If you download a lot of video files then you will probably encounter MKV files at sometime. MKV stands for Matroska Video and has been increasing in popularity in recent times. The MKV container format is seen as being a pioneering development of open source in multimedia. Many encoders are beginning to shift to MKV files due to the ongoing development of the MKV format. It is able to support high quality video and audio at low file sizes which saves a considerable amount of money, in terms of bandwidth, for companies all over the world.

To play MKV files, your favorite media player will essentially need to have the required media codec. By default, Windows Media Player does not contain the necessary codec required to play mkv files in Windows 7. Thus, you will not be able to play your downloaded mkv file without installing additional media codecs or a new media player.

How to Play MKV Files in Windows 7

To Play MKV Files in Windows 7, I would suggest using K-Lite Codec which will not only let you play MKV files but many other multimedia formats such as MKV, MP4, MOV, HDMOV, TS, FLV, OGM, MPEG, M2TS, and OGG files. I have been using this codec pack for the last 4 years and being an avid downloader, I have come across many(and I mean many!) multimedia formats but every one of them worked flawlessly. You could also download the Mega Codec Pack(the one I use), which supports RealMedia (rm, rmvb) format as well and includes Media Player Classic.

An MKV file being played in Media Player Classic

To download the K-Lite Codec pack, head over to their website by clicking here. To Play MKV files in Windows 7, you could download any of the codec packs (from Basic to Mega) and be able to play MKV files flawlessly. The K-Lite Codec pack can be used with Windows XP and Windows Vista as well to achieve the same results and be able to play MKV files.