect of your playback. Some of them are unique - for example, Omni Player can make a .gif image of any video moment you want.
Pros
Cons
A fully free player that can do almost anything, VLC also suffers from the amount of options. It can stream, but you’ll have to go through numerous menus with unclear settings. It can customize playback like no other player, but the Advanced Preferences menu will make you resort to Google. For simple tasks, like playing MKV, it is excellent, and perfectly usable.
Pros
Cons
Here, we will compare the Mac MKV players side-by-side, with all their features listed for better visibility.
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Features
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VideoDuke
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Elmedia
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INNA
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Cisdem
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OmniPlayer
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VLC
|
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Support for many media formats
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Support for many media formats
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yes (MKV, WMV, AVI,MP4, SWF, FLV, AAC, WMA, FLAC, MP3, etc.)
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yes (AVI, MP4, FLV, SWF, WMV, MKV, M4V, AAC,FLAC, MP3, WAV, WMA, etc.)
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yes (MKV, AVI, FLV, AVCHD, WMV, (MP3, OGG, ACC, WMA, AIFF, etc.)
|
yes ( AVI, MP4, FLV, SWF, WMV, MKV, M4V, AAC, FLAC, MP3, WAV, WMA, etc. )
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yes (MKV, MP4, VOB, WMV, MPG AVI, MP3, WMA, AAC, etc.)
|
|
Subtitle support
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Subtitle support
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yes
|
yes
|
yes
|
yes
|
yes
|
|
Screen recording option
|
Screen recording option
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no
|
no
|
no
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yes (PRO)
|
yes
|
|
Advanced playback options
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Advanced playback options
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yes
|
yes
|
no
|
yes
|
yes
|
|
Create and manage playlists
|
Create and manage playlists
|
yes
|
yes
|
no
|
yes
|
yes
|
|
Built-in audio equalizer
|
Built-in audio equalizer
|
yes
|
yes
|
no
|
yes
|
yes
|
|
Free versions
|
Free versions
|
yes
|
yes
|
yes
|
yes
|
yes
|
FAQ