RPi Cam Web Interface vs ZoneMinder
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted video surveillance options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
RPi Cam Web Interface
Web-based control and streaming for the Raspberry Pi camera
VS
ZoneMinder
Full-featured closed-circuit television software suite
| Feature | RPi Cam Web Interface | ZoneMinder |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Video Surveillance | Video Surveillance |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | PHP | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,599 | ★ 5,899 |
| First released | 2013 | 2002 |
| Replaces | Nest Cam | Blue Iris, Milestone XProtect |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is RPi Cam Web Interface or ZoneMinder better?
Neither is universally better. ZoneMinder has the larger community, while RPi Cam Web Interface is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are RPi Cam Web Interface and ZoneMinder free and open-source?
Yes. RPi Cam Web Interface is licensed under MIT and ZoneMinder under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run RPi Cam Web Interface and ZoneMinder with Docker?
RPi Cam Web Interface: check the project docs for container support. ZoneMinder: yes.