Overview
Owncast is a single-user live streaming server that lets you broadcast video and host a real-time chat, similar to Twitch or YouTube Live. It supports RTMP ingest from OBS or similar software and delivers HLS output to viewers through a built-in web player. The server is a single Go binary with no external database dependency, making it easy to run on any Linux VPS. A directory at directory.owncast.online lets viewers discover public Owncast streams.
Where it falls short of Plex
- Single-user only; no multi-channel or multi-streamer support.
- No built-in VOD/recording management — streams are live only unless you configure external storage.
- Chat moderation tooling is minimal compared to Twitch.
- No built-in CDN; high viewer counts require self-managed edge infrastructure.
We list the gaps honestly so you can decide if the trade-off is worth owning your data.
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