A free Jitsi alternative with no server to run
Jitsi is free and it works. The search for an alternative is usually about the server: who installs it, patches it and fixes it when a client can't connect. With Castio, clients meet you at your own address, like meet.yourfirm.com, with no per-seat fees and no server for you to run. Below, the two side by side.
Free software
No per-seat fees
Add as many hosts and members as you like.
No server to run
Castio runs in your own Cloudflare account, and new versions come as an Update Now button.
Up to 1,000 people per meeting
You set the limit.
Links on your own domain
Like meet.yourcompany.com, when your domain is on Cloudflare.
What you'd pay Jitsi for
Each of these is included in Castio's software, with no server to run. Here is what the public meet.jit.si service and Jitsi as a Service (JaaS, from 8x8) do. Jitsi on your own server is free: you pay for the server and run it yourself.
Starting a meeting without a Google or GitHub login
CastioIncluded
Jitsimeet.jit.si, free, needs a login, such as Google or GitHub, to start a meeting. Source: Jitsi blog, authentication on meet.jit.si
Cloud recording
CastioIncludedRecordings are saved for 7 days by default; turn on one setting and they're kept in your own Cloudflare storage until you delete them.
JitsiJaaS, $0.01 a recorded minute; meet.jit.si, free, records only to your own computer. Source: JaaS pricing
Your branding on your own domain
CastioIncludedWhen your domain is on Cloudflare.
JitsiJitsi on your own server, free, but you run the server; or JaaS, set up in its console (free for up to 25 monthly users, paid beyond that). Source: JaaS pricing
Jitsi's plans and prices as their own pages state them, checked 7 October 2026.
What Jitsi has that Castio doesn't
Castio doesn't have breakout rooms. It runs in any browser, with nothing to install.
Jitsi vs Castio, side by side
Scroll sideways for the Castio column →
| Category | Jitsi |  Castio |
|---|---|---|
| Source code | Open source under Apache 2.0, so you can read every line | Going open source. The code goes public with the free self-install version; licence not yet chosen. |
| Where it can run | Any server you choose | Cloudflare only, and your domain has to use Cloudflare for its DNS |
| Community and self-help | A large, long-running open source community | Smaller and newer |
| Setup and updates | You install, patch and troubleshoot the server | We install it for you. New versions arrive as an Update Now button, and if one fails its health check, your install tries to roll it back. |
| Branding and admin | Configurable, with manual setup | Branding settings, user management and a report for each meeting: duration, peak attendance, who joined and when |
| Recording | Needs Jibri, set up separately, one recording at a time per machine | Included. Recordings are saved for 7 days by default; turn on one setting and they're kept in your own Cloudflare storage until you delete them. |
Setting it up
We install it for you on your own Cloudflare account and domain. You need a Cloudflare account on its Workers Paid plan, and your domain has to use Cloudflare for its DNS.
What people usually mean by "jitsi alternative"
Your own setup, without the ops work
This is the search behind most "jitsi alternative" queries. Someone likes that Jitsi runs on their own server but is tired of patching it, debugging TURN and firewall settings, and reading the changelog before every update. They don't want to hand everything to Zoom. They want to stop being the ops team.
An alternative that's still yours
Some people want to keep the parts that matter to them, their own account and their own address, without running a server. Castio is built for that. It's installed into your own Cloudflare account, and it runs at your own address, like meet.yourfirm.com.
What about meet.jit.si?
The free public service at meet.jit.si is run by the Jitsi team. Since August 2023 it has asked for a login, such as Google or GitHub, to start a meeting. It's convenient, but it isn't your server, your address or your brand.
Where Castio differs from Jitsi
Jitsi is software you run: you pick a server, install it, keep it patched and fix it when it breaks. Castio runs in an account you own, your Cloudflare account at your own address, but there's no server for you to run. Cloudflare runs the infrastructure.
Castio's software is free. Today a Castio developer installs it for you and keeps it current, for a yearly fee; the free self-hosted version, which runs in your own Cloudflare account, comes when the code is public. New versions arrive as an Update Now button in your settings, and nothing changes until you click it. If a new version fails its health check, your install tries to put the previous one back on its own, and there's a Roll Back button if you want the old one yourself.
The price of that is choice of host. Jitsi runs anywhere. Castio runs only on Cloudflare, and your domain has to use Cloudflare for its DNS.
What still ties you to us
Your meetings run in your own Cloudflare account, not on our servers. Some things still come through Castio. Your install checks for updates once an hour, sends invitation and password-reset emails through our email provider, and sends us error reports, plus performance data from about 1 in 10 requests, so we can fix what broke. A setting that turns off error reports and performance data is coming to every install.
Our install app also keeps two keys to your install, both encrypted. One is the Cloudflare API token you create during the install. By default it reaches every Cloudflare account and domain the person creating it can reach, unless they narrow it. The other is your install's sign-in signing key. Whoever held it could sign in to your install as any user. Our privacy policy has the detail.
What the numbers say
Jitsi's software is free. Running it well isn't: a server sized for real call volume, TURN setup for guests behind strict firewalls, and someone's time to patch and watch it. None of that is a license fee, but all of it costs something.
Castio's software is free too. Today we install it for you for a yearly fee, and the free self-install version comes when the code is public. Cloudflare runs the infrastructure and bills you directly for running it, and nobody on your team patches a server. Cloudflare includes 10,000 free meeting minutes a month, counted for each person in a call. A 10-person team holding five one-hour meetings a week, four people in each, uses about 5,200, so it pays only Workers Paid: about $5 a month in total. Recording every meeting brings it to about $17. Cloudflare's meeting service is free while it's in beta. After that, Cloudflare's published plan includes 10,000 free meeting minutes a month, which is what this example uses. Cloudflare sets these prices and can change them. What Cloudflare costs has the arithmetic.
Questions people ask
Is Jitsi actually free?
Yes. Jitsi's software is free and open source. Running it well still costs server time and, usually, someone's ongoing attention.
Can I run Jitsi on my own server?
Yes, that's its core design. There's also the public meet.jit.si service, which asks for a login to start a meeting. Castio is installed into your own Cloudflare account instead, and there's no server for you to run.
What is a good alternative to Jitsi?
If the goal is keeping your own account and address while giving up server maintenance, Castio is built for that gap.
Is there something like Jitsi that someone else keeps updated?
That's the idea behind Castio. It runs in your own Cloudflare account, and updates arrive as a button in its settings instead of patches you apply to a server. The Zoom comparison covers the rest.
Sources
Facts about other products were checked against their own pages in September and October 2026.
Free to run. Yours to keep.
Have us install and update it, or install it yourself for free once the code is public.
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