Apple Music

Best Self Hosted Alternatives to Apple Music

A curated collection of the 7 best self hosted alternatives to Apple Music.

Apple Music is a subscription-based music streaming service from Apple that provides on-demand access to millions of songs, curated playlists, radio shows, and music videos. It enables streaming and offline downloads with personalized recommendations across Apple devices.

Alternatives List

#1
Koel

Koel

Koel is a self-hosted music streaming server that scans your audio library and provides a sleek web player with playlists, search, and multi-user access.

Koel screenshot

Koel is a web-based personal music streaming server that indexes your existing audio files and lets you stream them from anywhere through a modern browser UI. It focuses on a simple, fast library experience—searching, queuing, and playlisting—while keeping your collection under your control.

Key Features:

  • Scans and indexes local audio libraries into a searchable music catalog
  • Modern web player with queue management, browsing, and fast search
  • Playlist management (create, edit, reorder) for organizing listening
  • Multi-user support with authentication for shared servers
  • Artist/album/track browsing with artwork and metadata display
  • Mobile-friendly web UI suitable for phone/tablet streaming
  • Backend API used by the web UI (useful for integrations)

Use Cases:

  • Stream a personal FLAC/MP3 library at home or while traveling
  • Provide a shared music server for a family or small community
  • Centralize music on a NAS/server and play from any device via browser

Limitations and Considerations:

  • Requires correct filesystem permissions and a supported PHP/Laravel runtime; initial library scanning can take time on large collections
  • Primarily focused on browser-based playback; native app ecosystems may rely on third-party clients/integrations

Koel is a practical choice for users who want a polished “personal Spotify-like” experience on top of their existing music files. It emphasizes a clean UI, fast library navigation, and straightforward administration for running your own music server.

16.9kstars
2.1kforks
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#2
Black Candy

Black Candy

Black Candy is a self-hosted music server for organizing a personal library and streaming it from a web interface, with playlists, search, and metadata browsing.

Black Candy screenshot

Black Candy is a self-hosted web application for managing and streaming your personal music library. It scans a local music directory, builds a browsable catalog from tags/metadata, and provides a web player for playback.

Key Features

  • Music library indexing by reading audio metadata (artists, albums, tracks)
  • Web-based music player with playback queue and library browsing
  • Search across the music catalog
  • Playlist creation and management
  • Album/artist pages generated from library metadata
  • Background scanning/import of files from a configured music directory

Use Cases

  • Run a private “Spotify-like” web player for your own local music collection
  • Centralize a household music library on a server/NAS and stream on the LAN/VPN
  • Replace a third-party streaming account for listening to owned/ripped music

Limitations and Considerations

  • Focused on a web UI; feature parity with mature Subsonic-style ecosystems (wide client support, offline sync) may be limited depending on your needs.

Black Candy is a lightweight option for people who primarily want a clean web interface for streaming and browsing a local collection. It is best suited for small-to-medium libraries where tag-based organization and simple playlists cover most listening workflows.

4.1kstars
206forks
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#3
Ampache

Ampache

Self-hosted web app to catalog your music and stream it anywhere via web UI, Subsonic-compatible API clients, playlists, and user access controls.

Ampache is a web-based music streaming server and media library manager that catalogs your audio collection and lets you stream it from a browser or compatible apps. It focuses on organizing large libraries, multi-user access, and broad client compatibility via common APIs.

Key Features

  • Catalog indexing of local music libraries with metadata extraction and browsing by artist/album/genre
  • Web player and library UI for searching, filtering, and playback
  • Subsonic-compatible API (and other supported APIs) for use with many third-party mobile/desktop clients
  • User and access management (multiple users, permissions) suitable for shared servers
  • Playlist creation/management and support for common playlist workflows
  • Album art/metadata handling and library maintenance tools (scan/update/clean)
  • Optional transcoding support for streaming to bandwidth-limited clients (when configured)
  • Extensible architecture with integrations/plugins and multiple backend options for storage/catalogs

Use Cases

  • Host a personal “Spotify-like” music library accessible on LAN/VPN and on the go
  • Provide multi-user streaming for a household or small community with per-user accounts
  • Use existing Subsonic-compatible apps to stream your own collection from a central server

Limitations and Considerations

  • Some advanced features (e.g., transcoding) depend on external tools and careful server configuration
  • Client experience varies depending on which third-party API client you use

Ampache is a mature option for people who want a browser-based music server with strong library management and wide client support. It is particularly useful if you want to reuse the ecosystem of Subsonic-compatible players while keeping control of your own collection.

3.7kstars
607forks
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#4
Polaris

Polaris

Polaris is a lightweight music streaming server that indexes your local audio files and provides a web player plus Subsonic-compatible API for apps.

Polaris screenshot

Polaris is a music streaming server that scans a local music folder, builds a searchable library, and lets you play your collection from a web interface or compatible clients. It focuses on being simple to run while still supporting common library and playback needs.

Key Features

  • Scans your music directory and builds a searchable/browsable library
  • Web-based player UI for streaming playback
  • Subsonic-compatible API (enables use with many third-party mobile/desktop clients)
  • Playlist support (create/manage playlists)
  • Supports common audio formats (depending on your library and build configuration)
  • Multi-user support (server accounts) for separating access

Use Cases

  • Stream your personal music collection to any device on your network
  • Use Subsonic-compatible mobile apps as a client for your self-hosted library
  • Provide a lightweight home music server for family members with separate logins

Limitations and Considerations

  • Feature set is intentionally simpler than some larger media servers; advanced metadata tools and ecosystem integrations may be limited
  • Format support and any transcoding behavior depend on build/runtime configuration and your deployment environment

Polaris is a good fit if you want a straightforward server for streaming your existing music files without running a full media-center stack. Its Subsonic API compatibility makes it practical to pair with established third-party clients for day-to-day listening.

2.5kstars
115forks
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#5
Swing Music

Swing Music

Self-hosted web music player and streaming server that scans your library, builds a media index, and lets you browse, search, and play music from any device.

Swing Music screenshot

Swing Music is a self-hosted, browser-based music player and streaming server for personal audio libraries. It scans folders on disk, builds a searchable catalog, and provides a modern web UI to browse artists/albums, create playlists, and play music remotely.

Key Features

  • Library scanning and indexing from local folders
  • Web-based player UI with artist/album/track browsing
  • Search across the music library (artists, albums, tracks)
  • Playlist creation and management
  • Streaming playback in the browser with queue management
  • Metadata and cover-art handling based on embedded tags/files
  • Multi-user support (where configured) for separating access

Use Cases

  • Stream a home music collection (MP3/FLAC, etc.) to phones/laptops via a web browser
  • Replace a paid music locker/streaming app for privately owned music
  • Centralize music playback for a household with shared playlists

Limitations and Considerations

  • Feature depth and ecosystem (clients/integrations) may be smaller than mature Subsonic-compatible servers; confirm needed integrations before adopting.

Swing Music focuses on providing a lightweight, pleasant web listening experience over your own library. It is best suited for users who want a straightforward browser player with library scanning, search, and playlists without relying on third-party streaming services.

1.6kstars
96forks
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#6
Lyrion Music Server

Lyrion Music Server

Server-based music library and streaming system with multi-room playback, web UI, plugins, and wide player support (Squeezebox and compatible clients).

Lyrion Music Server screenshot

Lyrion Music Server (LMS) is a server application for managing a music library and streaming audio to one or many networked players. It originates from Logitech Media Server/Squeezebox Server and is maintained by the community as a flexible platform with extensive device support and a large plugin ecosystem.

Key Features

  • Multi-room playback and synchronization across multiple players
  • Library management with browsing by artist/album/genre, playlists, and search
  • Streams local music as well as internet radio; supports many audio formats via transcoding
  • Web-based user interface plus support for numerous third-party controller apps
  • Plugin system for adding services, metadata providers, UI extensions, and integrations
  • Supports Squeezebox hardware and many compatible software clients/players
  • User accounts and player-level settings (volume, sync groups, alarms/timers depending on plugins)

Use Cases

  • Whole-home audio with synchronized playback to multiple rooms
  • Centralized music library for a household or small office with multiple controllers
  • Internet radio hub with presets and per-room playback

Limitations and Considerations

  • Feature set and service integrations depend heavily on plugins; availability varies by provider
  • Some modern streaming services may require third-party plugins and can break when providers change APIs

LMS is a mature, extensible music server suited to users who want a centralized library and flexible playback targets. Its strengths are multi-room sync, broad client compatibility, and a long-standing plugin ecosystem that can adapt the system to many setups.

1.6kstars
347forks
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#7
Meelo

Meelo

Meelo is a self-hosted music server to scan, organize, and stream your personal music library through a web interface.

Meelo is a self-hosted music server for managing and streaming a personal music library. It scans local audio files, builds a browsable catalog, and provides playback through a web UI.

Key Features

  • Library scanning/indexing of local music files into an organized catalog
  • Browsing by common music facets (artists, albums, tracks) in a web interface
  • In-browser playback/streaming of your library
  • Metadata handling based on embedded tags (as supported by the project)

Use Cases

  • Run a private “home Spotify” for a household’s local music collection
  • Centralize a music library on a server/NAS and play it from multiple devices
  • Replace ad‑supported music services for listening to owned/ripped music

Limitations and Considerations

  • Project documentation and feature coverage appear limited in the repository; expect gaps compared to mature media servers (e.g., advanced metadata matching, mobile apps, integrations).

Meelo is best suited for users who primarily want a lightweight, web-based way to browse and play an existing local music library. If you need rich ecosystem integrations or advanced library tooling, consider more established music servers.

1kstars
33forks
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Why choose an open source alternative?

  • •Data ownership: Keep your data on your own servers
  • •No vendor lock-in: Freedom to switch or modify at any time
  • •Cost savings: Reduce or eliminate subscription fees
  • •Transparency: Audit the code and know exactly what's running