Castr vs Streaming Video Provider (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Castr grades higher than Streaming Video Provider: 2.4 against 1.8 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
Streaming Video Provider
Video hosting and live streaming with pay-per-view and multistreaming
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 Streaming Video Provider if
- Fits if you sell tickets or run private events on your own pages
- Works for developers who want hosting and a live API with a white-label option
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a webinar room with registration, polls and Q&A
- Pricey if you need live streaming, as it starts at $99 a month on Pro
- Tight if you're on the $39 plan: no live streaming, 1 seat and capped bandwidth
- Watch out: extra bandwidth is sold in paid steps above the included amount
- Watch out: the trial length and whether it needs a card aren't stated
How we grade them
| 2.4GPACastrFair | 1.8GPAStreaming Video ProviderWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | DLive streaming starts at Pro, $99 a month billed monthly, against a category middle of $45. Plus at $39 has no live streaming. |
| 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. | DA free trial on every plan, but the pricing page doesn't give its length or say whether a card is needed. |
| 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. | CLive streaming, multistreaming, pay-per-view, scheduling and an API. But no registration, polls or Q&A, and seats stop at 1, 3 and 5. |
| 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 set up an RTMP encoder, players and a schedule yourself. |
| 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 sends to YouTube and Facebook Live, takes payments through PayPal and Stripe, and works with OBS, Wirecast and TriCaster. |
| Best for | multistreaming plus hosting your own video | private or paid live events on your own player |
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 Streaming Video Provider. 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. Streaming Video Provider starts at $39 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Castr starts $22.33 a month lower. Of the other webinar and live streaming tools on the chart, 2 score higher than Castr for less, and 2 score higher than Streaming Video Provider 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
- Streaming Video Provider also covers screen recording, reports and webinars.
At a glance
| Castr | Streaming Video Provider | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $16.67 per month, billed annually ($19.99 billed monthly) | $39 per month, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of the Starter plan, no credit card required | Free trial offered on every plan; length not stated on the pricing page |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Castr Live Streaming, Inc. | StreamingVideoProvider |
| Price read from | castr.com | streamingvideoprovider.com |
| 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.
Streaming Video Provider
- Live streaming is not on the $39 Plus plan; it starts at Pro.
- Bandwidth is capped per plan, and extra bandwidth is sold as paid steps above the included amount.
- It has no attendee registration, polls or Q&A of the kind a webinar-specific tool provides.
- Seats are limited: 1 on Plus, 3 on Pro and 5 on Premium.
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.
Streaming Video Provider
- Live streaming
- Go live from any RTMP encoder, a smart device or an IP camera, with a live player to embed. Pro and above only.
- Multistreaming
- Sends live and on-demand content to 30+ platforms; Pro includes 3 channels and Premium 6.
- Pay-per-view
- Sells tickets, subscriptions and rentals through PayPal, Stripe and other gateways; Plus allows 50 items, higher plans are unlimited.
- Scheduler and recording
- Schedules pre-recorded videos and playlists to simulate live programming, and records live streams for on-demand viewing.
- APIs and analytics
- A Core API comes with Pro, and viewer analytics cover audience behavior and demographics.
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.
Streaming Video Provider
Plus$39
per month, billed monthly
200 GB bandwidth, 50 GB storage, 50 pay-per-view items and 1 team seat; no live streaming.
Pro$99
per month, billed monthly
750 GB bandwidth, 150 GB storage, live streaming, 3 multistreaming channels and 3 seats.
Premium$399
per month, billed monthly
4,000 GB bandwidth, 600 GB storage, 20 live transcoding hours, 6 multistreaming channels and 5 seats.
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.
Streaming Video Provider
- Annual discount
Save 15% or 30% on longer terms
The pricing page offers 1-year terms with 15% off and 2-year terms with 30% off the month-to-month price.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Castr or Streaming Video Provider?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Castr is cheaper to start with: $16.67 a month, against $39 a month for Streaming Video Provider. Castr starts at $16.67 per month, billed annually ($19.99 billed monthly), and Streaming Video Provider starts at $39 per month, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Castr or Streaming Video Provider?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Castr nor Streaming Video Provider has a free plan. Both have 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.