If you want to replace Plex or Google Photos with software you run yourself, three open-source options cover most needs: Jellyfin for movies, shows and music video libraries, Navidrome for audio collections, and Immich for photos and videos. All three are listed in the Self-hosted web apps category of the Stackora catalog and are free to install on your own server.

Each tool focuses on one media type, so the right choice depends on what you want to host. Below is a short look at each product, followed by guidance on picking between them.

Jellyfin for movies, shows and music

Jellyfin is a free, open-source self-hosted media server that streams your movies, shows and music to devices through multiple apps. It is the most direct alternative to Plex and Emby in this group, since it covers video and audio in a single server. Jellyfin is licensed under GPL-2.0 and currently has 58,118 stars on GitHub, published by the jellyfin organization.

Choose Jellyfin when your main goal is a household video library that family members can open from several devices.

Navidrome for music streaming

Navidrome is an open-source, self-hosted music server and web streamer. It lets you listen to your own music collection from any browser or mobile app. Navidrome is licensed under GPL-3.0 and has 24,178 stars, published by the navidrome project.

Navidrome is a narrower tool than Jellyfin. If your library is mostly albums and playlists rather than films, a music-focused server keeps the setup simple and the interface focused on listening.

Immich for photos and videos

Immich is a high-performance, self-hosted photo and video management app. It gives you a Google Photos-style gallery on your own server. Immich is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and is the most-starred project in this group with 116,353 stars, published by the immich-app organization.

Immich fills the Google Photos role specifically: browsing, organizing and storing personal photos and videos. It does not handle movie or music playback, so it is best paired with one of the media servers above rather than used as a replacement for them.

How to choose

The decision comes down to the type of content and how you plan to access it.

  • Video library for the whole household: choose Jellyfin.
  • Music collection and playlists: choose Navidrome.
  • Phone photo backup and shared albums: choose Immich.
  • Full Plex-style setup: run Jellyfin for video and music and Immich for photos. Navidrome can replace Jellyfin's music side if you prefer a dedicated audio server.

Before installing, check the license of each product against how you plan to use it. Jellyfin is GPL-2.0, Navidrome is GPL-3.0 and Immich is AGPL-3.0, and these terms differ in what they require when you modify or host the software for others.

For more tools in the same space, browse the Self-hosted web apps catalog page or the Open-source publishers directory to see other projects from the teams behind these servers.

Recommendation

For most people replacing Plex and Google Photos, start with Jellyfin for video and Immich for photos. Add Navidrome if music is a large part of your library. This split gives each media type a server built for it, and each project is actively maintained and widely starred on GitHub.