Kyoo vs MiniDLNA
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted media servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Kyoo
Open-source media browser for movies and TV shows
VS
MiniDLNA
Lightweight DLNA/UPnP media server daemon
| Feature | Kyoo | MiniDLNA |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Category | Media Servers | Media Servers |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,527 | ★ 200 |
| First released | 2020 | 2008 |
| Replaces | Plex, Netflix | Plex |
What are Kyoo and MiniDLNA?
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
MiniDLNA
MiniDLNA, also known as ReadyMedia, is a simple, lightweight media server that complies with DLNA and UPnP-AV standards. It serves music, photos, and video to network-connected devices with minimal configuration.
- DLNA/UPnP compliant
- Extremely lightweight
- Minimal configuration
- Serves audio, video, photos
Kyoo vs MiniDLNA: key differences
Kyoo is written in TypeScript, while MiniDLNA is built with C. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Kyoo versus GPL-2.0 for MiniDLNA. MiniDLNA is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Kyoo. MiniDLNA is the more established project (first released 2008), while Kyoo arrived in 2020. Kyoo has the considerably larger community, at 2,527 GitHub stars versus 200.
Why pick each one
Choose Kyoo if…
- Clean modern design
- Good anime handling
Watch out for
- Smaller community
- Still maturing
Choose MiniDLNA if…
- Tiny footprint
- Runs on routers and NAS
Watch out for
- No transcoding
- No web interface
Frequently asked questions
Is Kyoo or MiniDLNA better?
Neither is universally better. Kyoo 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 Kyoo and MiniDLNA free and open-source?
Yes. Kyoo is licensed under GPL-3.0 and MiniDLNA under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Kyoo and MiniDLNA with Docker?
Kyoo: yes. MiniDLNA: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Kyoo or MiniDLNA?
MiniDLNA has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Kyoo. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.