Jitsi Videobridge vs LiveKit
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted video conferencing options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Jitsi Videobridge | LiveKit |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 87 · Excellent | 96 · Excellent |
| Category | Video Conferencing | Video Conferencing |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Kotlin | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, kubernetes, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,105 | ★ 21,079 |
| First released | 2013 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Zoom, Twilio | Twilio, Agora |
What are Jitsi Videobridge and LiveKit?
Jitsi Videobridge
Jitsi Videobridge is the selective forwarding unit that routes video streams for Jitsi-based conferences. It can be deployed independently to power scalable WebRTC video applications.
- Selective forwarding unit for video
- Scales to many participants
- WebRTC compatible
- Powers Jitsi Meet
LiveKit
LiveKit is an open-source WebRTC stack providing scalable real-time audio, video, and data infrastructure. It powers self-hosted conferencing and live streaming applications.
- Scalable SFU architecture
- Client SDKs for many platforms
- Server-side recording and egress
- Used by Element Call and others
Jitsi Videobridge vs LiveKit: key differences
Jitsi Videobridge is written in Kotlin, while LiveKit is built with Go. Jitsi Videobridge is the more established project (first released 2013), while LiveKit arrived in 2021. LiveKit has the considerably larger community, at 21,079 GitHub stars versus 3,105.
Why pick each one
Choose Jitsi Videobridge if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (3.1k GitHub stars)
- Written in Kotlin
Watch out for
- Component of a larger stack
- Complex to tune
Choose LiveKit if…
- Production-grade real-time media
- Excellent SDKs
Watch out for
- Complex to operate at scale
- Infrastructure-focused
Frequently asked questions
Is Jitsi Videobridge or LiveKit better?
Neither is universally better. LiveKit has the larger community; both share a hard setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Jitsi Videobridge and LiveKit free and open-source?
Yes. Jitsi Videobridge is licensed under Apache-2.0 and LiveKit under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Jitsi Videobridge and LiveKit with Docker?
Jitsi Videobridge: yes. LiveKit: yes.