55,366 stars · GPL-2.0 · 12.1 (2026-09-15, /releases/latest and ungh agree on the tag and the timestamp) · Track this in Scout
A media server that indexes a library of video and audio, fetches artwork and descriptions, and streams to browsers, phones, televisions and set-top boxes.
▶Repo detailsthe review · specs · pros & cons · install
What it is
Jellyfin is a media server written in C# that indexes a library of video and audio, fetches metadata and artwork, and streams to browsers and to client apps on televisions, phones and set-top boxes. It converts formats on the fly when a device cannot play a file directly.
What it is good for. Anyone with years of ripped discs, recorded lectures or family video on a disk somewhere, who would like to watch them the way they watch everything else. It is also the answer for a household that wants its own library without a monthly bill.
- The newest release is 12.1, published 15 September 2026. There is no version 11: the project dropped the leading
10.it had used since 2018, so 10.11 was followed by 12.0. - No subscription, no account, no tier. Every feature, including hardware-accelerated conversion, is in the free version.
- Client apps exist for Android, iOS, Android TV, Roku, Kodi and the browser, so the library is reachable from the devices people already own.
- GPL-2.0. Fine to run; awkward if you wanted to bundle it inside something you sell.
- Converting video in real time is heavy work. Without a graphics card that can help, one 4K stream can occupy an entire processor.
- It organises what it can recognise. Files named inconsistently will be matched to the wrong film, and fixing that is manual.
navidrome/navidrome23,121 stars, covered in Edition 23; music only, much lighter, and it speaks the Subsonic protocol so dozens of third-party apps work with it.
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advplyr/audiobookshelf13,886 stars, covered in Edition 28; audiobooks and podcasts only, with position tracking built for long listening.
Track this in Scout- Kareadita/Kavita
11,730 stars, the same idea for books and comics rather than video.
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docker run -d --name jellyfin \ -v "$PWD/jellyfin-config:/config" \ -v "$PWD/jellyfin-cache:/cache" \ -v /path/to/your/media:/media:ro \ -p 8096:8096 \ jellyfin/jellyfin:latest
