Plex AlternativesOnly Free apps categorised as Media Centers

The best free Media Center alternative to Plex is Jellyfin, which is also Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50 alternatives to Plex and many of them are free Media Centers so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting free Media Center alternatives to Plex are Emby, Universal Media Server, Infuse and Ampache.

filter to find the best alternatives

Plex alternatives are mainly Media Centers, but if you're looking for Media Players or Media Servers you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Open Source, Android, Apple TV, Linux, Mac, Chrome OS and Free. You can also filter by region, for example EU-based alternatives if you prefer software developed in the European Union. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Plex.
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Alternatives list

  1. Jellyfin icon

    Jellyfin

     327 likes
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    A free, open-source media system alternative to proprietary options like Emby and Plex, with Chromecast support, 4K streaming, plugin extensions, focusing on privacy without premium features, managing media from dedicated servers to multiple devices via various apps.

    50 Jellyfin alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • Flathub
    • Tizen OS
    • F-Droid
    • Android TV
    • Kodi
    • Docker
    • Fire TV
    • Roku
    • Cloudron
    Jellyfin screenshot 1
     
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    18
    126
    Comments about Jellyfin as an Alternative to Plex
    Comment summary: Jellyfin is praised for being a free, open-source alternative to Plex, offering increased privacy without requiring a cloud account. It's appreciated for customization, ease of setup, and lack of paywalls. However, users note challenges with certain devices and that Jellyfin is currently less polished than Plex, though improvements are underway. Its functionality and privacy features are highlighted as major strengths.
    Top Positive Comment
    seczamotu
    9

    It's FOSS and they don't spy on you. No paywalls and 'Premium' packages. It's completely free.

    obradk
    0

    It would be ok except it's impossible to disable transcoding and have decent subtitles. It's slow, but it's FOSS and it's not trying to upsell you at all times.

    intp
    Positive
    0

    Certainly a viable free, open-source alternative, but be advised that getting it working with a Roku, for example, can be a lot more challenging for less tech savvy users.

    Show more comments
    3 of 18 comments
    Plex Icon
    Jellyfin icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Jellyfin is a great Plex alternative.

    • Jellyfin is the most popular Windows, Android, Mac & iPhone alternative to Plex.

    • Jellyfin is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to Plex.

    • Jellyfin is Free and Open SourcePlex is Freemium and Proprietary
    • Jellyfin is Privacy focusedPlex is not according to our users
  2. Emby icon

    Emby

     170 likes
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    Emby, formerly Media Browser, is a media aggregator plugin for Media Center that takes your recorded, digital, or ripped media and presents it in a simple, easy to use interface. Emby prides itself on delivering a fast, intuitive, media rich experience for the whole family.

    48 Emby alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once or Subscription)
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • BSD
    • Windows Phone
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • Apple TV
    • Kindle Fire
    • Cloudron
    • Playstation
    • Xbox
    Emby screenshot 1
     
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    7
    134
    Comments about Emby as an Alternative to Plex
    Top Positive Comment
    Horaciogarro
    5

    Is the exact alternative to Plex.+ web server!

    dzevel5
    Positive
    -1

    Plex is horrible at consumer privacy! Emby just a perfect solution especially for NAS.

    While Plex logging and collecting data, Emby won’t and then device can go into sleep mode perfect.

    Guest
    Positive
    -1

    A superb alternative to plex, much faster streaming start of the video over internet.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
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    3 of 7 comments
    Plex Icon
    Emby icon

    • Most users think Emby is a great Plex alternative.

    • Emby is Freemium and ProprietaryPlex is also Freemium and Proprietary
  4. Universal Media Server icon

    Universal Media Server

     133 likes
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    Universal Media Server is a media server capable of serving videos, audio and images to any DLNA-capable device. It supports any device capable of DLNA and runs on all major operating systems: Windows, OS X and Linux.

    46 Universal Media Server alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Universal Media Server screenshot 1
     
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    4
    37
    Comments about Universal Media Server as an Alternative to Plex
    Jonathan Brickman
    Positive
    3

    Extremely easy install. Completely seamless connection to Roku Media Player. Very lightweight, but fully functional.

    Guest
    Positive
    4

    No faffing about and less intrusive and no personal data shared like plex does.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    Works fine with Chromecast.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
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    3 of 4 comments
    Plex Icon
    Universal Media Server icon

    • Most users think Universal Media Server is a great Plex alternative.

    • Universal Media Server is Free and Open SourcePlex is Freemium and Proprietary
  5. Infuse icon

    Infuse

     49 likes
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    Ignite your video content with Infuse – the beautiful way to watch almost any video format on your iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. No need to convert files! Infuse is optimized for iOS 12, with powerful streaming options, trakt sync, and unmatched AirPlay & subtitle support.

    63 Infuse alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once or Subscription)
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • Apple TV
    • visionOS
    Infuse screenshot 1
     
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    1
    11
    Comments about Infuse as an Alternative to Plex
    Guest
    Negative
    4

    This is equivalent to other media players (like VLC etc.) not to streaming media servers like Plex.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Plex Icon
    Infuse icon

    • Most users think Infuse is a great Plex alternative.

    • Infuse is Freemium and ProprietaryPlex is also Freemium and Proprietary
  6. Ampache icon

    Ampache

     62 likes
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    Ampache is a web based audio streaming application and file manager allowing you to access your music from anywhere, using almost any internet enabled device.

    98 Ampache alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Self-Hosted
    • PHP
    • Cloudron
    Ampache screenshot 1
     
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    2
    6
    Comments about Ampache as an Alternative to Plex
    Guest
    Negative
    6

    Ampache is an audio server, while plex supports both audio and video (and it is heavily focused on video streaming)

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Negative
    0

    Ampache is an audio server only, which is only a small subset of what Plex does, and not even Plex's primary focus.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Plex Icon
    Ampache icon

    • Some users think Ampache is a great Plex alternative, some don't.

    • Ampache is Free and Open SourcePlex is Freemium and Proprietary
  7. MediaChips icon

    MediaChips

     18 likes
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    This app for navigating your large video collection. Add tags, performers, websites, sort/filter videos, create playlists and play them in the built-in player.

    38 MediaChips alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once or Subscription)
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    MediaChips screenshot 1
     
  9. Android TV icon

    Android TV

     15 likes
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    Android TV is Google’s operating system for smart TVs and streaming devices. Android TV makes it easier for people to watch, play and do everything they love on their TV.

    50 Android TV alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Android TV
    Android TV screenshot 1
     
  10. OSMC icon

    OSMC

     82 likes
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    OSMC (Open Source Media Center) is a free and open source media player based on Linux and founded in 2014 that lets you play back media from your local network, attached storage and the Internet. OSMC is the leading media center in terms of feature set and community and is based...

    44 OSMC alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Apple TV
    • Raspberry Pi
    OSMC screenshot 1
     
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    2
    16
    Comments about OSMC as an Alternative to Plex
    Guest
    Negative
    16

    From the FAQ of the project: What is the difference between OSMC and Kodi?

    Kodi is a media center application and OSMC is the operating system that runs Kodi and brings it to your device. OSMC is not a fork of Kodi but rather a Linux distribution that ships Kodi as the main application.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Negative
    7

    totally different piece of software

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Plex Icon
    OSMC icon

    • Some users think OSMC is a great Plex alternative, some don't.

    • OSMC is Free and Open SourcePlex is Freemium and Proprietary
  11. OpenELEC icon

    OpenELEC

     55 likes
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    Open Embedded Linux Entertainment Center (OpenELEC) is a small Linux based Just Enough Operating System (JeOS) built from scratch as a platform to turn your computer into a Kodi (previously XBMC) media center.

    11 OpenELEC alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Raspberry Pi
    OpenELEC screenshot 1
     
  12. Finamp icon

    Finamp

     7 likes
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    Finamp is a Jellyfin music player. Its main feature is the ability to download songs for offline listening.

    24 Finamp alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Flathub
    • F-Droid
    Finamp screenshot 1
    Finamp screenshot 2
    Finamp screenshot 3
     
  13. PS3 Media Server icon

    PS3 Media Server

     70 likes
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    PS3 Media Server is a DLNA compliant Upnp Media Server for the PS3, written in Java, with the purpose of streaming or transcoding.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    GUI
     

  14. Zappity

     1 like
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    Ultimate Media Center for Dune HD players.

    Zappity allows you to collect information for all moves, and create good looking navigation interface through your movies collection.

    This interface is accessible on your computer screen and in the player on your TV screen.

    Zappity i.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    PC and DUNE player interface elements
     
12 of 22 Plex alternatives