Comparison

HD Player vs VLC media player

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

HD Player

This app is a powerful video player designed to correctly display high-dynamic-range content like Dolby Vision and HDR10+. It supports a wide range of codecs, hardware acceleration for smooth playback, and various file transfer methods. Manage your video library with playlists and passcode protection.

Highlights
  • Dolby Vision support
  • HDR10+ support
  • Hardware-accelerated decoding
  • Wide codec compatibility
  • iTunes & Wi-Fi file sharing
  • Playlist management
  • Passcode video protection
Features
Read full description

HD Player is one of the few video players that can present Dolby Vision & HDR10+ videos correctly. Some user reviews: "Best Player I've come across." by AhmedGad. "AMAZING video player. OH MY GOD! OMG! OMG! Now i can play 4k resolutions videos from my 5s. Thank you so much!" by Ash aby. "Best video player. With its simple design, this app plays .mkv formats with ease." by Brandope. "Excellent for 1080P on iPad Air." by smunsch. "Thanks for that great app!!" by Katara Moonlight. "Great - One of the best apps for video..." by Vhdgoat. Features: • Supports most of video and audio codecs. • Supports Dolby Vision videos. • Supports HDR10+ videos. • Hardware-accelerated H264 decoder. • Hardware-accelerated HEVC decoder. • Thanks to Hardware-accelerated decoder, HD Player provides an excellent video playback time than other software-based player. • Thanks to Hardware-accelerated decoder, HD Player consumes less energy than other software-based player. • Muti-core decoding. • TV Output & Bluetooth Headset. • iTunes & Wi-Fi file sharing. • WebDAV & SMB file sharing • SSA subtitle is fully supported. • HD Player supports many playing mode: normal mode, repeat mode and shuffle mode. • Manage your videos by playlist. • Save the video exit time, so it can start playing from beginning or where left off. • Protect your videos with passcode. HDR10+ playback requirements: • iOS 13.4. • iPhone, iPad with A10 processor and later. Dolby Vision playback requirements: • iPhone, iPad that supports Dolby Vision. Compatible OS: iOS 13.4 and later. Video resolution supported: • Up to FullHD on iPhone 5s, 6S & 6S Plus. • Up to 4K on iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus and later. • Up to 4K on A10 processor iPad. Compatible devices: • iPhone 6/6 Plus, iPhone 6S/6S Plus. • iPad mini 3, iPad mini 4. • iPad Air, iPad Air 2, iPad Pro. How to copy your videos to HD Player? • iTunes File Sharing. • WiFi transfer. • iCloud Drive. • WebDAV. • Windows & Mac file sharing.

About

VLC media player

Play virtually any video or audio file directly without conversion. Stream media from cloud services, network servers, or the web. Offers advanced subtitle support and playback controls.

Highlights
  • Plays all video and audio formats
  • No file conversion needed
  • Cloud and network streaming
  • Advanced subtitle support
  • Playback speed control
  • Chromecast rendering
Features
Read full description

VLC is a free and open source cross-platform multimedia player. It can play all your movies, shows and music in most formats directly without conversion. It allows file synchronization with Dropbox, GDrive, OneDrive, Box, iCloud Drive, iTunes, direct downloads and through Wi-Fi sharing as well as streaming from SMB, FTP, SFTP, NFS, UPnP/DLNA media servers and the web. VLC offers support for advanced subtitles including full SSA compatibility, multi-track audio, playback speed control and rendering through Chromecast. VLC is completely free and open source.

Screenshots

HD Player4 screens
VLC media player4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: HD Player at 4.5 against VLC media player's 3.7. VLC media player's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. HD Player sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and VLC media player sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

HD Player holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: VLC media player has 6K ratings behind it against 195, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 50% of HD Player's written reviews are positive against 52% of VLC media player's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

HD Player ships an update every 2 months, VLC media player fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
HD Player versus VLC media player: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHD PlayerVLC media player
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (195 ratings) — better3.7 (6K ratings)
Positive reviews49.8% of reviews51.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1956K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank—#31 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TViPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV
Requires iOS13.49.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size48 MB186 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperKhoa Tran AnhVideoLAN

Customer experience

HD Player

All ratings197 ratings
Positive87.8%
Neutral4.1%
Negative8.1%
Written reviews221 reviews
Positive49.8%
Neutral5.0%
Negative45.2%

VLC media player

All ratings5,780 ratings
Positive63.6%
Neutral11.0%
Negative25.4%
Written reviews1,371 reviews
Positive51.8%
Neutral17.0%
Negative31.2%

User reviews

HD Player

From 195 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Plays Dolby Vision and HDR10 videos
  • 🚀 Smooth playback on old devices
  • 👍 Great for 4K and 10-bit video
  • 👍 Supports subtitle encoding and importing over WiFi

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes after iOS 17 update
  • 🐛 Can't remove subtitles
  • 🔋 Ads interrupt video playback
  • 💰 Paid version removed from App Store

VLC media player

From 6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Plays everything
  • 👍 Great for offline media
  • 🔒 No ads or subscriptions
  • 🚀 Convenient file transfer
  • 👍 Customizable playback

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy after updates
  • 🔋 Drains battery
  • 👎 Confusing UI/UX
  • 🐛 Unreliable network streaming
  • 👎 Lacks basic features

Bugs and requests

HD Player

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Resume feature broken, audio stops when seeking
  • Subtitles disappear during fast motion scenes
  • Doesn't work on older iOS versions after updates

Requested features

2 requests
  • Add option to sort playlist by year, newest, or custom order
  • Add editing option to customize movie cover and title

VLC media player

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Playback issues with certain codecs
  • Crashes when accessing network shares
  • Inconsistent shuffle/repeat behavior
  • Subtitle sync problems
  • Deleted files not freeing up storage

Requested features

5 requests
  • Picture-in-Picture mode
  • Improved playlist management
  • Folder-based organization
  • Lyrics support
  • Chromecast integration

In-app purchases

2 purchases

HD Player

One-time2
  • Remove Ads$0.99
  • Full HD playback$0.99
5 purchases

VLC media player

One-time5
  • Micro Tip$0.99
  • Small Tip$2.99
  • Medium Tip$4.99
Show 2 more
  • Large Tip$9.99
  • Huge Tip$14.99

Questions

Is HD Player free?
HD Player is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is VLC media player free?
VLC media player is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, HD Player or VLC media player?
HD Player is rated higher. HD Player averages 4.5 out of 5 from 195 ratings, while VLC media player averages 3.7 from 6K ratings.
Do HD Player or VLC media player have ads?
Neither HD Player nor VLC media player shows ads.
Which is updated more often, HD Player or VLC media player?
HD Player ships an update every 2 months, and VLC media player fortnightly. Most recently, HD Player was updated on October 23, 2026 and VLC media player on November 1, 2026.

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