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Self-Hosted Entertainment Streaming Video Music Media Server

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Last Updated: 07-07-2026 09:32 AM (UTC)

Emby

Point Emby at your movie, music, and photo libraries and it becomes a private streaming service: metadata and artwork arrive from TMDB and TVDB, everything lands in a polished browsable interface, and media transcodes on the fly whenever a client can't play the original format. The client reach is the selling point: native apps span Android TV, Apple TV, Google TV, Fire TV, Roku, LG and Samsung smart TVs, iOS, Android, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, plus web browsers and desktop apps for Windows, macOS, and Linux, and DLNA devices are auto-detected for casting and remote control. Multi-user support gives each household member their own account, watch history, favorites, and recommendations, with genuinely capable parental controls: content restrictions, access schedules, time limits, and live monitoring with remote control of kids' sessions. Live TV works with hardware tuners like HDHomeRun or M3U playlists, with free guide data in the US, Canada, and UK. The server and core features are free; an optional Premiere key adds hardware-accelerated transcoding, DVR recording, offline sync, and Cinema Mode intros.

Emby

Benefits

  • Your Library, Netflix Polish
  • Automatic metadata, artwork, and recommendations dress your files like a streaming service.
  • Plays on Everything
  • On-the-fly conversion reaches TVs, phones, browsers, cars, and DLNA devices.
  • A Household, Not an Account
  • Per-user profiles, watch states, and library-level access control.
  • Kids Actually Managed
  • Content limits, schedules, time budgets, and live session monitoring.

Features

  • On-the-Fly Transcoding
  • Media converts during playback to match each client's capabilities.
  • Apps for Every Platform
  • Android TV, Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV, smart TVs, mobile, CarPlay, desktop, web.
  • Live TV and DVR
  • HDHomeRun tuners or M3U playlists, with free US/Canada/UK guide data.
  • Metadata Engine
  • Automatic TMDB/TVDB matching with artwork, chapters, and trickplay.
  • Parental Controls
  • Restrictions, access schedules, time limits, and remote session control.
  • Plugin Catalog
  • Official plugins extend metadata, notifications, and integrations.