MOV Files Not Playing on Mac | Incompatible with QuickTime Player

A MOV file, created by Apple, has multiple tracks to store video, audio, timecode, text tracks, and other multimedia data. Although it's called a QuickTime file, MOV files are highly compatible with both Windows and Mac systems, making it a popular file format for storing videos, movies, and other media.

The issue of "MOV Files Not Playing on Mac" can frustrate many Mac users as they fail to find a solution. In such cases, we need some MOV repair solutions, which will be introduced in this article. Get the best MOV repair tool and learn how to play MOV files on Mac.

Why Can't Quicktime Player Open MOV Files on Mac?

Often, Mac users come across issues like MP4 not playing or MOV files not playing, which are usually caused by software issues. You might encounter this problem if any codec on your device is incompatible with the media file. However, most users are unfamiliar with codecs, making it difficult for them to detect the issue initially.

The reasons below also apply to most video formats. Whether you can't play a local video on your Mac or watch a movie online, you'll find a working solution on the linked pages.

How to Fix Video Not Playing on Mac [5 Verified Solutions]

Having issues with videos not playing on your Mac? This article introduces 5 tested solutions to help you resolve the problem.

Also, there are 4 reasons for MOV file playback issues:

Reason 1: Damaged Video File

Firstly, the absence of video component leads to unplayable QuickTime. MOV file fails to play if EOF or headers are lost or corrupted.

❄️Reason 2: Freeze Frame

A “freeze frame” is what happens when a movie suddenly stops on a single, static image. It's also a common problem when a download is interrupted.

Reason 3: Audio issues

Occasionally, audio problems – distortion or muffling – can mar the experience.

⏫Reason 4. Update Problems

Updates to the QuickTime application, meanwhile, introduced new vulnerabilities that could be exploited for malware or virus infections.

⚔️ Reason #5: Incompatibility with Mac

Your Mac is unable to read the .mov files that were edited in After Effects, Adobe Premiere, and iMovie. Therefore, you need to update your Mac to the latest macOS.

5 Ways to Fix MOV Files Not Playing on Mac

We'll help you fix MOV files not playing on Mac with five solutions. If you find the source MOV file corrupted, see Fix 1 to repair the video file.

1. Solution 1: Repair MOV File with Fixo Video Repair Tool
2. Solution 2: Repair Corrupted MOV File with QuickTime
3. Solution 3: Play MOV Files on Mac with VLC Media Player
4. Solution 4: Fix MOV Not Playing on Mac by Clearing Cache
5. Solution 5: Change the MOV File Extension

Watch this video before you proceed with the solutions to fix MOV files not playing on Mac. It gives you more details about repairing videos on Mac.

• 00:12 - Why MOV Won't Play in QuickTime
• 01:09 - How to Convert MOV to a QuickTime-Supported Format
• 01:28 - Converting MOV to MP4
• 01:53 - Editing MOV Videos
• 02:11 - Adjusting Video Bitrate, Frame Rate, and Resolution
• 02:23 - Changing the Hardware Encoder
• 02:55 - Fixing MOV Files with VLC

Repair Fix 1: Repair MOV file using Fixo Video Repair tool

To troubleshoot a MOV file that won't play on your Mac, first check the size of the clip. You can view this at the top of the Get Info screen. If the source video is only a few KB in size or its duration shows as 0:00, then that's the root cause of the unplayable issue.

In such cases, if your local Mac video is unplayable or won't open on the macOS operating system, you can try using a third-party video repair application to fix the Mac video. We recommend using a versatile, user-friendly, and secure tool like the Fixo Video Repair Tool.

- It has advanced repair capabilities to fix corrupted videos on Mac due to various scenarios like corrupted videos on Mac. - It can repair damaged photos and videos from memory cards or external hard drives. - It supports the repair of damaged video files with formats like MP4, MOV, MKV, and AVI.

Download the video repair tool Fixo Video Repair and follow these steps to recover your file.

Step 1: Download and launch Fixo on your Mac. Click on "Video Repair" from the left pane, and then hit "Add Video" to upload the corrupted MP4/MOV/MKV/3GP video file.

Select Video Repair and add the video

Step 2: Select the video you want to fix and click the "Repair" button to start the process of fixing a single video. If you want to repair all videos, select them all and click "Repair All."

Step 3: Wait for a few minutes while the software repairs the corrupted video. The duration will depend on how badly the video is damaged. Once it's done, click “Preview repaired” to check the video. To save the repaired video, click the “Save” button. If you need to save multiple videos, select “Save All.”

Step 4. If the quick fix doesn't work, try the advanced repair mode. Click "Advanced Repair" to proceed. Upload a sample video and click "Confirm."

Run the advanced video repair process

Step 5: A detailed window about the damage and sample video will pop up. Click on “Repair Now” to start the repairing process. Once it's done, you can preview the repaired video and click on the “Save” button to save the repaired video file to your desired location.

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Solution 2: Use QuickTime to fix damaged MOV files

Most Mac users would turn to QuickTime Player to play MOV files on their computer, for they are generally regarded as QuickTime files. However, QuickTime Player fails to fix corrupted MOV videos that won't play at all.

Step 1. Launch QuickTime Player 7 and load the corrupt MOV file into it. If the video file is severely corrupted, it will show a black screen error while playing.

Step 2: Choose Show Movie Inspector from the Windows menu. The Movie Inspector lets you view details about your movie, such as its frame rate, format, pixel information, duration, data rate, and size.

When a MOV file is corrupt, QuickTime Player displays a black screen with an error message containing metadata information about the movie file.

You can search online for the specific error code to get more help in repairing the MOV file.

Solution 3: Play MOV on Mac with VLC

Another MOV player that Mac users can turn to for compatibility is VLC Media Player, thanks to its support for various disc types and file formats. Though the interface and aesthetics can sometimes feel dated, the software offers extensive playback, subtitle synchronization, filters, and other features.

Try opening the MOV file in VLC media player. If it plays, you don't need to do anything else.

Step one: Go to the VideoLAN website and download and install the VLC media player.

Step 2: Drag your MOV file into the VLC window, or select “Media” then “Open File” from the menu.

Step Three: Your video is ready to play.

Solution 4: Fix MOV Files Not Playing on Mac by Cleaning Up Cache

When discussing how to Clear Recent History on a Mac, system, app, and browser caches must be cleared. Among other things, clearing the cache of your web browser can resolve issues with videos not playing on a Mac; we'll use Safari as an example:

Step one: Click Safari in the menu bar, and select Preferences.

Step 2: In the Safari Preferences menu, select “Privacy.”

Step 3: Under Privacy, choose Manage Website Data….

4. After clearing all the caches, tap Remove Now.

Fix 5: Change the MOV File Extension

Renaming the MOV file's extension might resolve this issue. To do so, follow these steps:

Step 1: Make a copy of the unplayable MOV file. When done, change its file extension from .mov to .avi.

Step 2: Start the VLC media player, then choose “Tools.” From there, select “Preferences.”

Step 3: From the list, select Input/Codec. Then click Save.

4. From the list of options for the damaged or incomplete AVI file, select “Always repair.” This should fix the problem.

If any of these methods helped you fix the MOV file not playing issue on Mac, share it on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more!

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With a good understanding of these 5 solutions, you should be able to fix a corrupted MOV file with ease. If you're having trouble playing your MOV files, give our suggestions a try. If all else fails, consider using the Fixo Video Repair tool. The program is user-friendly and has received positive reviews from many users. Simply upload your file, and the tool will take care of the rest.

Frequently Asked Questions About MOV Files Not Playing on Mac

Here are 4 extra issues with MOV files not playing on Mac that you can find the solutions to here.

< strong > 1. Why won't my MOV video play on my Mac? < /strong >

Some users have reported that MOV clips recorded with an iPhone using HEVC compression won't play on a Mac. You need to be running macOS High Sierra or later to play back MOV videos encoded with HEVC on a Mac using QuickTime or another player.

How to Convert MOV to QuickTime on Mac?

Step 1: Click 'File' > 'New Movie Recording' in the top-left corner.

Step 2: To view the MOV video files on your computer, click the “Import Media” icon.

Step 3: The file has been imported, and when you click on it, a yellow box will appear around it.

3. How do I play old MOV files on my Mac?

Type "QuickTime Player" in the Launchpad box in your Dock to open the application. Once it's open, select "Open File" from the "File" menu. Locate your MOV file, then double-click it to open it. QuickTime will play the file for you.

4. Can QuickTime Play MP4?

Being based on the QuickTime file format, MP4 is theoretically natively compatible with QuickTime Player, assuming the video and audio in the MP4 file use codecs that are compatible with QuickTime, such as MPEG-2, MPEG-4, or H.264.