LoomiTV vs. VLC vs. Kodi: Which Media Player Fits You?

VLC, Kodi, and LoomiTV can all play an M3U playlist — but they're built for different priorities. Here's how they actually compare for that specific job.

Setup experience

VLC can open an M3U file, but it has no guided playlist connection flow, no EPG, and no persistent "add a source" screen — you're re-opening files each time. Kodi supports M3U playlists through add-ons, but requires configuring an add-on and skinning the interface yourself. LoomiTV has this built in natively, with a guided setup screen and no add-ons to configure.

Program guide (EPG)

VLC has no EPG at all. Kodi can show one through a PVR add-on, with a moderate setup process. LoomiTV includes a built-in EPG with a timeline view out of the box, as long as your source provides guide data.

Multi-screen viewing

Neither VLC nor Kodi supports watching multiple sources from your playlist in a single grid. This is a LoomiTV Pro feature — up to 4 sources side by side, with one-tap audio switching.

Device support

VLC and Kodi both run on nearly everything, including desktop. LoomiTV v1 is Windows only, built specifically for that platform rather than a generic cross-platform wrapper — more platforms are planned.

Bottom line

If you want a general-purpose file player, VLC is hard to beat. If you want deep customization and don't mind configuring add-ons, Kodi is powerful. If you specifically want a clean, guided experience for an M3U playlist on Windows — with EPG and multi-screen out of the box — that's exactly what LoomiTV is built for.