What Is MOV File | How to Play MOV Video Files

This article is all about MOV files. We will introduce what is a MOV file, how to repair corrupted MOV files, how to open MOV files and the differences between MOV and MP4 files. If you need to learn what a MOV file is or need help opening it, this passage will help you learn enough information.

What Are MOV Files

A single MOV file can contain videos, video effects, audio, text, photos, subtitles, and other media files. It is one of the most popular video container formats used in video editing applications. It is typically used with Apple's QuickTime software and is an MPEG 4 video container file.

MOV files are frequently found on Apple devices like Macs, iPhones, and iPads because those gadgets capture video in that format by default.

If you want to play MOV files on your computer or phone, you'll need a MOV file player or try to convert MOV files to other formats.

MOV File Players for Windows, macOS, Android, iOS

Most users will choose the Apple QuickTime player to open and play MOV files, and the QuickTime player creates the MOV files. Sometimes the files will be saved in MOVIE, QT, or MOOV format.

We will recommend some handy MOV file players in this part, and you can find a suitable MOV file player from the following chart:

MOV File Player	System Requirement	Platform
Windows Media Player	Windows 11/10/8/7	Windows
5KPlayer	Windows 11/10/8/7
PotPlayer	32bit & 64bit Windows 10/8/7/VISTA/XP
MOV Viewer	Windows 8.1 or later
VLC for Mac	Mac OS X 10.7.5 or later	macOS
QuickTime Player for Mac	Mac OS X 10.6.3 or later
MPlayerX	Mac OS X 10.7 or later
Elmedia Video Player	Mac OS X 10.12 or later
VLC for Android	Android Version 4.2 or later	Android
Adobe Premiere Rush	Android 9.0 or later
MX Player	Android 5.0 or later
KMPlayer	iOS 11.0 or later	iOS
RealPlayer	iOS 13.0 or later
GOM Player	iOS 10.0 or later

How to Repair Corrupted MOV Files

If you find the MOV video files cannot open as usual, the MOV files may be damaged or corrupted. Sometimes you can quickly fix the MOV file cannot open issue by updating the MOV media player, clearing the viruses, or redownloading MOV files.

If you cannot repair corrupted MOV files with quick fixes, you should try MOV repair software. You should try EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard if you are a PC user, and this software can recover deleted MOV files and repair corrupted MOV files.

How to Open MOV Files on Windows, iOS

If you cannot open MOV files on Windows or Ios, and you can ensure your MOV files are not corrupted, you should use the MOV players we recommended before opening the MOV video files.

How to Open MOV Files on Windows Without Downloading Software

If you don't want to download software to open MOV files, you can try Windows Media Player, and you should update this software to version 12. You can also use Windows Photos to open MOV files on Windows PC. This method requires users to update Windows OS to Windows 10 or later.

Step 1. Locate the target MOV files on your computer. 

Step 2. Right-click the MOV file > Open with > Photos.

Note: You have other choices to open MOV files. You can convert MOV video to MP4 with video conversion software.

How to Open MOV Files on iPhone Without Downloading Software

You can sync MOV videos with iTunes if you have a MacBook Air/Pro and iPhone simultaneously. We will show you how to open MOV files on iPhone with iTunes:

Step 1. Open iTunes on Mac. Select the "File" tab > Add File to Library. Then, look for the MOV file. Select the file to import the media into iTunes and click "Open".

Step 2. From the Library menu, select the "Movies" tab. The primary software window displays a list of all the videos stored in the iTunes library. Select the target MOV files.

Step 3. Select the target MOV video > File > Convert > Create iPod or iPhone Version.

Step 4. You can drag the converted MOV files to the iPhone tab directly and sync the files to your iPhone automatically.

Differences Between MOV and MP4 Video Files

MOV and MP4 are the most popular video file formats. MOV was released in 1998, and MP4 was released in 2001, so MOV is "older" than MP4. There is a slight distinction between MOV and MP4:

Popularity. Apple created the MOV file primarily for QuickTime, although it later gained popularity across various platforms. Since MP4 files are designed to be an international standard, 90% of users will choose an MP4 file extension when they save a video, and MP4 is much more common and widely used than MOV files.

Size. The video quality is one of the differences between MOV and MP4 files, and MOV files are bigger and have higher quality than MP4 video files. Users will choose MP4 to save storage space and select MOV for a higher video standard.

Accessibility. Most devices can play MP4 files, and you don't have to download extra programs. If you are not a Mac user, it is more difficult to open the MOV files, and you may need to download the MOV media player.

Conclusion

We hope this passage can help you learn more information about MOV files, and you should know what the differences between MP4 and MOV files are. Don't forget EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard can help you recover and repair MOV/MP4 files!