When it comes to VLC, a lot is customizable in terms of the minimally present user interface. You can easily change where the play, pause, stop, next, previous and other video/audio control buttons are placed. You can also change the position of the individual buttons. Additionally, you can even change the position of all the control button set in-regards to where it shows up in the player. All you have to do is go to Tools > Customize Interface.
From the customize interface or Toolbars Editor option you can drag the individual buttons around, add new buttons and remove the ones that you don’t need. You can also configure the time toolbar and customize the full screen buttons separately. Additional customization options in terms of the button sizes and designs are also available.
Here are the detailed steps/explanations to customize your VLC Media Player Interface and buttons:
To Access Toolbars Editor
In the menu bar or via the right click menu, select Tools > Customize Interface.
The Toolbars Editor will open.
In the editor, you will see different tabs:
- Main Toolbar: This is the toolbar that is displayed when VLC is running in Window mode. You can change the position of the player controls to place it above the video by checking the appropriate box. There are two lines of controls and line 2 has the most commonly used buttons.
- Time Toolbar: This one allows you to customize the time toolbar that shows the position of the video or audio that you are currently playing.
- Advanced Widget: This is the advanced widget that is displayed when View > Advanced Controls is activated. You can place buttons that can record, cut, loop or navigate frame by frame. These are the buttons that aren’t frequently used.
- Fullscreen Controller: These are the controls that show up when your video is playing in full-screen mode. You can have a different set of controls in full screen.
Not that there is a Select profile option above everything else. This one allows you to save your interface configurations as profiles. You can switch between profiles to switch to different interfaces easily.
To Edit the Interface
Use your mouse and simply drag the buttons in the toolbar editor.
- Choose the tab for which you want to change the controls.
- To add new buttons drag them from the Toolbar Elements to the main toolbar, fullscreen controller, advanced widget or time toolbar.
- To edit/move the existing buttons click and hold using your mouse, and drag them to where you want to.
- To remove buttons just drag them outside the toolbars editor.
- Click Close to save your changes or if you messed up, click Cancel.
See the Preview area to get an idea of what your player looks like after the changes are saved. Make use of the options to display the toolbar under or above the video. We are used to the toolbar being placed below the video but you never know whether you’d like it placed above; unless you try it.
Note:
- If you are trying to add new buttons to the main toolbar, you’ll want to add it to line 2 because that’s your usual control toolbar.
- Make sure to create a new profile or make use of saving and retrieving using the profile feature. This prevents you from messing it all up.
Is it possible to move the time bar on the top/top left corner? I tried to drag it with the mouse but it didn’t work.
I don’t think that it is possible.
I have the same problem as “Please Stop This” using 3.0.17.4 portable though. Haven’t found a solution on the internet yet.
I like VLC but my God, why do my interface customizations periodically go away? This is maddening.
I have the same using 3.0.178.4 portable. Havn’t found a solution on the internet yet.
how do you loop sections of a video in VLC 3.0.16 on a Sierra iMac?
thanks in advance for any advice.
Is it possible for the controls at bottom left corner to be set or placed to the bottom centre?
After editing the buttons, and saving that as a customized profile, how do I find my new profile settings to be added in a new PC, or after the PC is reset.
Increase the height of vertical tabs, so that we can use more VLC tabs at the same time
Where are buttons next/prev chapter?
“DVD menus”
I’m old. My eyes are bad. Is there any way I can make the buttons big enough to actually see?
Hello. I cant find how to add any mouse function besides the wheel, the right button and gestures. I need the option to be able to set my other mouse buttons, i have two extra that i normally use for skipping a little back or a little ahead. With VLC i have to actually click on the play position which mostly takes me quite a distance from where i need to be and disrupts the show trying to find my play position again. Please, how can i add the other mouse buttons>
Thank you
I love VLC but I got a larger monitor and all the text on the interface is super tiny.
how do I enlarge the text on the playlist, etc.?
Hello, I’ve used VLC for years and now I want larger text too! From what searching I’ve done, there isn’t any option to enlarge text size in the non-skinned version.
[PROVE ME WRONG PLEASE!]
I can set font sizes larger on my Windows10 PC interface, but those settings don’t affect apps.
My guess is that one could build an “old folks” skin? There may already be some out there on the internets. VLC offers skins on its website, but it seems some don’t work on newer versions.
This menu does not exist in VLC. There is no Tool menu and no customise interface. sad
You’re blind I guess. It is right where they said it is. Don’t lie to others because you can’t follow instructions.
That might not be inaccurate but is a bit mean and completely unhelpful.
Why bother posting if your comment isn’t going to help? After many, *many* years in support I’ve come to realise a lot of people get lost easily trying to follow basic instructions. This is usually not their fault but could be for instance because they were spoon-fed all their lives and have no idea how to fend for themselves when it comes to doing anything not part of their routine set of tasks.
Others, I’ve discovered, just can’t read and comprehend anything on a computer screen. A notification pops up and they phone to ask “File not found, what does that mean?”
Instead of trying to make yourself look clever by putting other people down, why not try to help? And if you can’t, then keep your comments to yourself.
Thank you for your words of wisdom.
When people use a help forum as a dilapidated makeshift pedestal for their fragile but gorged egos it sounds like that asinine reply…. That comment was nothing more than a flickering dim beacon of one’s own insecurity, delivered as unneeded unnecessary beratement. If this person were knowledgeable, he/she would share said knowledge. Instead he/she has proven themselves completely and utterly useless in a space where the exchange of knowledge is the point. Therefore, their knowledge is questionable if it exists at all.
No, it does not exist on my MacBook version either…
I have no “tool menu” nor “customize interface” option either.
The Windows player has a Tool menu, but the Mac player accesses similar features through Preferences
The “Previous Chapter/Title” and “Next Chapter/Title” controls display on a separate row underneath the main toolbar. Is there a way to move these controls to the main toolbar and eliminate the extra row?
Well, if it doesn’t move to the first row then it is not possible.
sometimes the control for the interactive zoom is large but sometimes the triangle shaped controller is so small its difficult to use. can i change the size or the default size?
Interactive zoom seems to perform differently for videos of different resolution.
How do I enable an interface on Windows 10 that looks like it does on Android?
Well, there are a few skins you can try but not one of them replicates the Android theme on Windows.
How can I change the position of the controls bar in full screen mode. For some reason it’s now so low that I can access them unless I go to windowed mode.
Click and drag the controls upward using your mouse.
Hello. I know I used to see this option before. But I don’t see it now. How can I hide the volume scrolling option? When scrolling through the mouse it increases and decreases the volume. But it displays on the screen. Is there way to hide it? But same time it’ll be working. It’s annoying to see the volume each time while watching a movie. Thanks
Disable On Screen Display. Go to Tools > Preferences > Subtitles/OSD and uncheck the ☐ Enable On Screen Display (OSD) option.
I am having an instant crash when I select “Stream” or “Convert/Save” from the menu. I read before reporting bugs you should try resetting the preferences, but I don’t want to loose my interface customizations. Is there any way to restore just those after preference reset? Perhaps editing the prefs file to copy just those values from the old prefs file to the new one???
All the preferences are saved as a file in %appdata%\vlc\ as vlcrc. In my case, the actual folder is C:\<User>\AppData\Roaming\vlc.
Trying to make a clip from an MP4. Have downloaded VLC. Want to make a clip, but under “View” menu there is no option for “Advanced Controls.” Any and all advice on making a clip welcomed.
Maybe you can try using the hotkey/shortcut method, SHIFT + R.
i want to change the shape of the time slider from rectangular to circular LIKE IT WAS BEFORE…i can’t find an option 🙁
It could be that they revamped the design of that particular area.
The tiny control buttons means you have to use a pen on most touchscreens. It is terrible. I have given up and now use the Windows player.
3.0.0 rc 2 on linux is not so great. Trying to move icons just gives a no entry symbol. Creating a new profile makes no difference.
Depending on which video I play, the Menu button is present or absent.
When it is present, pressing it just restart the video from the beginning.
How can I remove this useless occasional button?
The ‘Tool Bars’ editor panel doesn’t update, much less match, the ‘main’ Tool Bar. I need to get the ‘record’ button onto the ‘main’ and it won’t display. And what’s up the the Line1 and Line2 on the editor when there’s only one line on the ‘main’? Long time user of VLC but the ‘Tool Bar’ editor has always been a ‘bee in my bonnet’ over the years.
i have the same problem with v3.0.3 64 in win7. I’m going to try v2.2.4!
VLC Interface Settings window needs updating in imo. I can be really quite confusing for someone not familiar with it.
Totally agree
Was looking for Mac specific details
Yeah but of course Windows is the centre of the universe, right? Anyone using a Mac is beneath contempt, apparently.
Two years later and still no word on this. Also, did you know that in the Mac version the *only* way to set VLC as the default player for every desired file type is to find an example of each file type, click Get Info, expand “Play with”, select VLC, and select “Change all”. Repeat for every other file type.
Naturally Windows users can do this with two operations, video files and audio files.
For some reason the toolbar is absolutely tiny on my new computer, and I can’t find a way resize the buttons. Is there any way to fix this? I’m using a Dell xps 13 with touch screen
Having the same problem with my lenovo y70
VLC 3.0.8 toolbars are tiny on my computer, too! Very annoying! And, like you, I haven’t found a way to resize them. I’m using a Puget Systems Serenity desktop computer with a BenQ 32″ monitor, with VLC installed via Synaptic Package Manager. OS is Linux Mint 19.3, Cinnamon. I don’t have this problem with any other apps I’m using.
I can view an online video only once before the controls leave the screen, and I can’t get them back on’ I have to go back to the video links page to click the link if I want to see it again. Plus, how do I save a video?
can i add audio button to the interface so it can change between stereo, left, right or reverse stereo?? can anyone tell me how??
my bad, had a better day, all fixed
I must be having a bad day/week. I can add and delete and even save a profile but when i close the editor nothing changes, neither does the preview change. I am amazed that this is editor interface is so user unfriendly to me ( but i love the program, best ever ) > must be just me! I’ll come back later and try again. sigh
Why are older versions of apps so much easier to use? Windows 7 vs Win 10, VLC 1.9 vs 2.2? Who is making these unneeded updates?
Line 2 in main toolbar is not visible on my playback screen. How can I fix this?
Click on View > Advanced Controls
It will show up once you drag something to it in the editor. I had to remove EVERYTHING from line 2, then re-add items. Once I closed the editor, line 2 appeared with added buttons.
the interface icons are too small ,how to increase the size ?
Did you ever find out how to fix this?
It is ridiculous that you cant just make the whole interface bigger. This is a deal breaker for me as I can barely frigging see it when I’m watching stuff on my tv. Windows media classic may not have some of the bells and whistles but with klite it plays everything vlc does and its much easier to use for just like watching video… which is all I really want to do.
Same here. Had to switch to a native Ubuntu player, which is not feature-rich, but at least knows how to scale for my 4K screen.
And simply adding the control buttons to the player interface and clicking “close” doesn’t save anything. It just doesn’t work.
I would love to know how to get the player interface controls to be saved.
I use VLC for audio books and some computer based training. I have a mind that processes things very quickly so, I like to speed up the play back to 1.5x normal speed. Because VLC doesn’t save settings by default, I have to customize the player interface every single time I re-open VLC and add the “faster” “slower” buttons to the player controls/interface. Sooooooooo annoying that they didn’t make it so saving settings was easy for anyone. It should be obvious, It should be EASY. I’ve worked in Tech for 20+ years and I still can’t figure this out and I’ve been reading and googling and reading and googling and it’s just not working.
Simply drag those buttons from the “Toolbar Elements” section to “Line 2” in the Toolbar editor.
Excuse me Please:
How would one add an entirely new button to the UI?
Specifically, buttons for Faster(fine) and Slower(fine)
The Customize Interface… only presents a FASTER/SLOWER option, nothing for “fine”
Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Now my player is fixed in fullscreen with no way of reducing the window size or accessing the Restore, Minimize and Close icons… meaning I have to quit or reboot to get back to my normal windows. Is there a simple way to have all the editing options like Snapshot included in a single VLC toolbar, and with my own master controls visible and accessible?
Can you try pressing “F” to toggle on and off the fullscreen?
check to see if you are in tablet mode, if so turn it off, as it will only allow you to open one app at a time(show on screen) — found under the notifications pane and if you dont see it directly on the bottom tiles, click on expand and it should be there.
Struggled with this until I realized you drag the chosen control buttons onto one of the double-arrow symbols on the right-hand side of the Editor window, not onto VLC’s main interface. Excellent, many thanks.
Your “Controlling Playback Speed in VLC Media Player” Guide is well worthwhile for extra info. on that aspect of the program.
I do not have such a space in my customize interface tool
Sorry, but this doesn’t work for me in VLC 2.2.1 and Windows 7.
Wherever I drag the toolbars there is a no-go symbol with a diagonal line through it and nothing happens. If I try to create a profile, I can enter a name it, but dragging the icons still does nothing and there is no evident way to save profiles or changes. Can anyone help please?
To save it when you click on customize interface at the bottom that screen it says select profile and next to that are two buttons one with a rectangle with lines in it and another with an ‘x’ choose the one with the rectangle that lets you save your customized toolbar. I had a problem with selecting the one I customized I solved that by going to view and then clicking advanced controls that made my customized toolbar to come up. Hope this helps
have the same issue and so far no answer talk about poor design damn.
The drag n drop always freezes on the Linux verson 2.2.2 so basily I cant change the interface lines
since everytime I try and get the no-go symbol to go away but nothing has worked.This program clearly proves why taking the time to write a help file is critical for the program to do well.
oh and It aint that hard to run a debugger either.
Am I reaching VLC people? If so Love the Santa hat! thanks so much-
?any way to “click-in-video” to pause/unpause
Hi….the [preferences > toolbar position > above the video] setting not working
Yes, checking this option seem to do nothing to move the toolbar above the video. We’ll have to wait for an update to fix it.
Well it’s May 2017 as we speak and two years later this “toolbar above the video” feature still doesn’t work.
Neither does the “Big Button” feature.
The preview shows just fine, but on closing/saving(??) all happiness ends and nothing moves at all.
September 2020, it is working now. The control toolbar can be moved above the video.
i cant get the toolbar to save what i want
Try using the “Select Profile” feature and save your interface to a new profile.
Hello! Thank you for this exceptional media player! Something I would like addressed is the inability to relocate the toolbar position to -above- the video. The option is there (though ticking the box for it does not work at all as of 2015 September). Please help. Any assistance or explanations would be greatly appreciated.
I try this and it freezes I’ve tried 3 versions 2.0.1. 2.1.5 and 2.2.1 none let me it always freezes to try interface