Download VLC for Android

VLC is a compact, lightweight and open-source media player. An extremely flexible program, this software is available across both desktop and mobile platforms, and on multiple operating systems. It is commonly regarded to be one of the best all-round media players, contending with much larger rivals ranging from Windows Media Player to Quicktime.

VLC is offered totally free of charge by its maker, VideoLAN. Users can choose to donate via the VideoLAN website; to support the upkeep, maintenance and future releases of VLC; but this is not required to use the software.

VLC is widely considered to be one of the best-performing free media players. Its low resource usage and high compatibility with multiple video and audio formats make it a favourite amongst lots of user groups, ranging from videographers to home PC users.

As long as you download VLC from the VideoLAN website, the program is perfectly safe. Its open source nature, regular updates and dedicated user base ensure that it responds rapidly and efficiently to changes in the marketplace; such as new forms of malware, for example.

VLC media player is lauded for its wide range of file support, and is recommended for users struggling to open media files with their current player. More than 100 file formats are supported across input and output, audio and video; and VLC developers regularly issue updates for new file types.

VLC runs on all modern Windows operating systems, including Windows mobile platforms. Alongside this, it always runs on Linux, Unix and Android; across multiple devices.

VLC runs on both Mac OS and iOS, meaning that every Apple product (ranging from iMacs, to iPads and iPhones) is able to run any given type of VLC player.

VLC does not support blue ray playback as a native feature, however as a result of its open source software; users have designed plugins that will enable VLC to play encrypted blu ray disks. These plugins can be easily installed to allow seamless blu ray playback.

MKV (Matroska) files have become very popular in the past few years, largely due to their high quality and small file size. Many media players and devices do not yet support MKV files, but VLC does. You will have no trouble playing an MKV file through VLC.

VLC nightly builds are experimental versions of the main VLC product. Many of these versions will contain bug fixes, long before those fixes are released in the main version. If you are struggling with a particular bug, you may find a nightly version which will work for you; but bear in mind that these are not finished programs and therefore you should expect other bugs too.