Best Self Hosted Alternatives to Webtor.io

Cobalt is a web-based media downloader designed to fetch files from publicly accessible content on supported social platforms. It provides a simple paste-a-link workflow via a clean web UI and also exposes an API for integrations.

Key Features

• Download publicly accessible media by URL (video and audio, depending on the source)
• Web UI plus a dedicated API service (monorepo includes frontend and backend)
• No ads or tracking, with a minimal, fast user experience
• Proxy-style streaming approach and no server-side content caching by default
• Instance configuration via environment variables, suited for self-hosted deployments

Use Cases

• Save personal copies of public videos or audio for offline viewing/listening
• Provide a simple internal “download by link” tool for a team or household
• Integrate media fetching into other tools via the API (automation or archival workflows)

Limitations and Considerations

• Intended for downloading only free, publicly accessible content; access-controlled or paid content is not supported
• Platform compatibility can change as third-party sites update their behavior

Cobalt is a focused, low-friction downloader that pairs a straightforward web interface with an API for programmatic use. It is best suited for users who want a fast, privacy-respecting way to save public media without unnecessary complexity.

Tube Archivist is a self-hosted application for archiving YouTube content and browsing it like a personal media library. It downloads videos, stores metadata, and provides a web interface to search and play your offline collection.

Key Features

• Subscribe to YouTube channels and periodically rescan for new videos
• Download videos via yt-dlp and manage a download queue
• Index video metadata and enable fast full-text search via Elasticsearch
• Web UI for playback and library browsing
• Track watched/unwatched status for your archive
• Optional integrations such as a companion browser extension and media-server plugins

Use Cases

• Build a personal offline YouTube library for long-term archiving
• Maintain searchable collections for research, tutorials, or education
• Centralize family or team viewing from a shared server

Limitations and Considerations

• Playback compatibility depends on the chosen codecs and browser support
• Any download/extraction limitations of yt-dlp also apply
• Limited flexibility in the naming of downloaded media files

Tube Archivist is well-suited for users who want ownership of their YouTube collection with strong search and library management. It combines automated downloading, indexing, and a convenient playback UI into a single stack.

VueTorrent is an alternative WebUI (a visual front-end) for qBittorrent that talks to the built-in qBittorrent WebAPI. It provides a modern, responsive interface for managing torrents and viewing session statistics, while remaining compatible with existing qBittorrent automation workflows.

Key Features

• Full torrent management: add, remove, pause/resume, rename, and selectively download files
• Detailed torrent views: info, trackers, peers, content, tags, and categories
• Built-in torrent search via the WebUI
• Dashboard with session stats (upload/download speeds, totals, free space) and transfer graphs
• Mobile-friendly interface with optional PWA installation
• Extensive keyboard shortcuts and multi-select support
• Works with qBittorrent features and clients that rely on the standard WebUI/WebAPI

Use Cases

• Replace the default qBittorrent WebUI with a modern interface for desktop and mobile
• Remote torrent administration on a home server or NAS
• Manage qBittorrent alongside automation stacks that depend on qBittorrent WebAPI compatibility

Limitations and Considerations

• Requires a compatible qBittorrent instance with WebUI/WebAPI enabled; some demo instances use mocked data and are not functional
• Certain enhanced capabilities may rely on an optional companion backend for server-side settings

VueTorrent is a focused, modern front-end for qBittorrent that improves usability without changing how qBittorrent automation and integrations work. It is well-suited for users who want a faster, more mobile-friendly torrent management experience.

RapidBay is a self-hosted torrent streaming web app that lets you search for torrents, select a specific video file, and then download and transcode it into a format playable in browsers and on casting devices. It integrates with common indexer backends and automates subtitles and media conversion to make torrent playback feel like a simple streaming experience.

Key Features

• Torrent search via Jackett as the indexer/search backend
• Select individual files within a torrent for streaming
• Automatic video and subtitle transcoding for broad device/browser compatibility
• Automatic audio conversion to AAC when needed for browser playback
• Automatic closed captions/subtitle download (OpenSubtitles support)
• Magnet link handling (can register RapidBay as a magnet link handler)
• Automatic disk cleanup to reclaim storage
• Kodi support (usable as a frontend)

Use Cases

• Stream torrent-based video to a browser, Chromecast, or Apple TV without managing local players
• Run a lightweight “torrent-to-stream” service on a server or VPS for personal media access
• Use Kodi as a living-room frontend while RapidBay handles downloading and transcoding

Limitations and Considerations

• Requires a running Jackett instance for torrent search
• Subtitles integration may require OpenSubtitles credentials depending on configuration

RapidBay is best suited for users who want an automated torrent streaming workflow with transcoding, subtitle handling, and casting support. It focuses on simplifying playback rather than acting as a full media library manager.

NzbDav is a WebDAV server that exposes NZB documents as a browsable virtual filesystem and streams their contents directly from Usenet without requiring full local downloads. It presents a SABnzbd-compatible API so automation tools like Sonarr and Radarr can use it as a drop-in download client. (github.com)

Key Features

• WebDAV server that exposes a virtual, streamable filesystem over HTTP(S).
• Mount and browse NZB documents without downloading payloads.
• Full streaming and seek support for video; can stream files inside RAR/7z archives and password-protected archives.
• SABnzbd-compatible API for integration with Sonarr, Radarr and similar automation tools.
• Healthchecks and automatic repair/replace for missing Usenet content.
• Official Docker image for containerized deployment.

Feature details and examples are documented in the project README. (github.com)

Use Cases

• Provide an "infinite" Plex/Jellyfin/Emby library by streaming media directly from Usenet without local storage.
• Use NzbDav as a drop-in SABnzbd-compatible download client for Radarr/Sonarr automation workflows.
• Mount Usenet-sourced content via rclone (WebDAV) so media servers and players access streams via a filesystem mount.

These workflows are commonly described in the project documentation and community posts. (github.com)

Limitations and Considerations

• Requires accompanying tooling to mount and expose streams (examples and recommended settings use rclone with a FUSE driver); some rclone flags (e.g., --links) are required for expected behavior — check the README for exact guidance.
• Playback and client compatibility can vary: community reports describe occasional player errors (client-specific), mount/configuration sensitivity, and the need for correct reverse-proxy/HTTPS setups for some clients.
• Performance and reliability depend heavily on the Usenet provider and indexer behavior; large-scale automated searches can trigger high API/indexer usage.

These constraints are noted in the documentation and in community discussions. (github.com)

NzbDav is a developer-focused tool for integrating Usenet streaming into media-server ecosystems, optimized for containerized deployment and automation via SABnzbd-compatible APIs. It is primarily distributed via its source repository and official Docker images; deployers should review rclone/FUSE and client compatibility notes before production use. (github.com)

Reaparr is a cross-platform media downloader and management tool for Plex that helps you bring media you have permission to access from other Plex servers into your own. It provides a web interface and a scalable download manager designed to handle large libraries reliably.

Key Features

• Web-based interface for browsing, selecting, and managing downloads
• Connect multiple Plex accounts to organize and download content
• Multi-threaded, resilient download manager suitable for large libraries
• Runs anywhere Docker runs, supporting common homelab and server setups
• Designed to work within Plex’s normal access controls (no bypass of Plex Pass features)

Use Cases

• Migrating or consolidating media you own/are authorized to access between Plex servers
• Syncing selected movies or episodes from a shared Plex server to a personal server
• Managing large, long-running library transfers with a queue-based downloader

Limitations and Considerations

• Requires proper authorization to access and download media; users are responsible for compliance with applicable laws and Plex terms
• Not affiliated with Plex and does not provide Plex server functionality itself

Reaparr is best suited for Plex users who need a practical way to transfer and manage authorized media across servers. Its focus on a clean UI and robust download handling makes it useful for both small sync jobs and large library moves.

Webtor is an open-source torrent streaming and Direct Download Link (DDL) service that converts magnet links or .torrent files into browser-playable streams or direct downloads. The project is packaged as a single, all-in-one Docker image for easy self-hosting and exposes a web UI and API for library management and integrations.

Key Features

• Direct Download Link (DDL): select any file inside a torrent and produce a direct downloadable link.
• Instant video & audio streaming: play supported formats in-browser (avi, mkv, mp4, webm, m4v, ts, vob; mp3, wav, ogg, flac, m4a).
• On-the-fly ZIP archive creation: download an entire torrent as a ZIP while preserving directory structure.
• Personal library with media detection: add torrents to a per-account library with automatic movie/series detection.
• Stremio integration and WebDAV support: optional integrations to stream to TV apps and mount library as network storage.
• Developer SDK: embed streaming/player functionality into other websites or services.
• Packaged deployment: provided as a single Docker image with supervised services and an embedded PostgreSQL database for storage.

Use Cases

• Stream or preview torrent-hosted media directly in a browser without a local torrent client.
• Provide on-demand direct downloads or ZIP archives of specific files from a torrent to users or clients.
• Power a private media library with web access and integration into media-centre apps (e.g., Stremio).

Limitations and Considerations

• Real-time transcoding (HLS) and on-the-fly conversions are CPU- and I/O-intensive; expect higher resource needs on servers used for transcoding. (reddit.com)
• The project is distributed as an all-in-one container which simplifies deployment but may limit horizontal scalability compared to split microservices. (deepwiki.com)
• ZIP archives are generated on-the-fly and some extraction tools may report CRC warnings even when files are usable; this is a known behavior of dynamically produced archives. (webtor.io)

Webtor provides a pragmatic, developer-friendly way to convert torrents into browser-native streams and downloads and is suitable for private media libraries, integrations and embedding into other web services. The project is actively maintained with a Docker-first distribution model and developer SDKs for embedding functionality into third-party sites.

A lightweight web and REST frontend for yt-dlp / youtube-dl that runs on a server and saves downloaded media to the host filesystem. It provides both a browser UI and an API for triggering and managing downloads, and is commonly deployed via Docker.

Key Features

• Web-based user interface plus a REST API for programmatic downloads and integration
• Supports yt-dlp or legacy youtube-dl backends for broad site support
• Docker image and docker-compose examples for easy deployment; can also run directly with Python
• Configurable via a YAML config file including global options, cache and output paths, and a metadata DB path
• Profiles support to define reusable download option sets (format, audio extraction, output directories, etc.)
• Saves downloaded files to a host-mounted directory and stores metadata in a local database (configurable path)
• Bookmarklet and simple curl/fetch examples for one-click or scripted submissions
• Frontend implemented with a JavaScript framework alongside a Python ASGI backend

Use Cases

• Centralized server for archiving YouTube videos, podcasts, lectures, and playlists
• Triggering downloads from other services or browser bookmarklets via the REST API
• Running scheduled or bulk downloads in a containerized environment with configurable profiles

Limitations and Considerations

• The project does not bundle HTTPS termination; it is intended to be placed behind a reverse proxy for TLS
• Upstream youtube-dl releases may be outdated; using yt-dlp is recommended for better site compatibility
• Some format conversions and audio extraction require external tools such as ffmpeg to be available
• No built-in authentication or access-control features are documented, so deploy behind an authenticated proxy for public access

In summary, youtube-dl-server provides a simple, Docker-friendly web and API front end to yt-dlp/youtube-dl for managing server-side downloads. It is configuration-driven with profiles and is suitable for automating or centralizing media downloads on a server.

SeerrBridge is a browser-automation service that listens for movie and TV requests from Overseerr/Jellyseer and automates torrent searching and downloading through Debrid Media Manager and Real‑Debrid. It provides a web dashboard for configuration and monitoring and is distributed as a Docker container.

Key Features

• Listens to Overseerr/Jellyseer webhooks and queues incoming media requests for processing
• Automates torrent search and download flows in Debrid Media Manager using a persistent browser session
• Real‑Debrid integration to push and manage downloads via Debrid services
• TV show subscription support with episode-level tracking and automatic retries
• Asynchronous queue management and retry logic for smooth processing
• Regex-based filtering to exclude unwanted releases and enforce resolution/type rules
• Modern web dashboard built with Nuxt 4 / Vue 3 for monitoring, logs, and configuration
• Distributed via Docker with bundled database storage and optional visible (non-headless) browser mode

Use Cases

• Automatically fetch movies requested through an Overseerr/Jellyseer instance and send them to Real‑Debrid
• Maintain subscriptions for ongoing TV shows and auto-download individual episodes when available
• Replace multiple "arr" components by centralizing webhook-to-debrid automation in homelab environments

Limitations and Considerations

• Uses browser automation for Debrid Media Manager interactions, which may break if target site UI changes
• Requires a valid Real‑Debrid account and Debrid Media Manager access tokens to operate
• Not all debrid providers are supported; some providers are explicitly unsupported in current releases
• Default Docker credentials are insecure; avoid exposing the dashboard publicly without hardening
• Still marked beta; expect evolving configuration and occasional breaking changes

SeerrBridge is suited for homelab and media‑automation users who want an opinionated, simpler alternative to building a full "arr" stack. It focuses on automating requests end-to-end with a user-friendly dashboard and flexible filtering options.

Deluge is a lightweight, free software BitTorrent client designed for cross-platform use. It uses a daemon-based architecture that can run headlessly while being controlled from desktop or web interfaces.

Key Features

• Core daemon suitable for headless servers and remote control
• Web user interface for managing torrents from a browser
• Plugin system to extend functionality and automate workflows
• Encryption support for BitTorrent traffic
• Cross-platform support (Linux, macOS, Windows)

Use Cases

• Run a headless torrent client on a home server or NAS and manage it remotely
• Manage multiple downloads with a browser-based interface on a LAN
• Extend torrent management with plugins for automation or custom behavior

Limitations and Considerations

• BitTorrent usage depends on network conditions and tracker availability; performance and connectivity can vary
• Plugin compatibility may depend on the Deluge version and the specific plugin implementation

Deluge is a solid choice for users who want a configurable BitTorrent client that can run as a background service with remote management options. Its daemon + UI model and plugin ecosystem make it suitable for both desktops and server-based setups.