Tella alternatives: 4 open-source picks
Tella costs $13/mo — $156 a year. These 4 alternatives replace it for $0, led by Recordly, Screenity and Cap. All 4 are open source. License, stars and last commit checked by hand on 2026-08-29. No trials, no crippled tiers.
Polished screen-and-camera recordings with auto-zoom and editing; still visibly young around audio.
A browser extension that records forever, edits enough, then hands you a file or Drive link.
Beautiful screen recording and instant sharing — the open Loom, with self-hostable storage.
licenseAGPL-3.0
runsyour server
setupnot verified by us yet — check the repo README
facts verified 2026-08-29
The industry-standard free software for live streaming and screen recording with scenes, filters, and plugins.
licenseGPL-2.0
runsyour server
setupnot verified by us yet — check the repo README
facts verified 2026-08-29
What each one is, in full: Screenity · Cap · OBS Studio
last updated 2026-08-29 · no votes, no pay-to-list · just what's real
the usual suspects · recommended everywhere, rejected here
OBS StudioPowerful capture, but the simple polishing and async-video workflow are yours to assemble.
how to choose a Tella alternative
Easiest to get running
Recordly — a one-click install, no server to maintain.
Most proven
OBS Studio, with 65,000 GitHub stars — the largest community of the 4, which usually means more answers when something breaks.
what you give up by leaving Tella
- beautiful layouts
- browser extension/native polish
- templates
- team sharing
- reliable video hosting
None of the picks above covers all of it. The full verdict says which gaps matter.
Tella alternatives at a glance
| tool | license | running it | platforms | stars | active |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recordly | open source | one-click install | macos, windows, linux | 20,439 | 2026-07 |
| Screenity | open source | one-click install | web, browser-extension | 18,500 | 2026-07 |
| Cap | AGPL-3.0 | docker to self-host | self-hosted, web | 10,000 | 2026-08 |
| OBS Studio | GPL-2.0 | one-click install | self-hosted, web | 65,000 | 2026-08 |
why people still pay for Tella
They pay because they want a video that looks good without editing or deployment chores. If none of that applies to you, any pick above saves $156 a year.
questions about switching from Tella
Is there an open-source alternative to Tella?
Yes: Recordly, Screenity, Cap and 1 more. Every tool on this page is open source: no trials, no crippled tiers.
Can open source really replace Tella?
Our verdict is YES. OBS Studio (65k stars), Recordly (20k stars), Screenity (19k stars) are mature open-source replacements for Tella — self-host in one command and stop paying $13/mo. The full verdict, and what you give up by switching, is at caniopensourceit.online/tella.
What is the easiest open-source Tella alternative to set up?
Recordly — a one-click install, no server to maintain.
What is the most popular open-source Tella alternative?
By GitHub stars, OBS Studio (65,000). Recordly is next with 20,439.
