Liquidsoap
Liquidsoap: A powerful free stream engine for technical teams comfortable with scripts and self-hosting. Ranked #16 of 26 in Music Live Stream Software by our editors (6.0/10); pricing: Free plan; best for technical users building flexible broadcast pipelines.
At a glance
- Editor score6.0 / 10
- PricingFree plan
- Best forTechnical users building flexible broadcast pipelines
- Free planYes
- Paid fromNone
- Founded2004
- Facts checked20 Sep 2026
Where it wins
- Deep scheduling, mixing, normalization, and transition controls
- Generates video streams with composition and audio visualization
- Supports multiple outputs, transcoding, and interactive control
Where it doesn't
- Script-driven workflow requires technical configuration
- No native graphical programming environment
- Self-hosted operation adds infrastructure responsibility
Our verdict on Liquidsoap
Liquidsoap is an open-source scripting language and stream generator for internet radio, live shows, and web video. It is designed for community stations, broadcasters, developers, and operators who want to assemble streams from files, playlists, live inputs, and network sources. The software runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, and self-hosted environments, making it a fit for teams that can manage a configurable broadcast pipeline rather than expecting a guided visual application.
Its main strength is the breadth of its stream-building controls. Liquidsoap supports time-, priority-, and quota-based scheduling, live input and source switching, audio mixing, normalization, compression, crossfading, metadata rewriting, and insertion. It can also generate and compose video streams, create video output from audio visualizations, and use FFmpeg for encoding, decoding, and transcoding. Multiple outputs from one instance and interactive control through Telnet or Unix sockets make it suitable for more involved routing and automation requirements.
Liquidsoap is free and open source, with a workflow centered on scripts and self-hosted operation. It connects with YouTube Live, OBS, Icecast, Shoutcast, HLS, SRT, and FFmpeg, supporting both internet radio and live video distribution. That combination suits technical users building custom pipelines across several destinations. Organizations that want a native graphical environment, managed hosting, or a simpler setup path should choose a more guided broadcast product instead.
Liquidsoap pricing
Liquidsoap fact sheet
| Free plan | Yes |
|---|---|
| Paid from | None |
| Main destinations | Youtube |
| 24/7 streaming | Not verified |
| Playlist scheduling | Yes |
| Audio visualizers | Yes |
| Multistreaming | Yes |
| Audio file upload | Not verified |
| Deployment | Self-hosted |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Support | Community, Docs |
| Built for | Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise (editorial estimate) |
| Integrations | 7 integrations: YouTube Live, OBS, Icecast, Shoutcast, HLS, SRT … |
| Pricing | Free plan |
| Website | liquidsoap.info |
| Facts checked | 20 Sep 2026 |
Liquidsoap integrations
Liquidsoap lists 7 integrations on its own site.
- YouTube Live
- OBS
- Icecast
- Shoutcast
- HLS
- SRT
- FFmpeg
Alternatives to Liquidsoap
- playout.videoA cloud-first option for scheduled music channels, browser production, and multistreaming.9.0
- SavePoint Station ManagerA flexible station manager with free scheduling and paid multichannel live output.8.4
- UpstreamA flexible cloud studio for scheduled, always-on, and multistreamed broadcasts.8.2
See all Liquidsoap alternatives →
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Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Sep 2026
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