foobar2000

What hackers pick instead

• WinampPeople recommend Winamp for its fast, simple, customizable interface, and old versions still run on Windows 11; the main caveat is that it feels dated.60recommend
• iTunesPraised for simple CD ripping, library management and iPhone syncing, especially in early versions. Critics say it became bloated, pushes Apple Music and sometimes deletes library files.55recommend
• PlexampMusic player valued for discovery in large libraries and smooth Plex server use. Main caveat: it costs money, and critics call the price too high.31recommend
• Audacious music playerPeople recommend it as a fast, minimal, cross-platform music player that plays almost any format and supports classic Winamp skins. The one recurring complaint is that it struggles with HiRes displays.17recommend
• SymfoniumPeople recommend it as a top Android music player for self-hosted libraries, and say it works well with Jellyfin and Navidrome.11recommend

Every quote

The 40 most detailed of 64 comments. Each links to the original.

1. I don't see any alternative that will allow me to play music without forcing me to convert everything

   Mixed · Jan 2026 · in “The state of Linux music players in 2026”

2. foobar's rock solid. I have a portable copy on a mounted NAS share and it's great for transcoding

   Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “What I self-host”

3. The range of formats it can play with extensions is so good I still use it, even on Linux.

   Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Malware developers added nuclear and biological weapons text to to their spyware”

4. It's exactly what I've wanted. Offline music that I can FTP files to from my file server.

   Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Malware developers added nuclear and biological weapons text to to their spyware”

5. Foobar is what I use to play music. Example of quality, performant, timeless software.

   Recommends · May 2026 · in “Show HN: We missed Winamp, so we built an audio player for macOS”

6. will spin itself up as an FTP server on my LAN so I can easily upload music to it

   Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “Why media fans want to escape algorithms with CDs, DVDs and vinyl”

7. used to be one of the best music players and you could infinitely customize it

   Recommends · May 2026 · in “Show HN: We missed Winamp, so we built an audio player for macOS”

8. nothing else seems capable of properly handling playback by folder structure

   Recommends · Sep 2026 · in “Jellyfin 12.0”

9. foobar2000 allows me add folder / file set to playlist and start listening.

   Recommends · Nov 2025 · in “Windhawk Windows classic theme mod for Windows 11”

10. I finally settled on simply using foobar2000 to play from an SMB share.

    Recommends · May 2026 · in “Show HN: We missed Winamp, so we built an audio player for macOS”

11. Foobar2000 simply has the perfect layout - and it's customizable.

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “The state of Linux music players in 2026”

12. It's still a wonderful piece of software and actively supported.

    Recommends · Nov 2025 · in “Winamp clone in Swift for macOS”

13. I don't know how foobar2000 somehow got it so right so long ago

    Mixed · Jan 2026 · in “The state of Linux music players in 2026”

14. they sound great, and foobar is the one that can play em

    Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Malware developers added nuclear and biological weapons text to to their spyware”

15. It's more focussed and consequently smaller and simpler.

    Recommends · Nov 2025 · in “Winamp clone in Swift for macOS”

16. still not really at parity with the Windows version

    Mixed · Nov 2025 · in “Winamp clone in Swift for macOS”

17. I never stopped using foobar2000 on the desktop

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Ask HN: How to go back to listening to MP3s?”

18. Foobar2000 works nicely with the Opus files

    Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “Why media fans want to escape algorithms with CDs, DVDs and vinyl”

19. I prefer foobar's simple interface.

    Recommends · Nov 2025 · in “Winamp clone in Swift for macOS”

20. I actually ended up installing Foobar2000 through Wine because of my frustration, only to find that it wouldn't start reliably.

    Criticizes · Jan 2026 · in “The state of Linux music players in 2026”

21. I just couldn't get into it – it doesn't really jive with me anymore

    Criticizes · May 2026 · in “Show HN: We missed Winamp, so we built an audio player for macOS”

22. they say Nope, only Windows is supported for this plugin

    Criticizes · Jan 2026 · in “The state of Linux music players in 2026”

23. I could never get my mind around foobar2000.

    Criticizes · Nov 2025 · in “Beets: The music geek’s media organizer”

24. doesn’t meet many of my requirements

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Ask HN: What Are You Working On? (December 2025)”

25. ReplayGain is part of the core components of foobar2000, so automatically adjusting the volume depending on the loudness of the trakc or entire album is pretty much a default feature of this player.

    Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Vinyl succumbs to Loudness War: more than just collateral damage (2025)”

26. a Mini PC with foobar2000, remote controlled via phone/web and a monitor for the full screen cover and done

    Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “I learned PCB design, 3D printing and C just to listen to music”

27. all the programs I have fond memories of are written with it (foobar2000, winamp, Everything, etc)

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Wine 11.0”

28. I got hit by the “PC App store” adware when trying to download Foobar2000 on a new computer

    Mixed · Jun 2026 · in “Malware developers added nuclear and biological weapons text to to their spyware”

29. On Windows you have basically a single option for each application that most people go for

    Recommends · Nov 2025 · in “Windows 11 adds AI agent that runs in background with access to personal folders”

30. the least bollocks-infested media player on macOS since about, oh, September 2000

    Recommends · Nov 2025 · in “Winamp clone in Swift for macOS”

31. I remember plenty of music lovers switching to foobar2000 when Winamp 3 came out

    Recommends · Apr 2026 · in “Claude Design”

32. KDE app customisation is also a mess compared to something like foobar2000

    Recommends · Feb 2026 · in “Palm OS User Interface Guidelines [pdf]”

33. far less effort to replace increasingly obnoxious apple music with foobar

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “App Subscription is now my Weekend Project”

34. I use the search/directory built into foobar2000 or apps like radiodroid

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “First, Make Me Care”

35. having a “skin” in the first place already goes against good UI

    Recommends · Nov 2025 · in “Winamp clone in Swift for macOS”

36. For those spoiles by foobar2000, there are no alternatives.

    Mixed · Jan 2026 · in “The state of Linux music players in 2026”

37. there is no equivalent to foobar2000 among music players.

    Mixed · Nov 2025 · in “Windhawk Windows classic theme mod for Windows 11”

38. I personally use Foobar2000 and VLC on the client side.

    Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “What I self-host”

39. I also went from Winamp to Foobar 2000 for a few years.

    Mixed · Nov 2025 · in “Winamp clone in Swift for macOS”

40. Still waiting for a worthy alternative to foobar2000

    Recommends · Aug 2026 · in “Apple introduces M6 and M5 Ultra”