Microsoft Silverlight for Windows

Used Microsoft Silverlight for Windows? Share your experience and help other users.

Developer’s Description

Add a Web browser plug-in for accessing rich interactive applications.

Microsoft Silverlight is a cross-platform, cross-browser, and cross-device plug-in for delivering the next generation of media experiences and rich interactive applications for the Web. Now with new mobile device focused implementations of Silverlight, developers and designers can easily take existing code, assets, skills, and tools and deliver superior user experiences on mobile devices. With initial support for Windows Mobile and Nokia S60 (including any S60 based handset) mobile operating systems Silverlight provides broad reach into the mobile space.

Microsoft Silverlight is in the Other Browser Add-ons & Plug-ins category of the Browsers section.

Microsoft Silverlight for Windows

Used Microsoft Silverlight for Windows? Share your experience and help other users.

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Full Specifications

GENERAL

Release: January 16, 2019

Latest update: October 21, 2025

Version: 5.1.50918.0

OPERATING SYSTEMS

Platform: Windows

Operating System

Windows 2000
Windows 2003
Windows 7
Windows Server
Windows XP
Windows Vista
Windows 10

Additional Requirements: None

POPULARITY

Total Downloads: 774,423

Downloads Last Week: 7

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Last Updated

User Reviews

2.8/5

57 User Votes

Don't bother!
bill_wdk9April 4, 2015
Pros
None at all.
Cons
Installation on XP SP 3 Platform ALWAYS fails. No error code or explanation of any sort is given. I have 25+ years of professional software development experience and could not get Silverlight to successfully install. I've invested at least twelve hours attempting to find a solution with no luck. I simply wanted to use it to watch NetFlix. Have abandoned the effort. Not worth investing additional time chasing the wind. MS, this is an embarrassment to your brand. Please let us know when it is fixed and is robust enough for prime-time use. NetFlix, please provide an alternate path to using your service.
Summary
Avoid, unless perhaps, you're running Windows 7 or above. I've heard of people having success when installing on the latest Windows OS's. This, however, is purely anecdotal. My advice is to give it a try, but if it fails, don't spend more than an hour trying to figure out why. Just move on.
Unending install, install, enable try to use, repeat
vend.ors.3February 18, 2015
Pros
NONE - typical microtrash product
Cons
It doesn't work on Chrome (yeah, I guess this is an 'oddball' browser since it is not the soon to be or already retired Windows Exploder).
Summary
What a waste of time. I will not use any websites that require this piece of crap dysfunctional software. from a 25 year veteran developer.
If only there was a negative star rating scale...
XLR8EDLivingDecember 8, 2013
Pros
Cannot think of any pros for Silverlight. I only know about it because Netflix made the unfortunate decision to use it.
Cons
I don't know if it's the cause of the daily hiccups with video playback on other sites, but on Netflix, Silverlight is a clusterf*ck. Every five minutes, the video playback lags about 5 seconds behind the audio. When I can tolerate that annoyance long enough, it catches up in a second or two of mildly amusing Charlie Chaplin-esque fast motion. When I cannot tolerate it, having to click and drag the slider to sync video and audio every thirty seconds or so is an annoying distraction. Seems to get better for a day or so right after I re-download Silverlight, but today makes more than ten times I have had to do so in the past six months; the third time in two weeks. I have tried using Chrome, Firefox and IE, with no discernable difference in performance, regardless of the browser used. Don't know if Silverlight has anything to do with video playback regularly not working on other sites, but I'm inclined to believe it does, because Silverlight bites.
Summary
Silverlight sucks
silverlightsucksOctober 22, 2013
Pros
Have yet to experience any...
Cons
With a new laptop, netflix worked great! Better than my older (about 2 years old) laptop. This older laptop had silverlight installed. Then netflix required silverlight to play a movie. This is when the problems started. Most notably, the audio and video never seam to sync properly. Most annoying, the frequent message that "The plug-in silverlight has failed." which of course requires a reboot.
Summary
Do not install silverlight or any other microsoft program for that matter. Microsoft is dead and propogating this death by continuing to use microsoft products is inhuman and cruel. Let microsoft die a peaceful death and move on. Maybe some day microsoft will realize they no longer have a legitimized-monopoly and need to actually write software that works!
AWFUL. IMPROVING IS A NECCESITY
ben-playerJuly 26, 2013
Pros
none. ABSOLUTLY NOTHING
Cons
constantly crashes. doesnt allow me to watch sky go. poor. dowloading is frustrating!.
Summary
BADDDDD. NEEEDDDDS TO BE IMPROVED!!!!!! WORK ON IT
Tends to load slowly
elderbarrylJuly 24, 2013
Pros
Workx eventually.
Cons
Too bad it's too slow.
Summary
Please give me a replacement.
Installation was incredibly frustrating!
sarahhenning1March 12, 2013
Pros
Has let me watch part of a lecture I needed to see- the only pro!
Cons
As noted above I did need to install this to watch a lecture. Despite going to the webpage 2 hours prior to the lecture it only told me I needed to install it when the lecture started - 20 minutes, 3 installation attempts and a restart later it finally worked (after I searched for 'couldn't load plug ins' and got some advice). By this point I'd missed 20 mins of the lecture which couldn't be restarted and I'm so frustrated I'm ready to hurl the computer out of the window!!! Really annoyed and will be removing the installation as soon as lecture is finished.
Summary
Really frustrating to install - I expected more from Microsoft!
Seems to crash a lot
Rick1217November 12, 2012
Pros
still do not really know what it does; therefore, do not see any benefit.
Cons
Crashes whatever I am doing on the net without warning; just says Silverlight plug-in has crashed. I do not loose connection; and nothing seems to have changed so I have no clue what it does.
Summary
useless
Crashed my computer
nicolemoore94September 23, 2012
Pros
You can watch tv online with it.
Cons
Fried my hard drive
Summary
This program crashed my computer. It fried my hard drive. I had to get a completely new hard drive, and I lost all of my documents and pictures.
I was warned not to get this program,, they where wrong
tlgunn64July 7, 2012
Pros
It runs smooth - and if flash keeps going the way it is silverlight will take over and be the top program
Cons
none that i can think of
Summary