# Open Source Digital Signage Software: Free & Self-Hosted (2026)

Open source digital signage lets you own your content, skip per-screen subscription fees, and run your screens on your own terms. Here is what it means, why it matters, and how ScreenTinker fits in.

## What is open-source digital signage?

Open-source digital signage is signage software whose source code is publicly available under a permissive license, so anyone can inspect, run, modify, and redistribute it. Instead of renting access to a closed cloud platform, you get the actual application - the content management system (CMS) that schedules and pushes content, plus the players that run on your screens.

ScreenTinker is an open-source digital signage CMS released under the MIT license. That license is about as permissive as it gets: you can audit the code, fork it, extend it, and deploy it commercially with no strings attached. You can run it as a managed cloud service or self-host it on a server you control - the same codebase either way.

## Why choose open source over cloud SaaS?

- Data ownership. With a self-hosted open-source deployment, your content, schedules, device list, and logs live on infrastructure you control - not in a vendor's cloud. For healthcare, finance, government, and education, that is often a hard requirement.
- No per-screen fees. Closed SaaS products charge a recurring fee for every screen, typically $5-15/screen/month. Self-hosting ScreenTinker replaces that with a flat server cost - a $5 VPS can run hundreds of screens.
- No vendor lock-in. If a cloud vendor raises prices, pivots, or shuts down, your deployment goes with it. With MIT-licensed source you own your copy and control your own roadmap.
- Auditable and MIT-licensed. You can read every line, run a security review, and satisfy procurement teams that need to know exactly what runs on the network.
- Self-host or cloud. Open source does not force you onto your own servers. Start on the hosted free plan to evaluate, then self-host when you are ready - or stay on the cloud if you prefer managed hosting.

## What ScreenTinker gives you

ScreenTinker is a full digital signage platform, not just a media player. Everything below is in the open-source project:

- Content and scheduling: playlists, scheduling and dayparting, content expiry, and multi-zone layouts.
- Multi-screen: video walls with multi-screen sync, group sync, kiosk mode, and offline-native playback that keeps running when the network drops.
- Management: live remote control (Android players, with accessibility permission), auto-update/OTA, telemetry, a public API with scoped tokens, an agency portal, and white-label / reseller support.
- Every player is free: Android TV / Fire TV (native APK), Samsung Tizen (.wgt), LG webOS, Amazon Vega OS, Raspberry Pi (free setup script), and Windows / ChromeOS / any browser via the web player.
- Native widgets: YouTube, RSS, Weather, Clock, Text/HTML, Social, and a Directory-board. A universal Webpage widget embeds any framable public URL - published Google Slides, Canva, Power BI, and live dashboards. See all integrations.
- Self-host switch: set `SELF_HOSTED=true` to unlock the enterprise plan, disable subscription and Stripe checks, and run unlimited devices for free.

## Open source vs the paid SaaS incumbents

The dominant hosted products - Yodeck, ScreenCloud, OptiSigns - are closed, cloud-only, and billed per screen. Here is how an open-source CMS compares:

Concern | ScreenTinker (open source) | Cloud SaaS (Yodeck / ScreenCloud / OptiSigns)
--- | --- | ---
License / source access | Open source (MIT) | Closed / proprietary
Per-screen monthly fee | None | $5-15/screen/month
Self-host on your own server | Yes | No
Data location | Your server (or ST cloud) | Vendor's cloud
Air-gapped / offline LAN deployment | Possible | Not possible
Player apps included free | All platforms | Varies / add-on hardware
Fork / customize the code | Yes | No
Vendor lock-in risk | None (you own it) | High
Managed cloud option available | Yes (free / $39 / $99) | Yes

## How ScreenTinker compares to other open-source options

ScreenTinker is not the only open-source signage project - the two best-known alternatives are Xibo and Anthias (formerly Screenly OSE).

vs Xibo: Xibo is open source on the server side, but its player apps are not all free - the Android, Tizen, and webOS players are paid licenses. With ScreenTinker every player is free on every platform. See the ScreenTinker vs Xibo comparison.

vs Anthias: Anthias is a lightweight single-screen player built for one Raspberry Pi at a time, without a true multi-device fleet CMS. ScreenTinker is a modern multi-device platform - manage Android TV, Fire TV, Tizen, webOS, Vega, Pi, and browsers from one dashboard. See the ScreenTinker vs Anthias comparison.

## Getting started

The fastest path is the hosted free plan - one device, no server to run. When you are ready to self-host, clone the repo:

    git clone https://github.com/screentinker/screentinker.git
    cd screentinker/server
    npm install
    cp .env.example .env
    # edit .env with your domain, JWT_SECRET, and SELF_HOSTED=true
    node server.js

ScreenTinker runs on Node.js with a SQLite database, so a $5 VPS is enough to manage hundreds of screens. Full deployment details are in the GitHub README, and the self-hosted guide walks through reverse proxy, TLS, and backups.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is ScreenTinker really free and open source?

Yes. ScreenTinker is released under the MIT license, so the full source code is public and you can audit, fork, and extend it. Self-hosting is free with unlimited devices; the managed cloud has a free plan plus paid tiers if you prefer hosted convenience.

### What does the MIT license let me do?

The MIT license lets you run, modify, and redistribute the software - including commercially - with essentially no restrictions beyond keeping the copyright notice. You can build custom widgets, integrate it into your own systems, and white-label it.

### Do I have to self-host to use open-source digital signage?

No. Open source means the code is available if you want it, but you can still use ScreenTinker's managed cloud. Many teams start on the hosted free plan and self-host later once their screen count grows.

### Are all the player apps free?

Yes. Android TV / Fire TV, Samsung Tizen, LG webOS, Amazon Vega OS, Raspberry Pi, and the browser-based web player are all free on every platform, with no per-player license.

### How is ScreenTinker different from Xibo?

Both are open source on the server, but Xibo charges license fees for its Android, Tizen, and webOS players. ScreenTinker keeps every player free on every platform.

### How many screens can a self-hosted server handle?

ScreenTinker runs on Node.js and SQLite, which is efficient. A small $5/month VPS can comfortably manage hundreds of screens; larger fleets just need a bit more CPU, RAM, and storage.

## Related guides

- What is digital signage? A complete guide
- Self-hosted digital signage: complete guide
- How to set up digital signage on a Raspberry Pi
- Compare: ScreenTinker vs Xibo
- Compare: ScreenTinker vs Anthias
- Compare: ScreenTinker vs Yodeck

## Start with open-source signage

Try the hosted free plan in under a minute, or clone the repo and self-host today.

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