Best / Live streaming
Best open-source Live streaming
The best self-hosted live-streaming split in the c17.io catalog is Owncast for an MIT live stream and chat (the published Twitch/StreamYard stack), PeerTube when the job is an AGPL-3.0 VOD library rather than live, Jitsi Meet when the job is a meeting room rather than a broadcast, and OpenScreen when the job is an async recording rather than a stream. StreamYard's browser studio and Twitch discovery stay behind. You still pay bandwidth.
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Ranked picks
1
OwncastMIT live stream and chat — the c17 Twitch/StreamYard path.
When to pick it: A broadcast you ingest with OBS.
11,621 stars in the catalog
2
PeerTubeAGPL-3.0 federated VOD library — /compare/owncast-vs-peertube. Already on /replace/vimeo.
When to pick it: A library and a player, not a live studio.
15,363 stars in the catalog
3
Jitsi MeetA WebRTC meeting room already on /best/video-conferencing — /compare/owncast-vs-jitsi-meet.
When to pick it: A room, not a broadcast.
4
openscreenMIT screen recorder — the c17 Loom path. Async, not live.
When to pick it: A recording with no watermark.
4,243 stars in the catalog
How they compare
| Tool | License | Self-host | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owncast | MIT License | Medium | A broadcast you ingest with OBS. |
| PeerTube | GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 | Medium | A library and a player, not a live studio. |
| Jitsi Meet | Not listed | Medium | A room, not a broadcast. |
| openscreen | MIT License | Easy | A recording with no watermark. |
Related pages
- Owncast stack
- PeerTube / MediaCMS stack
- OpenScreen stack
- Replace Twitch
- Replace StreamYard
- Replace Restream
- Replace Vimeo
- Replace Wistia
- Replace YouTube
- Replace Vidyard
- Replace Brightcove
- Replace JW Player
- Replace Loom
- Replace Tella
- Owncast vs PeerTube
- Owncast vs Jitsi Meet
- All best open-source pages
- All compare pages
- All replace pages
- All stacks
- Tools catalog
FAQ
- Owncast or PeerTube?
- Owncast if the product is live (the published Twitch path). PeerTube if the product is a library — /compare/owncast-vs-peertube.
- Is this StreamYard?
- The server, yes. The hosted browser multi-destination studio stays behind. OBS still pushes the stream.
- Why Jitsi?
- So a meeting is not sold as a broadcast — /best/video-conferencing.
- Are these free?
- Owncast and OpenScreen are MIT. PeerTube is AGPL-3.0. You pay hosting and bandwidth. Template users never pay c17.
- How do I deploy it?
- Open /stacks/owncast-live. Persist config. Point an encoder at the RTMP ingest.
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