The best IPTV players for Windows and Mac

The best IPTV player for Windows depends on what you want the computer to do: VLC opens your M3U link in a minute and is ideal for a quick test, Kodi gives you a full TV guide and catch-up after a little more setup, and IPTV Smarters Pro takes the Xtream login and looks much as it does on a Firestick. Below, each player is compared for Windows 10 and Windows 11, with the steps to add your login and a short section for Mac.

What a computer player has to handle

An IPTV player reads your login, builds the channel list, shows the TV guide (EPG) and plays the streams. On a computer, two kinds of login matter. The M3U link is one long address with your details inside it; the Xtream login is the server address, username and password typed separately. The guide either comes through the Xtream login or as a separate guide address, called an XMLTV link.

TiviMate, the player many people use on a Firestick, has no Windows version. The TiviMate guide explains the emulator route and why a native player is usually simpler on a PC.

The Windows players compared

VLC: the quick test

VLC is the free media player many PCs already have. Paste the M3U link and every channel appears in its playlist within a minute, which makes it the fastest way to check that a login works. It has no proper TV guide or catch-up, and a list of 25,000+ channels is slow to scroll, so it suits testing more than nightly viewing. Our VLC article covers it on every platform.

Kodi with PVR IPTV Simple Client: the full guide

Kodi is a free media centre, and its PVR IPTV Simple Client add-on turns it into a live TV player with a proper guide grid, channel groups and catch-up on the channels that keep an archive. Setup takes ten minutes rather than one, but the result is the closest thing to a TV box on a PC, and it works with a remote or a keyboard.

IPTV Smarters Pro for Windows: the familiar one

If you already use Smarters on a stick or a phone, the Windows version signs in with the same Xtream login and keeps the same Live TV, Movies and Series sections. Download it only from the Smarters developer’s own website; our Smarters on Windows article walks through the install and the usual warnings.

MyIPTV Player: the Microsoft Store option

MyIPTV Player installs from the Microsoft Store and takes an M3U link and a guide address in its settings. It is simple and tidy, though availability and features change from time to time, so check the Microsoft Store listing for the current version before relying on any one feature.

Step by step: VLC on Windows

1. Install VLC

   Download it from VideoLAN’s own website and run the installer, accepting the default options.

2. Open the network stream window

   In VLC, choose Media › Open Network Stream, or press Ctrl+N.

3. Paste the M3U link

   Paste the M3U link we sent into the network address box and select Play. The first channel starts playing while the rest of the list loads.

4. Open the channel list

   Choose View › Playlist, or press Ctrl+L, and double-click any channel. Use the search box at the top of the playlist rather than scrolling. Next time, Media › Open Recent Media brings the link back without pasting it again.

Step by step: Kodi with PVR IPTV Simple Client

1. Install Kodi

   Install the current stable release from kodi.tv or the Microsoft Store, not a test build. Open it once so it creates its settings.

2. Find the add-on

   Go to Settings (the cog) › Add-ons › My add-ons › PVR clients and select PVR IPTV Simple Client. On Windows it usually comes with Kodi and only needs setting up.

3. Add the M3U link

   Select Configure. On the General tab, set the location to Remote path (Internet address) and paste the M3U link into M3U play list URL. Recent Kodi versions may first offer to add a configuration, which lets you keep more than one playlist.

4. Add the TV guide

   On the EPG tab, set the location to remote path and paste the guide address into XMLTV URL. If you do not have one, ask us on WhatsApp and we send it ready to paste.

5. Switch on catch-up

   On the Catchup tab, turn on Enable catchup. Channels that keep an archive then offer to play programmes that have already aired from the guide.

6. Enable and open TV

   Select OK, then Enable. Kodi loads the channels, and a TV entry appears in the main menu with the channel list and the guide.

Step by step: IPTV Smarters Pro on Windows

1. Download from the developer’s website

   Take the Windows installer from the Smarters developer’s own website, not from download portals. If Windows shows a blue warning screen, choose More info, then Run anyway, but only for a file you know came from that website.

2. Sign in with the Xtream login

   Open the app, choose Login with Xtream Codes API, and type any name, then the username, password and server address with http:// and the port number.

3. Wait for the first load

   The app downloads channels, films and series. After that, use Live TV for channels and the guide, and Movies or Series for the library.

Watching on a Mac

VLC and Kodi both have Mac versions, and the steps are the same. In VLC for Mac, the network window is under File › Open Network, or Cmd+N. Kodi’s menus match the Windows ones exactly.

On a Mac with Apple silicon, some App Store players built for iPad also install, IPTVX among them, and they take the Xtream login directly. The Smarters developer offers a Mac build on its own website too. Our Apple guide describes those players, which are the same ones used on iPhone, iPad and Apple TV.

Smooth playback on a computer

• Use a cable: a laptop on Wi-Fi two rooms from the router is the most common cause of stutter on a PC.
• Turn on hardware decoding: in VLC, open Tools › Preferences › Input / Codecs and set hardware-accelerated decoding to automatic. Kodi and Smarters use it by default.
• Give VLC more buffer: in the same preferences, raise the network caching value a little if channels stutter after starting.
• Close heavy tabs and downloads: cloud backups and game updates compete for the same line.
• Count your windows: each channel playing in its own window or player uses a screen on your plan.

If stutter continues, the buffering guide runs through the checks in order. To try every player with your own channels, ask for the free 24-hour trial; the plans then cover one to five screens, so a PC and a TV can play at once.