Amperfy vs Lidarr
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted media servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Lidarr
Music collection manager and download automation tool
| Feature | Amperfy | Lidarr |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 84 · Excellent | 84 · Excellent |
| Category | Media Servers | Media Servers |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Swift | C# |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,759 | ★ 5,673 |
| First released | 2021 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Spotify, Apple Music | Spotify |
What are Amperfy and Lidarr?
Amperfy
Amperfy is a free and open-source iOS music streaming app that connects to Ampache and Subsonic-compatible servers. It supports offline playback, playlists, and CarPlay for self-hosted music libraries.
- Ampache and Subsonic support
- Offline playback
- CarPlay integration
- Playlist sync
Lidarr
Lidarr is the music collection manager for the *arr suite, automating searches and downloads for your favorite artists. It monitors releases and integrates with download clients and media servers.
- Automated music collection management
- Release monitoring
- Download client integration
- Quality profiles
Amperfy vs Lidarr: key differences
Amperfy is written in Swift, while Lidarr is built with C#. Amperfy is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Lidarr. Lidarr is the more established project (first released 2017), while Amperfy arrived in 2021. Lidarr has the considerably larger community, at 5,673 GitHub stars versus 1,759. Lidarr lists first-class Docker deployment; Amperfy does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Amperfy if…
- Native iOS experience
- Supports two server APIs
Watch out for
- iOS only
- Music only
Choose Lidarr if…
- Part of the popular *arr suite
- Strong automation
Watch out for
- Metadata accuracy varies
- Companion to a media server
Frequently asked questions
Is Amperfy or Lidarr better?
Neither is universally better. Lidarr has the larger community, while Amperfy is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Amperfy and Lidarr free and open-source?
Yes. Amperfy is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Lidarr under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Amperfy and Lidarr with Docker?
Amperfy: check the project docs for container support. Lidarr: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Amperfy or Lidarr?
Amperfy has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Lidarr. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.