Jellyfin vs Kyoo
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted media servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Jellyfin
Free software media system for streaming your library
VS
Kyoo
Open-source media browser for movies and TV shows
| Feature | Jellyfin | Kyoo |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | ≈5-minute setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 100 · Excellent | 86 · Excellent |
| Category | Media Servers | Media Servers |
| License | GPL-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | C# | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, binary | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 57,417 | ★ 2,527 |
| First released | 2018 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Plex, Emby | Plex, Netflix |
What are Jellyfin and Kyoo?
Jellyfin
Jellyfin is a free software media server that organizes and streams movies, TV, music, and photos to many devices. It is aimed at users who want a fully free, no-account media solution. It is typically deployed via Docker or native packages.
- Completely free with no paywalled features
- Hardware-accelerated transcoding
- Apps for TVs, phones and consoles
- Live TV and DVR support
Kyoo
Kyoo is a self-hosted media browser and streaming application for movies, TV shows, and anime. It automatically fetches metadata and offers a modern web and mobile interface for your library.
- Automatic metadata scraping
- Modern web UI
- Anime support
- Multi-user accounts
Jellyfin vs Kyoo: key differences
Jellyfin is written in C#, while Kyoo is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for Jellyfin versus GPL-3.0 for Kyoo. Jellyfin is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Kyoo. Jellyfin is the more established project (first released 2018), while Kyoo arrived in 2020. Jellyfin has the considerably larger community, at 57,417 GitHub stars versus 2,527.
Why pick each one
Choose Jellyfin if…
- No subscription or account needed
- Active community development
- Wide client support
Watch out for
- Apps less polished than Plex
- Remote access setup is manual
Choose Kyoo if…
- Clean modern design
- Good anime handling
Watch out for
- Smaller community
- Still maturing
Frequently asked questions
Is Jellyfin or Kyoo better?
Jellyfin is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Kyoo if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Jellyfin and Kyoo free and open-source?
Yes. Jellyfin is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Kyoo under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Jellyfin and Kyoo with Docker?
Jellyfin: yes. Kyoo: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Jellyfin or Kyoo?
Jellyfin has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Kyoo. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.