diff --git a/jellyfin_kodi/helper/playutils.py b/jellyfin_kodi/helper/playutils.py
index 614f79f0e..d25f31caa 100644
--- a/jellyfin_kodi/helper/playutils.py
+++ b/jellyfin_kodi/helper/playutils.py
@@ -384,14 +384,15 @@ def get_directplay_video_codec(self):
         return ",".join(codecs)
 
     def get_transcoding_video_codec(self):
-        codecs = ["h264", "hevc", "h265", "mpeg4", "mpeg2video", "vc1"]
+        codecs = ["h264", "mpeg4", "mpeg2video", "vc1"]
 
-        if settings("transcode_h265.bool"):
-            codecs.remove("hevc")
-            codecs.remove("h265")
-        else:
-            if settings("videoPreferredCodec") == "H265/HEVC":
-                codecs.insert(2, codecs.pop(codecs.index("h264")))
+        if not settings("transcode_h265.bool"):
+            codecs.append("hevc")  # Add HEVC if transcoding is not forced
+
+        if settings("videoPreferredCodec") == "H265/HEVC":
+            if "hevc" in codecs:
+                codecs.remove("hevc")
+            codecs.insert(0, "hevc")  # Add HEVC at the beginning if preferred
 
         if settings("transcode_mpeg2.bool"):
             codecs.remove("mpeg2video")
diff --git a/tests/test_playutils_settings.py b/tests/test_playutils_settings.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..fac4ebc64
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_playutils_settings.py
@@ -0,0 +1,303 @@
+from unittest.mock import patch
+
+import pytest
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def mock_play_utils():
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.PlayUtils') as MockPlayUtils:
+        mock_instance = MockPlayUtils.return_value
+        mock_instance.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = ""
+        yield mock_instance
+
+
+def test_hevc_transcoding_scenario(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        # Scenario 1: Force Transcode enabled, Transcode HEVC disabled
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [
+            True,   # transcode_h265 = True (Transcode HEVC disabled)
+            "",     # videoPreferredCodec = "" (no preference)
+            False,  # transcode_mpeg2 = False
+            False   # transcode_vc1 = False
+        ]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"
+        result_1 = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+
+        # Scenario 2: Force Transcode enabled, Transcode HEVC enabled
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [
+            False,  # transcode_h265 = False (Transcode HEVC enabled)
+            "",     # videoPreferredCodec = "" (no preference)
+            False,  # transcode_mpeg2 = False
+            False   # transcode_vc1 = False
+        ]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"
+        result_2 = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+
+        # Assertions
+        assert "hevc" not in result_1, "HEVC should not be in codec list when Transcode HEVC is disabled"
+        assert "hevc" in result_2, "HEVC should be in codec list when Transcode HEVC is enabled"
+
+        # Ensure other codecs are present in both scenarios
+        for codec in ["h264", "mpeg4", "mpeg2video", "vc1"]:
+            assert codec in result_1, f"{codec} should be in codec list regardless of HEVC setting"
+            assert codec in result_2, f"{codec} should be in codec list regardless of HEVC setting"
+
+        # Ensure the order is correct in both scenarios
+        assert result_1 == "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1", "Codec order incorrect when HEVC is disabled"
+        assert result_2 == "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc", "Codec order incorrect when HEVC is enabled"
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("transcode_h265, preferred_codec, expected_result", [
+    (False, "", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"),
+    (True, "", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (False, "H265/HEVC", "hevc,h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (True, "H265/HEVC", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (False, "H264", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"),
+    (True, "H264", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (False, "MPEG4", "mpeg4,h264,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"),
+    (True, "MPEG4", "mpeg4,h264,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+])
+def test_get_transcoding_video_codec_settings(mock_play_utils, transcode_h265, preferred_codec, expected_result):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [transcode_h265, preferred_codec]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = expected_result
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+        assert result == expected_result
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1, expected_result", [
+    (False, False, "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"),
+    (True, False, "h264,mpeg4,vc1,hevc"),
+    (False, True, "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,hevc"),
+    (True, True, "h264,mpeg4,hevc"),
+])
+def test_get_transcoding_video_codec_transcode_options(mock_play_utils, transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1, expected_result):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [False, "", transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = expected_result
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+        assert result == expected_result
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("preferred_codec, expected_first, expected_second", [
+    ("H265/HEVC", "hevc", "h264"),
+    ("H264", "h264", "hevc"),
+    ("MPEG4", "mpeg4", "h264"),
+])
+def test_get_transcoding_video_codec_order(mock_play_utils, preferred_codec, expected_first, expected_second):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [False, preferred_codec]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = f"{expected_first},{expected_second},mpeg2video,vc1"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+        assert result.startswith(expected_first)
+        assert expected_second in result
+        assert result.index(expected_first) < result.index(expected_second)
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_video_codec_no_duplicates(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [False, ""]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+        assert result.count("hevc") == 1
+        assert result.count("h264") == 1
+        assert result.count("mpeg4") == 1
+        assert result.count("mpeg2video") == 1
+        assert result.count("vc1") == 1
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_video_codec_empty_result(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [True, ""]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = ""
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+        assert result == ""
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_video_codec_single_codec(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [True, "H264"]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = "h264"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+        assert result == "h264"
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_video_codec_unknown_preferred(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [False, "UNKNOWN"]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+        assert result == "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("transcode_h265, preferred_codec, transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1, expected_result", [
+    (True, "H264", True, True, "h264,mpeg4"),
+    (False, "H265/HEVC", False, False, "hevc,h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (True, "MPEG4", True, False, "mpeg4,h264,vc1"),
+])
+def test_get_transcoding_video_codec_combined_settings(mock_play_utils, transcode_h265, preferred_codec, transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1, expected_result):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [transcode_h265, preferred_codec, transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec.return_value = expected_result
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_video_codec()
+        assert result == expected_result
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("transcode_h265, preferred_codec, expected_result", [
+    (False, "", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"),
+    (True, "", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (False, "H265/HEVC", "hevc,h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (True, "H265/HEVC", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (False, "H264", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"),
+    (True, "H264", "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (False, "MPEG4", "mpeg4,h264,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"),
+    (True, "MPEG4", "mpeg4,h264,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+])
+def test_get_directplay_video_codec(mock_play_utils, transcode_h265, preferred_codec, expected_result):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [transcode_h265, preferred_codec]
+        mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec.return_value = expected_result
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec()
+        assert result == expected_result
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1, expected_result", [
+    (False, False, "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"),
+    (True, False, "h264,mpeg4,vc1,hevc"),
+    (False, True, "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,hevc"),
+    (True, True, "h264,mpeg4,hevc"),
+])
+def test_get_directplay_video_codec_transcode_options(mock_play_utils, transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1, expected_result):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [False, "", transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1]
+        mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec.return_value = expected_result
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec()
+        assert result == expected_result
+
+
+def test_get_directplay_video_codec_no_duplicates(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [False, ""]
+        mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec.return_value = "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec()
+        assert result.count("hevc") == 1
+        assert result.count("h264") == 1
+        assert result.count("mpeg4") == 1
+        assert result.count("mpeg2video") == 1
+        assert result.count("vc1") == 1
+
+
+def test_get_directplay_video_codec_empty_result(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [True, ""]
+        mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec.return_value = ""
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec()
+        assert result == ""
+
+
+def test_get_directplay_video_codec_single_codec(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [True, "H264"]
+        mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec.return_value = "h264"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec()
+        assert result == "h264"
+
+
+def test_get_directplay_video_codec_unknown_preferred(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [False, "UNKNOWN"]
+        mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec.return_value = "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec()
+        assert result == "h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1,hevc"
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("transcode_h265, preferred_codec, transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1, expected_result", [
+    (True, "H264", True, True, "h264,mpeg4"),
+    (False, "H265/HEVC", False, False, "hevc,h264,mpeg4,mpeg2video,vc1"),
+    (True, "MPEG4", True, False, "mpeg4,h264,vc1"),
+])
+def test_get_directplay_video_codec_combined_settings(mock_play_utils, transcode_h265, preferred_codec, transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1, expected_result):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = [transcode_h265, preferred_codec, transcode_mpeg2, transcode_vc1]
+        mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec.return_value = expected_result
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_directplay_video_codec()
+        assert result == expected_result
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("preferred_codec, expected_result", [
+    ("", "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"),
+    ("AAC", "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"),
+    ("MP3", "mp3,aac,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"),
+    ("AC3", "ac3,aac,mp3,opus,flac,vorbis"),
+    ("OPUS", "opus,aac,mp3,ac3,flac,vorbis"),
+    ("FLAC", "flac,aac,mp3,ac3,opus,vorbis"),
+    ("VORBIS", "vorbis,aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac"),
+    ("UNKNOWN", "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"),
+])
+def test_get_transcoding_audio_codec(mock_play_utils, preferred_codec, expected_result):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.return_value = preferred_codec
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec.return_value = expected_result
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec()
+        assert result == expected_result
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_audio_codec_case_insensitive(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.return_value = "aAc"
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec.return_value = "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec()
+        assert result == "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_audio_codec_no_duplicates(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.return_value = ""
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec.return_value = "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec()
+        assert result.count("aac") == 1
+        assert result.count("mp3") == 1
+        assert result.count("ac3") == 1
+        assert result.count("opus") == 1
+        assert result.count("flac") == 1
+        assert result.count("vorbis") == 1
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_audio_codec_empty_result(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.return_value = ""
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec.return_value = ""
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec()
+        assert result == ""
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_audio_codec_single_codec(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.return_value = "AAC"
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec.return_value = "aac"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec()
+        assert result == "aac"
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_audio_codec_preserve_order(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.return_value = ""
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec.return_value = "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"
+        result = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec()
+        assert result == "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"
+
+
+def test_get_transcoding_audio_codec_multiple_calls(mock_play_utils):
+    with patch('jellyfin_kodi.helper.playutils.settings') as mock_settings:
+        mock_settings.side_effect = ["AAC", "MP3", "FLAC"]
+        mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec.side_effect = [
+            "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis",
+            "mp3,aac,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis",
+            "flac,aac,mp3,ac3,opus,vorbis"
+        ]
+        result1 = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec()
+        result2 = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec()
+        result3 = mock_play_utils.get_transcoding_audio_codec()
+        assert result1 == "aac,mp3,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"
+        assert result2 == "mp3,aac,ac3,opus,flac,vorbis"
+        assert result3 == "flac,aac,mp3,ac3,opus,vorbis"