- So, when you want to play a AVI file on Mac and QuickTime fails to play the AVI video, then you can employ below techniques. VLC Player: VLC is an effective AVI player for Mac. It the easiest and free-way of playing AVI file on Mac.
- An AVI file uses less compression to store files and takes up more space than many other video formats—like MPEG and MOV. AVI files also can be created without the use of compression at all. This makes the files lossless, which results in immensely larger file sizes — approximately 2-3 GB per minute of video.
- Standing for Audio Video Interleave, a file with the AVI file extension is a commonly used file format developed by Microsoft for storing both video and audio data in a single file. The AVI format is based on the Resource Interchange File Format (RIFF), a container format used to store multimedia data. This format is typically less compressed.
It's a common situation that people can't import AVI to iMovie successfully. For instance, iMovie only recognizes the image in the loaded video; it will grey out the import window or even crashes suddenly. The root cause of the problem lies in the fact the some codecs such as Xvid or DivX used in the AVI (Audio Video Interleave) file are incompatible with iMovie, because iMovie only supports formatsMP4, M4V, MOV video files and AVI with MJPEG data (iMovie 11/9/8) so far.
Does that mean people cannot import AVI videos to iMovie to edit those clips? Luckily, there are simple and effective methods to convert AVI to iMovie format at one go. By converting the video beforehand, you can put any video to iMovie for editing immediately.
How to Convert AVI to iMovie?
Step 1 Load the source AVI video. Free download the video converting software, and then run this program. Click 'Add File' button to browse the AVI video you want to convert to iMovie. You can convert multiple AVI files at a time. Step 2 Choose the output format. Select 'iMovie' in the output format area.
Convert AVI to iMovie Easily with the Best Free Video Converter
MacX Video Converter Free Edition is a free yet fast video converter. It enables both novice users and advanced users to convert AVI to iMovie supported format such as mov, m4v, mp4 as well as 200 more formats, while retaining excellent video and audio quality. After the fast video conversion ends, you can import the video to iMovie directly and edit it in iMovie to create your own video clip.
How to Convert AVI to iMovie within a Few Clicks?
Step 1 Load the source AVI video
Free download the video converting software, and then run this program. Click 'Add File' button to browse the AVI video you want to convert to iMovie. You can convert multiple AVI files at a time.
Step 2 Choose the output format
Select 'iMovie' in the output format area. The AVI converter has configured many profiles for users to select any one of their choice. Meanwhile, the video and audio parameters are also customizable for the experienced users.
Step 3 Select the output folder
Click the 'Browse' button and choose the location where you would like to save the converted file after the software completes the AVI to iMovie video conversion.
Step 4 Start AVI to iMovie conversion
Click 'RUN' button and the software will begin to convert AVI to iMovie at fast speed. To import avi to iMovie, you can convert avi to MOV, MP4, M4V, or select iMovie directly.
Step 5: Import AVI to iMovie
After the conversion, launch iMovie and choose File > Import > Movies to import converted AVI video into iMovie. And now you can start editing.
Meanwhile, if you wish to play AVI on iPad, iPhone or other smart gadgets, this AVI to iMovie converter will help you realize it. Besides owning the capability to convert AVI to MP4, MOV, iPad, iPhone format, MacX Video Converter Free Edition also works as a full-featured Mac video converter that let users convert among tons of 4K, HD and regular videos such as MKV to MP4 format, AVCHD, M2TS, MOV, MPEG, FLV, etc with optimal file size and best quality and transfer the video to a iPad, iPhone, Android phone, Blackberry without any hassle.
How to Convert AVI to iMovie with Handbrake
Handbrake is another free way to convert AVI to iMovie MP4 format. This free video converter can convert almost any video format to MP4, which iMovie should definitely be able to handle.
Step 1 Import AVI videos
Open Handbrake and click Source to choose your Source. Select your Video File and browse to the AVI videos thatyou want to convert to iMovie MP4 file, or, drag and drop it.
Step 2 Select the output folder
In the Destination section, name the file (include the .mp4 extension) and browse towhere you would like to save it. NOTE: If you do not set a destination for the fileit will not work.
Step 3 Select MP4 output format
In the Output Setting section, select MP4 as the output format for iMovie. Under the Video section, you can further adjust the MP4 parameters such as the codec, quality, frame rate, etc.
Step 4 Start AVI to iMovie MP4 conversion
Once all the settings are finished, click the Start button on the top bar. Handbrake is also fast. Then you can import the converted AVI videos into iMovie without error.
We'll show you how to download codec and Perian to make QuickTime play AVI on Mac, how to play AVI file on Mac with an alternative player, and how to convert AVI to Mac playable format.
I've exported some video at University in uncompressed Microsoft AVI and it doesn't play in quicktime or vlc at home on my MacBook.
My MacBook Pro won't play AVI videos. When I try to watch it, it just shows a white screen with garbled video. Anybody know what the problem is?
Why QuickTime and VLC won't play AVI on Mac? There're two main reasons. One is that the AVI uses a codec format that QuickTime/VLC can't support, the other is that your AVI file is corrupted. In this article we'll show you how to play AVI on Mac smoothly.
Table of Contents
Solution 1. Convert AVI Video to Mac Supported Formats
When Mac QuickTime can't play AVI files, you can convert AVI format to Mac supported formats, such as MOV, M4V or MP4.
MacX Video Converter Pro has proven to be great in the realm of video conversion. The software enables you to watch AVI on Mac with no formats limits by converting AVI to QuickTime supported formats like MP4, with ZERO quality loss and super faster speed.
It is fully compatible with macOS Big Sur, Catalina, and other Mac systems. Just free download it to have a try!
How to Convert AVI Files for Smooth Playback on Mac
To begin with, free download the AVI video converter on your MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, Mac mini, or Mac Pro. Install and run it.
Step 1: Click '+ Video' button to load the AVI file you want to convert for playback on Mac.
Step 2: Select an Mac compatible output format. On the Output Profile panel, you can scroll down to 'Mac General Video' and choose 'MP4 Video (H264)', 'MP4 Video (MPEG4)', 'MOV Video (H264)', or any profile you like. And, hit 'Done'.
Besides H.264 and MPEG4 video codec, it also supports converting AVI video to HEVC/H.265 codec which can release more space for your Mac's hard drive. All Macs on High Sierra and later support HEVC playback.
Step 3: Click 'Browse' button to choose a destination folder to save converted AVI files.
Step 4: Click 'RUN' button to start converting AVI file for Mac. Hardware acceleration is by default enabled to boost video conversion speed.
Besides converting AVI to Mac, MacX Video Converter Pro has many other features you'll love.
- The program is able to convert among video files, like AVI to MP4, MKV to MOV, M2TS to AVI, to name just a few.
- It allows reducing video file size by lowering resolution, bit rate, etc.
- It provides some basic editing features, like cut, crop, and merge.
- It can record screen and video.
- It allows you to download video and music from YouTube, Vimeo, Dailymotion, Metacafe, Facebook, and more 1000+ sites.
Solution 2. Watch AVI File on Mac with 3rd-party Player
When QuickTime won't play AVI on Mac, you still have many other AVI players for Mac to choose from, such as 5KPlayer. 5KPlayer works like a charm, without requiring to install codec pack.
5KPlayer is a 100% free and clean media player, enabling you to play SD HD 4K UHD AVI video on MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, etc. It supports AVI files with codecs DivX, Xvid or 3ivX etc. It delivers surprisingly great audio and image quality. With frequent update, it fully supports macOS Big Sur, Catalina, High Sierra, and earlier OS.
Now free download 5KPlayer so that you can play AVI on Mac without converting.
In fact, 5KPlayer can also play 720p/1080p/4K UHD/8K videos in MKV, M2TS, FLV, MOV, MP4, AVCHD and more, music audio in MP3, AAC, AC3, DVDs, and many more on Mac and Windows (including Win 10). Additionally, it can download video and music from YouTube, Dailymotion, Vimeo, Vevo, over 300 sites for free.
How to Use 5KPlayer to Play AVI Video on Mac
Step 1. Download and install 5KPlayer. Once done, open it.
Step 2. Load target AVI file to play. There're 3 ways to do so.
How Do I Play Avi Files On Mac Quicktime
- Click 'Video' to browse and open the source AVI file on the main interface;
- Drag and drop AVI video to the main window;
- Right click AVI file, choose to open with 5KPlayer.
Solution 3. Install the Right Codec to Make QuickTime Play AVI on Mac
That QuickTime fails to play your AVI files may be because it doesn't support the AVI' codec. AVI is a container format. It can package various codecs, such as Xvid, DivX and 3ivX. So you need to know how the AVI file is coded and download the right codec for QuickTime to decode it on Mac.
To figure out the codec used to encode AVI, you can open the file with QuickTime and choose Show Movie Info from the Window menu. Then you should be able to find codec information after format properties. Next, you should check if the codec is supported by QuickTime or not. If it is an unsupportive codec, you can download the codec online.
The most popular codecs that can be installed to play AVI on Mac are:
Both add support for a variety of DivX and other formats which often carry the .avi extension. You can download and install either one codec. Once done, open QuickTime and see if it can play your AVI file on Mac now.
But this method isn't foolproof. Some users report that after installing DivX for Mac, the sound in some AVIs will sometimes be either missing or distorted.
Solution 4. Install Perian to Help QuickTime Play AVI on Mac
If you don't want to download codec but still want to use QuickTime to play AVI video, you can install Perian. This is a free and open-source QuickTime component which can bring necessary codecs or components to help QuickTime play AVI, MKV, FLV, MTS, DivX, WMA and more on Mac. Certainly even if Perian is installed, QuickTime won't play all media types.
How to Use Perian to Play AVI on Mac
Step 1. Download and install Perian from https://perian.org/. once done, it will be listed inside System Preferences.
Step 2. Right click on the AVI file and then choose QuickTime to open it.
How Can I Open Avi Files On Mac Drive
So, above are all the ways to play AVI file on Mac. You'll surely find a workable way.