Suggestions appear as you type. Use the up and down arrows to choose one and Enter to open it.

This page's audience our own tag's counts — open to see them
–Visits
–Page views
–Clicks to vendors
–Time on page
–Reading now
Clicks to vendors, by tool
  • –
Top countries
  • –
Devices
  • –

– · visits, page views and clicks counted by our own tag, which counts more than our checked analytics; every figure rounded down · how we count

Head-to-head · Media Player Software

SMPlayer vs nPlayer

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 5 checks side by side
Higher score SMPlayer #4 in Media Player Software 8.8/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 4 features Visit SMPlayer
nPlayer #25 in Media Player Software 6.6/10 Paid ✓ 3 of 4 features Visit nPlayer

SMPlayer leads on 1 check, nPlayer on 0, and 4 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 5 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreSMPlayer · 8.8/10
  • Free planonly SMPlayer
  • Most featuresSMPlayer · 4 of 4

SMPlayer scores higher on our rubric for media player software: 8.8 against 6.6 out of 10; our editors rank them #4 and #25.

SMPlayer offers free plan; nPlayer doesn't. On license model, nPlayer gives you One-time where SMPlayer offers Free.

SMPlayer is the better fit for free open-source desktop playback. nPlayer is the better fit for mobile users accessing many network and cloud sources.

  • SMPlayer fits best

    Free open-source desktop playback

  • nPlayer fits best

    Mobile users accessing many network and cloud sources

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature SMPlayer 8.8/10 Visit ↗ nPlayer 6.6/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 8.8 6.6
Ranking #4 in Media Player Software #25 in Media Player Software
Best for Free open-source desktop playback Mobile users accessing many network and cloud sources
Pricing model Free Paid
Starting price Free plan —
Free plan ✓ (best) —
Free trial — —
Deployment Desktop Cloud, Mobile
Platforms Windows, macOS, Linux iOS, Android, macOS
Support Community, Docs Email, Phone, Docs
Integrations 3 integrations 12 integrations
Built for Solo, Small business Solo, Small business
Features SMPlayer 4/4 · nPlayer 3/4
Network playback ✓ ✓
Subtitle support ✓ ✓
Hardware acceleration ✓ ✓
4K playback ✓ (best) Not checked yet
Specs
Supported platforms Windows, Linux, macOS iOS, Android, macOS
Format support AVI, ASF/WMV/WMA, QT/MOV/MP4, RealAudio/RealVideo, Ogg/OGM, Matroska, MPEG-1/2, H.264, MPEG-4, MP3, AAC, AC3, DTS, and more MP4, MOV, MKV, AVI, WMV, ASF, FLV, OGV, RMVB, TP, MP3, WAV, WMA, FLAC, APE
License model Free One-time
Our review
Pros
  • Built-in codecs support a broad range of audio and video formats
  • Streams network media and supports YouTube and Chromecast playback
  • Remembers playback settings and offers subtitle and speed controls
  • Plays video, audio and image files without conversion
  • Supports WebDAV, FTP, SFTP, SMB/CIFS and UPnP/DLNA
  • Offers multi-track subtitles, styling and casting controls
Cons
  • Focused on desktop platforms rather than mobile playback
  • Hardware-acceleration information reflects older support terminology
  • Advanced features may require navigating a broad settings set
  • No free plan is available
  • Supported platforms are limited to iOS, Android and macOS
  • 4K playback is not explicitly documented
Our verdict

SMPlayer is a free, open-source desktop media player and graphical interface for MPlayer and mpv. It supports Windows, Linux, and macOS, making it a fit for users who want one playback tool across common desktop operating systems. Built-in…

Read the review →

nPlayer is a paid media player for iPhone, iPad, Android devices and compatible Apple silicon Macs. It handles video, audio, image and subtitle files without conversion, with support for formats including MP4, MOV, MKV, AVI, WMV, FLAC and…

Read the review →
  1. SMPlayerMedia Player Software 8.8Free plan
  2. nPlayerMedia Player Software 6.6Paid

Strengths and trade-offs

  • SMPlayer — where it wins

    • Built-in codecs support a broad range of audio and video formats
    • Streams network media and supports YouTube and Chromecast playback
    • Remembers playback settings and offers subtitle and speed controls

    Where it doesn't

    • Focused on desktop platforms rather than mobile playback
    • Hardware-acceleration information reflects older support terminology
    • Advanced features may require navigating a broad settings set

  • nPlayer — where it wins

    • Plays video, audio and image files without conversion
    • Supports WebDAV, FTP, SFTP, SMB/CIFS and UPnP/DLNA
    • Offers multi-track subtitles, styling and casting controls

    Where it doesn't

    • No free plan is available
    • Supported platforms are limited to iOS, Android and macOS
    • 4K playback is not explicitly documented

More comparisons

All media player software comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update