SHSelfHostIndex

Gonic vs Rygel

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?
GO Gonic Lightweight Subsonic-compatible music streaming server VS RY Rygel GNOME UPnP/DLNA media sharing server
FeatureGonicRygel
CategoryMedia ServersMedia Servers
LicenseGPL-3.0LGPL-2.1
LanguageGoVala
Setup difficultyEasyMedium
Min. RAM128 MB128 MB
Deploymentdocker, binarybare-metal
GitHub stars★ 2,496★ 200
First released20192008
ReplacesSpotify, PlexPlex

Why pick each one

Choose Gonic if…

  • Runs on Raspberry Pi easily
  • Works with many Subsonic clients
Gonic details

Choose Rygel if…

  • Released under the LGPL-2.1 license
  • Written in Vala
  • Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Rygel details

Frequently asked questions

Is Gonic or Rygel better?

Gonic is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Rygel if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are Gonic and Rygel free and open-source?

Yes. Gonic is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Rygel under LGPL-2.1. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Gonic and Rygel with Docker?

Gonic: yes. Rygel: check the project docs for container support.

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