Summary

• Plex is a popular platform to stream purchased media and manage your own catalog of music, movies, and TV shows at home.
• With Plex Pass, users can unlock additional features like skipping intros, hardware transcoding, and offline music storage.
• While Plex offers a comprehensive experience out of the box, Jellyfin is a free alternative with similar features but no cost.

Plex Media Server is one of the most popular choices for cataloging and streaming purchased music, movies, and shows from a network-attached storage (NAS), PC, or server. Instead of relying on streaming services quickly becoming cable-like entities with monthly fees everywhere, you can return to old-fashioned media purchasing and stream it all yourself. Buy the next album from your favorite artist, pick up the latest blockbusters, and then use a media streaming platform like Plex or Jellyfin to manage it all.

What is Plex?

Plex is a streaming platform that fuses purchased media you own locally and content available from external sources. The software can even integrate with Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, which is great if you plan to keep some streaming service subscriptions alive. You can quickly search for and start enjoying music, movies, and TV shows from anywhere with a net connection. The server package takes a few minutes to install and configure and it can be run from anything, including a Windows PC or a NAS.

Official apps are available on mobile platforms, numerous TVs, and streaming boxes like Amazon's Fire TV range. For everything else with a browser, you can load up the web player and browse through everything. Plex will catalog all your media too, so you can search through and find some hidden gems. Music can be arranged into playlists, which can then be downloaded for offline playback (with a small fee or Plex Pass) for long journeys without reliable wireless coverage. Think of Plex as your very own Netflix and Spotify service.

Upgrading to a Plex Pass

Plex Pass is an optional account upgrade, launched by the Plex team to cover the development costs. Three options are available; a $5 monthly fee, a $40 annual subscription, or a single $120 lifetime purchase. Plex Pass unlocks additional functionality, including the ability to skip intros for shows, make use of hardware transcoding, store music offline with the PlexAmp mobile app, and additional live TV support. It's worth considering for those who rely on Plex for all their media streaming needs, but this does create a monthly outgoing on top of purchasing media.

Is Jellyfin or Emby better than Plex?

Plex still holds its ground against its closest open-source competitor, Jellyfin. Both media cataloging and streaming platforms are similar in many ways, but there are a few differences and some of these may make Plex the better pick. For instance, everything works through Plex. There's no need to install any plugins as it's a very comprehensive package. Intro skipping, powerful hardware transcoding, live TV and DVR, and robust official apps are all available without installing a single plugin. If you prefer to enjoy a perfect out-of-the-box experience, Plex takes less configuring than Jellyfin or other options.

Where Plex falls short of Jellyfin is pricing. Jellyfin is open-source and supported by donations. The team behind the platform has even halted donations because too much money has been provided by the community. That's great news for everyone who relies on Jellyfin for daily use since it means the software will still be available for free. Everything from the server packages to the official apps is available at no additional cost. Hardware transcoding is available out of the box, though you must install a few plugins to match Plex's functionality.

I wrote about my experiences moving from Plex Media Server, but there are some good reasons to do the opposite. The official Plex apps, especially for mobile platforms, are seriously good. PlexAmp is a joy to use for all your music streaming needs. Offline media support is met with high-quality playback and although it does require a small in-app purchase or the Plex Pass to unlock access, you'll be able to enjoy your entire music collection once you're up and running. The UI is pretty slick too, especially the web player. I find Jellyfin to be slightly rougher around the edges, but I also dig its simpler design.