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Plyr

A simple, accessible video and audio player for HTML5, YouTube and Vimeo. Now deprecated.

GitHub Download v3.8.5
Stars
30k
Forks
3.1k
Licence
MIT
Language
JavaScript
Last update
16 days ago
Type
Library

What it is

Plyr is a JavaScript library that replaces the default look of web video and audio players with a cleaner, customizable set of controls. It works with standard HTML5 media elements as well as embedded YouTube and Vimeo players, giving them one consistent interface and event API. The project is now deprecated: its maintainers recommend Video.js 10 for new projects and Plyr only receives security updates.

  • Add styled controls, captions and keyboard shortcuts to an HTML5 video on a webpage
  • Wrap a YouTube or Vimeo embed so it uses the same controls and events as your other players
  • Show preview thumbnails and multiple caption tracks on a video page

Great for

  • Developers maintaining an existing site that already uses Plyr
  • Projects that need one consistent player across HTML5, YouTube and Vimeo sources
  • Teams who want a lightweight player with no framework dependency

Not ideal for

  • New projects: the README says to use Video.js 10 instead, since Plyr is deprecated and only gets security fixes
  • Non-developers looking for a ready-made video app, since this is a library that needs to be embedded in a web page
Step-by-step guide: how to use PlyrInstall, first run, examples, tips and FAQs

How to get it

  1. 1

    Install with a package manager

    Install from npm

    npm i plyr

    Build from source

    npm i && npm run build
  2. 2

    Run it

    • Add the plyr.css stylesheet to your page head
    • Add a video or audio element with an id such as player
    • Include plyr.js or import Plyr as an ES6 module
    • Create an instance with new Plyr('#player')
  3. 3

    Get the most out of it

    • Use the data-poster attribute on video elements to avoid downloading the poster image twice
    • Use progressive enhancement with iframe embeds for YouTube and Vimeo
    • Add VTT caption tracks with the track element for accessibility
    • Use the standardized API and events to control playback across all supported formats

Downloads

Source code (.zip)master branch · straight from GitHubRelease v3.8.51 files incl. plyr-3.8.5.zipOfficial website & docsplyr.io

Strengths

  • Built on standard HTML5 elements and written in vanilla ES6 JavaScript with no jQuery requirement
  • Standardized API and events across HTML5, YouTube and Vimeo sources
  • Supports captions, keyboard shortcuts, picture-in-picture and i18n controls

Trade-offs

  • Deprecated; receives security updates only, so no new features are expected
  • Requires a browser that supports modern features, as noted in the README's browser support section

How it compares

ProjectStarsTypeLevelUpdatedBest for
plyr (this)30kLibrarybeginner16 days agoDevelopers maintaining an existing site that already uses Plyr
react-player10.3kLibraryintermediate1 months agoReact developers who need to embed videos from several services behind one component

Stats synced from GitHub. The assessment above was drafted with AI from the project's README on 2026-10-29 and may miss recent changes — check the README before relying on a command. MIT licence: free to use, modify and distribute, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright notice.