The Best VLC Skins

The default VLC skin is simple but tough on the eyes because it’s heavily white. You might experience blurriness and eye strain if you watch shows in windowed mode for longer. Fortunately, VLC allows users to customize its layout, color, and design without affecting its functionality. As such, you can find a skin that matches your preferences.

But with so many options on the Internet, you can unintentionally settle for mediocre skins. And that’s where this article comes in. It covers the best VLC skins you should consider.

Best VLC Skins

VLC skins come in many shapes. But they all have the same function—enhancing the media player’s appearance. And with various choices, you can find one with features that meet your specific needs. For example, you can choose a VLC skin that:

• Matches your desktop theme for eye-pleasing interfaces.
• Has a simple user interface for easy navigation.
• Represents your identity.
• Creates contrast for visual enhancement.

You can find VLC skins on VLC Media Player’s official website. Also, there are third-party websites that offer free VLC skins. The section below discusses ten best VLC skins.

1. Darklounge

Do you want to watch shows without straining your eyes? Then the Darklounge skin is an ideal choice. It features a dark theme with a minimalist design. It’s excellent for night-time movie-binging since it seamlessly blends into the dark surroundings. Unlike the default VLC skin, its control features appear at the top of the screen.

At the top left of the VLC skin, there’s a menu with customizing features. You can change the layout, color, and transparency. Also, if you like your music or videos to play undisrupted, you can create a playlist.

2. Zune 1.0

Zune 1.0 is an upgrade of the Zune skin that dates back to 2010. It lets users who loved the older version relive the experience. Its soft theme combines dark colors with a pale pink, which shines a subtle light. This provides a suitable setting for watching movies without straining your eyes.

Zune 1.0’s user interface is extra minimal. It surpasses even the VLC media player’s default skin. The screen only displays the play, pause, rewind, and fast-forward at the bottom.

You can tinker with the color and fonts from the settings gear. The developer hopes to launch a white theme to give users multiple choices.

3. FusionX2 Skin

FusionX2 is all about elegance. It focuses on black and silver hues and provides a sleek, futuristic, and minimalistic appearance.

FusionX2’s screen is less cluttered as a result. Only the basic controls appear on the screen, but you can easily access your playlist options from there.

Though FusionX2 has versions A and B, they have the same cosmetics. The only difference is in the positioning of the controls.

4. Blackpearl

Blackpearl is a VLC skin that dates back to 2009 but has remained one of the best customization options for playing music. It has a rating of 4.51, which is a good sign users have a good experience with it.

Blackpearl features a streamlined black and gray theme. Its control screams minimalism since it doesn’t even allow you to show video in windowed mode. This makes it suitable only for playing music, and since you can’t see the song titles, everything will be a surprise.

5. Alienware Darkstar

Does your heart beat for sci-fi? If you answered yes, you’ll find Alienware Darkstar appealing. It features a dark red and black theme, adding intensity and edginess to your VCL Media Player. The sci-fi vibe comes from the main menu looking like a futuristic shuriken with Alienware’s logo on it.

Its outstanding design does not overshadow its features. The main menu contains plenty of buttons for easy access to your video, audio, playlists, and even the equalizer. You can also “close the shutter” to lock the settings out so you don’t misclick in the middle of a show.

If there’s a possible issue with the skin, it’s that the timestamp seeker was shrunk to fit the menu, so you might have a tougher time zeroing in on a specific time in longer videos.

6. Transformers VLC Skin

The Transformers VLC skin is popular among Transformers movies fans. Its modern outlook and dark-themed color are all inspired by the movies.

The main user interface is classy and simple, with the screen displaying only the basic play, volume, fast-forward, and rewind buttons. You can access advanced control features such as fonts and colors from the settings.

7. Avengers Shield VLC Skin

If you love the Avengers movie, the Avengers Shield VLC skin could be your go-to VLC skin. Its theme and controls mimic the Avengers’ shield. From afar, the user interface looks complicated. But with its straightforward organization, anyone can navigate with ease.

The control buttons, play, pause, fast-forward, and rewind, are in the bottom left corner. The volume control is in the bottom right corner. This organization sets this skin apart from other skins.

The skin is designed to be used alongside the S.H.I.E.L.D. Rainmeter skin for your PC. The link above shows a preview of the Rainmeter skin around the VLC player, which is also customizable. For more information on what Rainmeter can do, click here.

8. MinimalX

If there’s a skin that has aged like fine wine, it’s MinimalX. The developers of this VLC skin have been on a mission to give users an unmatched experience. The skin received regular updates since its release in 2013, landing at version 3.0 in 2018, and the global trend towards minimalism has finally caught up with its visionary design.

As you can tell from its name, this skin embraces minimalism. But, it does not compromise on important features. It has all the bells and whistles that you need from VLC: audio and video controls, playlist selection, and subtitles.

The best feature is the color customizer, allowing you to choose between a dark, pink, blue, or green background.

9. SilentVLC

SilentVLC is another VLC skin that supports a user-friendly interface. It has a dark theme and sparks of white from the control buttons. All the essential control features are at the bottom of the screen. No clutter.

And if you want to view another window on your screen, SilentVLC has your back. You can resize the screen to watch in a miniplayer or expand it to your liking. This feature has undergone several updates to remove bugs and resolve resizing issues.

10. Slim Beam

Slim Beam distinguishes itself from other VLC skins by balancing simplicity and customization. Its user interface is simple and focuses only on important movie-watching features. You can fine-tune the layout, button style, color, and sound.

What about its theme? You got two to choose from: a white and a black one. The two come separately, so you’ll have to select and download one that suits you.

Give Your VLC a New Look

With a wide range of VLC skins, you don’t have to settle for the bland VLC default skin. From the above list, you can find one with an eye-catching appearance. Most importantly, one that will match your style and not strain or affect your eyes. And remember, these VLC skins do not affect VLC Media Player’s functionality. They only modify the menu appearance.

Which VLC skin do you use? Have you found one that suits your preferences? Let us know in the comment section below.