# A free Screenly alternative for teams that build screen apps

> Canonical HTML: https://screenrig.ai/compare/screenly-alternative

For most teams, screenRIG is the better and cheaper choice than Screenly: it is free, your agent builds and changes your screen apps, and it runs on devices you already own. Screenly starts with a 14-day trial, then $15 or $24 per screen per month, billed annually. We make screenRIG, and Screenly's facts link to Screenly's own pages.

Updated October 27, 2026 · Checked October 27, 2026.

> **You:** Build a now-serving board for the front desk that reads its queue from the app's own storage, put it on the screen, and call the next ticket.
>
> **Agent:** Done. The front desk screen shows a big "Now serving" number with the next three tickets beside it. I started at A041, then called the next ticket: it now says A042 at Counter 3, and the board changed without anything being rebuilt or published again.

## A screen app, built by your agent

This is a real session on a test screen, run on 27 October 2026. The agent wrote three small web files, and the board reads one saved value and redraws when it changes. One catch on the way: screenRIG warned that a short page time would restart the app each time it came round, so the agent switched to a day-long page.

![The screen showing a Now serving board: ticket A042 at Counter 3, with A043, A044 and A045 up next, on a dark blue page.](https://screenrig.ai/static-resources/images/screenshots/landing/compare-screenly-queue-app-f2e1f5ca.webp)
*The board after the second change, captured from the screen. The app's own pixels are on the glass.*

Calling the next ticket again is one more message, and every screen showing the app updates within seconds.

## How do Edge Apps and screenRIG applications compare?

Both products take a web app you wrote, put it on a screen and let outside data change what it shows. The difference is who does the work.

| Topic | screenRIG | Screenly Edge Apps |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Who builds it | Your agent writes the app, packs it and puts it on the screen | Your developers write a web app plus a manifest, which is a settings file, and deploy it with Screenly's command-line tool |
| Settings and data | A saved store that belongs to the app and carries over between versions | Text or secret settings, filled in for each copy of the app |
| Changing what it shows | Write a value, and every screen showing the app updates within seconds | Change a setting, then redeploy or update the instance |
| Where it runs | In the screenRIG Player app on the screen. Apple TV plays images, video, streams and cards, but not web apps | On the device with ScreenlyOS, or on some Screenly Anywhere platforms on a server that sends pictures to the screen |

Screenly's pages for these rows are [Edge Apps](https://developer.screenly.io/edge-apps/), [what an Edge App is](https://www.screenly.io/docs/developers/edge-apps/overview/what-an-edge-app-is/) and [its command-line tool](https://developer.screenly.io/cli/). Screenly is a good fit if you want SOC 2 Type II and network security from the vendor, or if your developers already work in its command-line tool ([pricing](https://www.screenly.io/pricing/)).

## What do Screenly's plans and players cost?

[Screenly's pricing page](https://www.screenly.io/pricing/) lists three plans, billed annually: Starter at $15 per screen per month for up to 5 screens at 1080p, Business at $24 with unlimited screens and 4K, and Enterprise by quote, from 25 screens. The sixth screen moves a team from Starter to Business.

| Screens | screenRIG | Screenly Starter ($15) | Screenly Business ($24) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 5 | Free | $900 a year | $1,440 a year |
| 6 | Free | Not offered | $1,728 a year |
| 25 | Free | Not offered | $7,200 a year |
| 50 | Free | Not offered | $14,400 a year |

Yearly cost is the published monthly rate times the number of screens times 12, before tax, hardware and discounts. screenRIG is free. Pay only if you want more. Standard includes up to 50 screens, with storage above the first 1 GB and agent requests above 10,000 a month metered, and [pricing](https://screenrig.ai/pricing.md) covers more than 50.

Hardware is separate on Screenly. It sells its own players at $219 and $699 each ([cost guide](https://www.screenly.io/foundations/digital-signage-cost/)), and a Business or Enterprise yearly plan includes a free Player for each new screen, in the US ([free player page](https://www.screenly.io/free-digital-signage-player/)). Screenly Anywhere also runs on some devices you own ([Screenly Anywhere](https://www.screenly.io/docs/anywhere/)). The screenRIG Player is a free app for devices you already own: see [Downloads](https://screenrig.ai/downloads.md).

> **How we checked.** Screenly's plans and limits come from the pages under Sources, read on 27 Oct 2026, in US dollars. Screenly belongs to Screenly, Inc., and screenRIG is not affiliated with it. If a figure has moved, [tell us](https://screenrig.ai/contact.md).

## Taking your content out of Screenly

Screenly says it is a distribution layer, not an archive, so take the export first and cancel after. [Its content guide](https://www.screenly.io/docs/content/library/getting-your-content-back/) says there is no bulk export, and that each asset has a link to its original file. Then ask your agent to move everything:

> **You:** Move our Screenly screens here. I've downloaded the original files, and our Edge App is in this folder.
>
> **Agent:** Thanks. I'll upload the files, rebuild each playlist from your notes, and set the app up as a screenRIG application with its settings kept in the app's own storage. Then I'll check each screen against what it showed before.

- **Edge Apps come with you.** An Edge App is a web app, so its HTML, CSS and JavaScript carry over. Your agent packs the folder and uploads it.
- **Labels become tags.** Screenly labels become screenRIG tags, so one message can still reach a whole group of screens. [Start](https://screenrig.ai/docs/start.md) shows how to connect your agent.

## Questions

### Is Screenly free?

[Its pricing page](https://www.screenly.io/pricing/) offers a 14-day trial with no credit card, then Starter at $15 or Business at $24 per screen per month billed annually (checked 27 Oct 2026). Its open-source player, [Anthias](https://anthias.screenly.io/), is free; see [free digital signage software compared](https://screenrig.ai/compare/free-digital-signage-software.md).

### Does Screenly have an MCP server?

Yes. [Screenly's MCP server](https://www.screenly.io/docs/developers/mcp/reference/tools/) runs on your own computer inside its command-line tool. screenRIG's is hosted and signs in with OAuth. [Digital signage MCP servers compared](https://screenrig.ai/compare/digital-signage-mcp-servers.md) sets them side by side.

### Which Raspberry Pi models run screenRIG?

A Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 with 64-bit Raspberry Pi OS. The [Player guide](https://screenrig.ai/docs/players.md) lists the requirements.

### Is screenRIG open source?

screenRIG is a hosted service. The official plugin and its bundled command-line tool are published at github.com/screenrig/plugin.

## Build your own screen app

[Digital signage for developers](https://screenrig.ai/developers.md) shows the API, command line and browser SDK behind apps like this one.

## Sources

- [www.screenly.io/pricing](https://www.screenly.io/pricing/)
- [www.screenly.io/free-digital-signage-player](https://www.screenly.io/free-digital-signage-player/)
- [www.screenly.io/foundations/digital-signage-cost](https://www.screenly.io/foundations/digital-signage-cost/)
- [www.screenly.io/docs/anywhere](https://www.screenly.io/docs/anywhere/)
- [www.screenly.io/docs/developers/edge-apps/overview/what-an-edge-app-is](https://www.screenly.io/docs/developers/edge-apps/overview/what-an-edge-app-is/)
- [developer.screenly.io/edge-apps](https://developer.screenly.io/edge-apps/)
- [developer.screenly.io/cli](https://developer.screenly.io/cli/)
- [www.screenly.io/docs/content/library/getting-your-content-back](https://www.screenly.io/docs/content/library/getting-your-content-back/)
- [www.screenly.io/docs/developers/mcp/reference/tools](https://www.screenly.io/docs/developers/mcp/reference/tools/)
- [anthias.screenly.io](https://anthias.screenly.io/)
- [screenrig.ai/pricing](https://screenrig.ai/pricing)
- [screenrig.ai/docs/sdk](https://screenrig.ai/docs/sdk)
- [screenrig.ai/docs/players](https://screenrig.ai/docs/players)
- [screenrig.ai/downloads](https://screenrig.ai/downloads)

## Related

- [Digital Signage for Developers (API, CLI, SDK)](https://screenrig.ai/developers.md): Digital signage your agent or your code can run: REST API, CLI, browser SDK, MCP server and agent plugin. screenRIG is free. Pay only if you want more.
- [Digital Signage SDK for Kiosk Apps](https://screenrig.ai/docs/sdk.md): Build kiosk apps for digital signage with the injected browser SDK: playlist control, events, logs, capabilities and key/value state.
- [Anthias Alternative for Raspberry Pi Screens](https://screenrig.ai/compare/anthias-alternative.md): screenRIG is free. Pay only if you want more. Anthias is free too, but runs one screen per copy. See an agent build a library's screen loop from one chat.
- [Digital Signage MCP Servers Compared (Oct 2026)](https://screenrig.ai/compare/digital-signage-mcp-servers.md): screenRIG is free. Pay only if you want more. Ten signage MCP servers compared from their own docs on 27 Oct 2026: sign-in, plans, safety and one real job.

[Start free](https://screenrig.ai/docs/start.md). screenRIG is free. Pay only if you want more.