Gerbera vs MiniDLNA
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted media servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Gerbera
UPnP media server for streaming to DLNA devices
VS
MiniDLNA
Lightweight DLNA/UPnP media server daemon
| Feature | Gerbera | MiniDLNA |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Media Servers | Media Servers |
| License | GPL-2.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | C++ | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,390 | ★ 200 |
| First released | 2018 | 2008 |
| Replaces | Plex | Plex |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Gerbera or MiniDLNA better?
Neither is universally better. Gerbera has the larger community, while MiniDLNA is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Gerbera and MiniDLNA free and open-source?
Yes. Gerbera is licensed under GPL-2.0 and MiniDLNA under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Gerbera and MiniDLNA with Docker?
Gerbera: yes. MiniDLNA: yes.