Castr vs Resi (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Castr grades higher than Resi: 2.4 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Castr grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
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
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 Resi if
- Fits if you stream weekly services or events from one or more campuses
- Works for venues that need one feed sent to overflow rooms
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you need a website or app stream: $159 a month at least, $299 on Pro
- Skip it if you want a webinar tool with registration, polls or chat
- Watch out: bandwidth is capped per plan
- Watch out: nothing is free and no trial is shown, and multisite plans run $129 to $669 a month
How we grade them
| 2.4GPACastrFair | 1.6GPAResiWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | D$99 a month annually for social-only, but streaming to a website or apps needs $159 or $299. The category's dearer quarter starts at $99 and the dearest tenth at $167. |
| 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. | FNothing free on record: no free plan and no trial. A non-profit discount exists but its rates aren't shown. |
| 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. | CScheduling, cloud transcoding, analytics and multisite overflow. It does the event streaming job, though not webinar registration, polls or attendee chat. |
| 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. It needs an encoder set up and pointed at your outlets. |
| 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 only, but it connects to Facebook, YouTube and ProPresenter. |
| Best for | multistreaming plus hosting your own video | dependable live streaming of church and school events |
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 Resi. 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. Resi starts at $99 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Castr starts $82.33 a month lower. Of the other webinar and live streaming tools on the chart, 2 score higher than Castr for less, and 6 score higher than Resi 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
- Resi also covers reports and webinars.
At a glance
| Castr | Resi | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Paid |
| Starts at | $16.67 per month, billed annually ($19.99 billed monthly) | $99 per month, billed annually ($119 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of the Starter plan, no credit card required | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Castr Live Streaming, Inc. | Resi |
| Price read from | castr.com | resi.io |
| 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.
Resi
- Prices shown are for the Live Streaming plan set; Multisite plans run from $129 to $669 a month billed annually and Resi On Demand has its own plans.
- The page's source also lists higher regular prices than the ones shown; only the displayed prices are recorded here.
- Streaming to a website or apps needs Starter Lite or Pro, and bandwidth is capped per plan.
- It is an event streaming service, not a webinar tool with registration, polls or attendee chat.
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.
Resi
- Resilient Streaming Protocol
- Sends the stream through the vendor's own protocol to Facebook, YouTube, a website or apps; the plans differ in where it can go.
- Scheduling and presets
- Events can be organized with presets and automated scheduling, and stored video can be rebroadcast as simulated live from Starter Lite.
- Cloud transcoding
- Starter Lite and Pro include 3 adaptive bitrate levels; Enterprise goes up to 8, per the pricing page.
- Real-time analytics and monitoring
- Every listed plan includes real-time analytics plus proactive stream monitoring and alerts.
- Multisite and overflow
- Separate plans deliver one feed to rooms on a local network or remote locations, with cloud failover on higher plans.
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.
Resi
Social Only$99
per month, billed annually ($119 billed monthly)
Streams to Facebook and YouTube at up to 1080p60 with scheduling, analytics and phone support.
Starter Lite$159
per month, billed annually ($199 billed monthly)
Adds website streaming, a white-label embed player and 200 GB monthly bandwidth.
Pro$299
per month, billed annually ($349 billed monthly)
Adds DASH and HLS for apps, the Go Live API, 1 TB monthly bandwidth and 30-day storage.
EnterpriseCustom
Adds 4K streaming, up to 5 TB monthly bandwidth and up to 8 transcoding levels.
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.
Resi
- Nonprofit
Non-profit pricing available
The pricing page has an Apply Non-Profit Pricing option for eligible organizations; the discounted rates are not shown.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Castr or Resi?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Castr is cheaper to start with: $16.67 a month, against $99 a month for Resi. Castr starts at $16.67 per month, billed annually ($19.99 billed monthly), and Resi starts at $99 per month, billed annually ($119 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Castr or Resi?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Castr nor Resi has a free plan. Castr has a free trial.
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.