A media server organises your own movies, shows, music and photos, and streams them to TVs, phones and browsers anywhere. The three popular choices are Plex (polished, freemium, account-based), Emby (a freemium middle ground) and Jellyfin (fully free and open source). They look similar on the surface, but differ in cost, privacy and how remote access works.
At a glance
| Jellyfin | Plex | Emby | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Licence | Free, open source (GPL) | Proprietary, freemium (Plex Pass) | Proprietary, freemium (Emby Premiere) |
| Account required | No, all local | Yes (Plex account; auth goes through Plex servers) | Optional |
| Hardware transcoding | Free | Plex Pass | Premiere |
| Remote streaming | Built in (you configure access) | Built in via Plex relay and discovery; some features need Plex Pass | Built in |
| Client apps | Good and growing (web, Android, iOS, Android TV, Fire TV, Roku, Kodi plugin…) | Excellent, on almost every device | Good |
| Polish and metadata | Good | Excellent | Good |
| Privacy | Everything stays on your server | Usage data goes to Plex | Mostly local |
| Extras | Plugins, live TV/DVR (free) | Free movies and TV streams, live TV, music (Plexamp) | Live TV/DVR (Premiere) |
Jellyfin
Pros: completely free, with no premium tier and no account with a third party. Hardware transcoding, live TV and all features are included. Good choice for privacy and control.
Cons: client apps vary in polish across platforms, and remote access is your job (a reverse proxy with HTTPS, or a VPN).
Plex
Pros: the most polished experience, with apps everywhere (smart TVs, consoles, streaming sticks), excellent metadata matching, easy sharing with friends, and remote access that “just works” through Plex’s infrastructure.
Cons: you depend on Plex’s account system and servers (logins fail if Plex is down), there’s telemetry, and key features (hardware transcoding, offline downloads) need Plex Pass. Policy changes have restricted some free remote-streaming features over time.
See Plex media server.
Emby
The original from which Jellyfin was forked. Emby Premiere unlocks hardware transcoding and other features. It’s a reasonable option if you prefer its apps, but most users now choose between Jellyfin and Plex.
See Emby server.
VPS or home server?
At home (NAS or mini PC):
- large, cheap local storage;
- an Intel iGPU (Quick Sync) for efficient hardware transcoding;
- streaming at home is unlimited by internet bandwidth;
- remote streaming is limited by your home upload speed, and complicated by CGNAT. See NAT explained.
On a VPS or dedicated server:
- a static IP and high upload bandwidth, so remote streaming for several users is smooth;
- no home hardware or power use;
- but storage costs more, and most VPSes have no GPU, so transcoding is CPU-only and heavy.
Transcoding is the key factor
Transcoding converts video in real time when the client can’t play the original format or needs a lower bitrate. CPU transcoding of a single 1080p stream needs roughly 2 strong cores. 4K HDR transcoding on CPU is impractical.
On a VPS, aim for direct play: store media in widely supported formats (H.264/H.265 + AAC in MP4/MKV), use clients that support them, and set client quality to “original” where bandwidth allows. Then the server just streams files, and a modest VPS serves several users.
Storage
A media library grows to terabytes. Options: a storage VPS (VPS.DO offers 500 GB SSD storage plans in the USA and Hong Kong), a dedicated server with large disks, or mounting object storage (slower, so best for less-watched content). See storage VPS and dedicated servers.
Bandwidth
Each 1080p stream uses roughly 5–10 Mbit/s, and 4K 20–40 Mbit/s. Check your plan’s traffic allowance. Streaming 100 hours of 1080p is roughly 300–400 GB. See latency vs bandwidth.
Legal note
Only stream media you have the rights to. Hosting providers act on copyright complaints, so keep your library legitimate and don’t make it publicly accessible.
Which should you choose?
| Priority | Choose |
|---|---|
| Free, private, no accounts | Jellyfin |
| Best apps everywhere, easiest sharing | Plex (consider Plex Pass) |
| Remote streaming to many devices from a VPS | Jellyfin or Plex with direct play |
| Hardware transcoding without paying | Jellyfin (on hardware with a GPU) |
Related: Immich vs PhotoPrism and Docker Compose.