What is Jellyfin used for?

Jellyfin is a free software media system that lets you manage and stream your own media from a dedicated server to apps on many devices. It is a good fit for self-hosted home media library, replacing Plex or Emby with a free alternative and streaming personal media to many devices.

Is Jellyfin open source?

Yes. Jellyfin is open source under the GPL-2.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at jellyfin/jellyfin and is written mainly in C#.

Yes. Jellyfin is open source, so the software itself is free to use.

Can I self-host Jellyfin?

Yes. Jellyfin can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.

What is Jellyfin an alternative to?

Jellyfin is an open-source alternative to Plex, Emby, Disney+ and Hulu. Other open-source alternatives to Plex include Kodi, Stremio and Ampache.

Is Jellyfin actively maintained?

Yes. The most recent commit to Jellyfin was on 1 October 2026, and the latest release is v12.1, published on 15 September 2026. The project has 58k stars on GitHub.

Jellyfin: open-source alternative to Plex, Emby, Disney+

About Jellyfin

Jellyfin is a media system built as free software, giving you control over how your media is managed and streamed. A dedicated server provides movies, shows and other media to end-user devices through multiple client apps. This repository contains the backend server and API, written in C# on .NET, and it is released under the GPL-2.0 license.

It positions itself against proprietary media servers, namely Emby and Plex. It descends from the Emby 3.5.2 release and was ported to the .NET platform for full cross-platform support. The team states there are no premium licenses, paid features or hidden agendas.

Documentation includes a downloads page, an installation guide and a quick start guide, and the server can also be built from source. Translation is handled through a Weblate instance and feature ideas go to a request hub. Jellyfin suits households and enthusiasts who want to host their own media library instead of relying on a commercial media service.

Key features

Media server for managing and streaming your library
Backend server and API in C# on .NET
Cross-platform server support
Multiple client apps for end-user devices
No premium licenses or paid features
Community translation through Weblate

Good fit for

→Self-hosted home media library
→Replacing Plex or Emby with a free alternative
→Streaming personal media to many devices

Built with: C#; .NET
Tags: media-server; streaming; self-hosted; dotnet; csharp; plex-alternative; emby; media

Jellyfin: questions and answers

What is Jellyfin used for?: Jellyfin is a free software media system that lets you manage and stream your own media from a dedicated server to apps on many devices. It is a good fit for self-hosted home media library, replacing Plex or Emby with a free alternative and streaming personal media to many devices.
Is Jellyfin open source?: Yes. Jellyfin is open source under the GPL-2.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at jellyfin/jellyfin and is written mainly in C#.
Is Jellyfin free?: Yes. Jellyfin is open source, so the software itself is free to use.
Can I self-host Jellyfin?: Yes. Jellyfin can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.
What is Jellyfin an alternative to?: Jellyfin is an open-source alternative to Plex, Emby, Disney+ and Hulu. Other open-source alternatives to Plex include Kodi, Stremio and Ampache.
Is Jellyfin actively maintained?: Yes. The most recent commit to Jellyfin was on 1 October 2026, and the latest release is v12.1, published on 15 September 2026. The project has 58k stars on GitHub.