Castr vs OneStream Live (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Castr and OneStream Live share a 2.4 GPA, and only OneStream Live has a free plan.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on all five counts.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Castr
Multistreaming, video hosting and 24/7 playout in one service
OneStream Live
Cloud studio and multistreaming to 45+ platforms
Which one is for you
Pick Castr if
- Fits if a church or school streams services or events to several platforms
- Works for selling access to live streams behind a paywall
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a studio in the browser without asking Castr to switch it on
- Not for you if you've never used an encoder and don't want to learn
- Tight if you stream a lot to your own player, since each plan has a bandwidth allowance
- Watch out: monthly plans get less bandwidth and fewer concurrent streams than annual ones
- Pricey if you need DRM or phone and TV apps, which are Events add-ons on top of $624.99 a month
Pick OneStream Live if
- Fits if you want to push one stream to YouTube, Facebook and others at once
- Works for small teams that stream from the browser
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 2 destinations and 15-minute streams
- Watch out: stream length is 1 hour on Basic, 3 on Standard and 8 on Professional
- Pricey if you add on: 5 more destinations are $10 a month, 24-hour YouTube streams $30
- Not for you if you need webinar registration pages
- Watch out: the page showed ringgit; confirm the dollar price for your region
How we grade them
| 2.4GPACastrFair | 2.4GPAOneStream LiveFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BStarter is $16.67 a month billed annually ($199.99 a year, $19.99 by the month) and streams to 6 destinations, enough for three platforms. That's level with Restream and Ecamm, well under StreamYard's Core, and it includes hosting and a paywall. | BBasic is $12 a month on yearly billing, but it is 720p with 1-hour streams; 1080p starts on Standard at $32, in the middle of the range. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan, but a 7-day free trial of Starter with no credit card. The other plans go straight to checkout. | CFree forever with 2 destinations, 720p, 1 seat and 3 scheduled events, but each stream lasts only 15 minutes. |
| Features | CMultistreaming to 30 destinations, hosting, a player, cloud recording, 24/7 playout and a paywall on every plan. The gaps: you bring the encoder, as the browser Cloud Production switcher is enabled by Castr on request, and recordings are kept up to three days. | CStudio, multistreaming, external encoders and pre-recorded streams. It streams video but has no webinar registration. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record. You set up an encoder such as OBS or a camera, add each destination and embed the player, which takes some know-how. | CNo store rating on record. You connect destinations and set up the studio. |
| Platforms and integrations | BA web service with no desktop or phone app listed. It sends to YouTube, Facebook, Twitch and LinkedIn, takes RTMP, SRT, RTSP and HLS input from OBS or cameras, and has an API on Premium. | BWeb and browser extension, with Zoom, OBS, Streamlabs, vMix, Wirecast, XSplit and Ecamm. |
| Best for | multistreaming plus hosting your own video | multistreaming and a cloud studio |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Castr and OneStream Live. How we grade
Price against what you get
Castr starts at $16.67 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. OneStream Live starts at $12 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and OneStream Live starts $4.67 a month lower. Of the other webinar and live streaming tools on the chart, 2 score higher than Castr for less, and 1 scores higher than OneStream Live for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- OneStream Live also covers webinars.
At a glance
| Castr | OneStream Live | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $16.67 per month, billed annually ($19.99 billed monthly) | $12 per month, billed annually ($15 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | Free forever: 2 multistreaming destinations, 720p, 1 team seat, 1 GB storage and 3 scheduled events. |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of the Starter plan, no credit card required | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Castr Live Streaming, Inc. | OneStream Live Inc. |
| Price read from | castr.com | onestream.live |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Castr
- Streams come in from encoder software, hardware or IP cameras; the browser-based Cloud Production switcher is enabled by Castr on request.
- Each plan has a player-bandwidth allowance, and monthly plans get less upfront bandwidth and fewer concurrent streams than annual ones.
- Only Starter has the 7-day trial; the other plans go straight to checkout.
- DRM and native iOS, Android and TV apps for the Events plan are add-ons arranged with sales.
OneStream Live
- Free streams last 15 minutes each; the limit is 1 hour on Basic, 3 on Standard and 8 on Professional.
- Extra destinations are $10 per month for 5, and 24-hour YouTube streams are a $30 per month add-on.
- Prices were read from the page's dollar figures; the rendered page showed Malaysian ringgit, so confirm your region.
Key features
Castr
- Multistreaming
- One RTMP or SRT feed goes out to up to 30 destinations, including YouTube, Facebook pages and groups, Twitch and LinkedIn; TikTok and Instagram connect through custom RTMP.
- Video hosting and player
- An embeddable player with analytics, video storage from 100 GB, and unlimited viewers within each plan's bandwidth allowance.
- Cloud recording and live-to-VOD
- Records streams of up to 72 hours, keeps the recordings for up to three days, and turns live streams into on-demand videos.
- 24/7 playout
- Runs pre-recorded videos as an always-on live channel, like a TV station, on every plan.
- Paywall and monetization
- A paywall comes with every plan, in-stream ads start on Standard, and Events adds subscriptions, pay-per-view and more than 30 payment gateways.
- Ingest protocols and API
- Takes RTSP, RTMP, HLS, MPEG-TS and SRT input, offers pull links from Standard, and adds API access and HLS URLs on Premium.
OneStream Live
- Live Studio
- Host a branded browser session with guests and screen sharing; guest limits run from 4 on Free to 12 on Enterprise.
- Multistreaming
- Send one stream to 45+ social platforms at once, with a destination cap that depends on the plan.
- External encoders
- Stream from OBS, Zoom, Streamlabs and similar software; the integrations page also lists vMix, Wirecast and XSplit.
- Pre-recorded streaming
- Schedule uploaded videos to broadcast as if live, including 24-hour streams on paid plans.
- Stream players and websites
- Embeddable players and hosted custom live pages are included, with counts that rise by plan.
Plans
Castr
Starter$16.67
per month, billed annually ($19.99 billed monthly)
2 concurrent streams (3 on annual), 6 destinations, 200 GB of player bandwidth a month and 100 GB of video storage.
Standard$41.67
per month, billed annually ($49.99 billed monthly)
10 destinations, 500 GB of bandwidth a month and 200 GB of storage, plus SRT and RTMP pull links and in-stream ads.
Premium$166.67
per month, billed annually ($199.99 billed monthly)
5 streams (10 on annual), 20 destinations, 3 TB of bandwidth, 2 TB of storage, adaptive bitrate, API access and 3 team members.
Ultra$291.67
per month, billed annually ($349.99 billed monthly)
10 streams (15 on annual), 30 destinations, 5 TB of bandwidth, 3 TB of storage, failover ingest and low-latency playback.
Events$624.99
per month, billed annually ($749.99 billed monthly)
A branded OTT web app with a CMS, subscriptions and pay-per-view sales, 15 streams, 30 destinations and 10 TB of bandwidth a month.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom stream, bandwidth and storage allocations, enterprise controls and migration help, arranged with sales.
OneStream Live
Free$0
2 destinations, 720p, 1 seat, 1 GB storage, 3 scheduled events.
Basic$12
per month, billed annually ($15 billed monthly)
5 destinations, 720p, 1 seat, 5 GB storage, 0.5 TB bandwidth a month.
Standard$32
per month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly)
10 destinations, 1080p, 4 seats, 20 GB storage, 1.5 TB bandwidth.
Professional$39
per month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly)
30 destinations, 1080p, 6 seats, 50 GB storage, 2.5 TB bandwidth.
Enterprise$83
per month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly)
50 destinations, 1080p, 10 seats, 150 GB storage, 5 TB bandwidth.
Ways to pay less
Castr
- Annual discount
Two months free with annual billing
Castr's pricing page says annual billing gives 2 months free plus a larger upfront bandwidth pool: Starter is $199.99 a year against $19.99 a month.
OneStream Live
- Annual discount
Yearly billing is about 20% cheaper
The pricing page shows yearly billing at roughly 20% below monthly, for example Basic at $144 a year against $15 a month.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Castr or OneStream Live?
As of Nov 13, 2026, OneStream Live is cheaper to start with: $12 a month, against $16.67 a month for Castr. Castr starts at $16.67 per month, billed annually ($19.99 billed monthly), and OneStream Live starts at $12 per month, billed annually ($15 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Castr or OneStream Live?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only OneStream Live has a free plan. Castr does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Castr and OneStream Live run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only OneStream Live lists a browser extension. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.