Comparison

VLC media player vs Cloud Stream IPTV Player

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

Head to head
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.

About

Cloud Stream IPTV Player

Stream live TV channels from your ISP or internet sources on your iPhone or iPad. Supports M3U and M3U8 playlists, with advanced features like Chromecast and background playback available in the PRO version.

Highlights
  • IPTV playback
  • Internet channel streaming
  • M3U/M3U8 playlist support
  • UDP proxy streaming
  • Chromecast (PRO)
  • Background playback (PRO)
  • Parental control (PRO)
Read full description

Watch the TV IPTV from your ISP or any other TV Internet source from your iPhone or iPad! Features: • Play IPTV • Streaming for Internet channels • Play-multicast streams through a UDP proxy (the proxy must be configured in your local network) • Support M3U and M3U8, ability to add playlists from the file system device or via Internet. • Chromecast (For version PRO ONLY) • Background playback (For version PRO ONLY) • Parental control (For version PRO ONLY) • External Player (For version PRO ONLY) • Sync playlists (For version PRO ONLY) Additional features; - Share lists between devices using Airdrop, mail, messages or any other application installed on the device. - Favorites. - Theme light, dark or automatic. - Parental lock on the player to keep children on the player. - If the channel allows, switching subtitles and secondary audio. - If the m3u list contains groups these will be displayed in the application or you can create your own groups. M3U list example: # EXTM3U #EXTINF: -1 tvg-logo = "https://www.server.com/logo1.jpg" group-title = "Group1", Channel 1 http://myserver.com:4022/rtp/239.0.0.76:8208 #EXTINF: -1 tvg-logo = "https://www.server.com/logo2.jpg" group-title = "Group2", Channel 2 http://myserver.com:4022/rtp/239.0.0.2:8208 Attention! Playback is advisable to do being connected to a wireless network because the connection 3G / 4G could lead to charges from your mobile provider. ATTENTION! The app does not provides list of channels, must be loaded your own lists. Cloud Stream does not store or share your playlists. These are only stored on your device or your iCloud account. Icons by Icons8.

Screenshots

VLC media player4 screens
Cloud Stream IPTV Player4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Cloud Stream IPTV Player at 4.7 against VLC media player's 3.7. VLC media player's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and chart position (#34 vs unranked). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and update cadence 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. VLC media player sells 5 one-off in-app purchases and Cloud Stream IPTV Player sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Cloud Stream IPTV Player holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 5.8K and 3.1K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 52% of VLC media player's written reviews are positive against 55% of Cloud Stream IPTV Player's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

VLC media player ships an update fortnightly, Cloud Stream IPTV Player every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
VLC media player versus Cloud Stream IPTV Player: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVLC media playerCloud Stream IPTV Player
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (5.8K ratings)4.7 (3.1K ratings) — better
Positive reviews52.1% of reviews54.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings5.8K — better3.1K
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#34 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TViPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV
Requires iOS9.0 — better11.0
Further details — not scored
Size186 MB114 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperVideoLANGiovanny Aranda

Customer experience

VLC media player

All ratings5,780 ratings
Positive63.6%
Neutral11.0%
Negative25.4%
Written reviews1,317 reviews
Positive52.1%
Neutral16.7%
Negative31.2%

Cloud Stream IPTV Player

All ratings3,069 ratings
Positive91.3%
Neutral3.2%
Negative5.5%
Written reviews308 reviews
Positive54.5%
Neutral11.0%
Negative34.4%

User reviews

VLC media player

From 5.8K 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

Cloud Stream IPTV Player

From 3.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Simple and easy to use
  • 🚀 Fast and smooth playback
  • 💡 Allows importing M3U playlists
  • 🔒 No annoying ads
  • 👍 Intuitive and clean interface

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent freezing and crashing issues
  • 🔋 Drains battery quickly
  • 🐛 Chromecast functionality not working as expected
  • 🐛 Playlist sync issues between devices
  • 🐛 Playback stops when exiting the app

Bugs and requests

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

Cloud Stream IPTV Player

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Channels not loading properly
  • Inability to restore purchases
  • Search function not working on Apple TV
  • Playback issues when switching between apps
  • Compatibility problems with iOS 14 and newer

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for Xtream codes
  • Implement picture-in-picture mode
  • Improve EPG (Electronic Program Guide) support
  • Allow organizing channels into categories
  • Add background playback option

In-app purchases

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
6 purchases

Cloud Stream IPTV Player

One-time6
  • Tip for one coffee$0.99
  • Tip for two coffees$1.99
  • Pro Version$2.99
Show 3 more
  • Tip for three coffees$2.99
  • Tip for four coffees$3.99
  • Tip for five coffees$4.99

Questions

Is VLC media player free?
VLC media player is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Cloud Stream IPTV Player free?
Cloud Stream IPTV Player is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, VLC media player or Cloud Stream IPTV Player?
Cloud Stream IPTV Player is rated higher. VLC media player averages 3.7 out of 5 from 5.8K ratings, while Cloud Stream IPTV Player averages 4.7 from 3.1K ratings.
Do VLC media player or Cloud Stream IPTV Player have ads?
Neither VLC media player nor Cloud Stream IPTV Player shows ads.
Which is updated more often, VLC media player or Cloud Stream IPTV Player?
VLC media player ships an update fortnightly, and Cloud Stream IPTV Player every 9 days. Most recently, VLC media player was updated on September 24, 2026 and Cloud Stream IPTV Player on September 16, 2026.

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