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4 self-hosted options

Open-source alternatives to Plex

The best open-source alternatives to Plex are Jellyfin, Kodi and Stash.

About Plex: A media server and streaming app for personal movie, TV and music libraries.

Every option below is free to self-host and ranked by GitHub stars, so you can move off Plex without giving up the features you rely on.

Top picks

  1. Rank 1:

    Jellyfin

    jellyfin/jellyfin

    Media server for audio, video, books, comics, and photos with a sleek interface and robust transcoding capabilities. Almost all modern platforms have clients, including Roku, Android TV, iOS, and…

    FeaturedMedia ServersC#Docker
  2. Rank 2:

    Kodi

    xbmc/xbmc

    Multimedia/Entertainment center, formerly known as XBMC. Runs on Android, BSD, Linux, macOS, iOS and Windows.

    Media ServersC++
  3. Rank 3:

    Stash

    stashapp/stash

    A web-based library organizer and player for your adult media stash, with auto-tagging and metadata scraping support.

    Media ServersGoDocker

Why switch

Why teams move off Plex

Self-hosting is not only about saving money. These are the reasons people make the switch.

  • Own your data

    Your data lives on a server you control, not on Plex's infrastructure. No surprise policy changes and no lock-in.

  • No per-seat pricing

    Open-source alternatives to Plex are free to run for as many users as your server can handle. A small VPS often costs less than a single subscription.

  • Customize and extend

    Read the code, add plugins, connect it to your own tools and automate it through open APIs. When you need a feature, you can build it or fund it.

Full ranking

All 4 Plex alternatives

Ranked by GitHub stars. Open any app for live stats, license details and a deploy option.

  1. 1

    Jellyfin

    Media server for audio, video, books, comics, and photos with a sleek interface and robust transcoding capabilities. Almost all modern platforms have clients, including Roku, Android TV, iOS, and…

  2. 2

    Kodi

    Multimedia/Entertainment center, formerly known as XBMC. Runs on Android, BSD, Linux, macOS, iOS and Windows.

  3. 3

    Stash

    A web-based library organizer and player for your adult media stash, with auto-tagging and metadata scraping support.

  4. 4

    Kyoo

    Innovative media browser designed for seamless streaming of anime, series and movies, offering advanced features like dynamic transcoding, auto watch history and intelligent metadata retrieval.

FAQ

Plex alternatives: FAQ

Still curious? Email info@appsgit.com.

What is the best open-source alternative to Plex?

Jellyfin is the most popular open-source alternative to Plex, with 57,817 GitHub stars. Kodi and Stash are also strong choices. Compare features, license and recent activity to find the best fit for your team.

Is there a free alternative to Plex?

Yes. All 4 apps on this page are open source and free to self-host, so you can run a Plex replacement without per-user fees. You only pay for the server, and a small VPS is usually enough for personal use or a small team.

Can I self-host an alternative to Plex?

Yes. Jellyfin, Stash and Kyoo ship a Docker image, so you can run them on a home server or VPS with Docker Compose in a few minutes. Your data then stays on hardware you control.

How do I migrate from Plex?

Start by exporting your data from Plex, then check the import options of the app you pick, since many projects ship importers for popular formats. Run both side by side for a week before you switch so nothing is lost.