Side by side
| Dispatcharr | Threadfin | xTeVe | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | A manager for IPTV streams, guide data and VOD | An M3U proxy for Plex, Jellyfin and Emby, based on xTeVe | An M3U proxy for Plex DVR and Emby Live TV |
| Inputs | M3U and Xtream Codes; XMLTV and Schedules Direct guides | M3U playlists and XMLTV guides | M3U playlists and XMLTV guides |
| Outputs | M3U, XMLTV, an Xtream Codes API and an HDHomeRun-style tuner | A tuner for media servers | A tuner for media servers |
| Media servers | Plex, Jellyfin, Emby | Plex (with Plex Pass), Emby (with Emby Premiere), Jellyfin 10.7.1 or newer | Plex Media Server 1.11.1.4730 or newer, Emby Server 3.5.3.0 or newer |
| Extras | Stream proxy and relay, DVR, catch-up and timeshift, transcoding profiles, monitoring, multi-user access, plugins | Channel mapping with backup channels, RAM buffer with HLS support, adjustable tuner count | Adjustable tuner count |
| Licence | GNU AGPL v3 | MIT | MIT |
| Install | Docker image, web interface on port 9191 | Docker image, web interface on port 34400 | See the project’s README |
| Latest release (checked 5 October 2026) | v0.31.0, 13 September 2026 | 1.2.37, 11 September 2025 | 2.2.0, 29 March 2021 |
From each project’s GitHub repository and Dispatcharr’s documentation.
How they differ in practice
- Threadfin does one job well. It merges your playlist and guide, lets you pick and map channels, and hands the media server a tuner. If the media server is the only place you watch, that’s all you need. See Threadfin setup.
- Dispatcharr is a hub. It cleans up your line-up once, then serves it in whatever form each app wants: a tuner for Plex, an M3U and XMLTV for one player, an Xtream login for another. It adds DVR, monitoring and user accounts. See Dispatcharr setup.
- xTeVe is where this started. Its repository is still online, but its latest published release is from March 2021, and its description names Plex and Emby only. Threadfin is the usual choice for a new install.
Before you install any of them
- You need an always-on machine that can run Docker, usually the same one as your media server.
- Plex needs a Plex Pass for Live TV and DVR, whichever proxy you use. See IPTV in Plex.
- Set the tuner count to the number of streams your subscription allows at once. See too many connections.
If you’re choosing the media server too, see Plex vs Jellyfin for IPTV, or Channels DVR, which reads an M3U playlist without a proxy.