VLC Media Player for your desktop/laptop has a playlist feature that allows you to create, organize and play a list of songs/videos. You can sort out MP3, WAV and other music files along with video formats and add them to a single playlist. Multiple things can be done with a playlist. Songs can be added, deleted and the media in there can be sorted as per the preference. The playlists can be saved and opened at any time. VLC supports and can open a number of playlist formats like .xspf, .asx, .b4s and .m3u. In case of saving, VLC can export your current list into XSPF (*.xspf), M3U (*.m3u) and M3U8 (*.m3u8) formats.
Accessing VLC’s Playlist Feature
From your VLC player’s main window, use the menubar and navigate to View > Playlist or use the shortcut key CTRL + L. The current playlist will open in a separate window.
Note: Also notice the menu on the left which can be used to access:
- Media Library
- Playlist
- Media Library
- My Computer
- My Videos
- My Music
- My Pictures
- Devices
- Discs
- Local Network
- mDNS Network Discovery
- Network streams (SAP)
- Universal Plug’n’Play
- Internet
- Podcasts
- Jamendo Selections
- Icecast Radio Directory
The space on the right will display your current playlist. The media files that you currently are playing and those that were added on will be displayed there.
Playlist View Mode and Display Size
Once you have accessed the playlist, the size and style of the items in there can be changed. Just right click and from the menu that pops up, use the Display Size and Playlist View Mode sub-menus. There are four view modes: (1) Icons, (2) Detailed list, (3) List and (4) PictureFlow. Similarly, you can use the increase and decrease under display size to magnify or reduce the size of the items on the current screen.
Managing the Playlist
The current playlist view will display only the current files in your playback queue. However, any media files can be added, removed or updated on the list.
Adding Media Files
To add media files or even playlists, just right-click on the playlist and choose either one of the following options:
- Add File: It will allow selection of one or multiple files inside the same location.
- Add Folder: It will allow the selection of entire folders. One or more than one folder can be selected at one time.
- Advanced Open: Choose a number of files or folders from your local storage, disc drive, network, and internet or capture devices.
When you select one of these options, a dialog box will open. You can easily browse and add any files and folders as per your preference. We can also simply click, drag and drop media files and playlists on the window and that will add them to the current list. Remember that any new media or playlist that you drag or open will be appended to the end of the current list.
Once the list is open and all set to go, you can easily play any song on the list. VLC will continue playing all the items on the list one after the other or in a random way. It can also stop after one item or will repeat the whole list or even just repeat individual items based on what repeat mode settings have been applied.
Removing Media Files
Like adding, media files can be easily removed if you no longer want it to be played. Just click on one or highlight multiple media files first. Then, right-click and choose the Remove Selected option. You can also simply hit the delete or backspace key after highlighting.
Sorting the Playlist
The right-click menu is a star when it comes to sorting the playlist. Just right click and select the sub-menu Sort by.
We can sort by ascending or descending order on the following basis:
- Title
- Artist
- Album
- Track
- URI
- Disc number
We can also click, hold and drag individual items on the list and move them up and down for custom sorting.
Saving or Exporting Playlist
After you have a list set up with all your favorite songs and videos, sorted in the fashion you want it to be, you can export and save it for future playback. Just right click and choose the sub-menu Save Playlist to File. A dialog will open which allows us to browse and save the current list as *.xspf, *.m3u, *.m3u8, and *.html. The HTML file is just for generating a nice list and cannot be opened by VLC for playback. So, use the rest of the file formats for saving your playlist.
For example: If you save the playlist as mylist.m3u, you can open it using VLC Media Player. Then, songs in the list will be opened and played.
Docked Playlist
Docking a playlist will display it within the main VLC window. It won’t open a separate window for the playlist.
To dock the playlist, go to- View > Docked Playlist and make sure that this option is checked.
When the option is activated, it will use one window. It is really great when you are using VLC to play audio lists. You won’t get visualizations but will get a single window for the list and playback controls. You won’t have to go back and forth between the controls and the list. If a video is played using this method, the software will open the video exclusively in a separate window. If you always want the video to open in an exclusive window, go to Tools > Interface > Integrate video in interface and uncheck the option.
View Comments (67)
no dice, , fails to show the playlist window, i have to right click and mous hover to se ethe playlist, that loads the first item last and second item first., would be nice if it worked like in screenshots, instad all i get is album art only for every song.
I had been using VLC for years, but never realised that there are *two* settings for changing the player view mode. I once inadvertently clicked the "Toggle Playlist" mode, thinking I had selected the (other) menu way of changing it - ie, View, Docked Playlist. So try clicking the "Toggle Playlist" button on the Player Bar? (at bottom)
I can't seem to add titles to the playlist and nor can I split the files into two albums which is what they are. How to do this?
How come, when I open a docked playlist, it now takes up a good portion of the top half of the window? This is not the way the playlist functioned before. I simply want a playlist on the right hand side showing what I have on deck. I don't want to use your library, I don't want to integrate, I just want to watch the videos I have selected and not have them as a tiny little box in the corner. I understand I can resize things, but my question is: WHY THE F*CK IS IT LIKE THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE?
It wasn't always like this. Congratulations, you ruined your software. Reminder; VLC stands for *VIDEO*Lan Client. Back to WMP it is.
I’m in a songwriting group where 20 other people submit their song and post it in Discord. We use VLC to play the songs. I was able to make a playlist with all the songs of the week. But I can’t share it with the group. Each time I go to share it (all on iPhone) it posts the songs individually.
In the player window make sure the loop play one mix play is not toggled
Is there any option to send the play list to anyone else to WhatsApp in one folder
A screenshot maybe.
I can't get it to play the list in order. It will either keep laying the first entry over and over, or it will play them in random order. There's is nothing intuitive about the way any of this works, and the instruction don't work.
Damn it. Same problem here, more or less. Random order of playing in playlist. Why? Until yesterday I never had that problem, and I'm pretty sure I never changed any options as it was working just fine the way I wanted it. Now everything is just scrambled and I can't undo it. What gives?
it wont work for me even with the steps mentioned above. in addition, it plays videos on "direct output" with no controls. am i going to have to delete and reinstall?
Hi there, I have VLC on my Mac and would like to create the playlists and share to my ipad. On Mac when I click View there is no option to make a playlist, ? I understand how to use the wifi transfer, I'd like to make the playlist once and share to my other devices if possible. If not will have to recreate on each device which seems very 1995. thanks!
I'm running VLC on a Raspberry Pi 400. I've created a playlist with both videos and photos. When I play the list, the screen flashes back to the playlist screen three times before it plays each video. I'm trying to run this as a display in a commercial setting and this will not do. I've done web searches and played around with suggested settings and nothing alleviates this issue. Any ideas?
Also, when I first set-up the play list, I can move exactly two files. After that, I can't drag and drop anything or change the order.