OwncastvsPhoton
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Owncast | Photon | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 73/100 | 54/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 4 in Live Streaming | #16 of 85 in Feed Reader |
| GitHub stars | 11 632 | 557 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +76 | +0 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 3 | 9 |
| Latest release | v0.3.0 · 2 Sept 2026 | v2.4.3 · 30 Jul 2026 |
| Setup | Easy | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Main language | Go | Svelte |
Which one should you pick?
Owncast scores 73/100 against 54/100 for Photon, so it is the safer default.
Photon ships more often: 9 stable releases in the past year, against 3 for Owncast.
If you want the quickest setup, Owncast is easier to run; Photon needs more configuration.
Owncast is growing faster right now (+76 stars in 30 days).
Owncast details →Photon details →