Jellyfin vs Profilarr

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted media servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

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FeatureJellyfinProfilarr
CategoryMedia ServersMedia Servers
LicenseGPL-2.0GPL-3.0-only
LanguageC#TypeScript
Setup difficultyEasyMedium
Min. RAM512 MB50 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metal, binarybare-metal
GitHub stars★ 55,528★ 2,515
First released20182024
ReplacesPlex, Emby

Why pick each one

Choose Jellyfin if…

  • No subscription or account needed
  • Active community development
  • Wide client support
Jellyfin details

Choose Profilarr if…

  • Released under the GPL-3.0-only license
  • Active community (2.5k GitHub stars)
  • Written in TypeScript
  • Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Profilarr details

Frequently asked questions

Is Jellyfin or Profilarr better?

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

Are Jellyfin and Profilarr free and open-source?

Yes. Jellyfin is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Profilarr under GPL-3.0-only. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Jellyfin and Profilarr with Docker?

Jellyfin: yes. Profilarr: check the project docs for container support.

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