Alternatives to Owncast

Open-source software for running your own live video stream with built-in chat on your server. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.

Also worth comparing

These listings name Owncast as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.

  • MediaMTX

    A zero-dependency live media server and proxy for RTSP, RTMP, HLS, WebRTC and SRT streams.

    FreeOpen sourceSelf-hosted

    Owncast runs a single live video stream with built-in chat and a viewer page, but it lacks MediaMTX's multi-protocol relaying of RTSP, SRT and WebRTC camera streams.

  • PeerTube

    Federated video platform that shares bandwidth peer to peer.

    FreeOpen sourceWebSelf-hosted

    Owncast is for live streaming with built-in chat on your own server, without federation or a video library, and bandwidth costs fall on you.

  • Restream

    A browser-based live video studio that multistreams one broadcast to more than 30 platforms.

    FreemiumProprietaryWeb

    Owncast is open-source self-hosted streaming with built-in chat, so you run the server yourself instead of multistreaming to platforms.

  • zap.stream

    An open-source live streaming site built on Nostr, with Bitcoin Lightning payments to streamers.

    FreeOpen sourceWeb

    Owncast runs live streams with built-in chat on your own server using standard streaming software, without Nostr identities or Lightning payments, and you pay bandwidth costs.

Similar software

Related functionality, not a direct replacement.