SHSelfHostIndex

Transmission vs Tvheadend

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?
TR Transmission Fast, Easy, and Free BitTorrent Client VS TV Tvheadend TV streaming server and recorder for DVB and IPTV
FeatureTransmissionTvheadend
CategoryMedia ServersMedia Servers
LicenseGPL-3.0GPL-3.0
LanguageC++C
Setup difficultyMediumHard
Min. RAM50 MB256 MB
Deploymentbare-metaldocker, bare-metal
GitHub stars★ 15,047★ 3,502
First released20232007
ReplacesµTorrentTiVo, Cable DVR

Why pick each one

Choose Transmission if…

  • Released under the GPL-3.0 license
  • Mature project with 15k GitHub stars
  • Written in C++
  • Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Transmission details

Choose Tvheadend if…

  • Mature and reliable
  • Supports many tuner types
Tvheadend details

Frequently asked questions

Is Transmission or Tvheadend better?

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

Are Transmission and Tvheadend free and open-source?

Yes. Transmission is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Tvheadend under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Transmission and Tvheadend with Docker?

Transmission: check the project docs for container support. Tvheadend: yes.

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