How to Fix VLC Not Playing MP4 Video File Issue

The VLC media player is one of the most widely used media players and supports almost all sorts of video file formats on both Windows and Mac devices.

VLC supports various video formats, including MP4, MOV, and AVI. But sometimes, it can encounter playback issues. Such as choppy video playback, VLC playing only audio or video, or the player’s inability to handle MP4 videos. A recent experience of a Reddit user supports the claim-

Let’s now dive right into possible solutions to fix VLC not playing MP4 video files on both Windows and Mac systems.

Why is VLC Media Player Not Playing MP4 files?

The issue of VLC not playing MP4 video can be due to various reasons. We have covered the most common scenarios below:

1. Outdated VLC Player: If you have not updated your VLC media player in a while, the player may struggle to play mp4 files due to incompatibility issues.

2. Conflicting VLC Settings: Some VLC settings may conflict with the video leaving VLC unable to play MP4 files.

3. Incompatible Codecs: Without the necessary codecs, VLC media Player may experience playback issues.

4. Corrupt MP4 video: If your MP4 video is corrupt or damaged, it cannot be played on VLC or any other media player on Windows or Mac system. But fortunately, there are simple workarounds that can easily fix VLC not playing MP4 files.

How to Fix MP4 Not Playing on VLC?

Before proceeding, please try playing your MP4 video file using alternative media players. Just to confirm that the problem lies with VLC. If you are unable to play your video using other media players, then the issue would lie with your video. If so, you could easily fix it using professional video repair software.

Method 1: Fix Video Not Playing using VLC Media Player

If your MP4 codec is not compatible with the VLC player, VLC Player won’t play MP4.

Usually, older versions of the VLC player will have trouble playing MP4 videos. All you need to do is just update or download the latest version of the VLC player and try playing the MP4 video. If this doesn’t fix the problem, then move on to the next method.

To update your VLC:

1. Launch the Media Player and click on the Help tab.

2. Click on Check for Updates option.

3. If the latest version is available, follow the onscreen instructions and update the VLC media player. Once you finish, restart it. If your media player is installed with the newer version, you will find the message saying – You have the latest version of VLC media player.

Method 2: MP4 Video Codec Problem – Install MP4 Codecs for VLC

One of the main reasons why MP4 videos are not playing is that VLC cannot identify the audio or video codecs used. Therefore issues such as VLC not playing video but only audio or playing only audio but no video or, at times, both occur. To fix this you can try converting your video to a different codec by following the steps below-

Step 1: Open VLC Media Player.

Step 2: Click Media and select Convert and Save.

Step 3: Click on Add and select the file you want to convert.

Step 4: Click on the arrow next to Convert and Save.

Step 5: Select Convert from the drop-down list.

Step 6: Click on the Spanner Icon next to Profile.

Step 7: Access the Video Codec Tab and select an appropriate Codec.

Step 8: Click on Save.

If you have tried downloading the latest version of the VLC media player but are still unable to play your MP4 files. You must consider installing the MP4 codec pack for the VLC media player from the official VLC site.

Method 3: VLC Media Player Incompatible File Format Issue

Another main reason why VLC won’t play video is due to incompatible video file formats, where VLC can’t recognize the input’s format.

The easiest way to fix this issue is by converting the file to any VLC-compatible file format. 

VLC Media Player is considered one of the top video repair tools for its exceptional capabilities. Along with its ability to effortlessly play various video file formats, it also offers a built-in video conversion feature. This means that VLC can be used as a versatile video converter, allowing you to convert videos from one format to another.

Many users have complained that VLC crashes when converting file formats. If you face this same issue, we suggest you reinstall the VLC media player.

Method 4: Disable hardware video decoding in VLC

VLC not playing MP4 can be due to the fact that your hardware decoding of the player is not able to handle the rendering effects. It seems that your video has too many subtitle tracks, and the video card you are using is not able to accelerate the video. The Best solution to solve this is to disable the hardware video decoding option on VLC. Below are the steps to do this:

• Open the VLC player and go to
  Tools –> Preferences. Then in the lower left of the window, click on Show Settings and select the ALL button.

• Here, all the options will be displayed now. Here navigate to
  Input / Codecs -> Video Codecs -> FFmpeg
  Here disable the Hardware decoding option

• Once it is done, you can now close VLC and open it up again. Then, just try to play your MP4 video and check if this works. If this doesn’t help, then try the next option.

Method 5: Configure video Output Mode on VLC

Now, it’s time to check the Video Output Mode configuration. Here all you need to do is to configure your X server attribute correctly. For this, just open the VLC player and go to

Step 1: Click on Tools in the ribbon on top and select Preferences.

Step 2: Go to the Video Tab and Tick the Enable Video Box

Then check the box for Window decorations, in case it is unchecked. Then select ‘X11 video output (XCB)’ in the Output drop-down menu. Now, just save all the settings you made and open your VLC Player again. Now, your MP4 video should be playing on the VLC player successfully.

Method 6: Fix VLC not Playing Corrupted MP4 File using Video Repair Software

There are several reasons that could prevent VLC media players from running MP4 video files. Taking great efforts to pin down the cause is like finding a needle in a haystack. Instead, you can easily fix any issue with your MP4 or any other video file format like MOV or AVI using the video repair tool by Remo.

Remo Video Repair is a user-friendly tool that fixes corrupt MP4 files not playing on VLC. Built with a safe adaptive algorithm that understands the corruption with the help of a reference file. Remo makes the repair process look easy.

Steps to Repair Corrupt MP4 Video not Playing on VLC:

1. Download and install Remo Video Repair software on your Windows 11/10.

2. Launch the software and click on the Select File option to choose the corrupt MP4 file not playing on your VLC media player.

3. Click on the Repair button. This will initiate the video repairing process. Once it is completed, you can click on the Preview button to verify the result.

4. Now, click on the Save button to browse any location of your choice to save the repaired MP4 file on your computer.

Note: Check out this article if you are a Mac user looking for a solution to fix MP4 files on Mac.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are several solutions that you can adopt when VLC is not playing MP4 files. I hope that this article has been helpful and that you are able to run your video on VLC seamlessly. If you have any related queries or feedback, please feel free to reach out to me in the comments section below.

About the Author: Molly Owen

Molly is the Lead Technical Specialist with distinguished knowledge and understanding of Mac computers and operating systems. Being a veteran photographer and video recovery specialist, Molly’s expertise in video formats and file repair has helped restore a lot of videos and cherished memories of users. As a technical specialist, she also believes in learning and…