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As free as Jellyfin. Easier than Plex. Streams on 1–2 Mbps.

Side by side with the media servers you know — with real measurements, not marketing. In our live tests Silux Media used the least data of them all: 44–62% less than Plex, Jellyfin and Emby for the same picture.

Feature	Silux Media	Plex	Jellyfin	Emby	Kodi
Self-hosted media server	Free	Free	Free	Free	Player only
Stream your own media remotely	Free	Paid (Plex Pass or Remote Watch Pass)	Free (you set up networking)	Free
Managed remote access — no router setup	Plus £2.99/mo for the whole household
Hardware transcoding	Free	Paid	Free	Paid	n/a
Data per hour at 1080p (same quality)Measured live — see /bandwidth	≈ 1.0 GB	≈ 2.7 GB	≈ 2.5 GB	≈ 2.5 GB	n/a
Built for 1–2 Mbps connections
Quality adapts every few seconds as your line changesJellyfin/Emby keep one bitrate per transcode session (measured)					n/a
Never exceeds the bandwidth you pickOthers overshot their own caps in our tests					n/a
AV1 + Opus streaming					n/a
Skip Intro and Skip Credits	Free	Plex Pass	Plugin	Premiere	Add-on
Watch together (synced playback)Plex removed Watch Together from its new apps in 2025	Free, every app	Web app only	SyncPlay
Offline downloads, incl. smaller copies	Free	Plex Pass		Premiere	n/a
Live TV and recording from a TV aerial tuner or your TV provider	Free	Plex Pass		Premiere for recording	Add-on
DLNA server for TVs and consoles	Free		Plugin
PIN-protected folders, enforced by the server	Free				Master lock
Ads in the app	Never	Ad-supported free channels	Never	Never	Never
Optional fully managed cloud server	From £14.99/mo
Open source

Vendor features and prices checked on vendors' sites in October 2026 and may change. Bandwidth figures are our own live measurements.

The difference you'll feel

Less than half the data for the same picture

On slow, shared or metered connections, data is everything. That's where Silux Media pulls ahead.

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Plex2.71 GB/hour · 6.0 Mbps

Jellyfin2.46 GB/hour · 5.5 Mbps

Emby2.50 GB/hour · 5.6 Mbps

Silux Media1.02 GB/hour · 2.3 Mbps

Head to head

Detailed comparisons

vs Plex

Plex charges to stream your own media away from home. Silux Media does it free — and uses 62% less data for the same picture.

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vs Jellyfin

Love Jellyfin's freedom but struggle with slow connections? Silux Media is just as free for self-hosting and uses 58% less data for the same picture.

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vs Emby

Emby puts hardware transcoding and offline downloads behind Emby Premiere. Silux Media includes hardware transcoding free — and uses 58% less data for the same picture.

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vs Kodi

Kodi is a brilliant player for the TV in your living room. Silux Media is a streaming server: your whole library, on every screen, anywhere — on 1–2 Mbps.

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vs Infuse

Infuse is a lovely player for Apple devices, but it needs a server and Infuse Pro for much of what people want. Silux Media is the server and the apps, free — on every platform, even on 1–2 Mbps.

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vs Synology Video Station

Synology removed Video Station in DSM 7.2.2. Silux Media runs on your Synology in Docker, keeps your films where they are, and streams them anywhere — free, even on 1–2 Mbps.

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vs Universal Media Server

Universal Media Server streams to TVs and consoles on your home network. Silux Media does that too (DLNA) — and streams your library to phones, laptops and TVs anywhere, even on 1–2 Mbps.

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Pricing

What each one costs

Silux Media: Free forever when self-hosted — including remote streaming and the full low-bandwidth engine. Optional Plus £2.99/mo for the whole household, Pro £4.99/mo, Cloud from £14.99/mo.
Plex: Remote Watch Pass $2.99/month or $29.99/year for each person watching remotely. Plex Pass $6.99/month, $69.99/year, $249.99 for 5 years or $749.99 lifetime for hardware transcoding, downloads and more.
Jellyfin: Free and open source (GPL). No paid tier; remote access is up to you (VPN, port forwarding or reverse proxy).
Emby: Emby Premiere $4.99/month, $54/year or $119 lifetime for hardware transcoding, offline downloads, apps and DVR.
Kodi: Free, open-source media player. It plays files but isn't a streaming server for remote viewing.
Infuse: Free player for Apple devices; Infuse Pro $1.99/month, $16.99/year or $99.99 lifetime. Needs a separate server or file share.
Synology Video Station: Was free with DSM; removed in DSM 7.2.2 (August 2024).
Universal Media Server: Free and open source (DLNA/UPnP server for your home network).