How to Play Blu-ray Discs on Windows 10 (Free & Pro Solutions)

Windows 10 does not include built-in support for playing Blu-ray discs because Microsoft would have to pay licensing fees to include this feature, which is no longer cost-effective in the era of streaming. Therefore, if you want to watch Blu-ray discs on a Windows 10 PC, you will need to find another solution.

Currently, the best options are using a third-party media player like PlayerFab or VLC, or using programs such as DVDFab Blu-ray Ripper to convert your Blu-ray discs into MP4 format. This article will introduce these two methods and show you how to play Blu-ray on Windows 10 or 11.

How to Play Blu-ray on Windows 10 with Specialized Blu-ray Player

The most straightforward way to watch Blu-ray discs on Windows 10 is to install a Blu-ray playback software compatible with Windows 10. Here are popular options among Windows users to watch Blu-ray movies on PC: PlayerFab Ultra HD Player, VLC, and PowerDVD.

Play Blu-ray on Windows 10 with PlayerFab Ultra HD Player

PlayerFab Ultra HD Player is a dedicated Windows media player for Blu-ray and 4K Blu-ray content. It supports the playback of Blu-ray discs, 4K Ultra HD Blu-rays, ISO files, and media folders. The software provides HDR10 video output, Dolby Atmos audio support, and standard menu navigation for DVDs and Blu-rays. This Windows Blu-ray player utilizes GPU hardware decoding across AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA graphics cards to maintain playback stability on desktop systems.

PlayerFab Ultra HD Player operates on an upgraded interface and a new playback engine. It supports a variety of media formats, including MP4, AVI, MKV, FLV, and AAC. The player includes two distinct display options: PC mode for desktop monitors and TV mode for large-screen viewing.

Step 1: Open PlayerFab and choose your preferred playback mode (PC Mode for monitors or TV Mode for large screens).

Step 2: Next, load Your Media. 

• For Physical Discs: Insert your Blu-ray into the drive. Navigate to the Discs tab on the left panel. Hover your mouse over the drive letter and click the Play button that appears.
• For ISO Files or Folders: Simply drag and drop the file or movie folder into the PlayerFab interface. Alternatively, you can use the Open Media shortcut (Ctrl+O) to browse and select files from your computer.

Step 3: Once the video starts, you can use the Top Menu (Ctrl+T) to access the disc's full navigation interface or the Pop Menu (Ctrl+P) for the interactive overlay menu during playback.

Step 4: If you wish to access the disc more easily in the future, you can click the icon in the bottom-right corner of the Discs section to import the disc to your PlayerFab Library.

Play Blu-ray on Windows with VLC Media Player

VLC is a well-known, free and open-source media player that runs across multiple platforms and supports a wide range of video and audio formats, streaming sources, and advanced playback controls. 

By default, VLC cannot play most commercial Blu-ray discs on Windows 10 because they use encryption and copy protection technologies such as AACS and BD+, which are not included in the standard VLC installation. To enable playback of encrypted Blu-ray discs, you need to download and install additional decryption components (the AACS key database and dynamic libraries) from trusted sources and place them in the correct system folders. Even with these files installed, some protected commercial discs may still not play due to DRM and region coding limitations. 

That said, VLC can play unprotected or homemade Blu-ray discs on Windows 10 directly once set up properly, and it remains a popular choice due to its broad format support and lack of ads, though it is not as feature-rich as some dedicated commercial Blu-ray players. 

If you are playing an unprotected disc on Windows PC, simply insert the disc, open VLC, and go to Media > Open Disc to start playback. However, if your Blu-ray is copy-protected, you will need to follow these configuration steps before you can play it on Windows 10.

Step 1: Download the AACS Decryption Files 

Visit the website vlc-bluray.whoknowsmy.name to download the required decryption files. You will need the AACS key database file (KEYDB.cfg) and the AACS dynamic library file (libaacs.dll). Be sure to select the version of libaacs.dll that matches your VLC installation architecture (32-bit or 64-bit) so the software can successfully decode the disc.

Step 2: Create the AACS Configuration Folder 

Press Win + R on your keyboard to open the Run dialog box. Type %APPDATA% and press Enter to open your AppData Roaming folder. Within this location, create a new folder and name it aacs. Move the downloaded KEYDB.cfg file into this newly created folder so VLC can access the key database when attempting to read the disc.

Step 3: Install the Dynamic Library 

Locate your VLC installation directory. The default path is typically C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC for 64-bit versions or C:\Program Files (x86)\VideoLAN\VLC for 32-bit versions. Copy the downloaded libaacs.dll file directly into this folder. If you want to improve compatibility with discs that use BD+ encryption, you can optionally copy the libbdplus.dll file into this VLC folder as well.

Step 4: Play Blu-ray on Windows with VLC

If VLC is currently running, close and restart the application. Navigate to the top menu bar, click on Media, and select Open Disc. In the Disc tab, select the Blu-ray radio button and choose your inserted disc. Click Play to begin.

How to Play Blu-ray on Windows 10 with CyberLink PowerDVD

CyberLink PowerDVD is an all-around media player that handles the transition between physical discs and digital streaming quite well. It is one of the few tools that offers official Ultra HD Blu-ray certification, along with support for 8K video and HDR10. It works across all modern Windows versions, from Windows 7 through Windows 11.

Step 1: Download and run Cyberlink PowerDVD on your Windows 7 or higher version.

Step 2: Now, insert your Blu-ray disc into an onboard or external optical disc drive to play your content automatically Or, if you have PowerDVD already open, you can play your Blu-ray discs directly from the Media Library.

Step 3: Simply tap the Open DVD/Blu-ray folder icon at the top (located in the center, near the 'Home' icon) and select the drive where your disc is located.

Step 4: Click the Resume icon on the main screen to play your disc content.

Step 5: Use the Crop-to-fill features to remove the letterboxing that occurs when watching on larger displays.

How to play Blu-ray on Windows 10 through digital conversion

Another workaround to play Blu-ray discs on Windows 10 is converting your Blu-ray discs into MKV or MP4 formats, allowing them to be played directly in Windows Media Player. Below is a guide on how to use MakeMKV and DVDFab Blu-ray Ripper to convert your Blu-rays for playback on Windows 10.

Create lossless MKV files with MakeMKV

MakeMKV is a disc conversion tool that reads Blu-ray and DVD discs and copies their contents into MKV files without re-encoding, preserving all video, audio, subtitle, and chapter information in a format that can be played on most devices and players. It works on Windows, macOS, and Linux and can handle Blu-ray discs including those with common copy protection schemes such as AACS and BD+. During its beta period, MakeMKV offers full functionality for free, though you may need to update the beta key periodically to continue using it. 

Step 1: Download and install MakeMKV for Windows. Then, insert your Blu-ray disc into your computer's optical drive and launch MakeMKV. Click on the large optical drive icon in the center of the interface to allow the software to read the disc. 

Step 2: Once the software finishes analyzing the disc, it will display a tree-view list of all the available titles, audio tracks, and subtitles. Review this list and check the boxes next to the specific video files, language tracks, and subtitle options you want to extract. 

Step 3: Select an output folder on your hard drive where you want to save the converted file, then click the "Make MKV" button. Once the conversion is complete, your Blu-ray will be ready in MKV format, which can be played in any media player.

Convert Blu-ray to Digital Formats with DVDFab Blu-ray Ripper

Another practical way to play Blu-ray on Windows 10 is by ripping it to a digital format for later viewing. DVDFab Blu-ray Ripper is a specialized tool designed for this purpose, providing an efficient and user-friendly conversion process. It supports physical discs, ISO files, and movie folders, allowing you to monitor the entire ripping progress in real-time.

Step 1: Launch DVDFab and select the Ripper module from the top navigation bar. Insert your Blu-ray disc into the drive or use the Add button to locate your files. Alternatively, you can simply drag and drop an ISO file or a movie folder directly into the main interface.

Step 2: Click Choose Other Profile to select your preferred video format, such as MP4 or MKV. Within this menu, you can select specific titles, audio tracks, and subtitle streams to retain. For further personalization, use the Advanced Settings or the built-in Video Editor to adjust technical parameters or trim the video.

Step 3: Select your desired output destination and click the Start button. After the conversion, you can play the ripped Blu-ray movie in Windows 10's built-in media player.