Replace / Mux
Best free Mux alternatives (open source, self-hosted) 2026
The best open-source alternative to Mux is MediaMTX or OvenMediaEngine, self-hosted on Railway. Live video you host. MediaMTX is MIT; OvenMediaEngine is AGPL-3.0 — Mux without the encoding meter.
Estimated save $1,200 a year.
Open the stackStart on Railway
How Mux compares
| Mux | MediaMTX / OvenMediaEngine | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Hosted subscription | Open-source or fair-code license; you pay the host |
| Hosting | Vendor cloud | Self-hosted on Railway or any VPS |
| Rough monthly cost | Public list price not verified this run | Hosting only — no SaaS seat meter in this repo |
- MediaMTX
MIT media server and proxy (WebRTC, RTSP, RTMP, HLS)
- OvenMediaEngine
AGPL-3.0 sub-second live streaming if you want that stack
FAQ
- What is the best free open-source Mux alternative?
- The best open-source alternative to Mux is MediaMTX or OvenMediaEngine, self-hosted on Railway. Live video you host. MediaMTX is MIT; OvenMediaEngine is AGPL-3.0 — Mux without the encoding meter.
- Is it free?
- The MediaMTX / OvenMediaEngine licenses are open source or fair-code. You still pay hosting (Railway or any VPS) and any APIs the stack calls. There is no Mux seat or task bill on this path.
- Can I migrate from Mux?
- Yes. Start with the workflows or data you actually use, then cut over. The MediaMTX / OvenMediaEngine stack page has the agent prompt and the cost table; most teams rebuild the slice that matters and leave old Mux links until they expire.
- How do I deploy it?
- Open the MediaMTX / OvenMediaEngine stack, copy the agent prompt, and deploy on Railway (one service, PORT, and a volume when the app needs disk). Placeholder: MediaMTX (or OvenMediaEngine) with UDP/TCP as the project docs require and a volume for recordings. A single tiny Railway service may be the wrong size for live video. No one-click template in this repo yet — Start on Railway. VOD libraries stay on /stacks/peertube-video.
- What does this replace?
- Mux. The published small-team estimate on this stack is $1,200 a year.
Related pages
Stack of the Week
Get one stack a week that replaces a SaaS bill.