Summary :
Is your AVI file unplayable on Mac ? Having problems playing AVI video files on Mac QuickTime Player ? If you’re wondering why AVI files won’t play on your Mac , check out our complete guide on why QuickTime wo n’t play AVI files and how to open and play AVI files on your Mac .
About AVI: .avi files won’t play on Mac
AVI is a multimedia container format developed by Microsoft. AVI files contain both audio and video data in a file container and help synchronize audio with video playback. AVI is a subformat in which data is stored in the form of tagged chunks of information.
AVI format
One of the main reasons why AVI files have trouble playing in Mac’s QuickTime player is codec incompatibility. A codec is a compressor/decompressor that helps the media player understand the video or audio track within an AVI file. If the codec present in the AVI is not compatible with QuickTime, you will not be able to play the AVI file on your Mac.
The AVI file format is divided into 3 sub-chunks.
- The first carries metadata , which includes the file size and frame rate.
- The second subchunk is the tag that carries the actual audio and video information of the movi AVI file.
- The third ( idx1 tag) is an optional chunk that holds information about the Offset (the address of the destination or arrival point in the file).
Why AVI files cannot be played on Mac?
QuickTime cannot open or play video files If the AVI index is corrupted or one of the codecs (chunks) used to encode the video is not available in QuickTime Player. To overcome this, you need to include a codec that supports AVI files on Mac.
However, QuickTime supports the VFM format, so unless you’re using an older version of QuickTime for AVI files you want to play on your Mac (AVI was originally called Video for Windows), this is usually One of the old problems. Nevertheless, AVI files and QuickTime players have problems.
How to play AVI in QuickTime on Mac?
Here are some ways to play .avi files on Mac. Follow the methods below to resolve AVI files that are not compatible with QuickTime and play unplayable AVI files .
Install an add-on or plugin to play AVI files on Mac
QuickTime may not be able to play AVI files due to incompatibility. However, with a supporting program, you can play AVI files without interruption.
Add-ons or plugins are supporting software that help you play any video format you want. Using the right plugin is one of the methods you can use to make AVI files playable on Mac. So download the appropriate plugin to QuickTime and enjoy your AVI files on Mac.
Download and install supporting codecs
AVI files are created based on a specific compression technique. There are many ways to create or compress AVI files. If the QuickTime player is not compatible with that exact compression method, the file cannot be opened. However, you can play AVI files by installing the appropriate code on your Mac that supports the files you want to play.
You can go to the DivX website and download the AVI support codec.
Try another media player to play AVI files
QuickTime should be good enough to play AVI files. However, if downloading a new codec or plugin doesn’t work, try a different media player. One of the most widely used and recommended software to play AVI files is VLC media player . Download VLC player for Mac , then play AVI files without any problem.
Additional Info : Also, if you don’t have VLC, you can browse the Mac App Store to find a suitable AVI player to play your files. Make sure to include the file extension (.avi in this case) in your search query to find the right AVI media player.
Convert AVI to MOV to Play AVI File on macOS
QuickTime is highly compatible with MOV videos. Therefore, by converting AVI to MOV files you have a better chance to play unplayable AVI files. To do this, download the AVI converter software on the Mac App Store and convert AVI to MOV. Once done, you can play the unplayable AVI files as MOV files on Mac.
If you have tried all the methods above to play AVI files on Mac, but you still have problems playing AVI files on QuickTime, the problem might be due to video file corruption. Fix AVI file corruption. You can make use of the most recommended video repair tools .
SFWare Video Repair Tool is one of the most recommended tools to fix unplayable AVI file issues on Mac . An added advantage of this tool is that it only works in read-only mode, so the file integrity is not altered. The tool works by analyzing audio and video streams separately to identify audio and video issues.
How to fix corrupted AVI files and play them on Mac?
Download and install SFWare AVI Repair Tool on Mac, follow the steps below
- From the main screen, select AVI Repair option
- In the next step, Browse for corrupted AVI files on Mac
- Click Repair to fix corrupted AVI files
- After fixing the file references, find a location and click Save to save the fixed AVI file.
in conclusion
With the above methods, you can easily play AVI files on Mac. If the AVI file cannot be played on Mac, you should update your QuickTime player timely to avoid the error. If you are still unable to open AVI files on Mac despite careful approach, try using SFWare video repair tool.