Plex AlternativesOnly apps categorised as Media Players

The best Media Player alternative to Plex is Jellyfin, which is both free and Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50 alternatives to Plex and many of them are Media Players so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting Media Player alternatives to Plex are Emby, MediaChips, JRiver Media Center and LibreELEC.

filter to find the best alternatives

Plex alternatives are mainly Media Players, but if you're looking for Media Centers 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

     325 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.
    Show more comments
    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. 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
     
  5. Ad
    Screenshot
    Nero MediaHome icon
    Nero MediaHome

    Comprehensive media manager for archiving, organizing, and playing files. It supports wireless transfer from devices, CD ripping with album art, and offers editing tools. Users can create slideshows, playlists, and burn them to o...

    https://www.nero.com
    Learn More
  6. JRiver Media Center icon

    JRiver Media Center

     40 likes
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    JRiver Media Center is a multimedia application that allows the user to play and organize various types of media on a computer.

    53 JRiver Media Center alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Pay once
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    JRiver Media Center screenshot 1
     

    • JRiver Media Center is the most popular commercial alternative to Plex.

    • JRiver Media Center is Paid and ProprietaryPlex is Freemium and Proprietary
  7. LibreELEC icon

    LibreELEC

     26 likes
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    LibreELEC is ‘Just enough OS’ for Kodi, a Linux distribution built to run Kodi on current and popular mediacentre hardware. We are an evolution of the popular OpenELEC project. LibreELEC software will be familiar to OpenELEC users.

    11 LibreELEC alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Linux
    LibreELEC screenshot 1
     
  8. 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
     
  10. Nero MediaHome icon

    Nero MediaHome

     6 likes
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    Comprehensive media manager for archiving, organizing, and playing files. It supports wireless transfer from devices, CD ripping with album art, and offers editing tools. Users can create slideshows, playlists, and burn them to optical discs, enhancing the experience with music and templates.

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once)
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Android
    • iPhone
    Nero MediaHome screenshot 1
     
  11. Swiftfin icon

    Swiftfin

     Like
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    Swiftfin is a fast, native video player that works with Jellyfin, the open source free software media server.

    15 Swiftfin alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • iPhone
    • iPad
    Swiftfin screenshot 1
     
  12. Oblecto icon

    Oblecto

     4 likes
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    Oblecto is a media server, similar to Plex, Emby, Netflix and others. It runs in the background on a home server to index your media such as movies and TV shows to make them searchable and streamable through a REST based interface.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Self-Hosted
    Oblecto screenshot 1
     
  13. nessMediaCenter icon

    nessMediaCenter

     21 likes
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    Use your Mac as optimal media center!

    nessMediaCenter is the suitable replacement for Apple's Front Row: easy to use with a clean look and feel, direct access to movie / picture folder and volumes, support of Aperture, iPhoto and iTunes media including DRM, and comfortable.

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Apple TV
    Start screen of nessMediaCenter on iMac
     
  14. Channels - Watch TV Your Way icon

    Channels - Watch TV Your Way

     31 likes
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    Watch, record, organize, and curate your favorite shows and movies with Channels. From your living room, second home, hotel room, or even on your commute, Channels lets you watch your personal media your way.

    Cost / License

    • Subscription
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Android
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • Apple TV
    • Fire TV
    • Android TV
    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Docker
    Channels - Watch TV Your Way screenshot 1
     
  15. Vidine icon

    Vidine

     7 likes
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    Organize all your videos in one place. Adding videos is fast, easy and automatic. You can browse and get a quick overview of all your videos straight from the program regardless of where they are stored. You can start playing videos straight from the shown thumbnails.

    Cost / License

    • Pay once or Subscription
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Vidine screenshot 1
     
12 of 21 Plex alternatives