DivX® movies are commonly stored in Windows .avi files. In order to play back these video files, you will need to install the appropriate software components known as the DivX® codec (stands for compressor/decompressor) on your computer.

DivX® movies use one of the two major codecs: DivX® and XviD. To view movies recorded in either format, both codecs need to be installed.

DivX® 5.2.1 codec
The DivX® codec v5.2.1 is the latest version of the DivX® codec and it is fully backwards compatible with all previous versions of the DivX® codec. This codec is created and distributed by

To install the DivX® codec v5.2.1 for Windows, follow these simple steps:

Step 1. Choose the appropriate codec for your operating system platform and start the download.

(7.3MB)
(7.2MB)

Step 2. Locate the download file (DivX®521XP2K.exe or DivX®521ME98.exe) and run it. The installation of the codec begins with a series of prompts to ask you to accept the license agreement and where the codec is installed. Just follow the screen instructions and this is a very straightforward process.


XviD codec
XviD is the name of a new open-source video codec, which is similar to DivX®. It is also based on MPEG-4 compression standard for video. XviD is released under the GNU license. To install the XviD codec for Windows, follow these simples steps:

Step 1. Start the download.
(620KB)

Step 2. Locate the download file (XviD-1.0.2-29082004.exe) and run it. The installation of the codec begins with a series of prompts to ask you to accept the license agreement and where the codec is installed. Just follow the screen instructions and this is a very straightforward process.