What are the best music players for Windows 10 on your computer? Well, if you’re like many of my coworkers, you simply can’t decide and have at least three or four of them on your desktop alone (with probably more lurking in your D drive)!
At times, it’s useful to have more than one media player, especially because some are better for different tasks than others. But wouldn’t it be better to choose one or two that work really well and do everything you need them to do?
Okay, then, let’s take a look at some of the top Windows 10 music players out there so you can choose the one(s) you need.
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Windows Media Player
How can we talk about music players for Windows 10 computers without going right to the obvious choice – Windows Media player?
This player is, of course, built into every Windows computer, although you can remove it if you want to. It will be the default player set for your machine until you load up and select a new one. If you’re using Windows 10, you should have Windows Media Player version 12 all set for you to use.
The old standby…
This player can handle all the usual suspects like MP3s and WAV files. Plus, new upgrades like better navigation, CD burning (anyone still use these?), live searching, better streaming support, and media library sharing.
With all these features, why use anything else? Stay tuned, because we’re going to see exactly why.
Groove Music
Groove Music is built into your Windows 10 system as well, as it represents a collaboration between Microsoft and their own brand, Zune music. It has also been called Zune Music Pass and Xbox Music in the past, but that was before it was discontinued.
So why include it here?
Well, if you’re still using Windows 10, you should still have Groove Music on your PC. The main use of Groove Music is to make customized playlists based on your OneDrive or hard disk music collections.
You can use it to listen to music on your PC, but also links to your smartphone or tablet, forming seamless synchronization. With this app, you can manage your playlists to choose the right music for every mood and occasion.
Cloud collections…
You can also use Groove Music to listen to web radio. If you want music from the cloud, Groove Music helps you make a collection. Although, the 50 million+ track catalog of Groove Music Pass is no longer accessible.
Grove Music is still supported on iOS, Android, and, of course, Windows 10. But who knows what will happen to this app in the future now that it’s no longer updated. If you like it, use it while you can.
WinAmp
WinAmp is the granddaddy of non-Microsoft music players for Windows. This app was written and launched in 1997 by 2 Nullsoft developers who sold it to AOL (remember AOL?) in 1999 for $80 million. Not too shabby.
Since then, it has been acquired by Radionomy, who has put out new versions, including the latest version WinAmp 5.8. They’ve promised a version 6, but unfortunately, we’re still waiting.
Why was WinAmp so popular?
It was faster and more user-friendly than Windows Media Player. And most importantly had a cool slider. But now, it does a whole heck of a lot more.
WinAmp now supports MP3, MIDI, MPEG-1, AAC, M4A, FLAC, WAV, and WMA formats with playback. It can rip tracks from CD and even burn to CD if anyone’s still out there doing that.
On installation, the app scans your device and creates a comprehensive media library. It can even add missing art and album/track information to all of your tracks, or at least the ones it can find. Pretty good for a throwback to the 90s.
VLC
VLC Media Player is one of the most popular music players out there, and for good reason. It’s completely free, first of all, and that certainly doesn’t hurt. But it’s also very powerful. There doesn’t seem to be an audio format that it can’t play.
The Swiss Army knife of music players…
VLC supports MP3, AAC, WMA, and WAV files for your music. It can handle MP4, AVI, DIVX, and WMV video formats as well. It can play from files, discs, webcams, outboard devices, and even streaming services.
Like WinAmp, the VLC will locate all the audio and video files located on your drives and set them all up in a Media Library. On top of that, you can add skins to customize the user interface to make it look the way you want it to, which is pretty rare for a media player.
Finally, VLC is supported on every platform you can think of, including Windows 10. But also Mac OSX, iOS, Linux, Unix, and Android. If you want the most versatile music player for Windows 10, look no further.
Vox Universal
Vox Universal is a fairly new player for Windows. Furthermore, the Windows 10 player is still a Beta version, so they’re still working out some kinks. However, Vox has been successful for some time already on Mac OS and iOS platforms.
Focus on high-quality sound…
While the player can support MP3, OGG, and APE formats, its focus is on FLAC for HD and lossless sound. Vox promises high-resolution audio for your music listening experiences.
This is a freemium app that has free and paid versions. You can use it to share music with friends and also store your music files in the cloud. A premium subscription gives you unlimited cloud storage for your audio files and also unlimited downloads.
The player gives you clear, high-res sound and also offers equalizers. So, you can tune things up perfectly for your headphones or speakers.
iTunes
Obviously, iTunes is a player for Mac OS and iOS devices that has been around for years. You’ll be surprised to know that it’s already over 20 years old. So, of course, in that time, it has gone through many changes, including becoming available for Windows.
You can get iTunes from the Microsoft Store for free and download and install it in minutes. Once you do, the program will make a music library for you by locating all the audio files on your computer, just like WinAmp and VLC. Then you can get started.
The Windows version…
It looks just like the classic minimalist basic grey and white Mac application. It’s great for listening to music, creating playlists, listening to Apple podcasts, watching movies and TV shows, and even listening to audiobooks.
You can pair this with an Apple Music account for streaming or purchasing music from the iTunes Store, even if you’re on a Windows 10 computer.
These days, iTunes also supports more formats, including MP3, AAC, AIFF, and WAV. It’s easy to use and free to use for managing your music.
AIMP
The next entry on this list of the best music players for Windows 10 is a bit of a surprise. This is AIMP, a Russian-made library creator and media player. It’s tough and robust, like you’d expect from a Russian program. And it can tackle tons of different formats, including MP3, WMA, and FLAC.
Like some of the other players we’ve seen, AIMP will scan your computer for audio files and assemble them into a library. But, it can also add automatic tagging, intelligent categorization, and even track numbering to repair and re-organize your music.
Some nice features…
AIMP can also remove annoying unwanted tags from WAV files. It has a YouTube extension that allows you to watch videos in HD or UHD.
Another extension lets you control the player remotely from your phone or another device. And another great feature is a built-in voice remover if you want to create instant voiceless tracks for karaoke.
AIMP is available for both Android and Windows and is an easy to use music player for Windows 10 with a cool user interface.
MusicBee
The last music player for Windows 10 that I’m going to recommend is MusicBee. This freeware program is also one of the lightest media players out there. Running on between about 25-70 MB of RAM means your processor is left free to handle other big tasks.
If you’re looking to change music players and are coming from another one like Windows Media Player or WinAmp, this program is great for you. It can collect your music library and playlists from other players so that you don’t have to do any rebuilding.
And, because it’s available for both Windows and Android, you can sync your devices to keep everything convenient.
Upgrade your audio…
MusicBee lets you rip CDs to local files, tag existing files, and organize your library. You can also use it to up-mix audio files to 5.1 surround sound so you can better enjoy them on a surround sound system.
Plus, you get a 10-band EQ and 15-band DSP (digital signal processing) effect processor, so you can get everything sounding exactly how you want it. MusicBee supports WAV, MP3, ASF, and many other audio formats.
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Best Music Players for Windows 10 – Conclusion
There are a whole lot of music players out there for systems that are running Windows 10. That’s great because it gives you a ton of choice and lots of opportunities to find the perfect player for your needs.
Some of these players are free, while others offer freemium models. Most will arrange your music library into a coherent and organized system. And, a great music player won’t get put off by different file formats – it should handle whatever you throw at it.
I hope this helps you find a great player for your music so that you can listen to your heart’s content.
Until next time, happy listening.
