MeTube vs Owncast

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?
FeatureMeTubeOwncast
CategoryMedia ServersMedia Servers
LicenseAGPL-3.0MIT
LanguagePythonGo
Setup difficultyEasyEasy
Min. RAM256 MB256 MB
Deploymentdockerdocker, binary
GitHub stars★ 14,359★ 11,445
First released20212020
ReplacesYouTube PremiumTwitch

Why pick each one

Choose MeTube if…

  • Very easy to use
  • Lightweight container
MeTube details

Choose Owncast if…

  • Own your live stream
  • Simple single-binary deploy
  • Built-in chat
Owncast details

Frequently asked questions

Is MeTube or Owncast better?

Neither is universally better. MeTube has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are MeTube and Owncast free and open-source?

Yes. MeTube is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Owncast under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run MeTube and Owncast with Docker?

MeTube: yes. Owncast: yes.

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