Restream Alternatives 2026: 5 Free Options
Restream alternatives: Meld Studio, PRISM Live Studio, StreamYard, Castr and 2 more. Prices and licenses checked October 25, 2026.
•3 min read•Screen Recording & Streaming
Verdict:Leave Restream when its free plan's two channels and Restream branding stop being enough, and Standard at $19 a month feels like a lot for sending one stream out. Restream lists the free tier at 2 channels and 6 on-screen participants. Meld Studio is the closest free swap: its FAQ says cloud multistreaming is free, with no watermarks or time limits, on Windows and macOS. PRISM Live Studio also lists multistreaming and is free to start, but check which features sit behind its mobile subscription. StreamYard is the better choice if you need guests in a browser studio; its free plan keeps a logo and limits you to six on-screen people and two hours of local recordings a month. Castr is a paid hosted rival at $19.99 a month for six destinations with a 7-day trial. OBS Studio and Streamlabs are encoders: they run on your computer and give no multistream relay by themselves. The trade-off is hosting. Restream runs the relay in the cloud, so your upload stays one stream; a desktop app that sends several streams uses more of your own bandwidth. Choose a free desktop app if your internet is strong. Stay with Restream if you want it managed.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meld Studio | Free (Described on its FAQ as free with no watermarks, time limits or hidden fees; cloud multistreaming (Meld Multi) also free) | Windows, macOS | Free multistreaming from a desktop app | Docs only |
| PRISM Live Studio | Free (Free live streaming and recording software) | Windows, macOS | Free multistream software | Docs only |
| StreamYard | Free (StreamYard logo on streams, 2 hours of local recordings a month and 6 on-screen participants); paid from $14.99 per month, billed yearly (Essential; $18.99 billed monthly) | Web | Browser studio with guests | Docs only |
| Castr | Paid from $19.99 per month, billed monthly (Starter, 6 multistream destinations; $16.67 a month billed annually) | Web | Many destinations on a paid plan | Docs only |
| OBS Studio | Free (open source, with no paid tier listed on its site) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Free encoder with full control | Docs only |
| Streamlabs | Free (Streamlabs Desktop is free and open source); paid from $15.75 per month (Ultra, listed as 'starts at') | Windows, macOS | A desktop studio with widgets | Docs only |
| Riverside | Paid from $24 per month, billed yearly (Pro; $35 billed monthly) | Web | Recording | Docs only |
Independent comparison. Paid placements are labelled separately; editorial links earn no affiliate commissions. Learn more.
See the tools in action
Images from the linked documentation. Versions and features may differ from current plans.
Good fit if
- You want free multistreaming from the desktop (Meld Studio is the pick)
- You host guests and want a browser studio (StreamYard is the pick)
- You will pay for a hosted relay with more destinations (Castr is the pick)
- You want free software and will handle the sending yourself (OBS Studio is the pick)
- You want a free desktop streaming app to try (PRISM Live Studio is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on Restream features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
Restream today: Free (stream to 2 channels at once, 6 on-screen participants in Restream Studio, Restream branding); paid from $19 per month, billed monthly (Standard) (Restream pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Why people look for Restream alternatives
Restream's free plan streams to 2 channels with Restream branding and HD 720p studio video. Removing the branding and adding a third channel needs Standard at $19 a month, and 1080p studio video only arrives with Professional at $49. Business, at $239 a month, is where 8 channels and team workspaces appear. Clips (from $19) and Webinars (from $99) are separate monthly add-ons on top of those prices.
Meld Studio
Compared with Restream: Free per its FAQ, including cloud multistreaming (Meld Multi), with no watermark. Desktop app for Windows and macOS rather than Restream's hosted studio, which costs $19 a month on Standard.
Price: Free (Described on its FAQ as free with no watermarks, time limits or hidden fees; cloud multistreaming (Meld Multi) also free) (Meld Studio pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS. Proprietary (license not stated on the page).
Best for: Free multistreaming from a desktop app.
PRISM Live Studio
Compared with Restream: Free-to-start desktop app for Windows and Apple Silicon Macs with multistreaming listed. You do not get Restream's browser studio, and the multistream limit is not stated on the page.
Price: Free (Free live streaming and recording software) (PRISM Live Studio pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS. Proprietary (license not stated on the page).
Best for: Free multistream software.
StreamYard
Compared with Restream: Free plan: StreamYard logo, 6 on-screen participants, 2 hours of local recordings a month. Paid Essential is $14.99 a month yearly, similar to Restream's $19 Standard, with a stronger guest studio.
Price: Free (StreamYard logo on streams, 2 hours of local recordings a month and 6 on-screen participants); paid from $14.99 per month, billed yearly (Essential; $18.99 billed monthly) (StreamYard pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.
Best for: Browser studio with guests.
Castr
Compared with Restream: No free plan, only a 7-day trial on Starter at $19.99 monthly for 6 destinations. Costs about the same as Restream Standard but sells a larger stream-destination ladder as you grow.
Price: Paid from $19.99 per month, billed monthly (Starter, 6 multistream destinations; $16.67 a month billed annually) (Castr pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.
Best for: Many destinations on a paid plan.
Worth knowing: Only Starter has a 7-day free trial (no card). Standard is $49.99 monthly for 10 destinations; Premium $199.99 for 20.
OBS Studio
Compared with Restream: Free and open source, with no paid tier. It encodes and sends a stream from your machine; unlike Restream it does not host a multistream service, so you add one or send a single stream.
Price: Free (open source, with no paid tier listed on its site) (OBS Studio pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. GPL-2.0-or-later (open source).
Project activity: 78.4k GitHub stars · latest release 33.0.0 (Oct 23, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Free encoder with full control.
Worth knowing: OBS records on your machine; it has no remote guest recording.
Streamlabs
Compared with Restream: Streamlabs Desktop is free and open source; Ultra is $27 a month. It is a streaming app rather than a multistream relay, so it replaces Restream Studio but not the sending to many sites.
Price: Free (Streamlabs Desktop is free and open source); paid from $15.75 per month (Ultra, listed as 'starts at') (Streamlabs pricing, checked 2026-10-25).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS. GPL-3.0 (Streamlabs Desktop); Ultra is a paid subscription (open source).
Project activity: 4.9k GitHub stars · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: A desktop studio with widgets.
Other popular options (paid)
Riverside
Compared with Restream: Pro is $24 per month billed yearly ($35 monthly), against Restream Standard at $19, with a 14-day trial and no free plan. It is a recording-first studio, so expect to give up Restream's multistream focus.
Price: Paid from $24 per month, billed yearly (Pro; $35 billed monthly) (Riverside pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Which one to pick
- You want free multistreaming from the desktop: Meld Studio
- You host guests and want a browser studio: StreamYard
- You will pay for a hosted relay with more destinations: Castr
- You want free software and will handle the sending yourself: OBS Studio
- You want a free desktop streaming app to try: PRISM Live Studio
Limits of this review
Docs-only for Meld Studio, PRISM Live Studio, StreamYard, Castr, OBS Studio, Streamlabs: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from Restream. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you buy or migrate.
More in Screen Recording & Streaming
All Screen Recording & Streaming alternatives →Sources
Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing and product pages checked between 2026-10-22 and 2026-10-25: Restream, Meld Studio, PRISM Live Studio, StreamYard, Castr, OBS Studio, Streamlabs, Riverside. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.