Best 7 SWF Players for Mac, Windows 10/11, and Android

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Updated on: September 11, 2024
Time to read: 9 minutes
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After Adobe stopped supporting Flash Player, many media players withdrew their SWF functionalities. You’ll need a special type of solution to continue using this format, regardless of your computer or smartphone. Today, you’ll discover some of the best options.

Table of Contents

What is an SWF File?

SWF videos were one of the most common Adobe Flash Player file formats. Though often associated with illustration-style content, such as cartoons, ordinary movie-style types can also use this type of configuration.

Warning

We don’t recommend using your Wayback Machine to download a hidden Flash Player app, as Adobe stopped all support for its program in 2021. You won’t receive updates, which will likely result in performance issues. At worst, you could also put your device at risk of malware and other security dangers.

Why did Adobe Stop Supporting the Flash Player?

Adobe Flash suffered from the constant danger of cybersecurity breaches during its 25-year existence. Users often complained about slower browsers after downloading the software, too, and double encoding meant that smartphone batteries were often incapable of playing media for long without needing a recharge. 

As technology advanced, the need for the tool dwindled; it wasn’t meant for new-age smartphones and laptops. Browsers became more able to handle demanding tasks as well, and—at the same time—also offered security that was sometimes lacking with Adobe’s old software.

List of Top SWF Players for Mac, Windows 11/10/8/7/Vista/XP, and Android

Now that you’re aware of the basics let’s look at the best apps for you to play SWF videos.

SWF File Player App Supported OS
Elmedia Player macOS 10.12+
VLC Player macOS 10.12+, Windows XP SP3+, Android 4.3+, Ubuntu 16.04+
Windows Media Player Windows 6-11
Vidmore Player macOS 10.9+, Windows XP SP2+
Aiseesoft Player macOS 10.9+, Windows XP SP2+
5KPlayer macOS 10.7+
SWF Player – Flash File Viewer Android 8+

When selecting players, our team evaluated and tested their key features, including format support, smooth playback, lack of ads, safety, usability, and so on. Based on these criteria, we ranked the players with following scores:

Editors’ score Overall view
4.5 – 5.0 The player provides high-quality playback of common formats and excellent user experience, as well as cover other crucial aspects.
4.0 – 4.4 The player is capable of handling basic playback needs, but overall performance could be improved.
3.0 – 3.9 The player may contain ad pop-ups, glitches, and other drawbacks that degrade the user experience.

User situation:

I have some swf files saved from years ago that I want to play again. There are many guides out there but nothing works for me. What's the simplest way to get it done? It doesn't matter to me if it will play in my browser or in another program.
— Reddit

1. Elmedia Player

Elmedia lets you open SWF files without needing to convert them. Videos run seamlessly, and you can watch online and offline movies. The tool works with AirPlay and Chromecast, meaning that you can stream your favorite programs on your TV from your Mac. You also won’t need to deal with annoying ads that can ruin the experience.

Elmedia Video Player

Features:

  • Compatible with AirPlay and Chromecast
  • Stream online and offline 
  • Watch media without ads 
  • Playback control 
  • Create playlists

Pros

  • Play online videos from a direct URL without opening a browser
  • Most of the best features are free
  • User-friendly interface
  • No need to convert to other formats

Cons

  • Only available on Mac

Supported formats: SWF, MP4, AVI, WMV, WebM, etc.

Supported OS: macOS 10.12+

Name of the developer company: Electronic Team, Inc.

Price: Free; premium version available for $19.99

Editors’ Rating: 4.8

How to Run SWF Files With Elmedia Player on Your Mac?

1. Download and install Elmedia. You can find it on the App Store. 

Install Elmedia

2. Drag your file into the Applications folder.

How to play h264 files on mac using Elmedia Player

3. After opening the app, choose your video.

4. Select Open With > Elmedia Player.

Note: SWF has limited playback on M1/M2 devices. Learn more here.

The Best SWF Player for Mac to open and run Flash videos.

2. VLC Media Player

You can use VLC across Windows, Linux, macOS, and Android. The program supports sites like YouTube, plus DVDs and CDs. You have the option to synchronize subtitles for foreign films, and the app features no ads or third-party tracking. To give your interface a look that fits your personality, you can customize it with several skins.

VLC player is running a .swf video

Features:

  • Skin customization
  • Video filters
  • Subtitle syncing 
  • Hardware decoding

Pros

  • Works cross-platform
  • Use with physical and non-physical product types
  • Advanced controls
  • No user tracking or adware

Cons

  • Occasional crashes
  • The interface can feel clunky

Supported formats: SWF, MPEG-4, Cinepak, H.263, H.264, etc. 

Supported OS: macOS 10.12+, Windows XP SP3+, Android 4.3+, Ubuntu 16.04+

Name of the developer company: VideoLan Organization

Price: Free; donations are possible

Editors’ Rating: 4.2

Download VLC Media Player

3. Windows Media Player

Can Windows Media Player play SWF files? Yes, but only if you use Windows 6-10. 11+ doesn’t support playback. You’ll need the Macromedia Flash plugin to watch Shockwave Flash on operating systems between 6 and 9. You can watch any old DVDs you have through disk burning and fast forward as you feel is necessary.

Windows Media Player

Features:

  • Disk burning 
  • Video overlaying 
  • Skin customization

Pros

  • Designed specifically for Microsoft operating system computers
  • Free to use

Cons

  • Only available on computers using Microsoft’s software
  • You need an older version of the operating system for the SWF file format
  • A Macromedia Flash plugin is required in some cases

Supported formats: SWF, MP4, AVI, etc. 

Supported OS: Windows 6-11 for SWF

Name of the developer company: Microsoft, Inc. 

Price: Free

Editors’ Rating: 4.0

Download Windows Media Player

4. Vidmore Player

Vidmore supports DVD, Blu-ray, and online streaming—and you can watch your favorite shows and movies in 4K. You have the option to adjust the image brightness and saturation for your personal preferences, and skipping chapters is easy with the Quick Navigation options. You can get seamless playback, regardless of the format you use.

Vidmore Video Player

Features: 

  • Frictionless playback 
  • Quick navigating options 
  • Image adjustment 
  • Advanced fast-forwarding

Pros

  • User-friendly interface
  • Available on multiple operating systems
  • Play disks and digital files

Cons

  • Quite expensive

Supported formats: SWF, M4V, MP4, FLV, MTS, 3GP, etc. 

Supported OS: macOS 10.9+, Windows XP SP2+

Name of the developer company: Vidmore

Price: $29.95

Editors’ Rating: 4.1

Download Vidmore Player

5. Aiseesoft Free Media Player

Aiseesoft supports lossless quality, and you can view your content in 1080p and 4K—plus 720p. You can also see 3D videos using the app, with image adjusting available if you want to move away from the default settings. In addition to streaming from the internet and downloading files elsewhere, you can watch the footage you’ve recorded on a camcorder.

Aiseesoft website

Features:

  • Lossless video quality
  • 1080p and 4K footage playback
  • Screen adjustments

Pros

  • The simple and effective free version
  • Enjoy high-quality screen resolution
  • Multiple file types are supported

Cons

  • Free technical support is not supported with the free edition
  • Blu-ray and disk files are non-existent without a paid plan

Supported formats: MP4, WMV, SWF, FLV, MOV, MKV, etc.

Supported OS: macOS 10.9+, Windows XP SP2+

Name of the developer company: Aiseesoft Studio

Price: Free; premium version available for $15.60/month

Editors’ Rating: 4.5

Download Aiseesoft Media Player

6. 5KPlayer

5K Player lets you consume videos from over 300 websites on your PC and laptop, including Vimeo and Vevo. You can make playlists to keep everything organized, and the content you watch won’t lose quality in how it looks. The app has a video downloader, too, making it easy to store content that you particularly enjoy.

Note: We checked whether 5K Player could play SWF video files on Windows and Mac. Conclusion: it can’t play on Windows, but it can play on Mac.

Trying to Open and Play SWF with the 5KPlayer on Windows Failed

5KPlayer in Win 10

Opening and Playing SWF via 5KPlayer on Mac Succeeded

5Kplayer on macOS

Features:

  • Runs SWF on macOS
  • AirPlay compatible
  • Rotate your screen
  • Use subtitles
  • Create libraries

Pros

  • Watch content from hundreds of websites
  • View footage in 4K and 5K
  • Works with AirPlay

Cons

  • Not available on Linux
  • Not able to play SWF on Windows

Supported formats: SWF, AAC, H.264, MP4, etc.

Supported OS: Windows 10+, macOS 10.7+

Name of the developer company: Digiarty Software, Inc.

Price: Free

Editors’ Rating: 4.3

Download 5KPlayer

7. SWF Player - Flash File Viewer

SWF Player is dedicated exclusively to this format; while some users have complained that games don’t work well, many have said that the app is fine for watching videos. You can download the service on your Android phone, and the control overlays let you customize what you need to without worrying about needing to click all over the place.

Note: The Google Play version was updated in 2019. And it won’t run on newer Android versions, which makes it almost useless nowadays.
The SWF Player in Google Play

Features:

  • Control overlay
  • ZIP file opening
  • Play games and videos

Pros

  • Dedicated to SWF
  • You can watch basic videos with few problems

Cons

  • Not very easy to use at the initial stage
  • The app crashes when the tasks become more demanding

Supported formats: SWF only 

Supported OS: Android 8+

Name of the developer company: Issess 

Price: Free

Download SWF Player

Frequently Asked Questions

You can use several browser extensions, including:

 

Extensions are primarily available on Google Chrome. Safari isn’t a good option in this respect.

Using a dedicated third-party app is your best choice (check a list of the software to open and play SWF files on different operating systems in our article). You can watch several other formats without enduring time-consuming conversions, and your SWF videos will often feature lossless playback. On top of that, you can consume shows that were previously on DVDs and other media.

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