How to Play FLAC Files

Play lossless music files on your PC or Mac with a variety of free audio apps

Last Updated: May 30, 2022

FLAC files are created using the Free Lossless Audio Codec to compress audio files while maintaining a better audio quality compared to MP3 compression. Playing FLAC files requires you to install a software or filter that supports the FLAC compression format. Read on after the jump to see how your computer will be able to read and play FLAC files the same way it reads MP3 and other compressed audio formats.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

FLAC Supporting Software

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Install a program on your computer that supports the FLAC format as an in-built feature. This is a fast and easy way to play a FLAC file without having to deal with any customizations or add-ons. Here are 2 programs you may want to consider using.
- VLC Player: this media player is available for Windows, Macintosh and Linux operating systems. It was at one point available for iOS devices, but was removed from the App Store by Apple. The VLC Player installation includes the VideoLAN client that supports FLAC files as well as Flash Video (FLV) and many other file formats. VLC is well known for it's ability to view almost any video file, and plugins allow it to view any that can not in the default installation. You can download VLC Player for free from the official VideoLan website.
- Foobar 2000: the Foobar 2000 media player also supports the FLAC format as a native feature, which means you don't have to go through any additional installations to play a FLAC file through the Foobar 2000 player. You can download the player for free from the Foobar 2000 website.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Playing FLAC Files with Windows Media Player

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Play FLAC files in Windows Media Player using a Directshow filter. This is a plug-in that enables Windows Media Player to read FLAC files. Here are the steps that you need to follow.
- Download the DirectShow filter. You can download it for free from the Xiph website.
- Double-click on the downloaded file after it has finished downloading to run the installation wizard.
- Accept the terms in the license agreement and click "Next." The installation wizard will quickly install the Directshow filter (it should not take more than a few seconds) and give a status message to notify you once the process is complete.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Opening a FLAC File

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Open a file in VLC Player, Foobar 2000 or Windows Media Player using these simple steps.
- Double-click on the icon of the player to open it. You should see the icon as a shortcut on your desktop.
- Click on "File" at the top-left of the player's user interface.
- Select "Open" from the File menu.
- Browse to the folder where the file is saved.
- Select the file you want to play by clicking on it.
- Press the "Open" button to open the file within your chosen media player.

Community Q&A

Question

What equipment would I need to play FLAC files from my laptop via the amplifier of my HiFi to my floor speakers?

Randy Kumpf

Community Answer

You should be able to run an audio line from your computer audio output to one of the auxiliary inputs of your stereo. Commonly available audio wires would help. Check your computer audio output and your HiFi inputs to see what type of plug/jacks you will need.
Question

Which portable plays FLAC? (iPod doesn't)

Community Answer

Most current non-Apple mobile devices will play FLAC files.
Question

How fast must an SDXC Card be to reliably play FLAC files?

Community Answer

Depends on the type of FLAC, they can be up to 100MB, but as the songs are around 3 mins, it means there is less than 1MB per second, so you don't need anything special, you can still get a class 10 for fast loading FLACs but class 4 is enough.

Warnings

Although the Free Lossless Audio Codec offers better sound quality compared to MP3 compression, files compressed using the FLAC codec are considerably larger in size. As a general comparison, an audio file with FLAC compression is approximately 10 times larger than when the same file is compressed using MP3 compression.

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