How to Play WMV Files on macOS in 2021 (FULL GUIDE)

WMV — short for Windows Media Video — is a compressed file format developed by Microsoft and mostly used in media players designed for Windows. It offers easy sharing over various platforms, and that’s what makes WMV popular outside Windows as well.

However, when it comes to playing WMV file on Mac, things may not be so straightforward. The built-in Mac apps don’t include WMV playback. However, there are several ways you can play WMV file on Mac, and we’re going to explore them all right away.

Method 1 — Desktop Mac Video Players

Elmedia Player for Mac to Play WMV Files

We promised to give you the best WMV player for Mac, and that’s why we start the list of solutions with Elmedia Player. If you want to get a smooth and enjoyable viewing experience, Elmedia is the go-to player no matter if you’re going to watch WMV files or any other popular format like AVI, MP4, SWF, FLV, MKV, VOB and many more. On top of being an excellent WMV player for Mac, Elmedia offers lots of other features in its PRO plan.

For a very convenient one-time payment, you upgrade Elmedia Player to the PRO version that can be used to download videos from YouTube, streaming the media from your Mac to other devices, take screenshots at any points, multiple playback settings, and more. Use the Elmedia Player PRO to stream to Apple TVs, Chromecast and Chromecast Ultra, and DLNA-certified devices.

How to Play WMV with Elmedia?

Playing all your WMV files on Mac is a straightforward process with Elmedia Player. Everything about its interface is intuitive and smooth, however, we put together a few steps to follow in case you need them:

1. Download and install Elmedia Player
2. Locate the WMV file you want to play with any of the three available methods:
3. Simply drag and drop the file on the player window or the app’s icon in the dock
4. Use finder to find the file and choose Elmedia Player after right-clicking on it and selecting “Open With”
5. Click on File — Open and navigate to where the WMV file is stored
6. Watch all your favorite WMV files!

Switch Player

From the same developers who came up with Flip4Mac, the only solution for playing WMV files on QuickTime for several years, Switch Player is a standalone player who can take play WMV file on Mac without difficulties. Switch is designed with media professionals in mind as it allows way more than just watching various formats. It comes with lots of editing features as well, like inspecting, adjusting video file, converting videos, and transcoding. For those of you that used Flip4Mac, this program will come as a very useful upgrade. Also, if you are planning on returning to Flip4Mac, you should know it is no longer supported.

Pros

• Can play various formats
• Multiple settings for playback and video tweaking
• Standalone player

Cons

• Doesn’t offer a free trial version
• Getting around the interface can feel complicated for new users

IINA Player

Next in line, a dedicated WMV player for macOS that is developed with functionality in mind. It has a very friendly interface and comes with gesture controls to make playback as smooth as possible. It’s ideally adapted for Apple computers and the technology in them, such as Retin screens. It can play just about any file you throw at it and does so with ease. The player also comes with lots of settings to tweak the playback and get the best experience out of it. Whenever you’re playing WMV file on Mac, you can count on INNA player for maximum efficiency.

Method 2 — Convert WMV into a Mac file format to play on macOS

If you don’t want to add a WMV player to your Mac and play WMV files, you can just convert the .wmv format into other formats. Not only that you will be able to play the files directly on Mac using the built-in players, but you will also be able to export the videos on mobile devices as well. There are various tools to use and convert WMV files on Mac. Here are the most popular ones.

UniConverter by WonderShare

You’re looking at what could be the best conversion solution for Mac users. It comes with a very friendly interface and can help you switch from WMV to AVI, MP4, FLV, MKV, MOVE, VOB, and many more.

Use UniConverter to convert WMV files:

1. Download the app and add it to your Mac
2. Select the WMV file you want to transform into a different format then hit “Add Files”
3. Choose the new format for the file
4. Click “Convert” to start the process
5. Play your new videos in QuickTime

Quickly Convert WMV using Stellar Video Converter

Another option to convert WMV files comes from Stellar Video Converter. A complete application that can take your original WMV file and transform it into AVI, MP4, M4V, MOV, and many more. It’s a fast solution that guarantees a clean process without ads or malware and you can always rely on it.

Here’s how to convert WMV files after you download Stellar Video Converter:

1. Click on Add File and select the files you want to play
2. Select the desired format from “Output Format”
3. Select the destination folder and click “Save” to get the process started

Use Handrable to Convert WMV to Play on Mac without a WMV Player

The last entry when talking about software to convert WMV files comes from Handbrake. This app is basically a FOSS transcoder that will completely save your Mac incompatibility with WMV files. It can be used to rip DVDs and many other functions on top.

Here’s how to use it to play WMV file on Mac with ease:

1. Install Handbrake on your Mac and select the file by clicking “Open Source” in the left corner
2. You can either choose one of the presets or manually select video duration, output format, dimensions, quality, etc
3. Enjoy the video in one of the built-in players on Mac

Online Video Converter

For those of you that want to play WMV file on Mac computers without downloading any type of software, there’s also an online solution. There are lots of solutions out there to use, however, we recommend using https://convert-video-online.com/. You will be able to convert any WMV file easily and download the video in the new format on your Mac.

Steps to convert WMV files online:

1. Access the website and click on “Open” to choose the WMV file on your Mac
2. Next, select the format for the Output file
3. Click “Convert”
4. Download the converted file and enjoy

Top 3 Players & Solutions to open WMV format on Mac OS

Before reaching the conclusion to what’s the best WMV player out there, let’s check out some alternatives to Elmedia Player that can be used to play WMV files directly on Mac without converting them.

VLC PLayer

VLC player needs no further introduction as it is widely used by people that want to play several video and audio files without needing extra codecs or plug-ins. It also offers transcoding capabilities that other apps are unable to offer — Beta to VGS, QuickTime ot MPEG, VHS to QuickTime.

Pros

• It works on multiple platforms — macOS, Windows, Linux
• Can deal with any type of multimedia files, codecs, and formats
• Doesn’t need a lot of resources

Cons

• No support for Indeo Video codec, for example
• RealMedia format not supported

MPlayerX

You’re looking at an open-source, 100% free media player that can tackle any format you throw at it. Mac users use MPlayerX because it doesn’t need extra plugins or codecs while supporting the most various of video files — WMV, MKV, RealMedia, OGG, AVI, MP4, etc.

Pros

• Great support team
• Decodes any format without plugins
• Multiple playback settings

Cons

• The user interface could use an upgrade

Wondershare Player

This is another popular player thanks to its video and audio formats that it can play with ease. Add a very user-friendly interface to the mix and you get an excellent app. It can support a lot of formats that QuickTime can’t deal with and comes with other apps that could be very useful to download YouTube videos and many more.

Pros

• Cool user interface
• Doesn’t require many resources
• Supports a wide range of formats

Cons

• The interface can’t be changed — no other themes or colors
• Doesn’t have so many features as other players presented above

Conclusion

Now that you’ve seen what are the answers to “How to play WMV files on macOS”, all that’s left is to take them for a spin and decide which one is the best fit for your needs. However, if you don’t feel like trying out all the apps and websites we’ve listed here, and you are looking for the very best WMV player out there, we’ll make it simple for you — go with Elmedia Player. No matter if you go for the PRO version or not, you will get a very capable player that can deal with any video format out there.

You will no longer have to worry about codecs, plugins, or any other add-ons to watch any video you download from the internet. Furthermore, if you upgrade to PRO, you will be able to use Elmedia to get videos from YouTube and dozens of other websites that you can then play in the same app. Also, suppose you don’t want to be stuck with watching videos on your Mac display. In that case, Elemedia Player PRO enables you to stream to Apple TV, Chromecast and Ultra Chromecast, and DLNA-enabled devices. But don’t take our word for it, download the application for free and give it a go right now to test all the features mentioned above!