Airsonic vs OwnTone
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted media servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Airsonic
Archived
Free, web-based media streamer derived from Subsonic
VS
OwnTone
Media server with AirPlay, Chromecast and Spotify support
| Feature | Airsonic | OwnTone |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 15 · At risk | 87 · Excellent |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Media Servers | Media Servers |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | Java | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,045 | ★ 2,560 |
| First released | 2017 | 2009 |
| Replaces | Spotify | Spotify, Apple Music |
What are Airsonic and OwnTone?
Airsonic
Airsonic is a free, web-based media streamer providing access to your music collection from anywhere. It is the community fork of Subsonic and supports the Subsonic API for use with many client apps.
- Subsonic API support
- Multi-user with roles
- On-the-fly transcoding
- Podcast support
OwnTone
OwnTone is a media server that streams music to AirPlay and Chromecast devices, with support for Spotify and internet radio. It serves your local library through DAAP and the Subsonic API.
- AirPlay and Chromecast output
- Spotify integration
- Internet radio
Airsonic vs OwnTone: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Airsonic's repository is archived and no longer developed, while OwnTone is actively maintained. Airsonic is written in Java, while OwnTone is built with C. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Airsonic versus GPL-2.0 for OwnTone. OwnTone is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Airsonic. OwnTone is the more established project (first released 2009), while Airsonic arrived in 2017.
Why pick each one
Choose Airsonic if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2k GitHub stars)
- Written in Java
Watch out for
- Original repo less active
- Java memory usage
Choose OwnTone if…
- Excellent AirPlay support
- Low footprint
Watch out for
- Web UI is minimal
- Configuration via files
Frequently asked questions
Is Airsonic or OwnTone better?
Neither is universally better. OwnTone has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Airsonic and OwnTone free and open-source?
Yes. Airsonic is licensed under GPL-3.0 and OwnTone under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Airsonic and OwnTone with Docker?
Airsonic: yes. OwnTone: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Airsonic or OwnTone?
OwnTone has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Airsonic. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.