Skip to content What an M3U playlist is
A plain text list of channels and links. One address holds the whole list, which is why it is the most common thing a service hands out.
Short answer: an M3U is a text file listing channels and where to find each one. M3U8 is the same thing in a modern encoding. It can arrive as a link or as a file.
What is inside it
One entry per channel: a name, sometimes a logo and a category, and the address of the stream. Your player reads that list and builds your channel list from it.
Link or file
| What it means | |
|---|---|
| A link | Stays current. When your service adds channels, your next refresh picks them up. |
| A file | A snapshot. It never changes until someone copies a new one across. |
What an M3U does not carry
Usually no guide, and no clean split between films and series. You add a guide address yourself, and mtivi sorts the rest out as best the list allows. If your service also offers an Xtream login, that gives you more.
A link that opens a login page in a browser is not an M3U. That is a portal address, and it goes in a different tab.
Set it up: Add an M3U playlist by link or from a file. Compare: M3U vs Xtream Codes.
