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There are numerous ways to watch Owncast live streams on many different devices. This section provides detailed guides for each supported platform and device type.

Owncat says

Most applications listed here are not provided by, endorsed by, or supported by Owncast. You should make your own choices about what applications you install. Products listed are suggestions that have been tested and found to work with Owncast. Those built and provided by Owncast should be seen as side projects to assist viewers.

Quick Access Methods​

Any Existing Video Player or Hardware​

Owncast supports video streaming standards, so you can use any video player that supports HLS (HTTP Live Streaming) to watch streams. This means many existing video playing applications, pieces of hardware, and smart TVs can play Owncast streams already.

Install or open any video playback application for your platform and use the URL https://your-owncast-server.com/hls/stream.m3u8 to access the stream directly. This includes simply putting that URL into the Safari web browser on an iPhone, or sending https://your-owncast-server.com as a link in an iMessage to a friend, they'll be able to play the stream back directly in the message.

Browsing the Directory​

If your application has what is often called "IPTV" or M3U support, you can browse the directory directly by adding https://owncast.directory/api/iptv to the application. Not all apps support this.

Device-Specific Guides​

Streaming Boxes and Devices​

For the best experience, we recommend:

  1. Dedicated streaming device (Apple TV, Fire TV, Roku) and a streaming app rather than built-in smart TV apps
  2. VLC as a universal solution for most platforms
  3. Native Owncast apps when available for your platform
  4. Casting/AirPlay from mobile devices when direct apps aren't available

Need Help?​

If you're having trouble with any of these methods join our community chat for assistance.

Contributors to this page
Gabe KangasGabe Kangas