Viloud vs Wowza (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Viloud grades higher than Wowza: 2.0 against 1.4 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Viloud grades higher on value for money, the free plan, features and ease of use. Wowza grades higher on platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Viloud
Build 24/7 linear, on-demand and FAST TV channels
Wowza
Streaming server software you run yourself, plus a cloud platform
Which one is for you
Pick Viloud if
- Fits if you want an always-on channel from a video library
- Works for media owners moving into FAST channels
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: overage fees apply past the stored and viewed minutes in each plan
- Skip it if you want live streaming on Pro, as it starts on Business at $79
- Pricey if you want M3U8 links: Premium, or an add-on on Business
- Not for you if you need webinar registration
- Watch out: the page showed numbers with no currency symbol
Pick Wowza if
- Fits if your team builds its own streaming service
- Makes sense if you need a server you can run in your own setup
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you stream occasionally: $195 a month, or $295 for a single month
- Not for you if you want webinars with registration and polls
- Watch out: extra transcoded channels cost $25 each beyond the 10 per instance, and extra instances cost $195 each
- Watch out: Wowza Video, the managed cloud, is priced separately, and Perpetual and Enterprise licenses are quoted by sales
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAViloudFair | 1.4GPAWowzaWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$29 a month billed annually for 5 channels, between the $20.80 and $45 marks. Premium is $199. | D$195 a month for Streaming Engine, right at the dearest tenth of the category ($195 and up). One month costs $295. |
| Free plan and trial | C14-day free trial of all features with no card. | DA free trial is offered but its length is not stated, and there is no free plan. |
| Features | CLinear, on-demand and FAST channels, embeddable player and live streaming. Live streaming starts on Business, and it is not a webinar tool. | DIt is infrastructure: it streams and transcodes video, but gives no registration, polls or attendee chat, so you build the rest. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You build channels and playlists. | DA server product that needs setup and configuration, with no rating on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, with a single Vimeo link and no apps listed. | BWeb platform listed, with RTMP, SRT, HLS, WebRTC, Docker and an API. |
| Best for | 24/7 TV-style channels | self-run streaming server software |
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: Viloud and Wowza. How we grade
Price against what you get
Viloud starts at $29 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Wowza starts at $195 a month and scores 1.7.
Viloud scores higher and starts $166 a month lower. Of the other webinar and live streaming tools on the chart, 10 score higher than Viloud for less, and 38 score higher than Wowza 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
- Wowza is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Viloud also covers reports.
At a glance
| Viloud | Wowza | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $29 per month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly) | $195 per month for Streaming Engine, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of all features, no credit card | Free trial for Streaming Engine and for Wowza Video; the page does not state its length |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Viloud | Wowza Media Systems, LLC |
| Price read from | viloud.tv | wowza.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Viloud
- Overage fees apply beyond the stored and viewed minutes in each plan, with the per-minute rate falling on higher plans.
- M3U8 links for linear channels need Premium; they are an optional add-on on Business.
- The rendered page showed numbers without a currency symbol; confirm the currency before buying.
Wowza
- It is infrastructure, not a webinar tool: there is no registration page, polls or attendee chat out of the box.
- Additional transcoded channels cost $25 each beyond the 10 included per instance.
- Wowza Video, the managed cloud product, is priced separately; this listing records the Streaming Engine plans shown on the pricing page.
- Perpetual and Enterprise licenses are quoted by sales, with no published price.
Key features
Viloud
- Linear channels
- Create 24/7 channels with a daily or weekly scheduler so all viewers see the same content at once.
- On-demand channels
- Viewers can move between videos in a playlist with player controls.
- Embeddable player
- Responsive HTML5 player with adaptive bitrate, branding options and embed restrictions on higher plans.
- Live streaming
- Broadcast with an RTMP encoder and record for later; listed on Business and above, up to 1080p.
- FAST and ads
- FAST channels, SCTE-35 markers with an EPG are add-ons; VAST ad tags are listed in the comparison.
Wowza
- Self-hosted streaming server
- Wowza Streaming Engine runs on premises, in a private or public cloud, behind a firewall or fully offline, and can be deployed as a Docker container.
- Many protocols
- It ingests and delivers WebRTC, SRT, RTMP, RTSP and HLS, and supports low-latency HLS and DASH.
- APIs and SDKs
- A REST API and a Java SDK let developers script the server and add custom modules.
- Transcoding
- Each paid Streaming Engine instance includes 10 concurrent transcoded channels; extra channels are $25 each.
- Security options
- DRM, watermarking and encryption are offered, and the company says it holds a SOC 2 Type II report.
- Managed cloud option
- Wowza Video is a separate cloud platform that handles ingest, transcoding, delivery, analytics and a player without running servers.
Plans
Viloud
Pro$29
per month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly)
5 channels, 200 video links, 1,000 minutes stored, 10k minutes viewed a month.
Business$79
per month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly)
Unlimited channels, live streaming, 3,000 minutes stored, 40k viewed.
Premium$199
per month, billed annually ($249 billed monthly)
M3U8 for linear channels, 5 team members, 10,000 minutes stored, 120k viewed.
CustomCustom
Volume discount, extra FAST channels, SSAI, migrations and enterprise support.
Wowza
One Month of Streaming$295
one-time purchase for one month, first instance included
Streaming Engine for occasional events: up to 10 concurrent transcoded channels on the first instance, extra instances $295 each.
Basic Monthly$195
per month, billed monthly, first instance included
Streaming Engine for steady use: up to 10 concurrent transcoded channels on the first instance, extra instances $195 each per month.
EnterpriseCustom
Annual plans and discounted rates, hybrid cloud services (CDN, Flowplayer, analytics), offline keys and professional services.
PerpetualCustom
A license with no expiration for containerized, air-gapped or self-hosted deployments, scoped and quoted by Wowza.
Ways to pay less
Viloud
- Annual discount
Annual billing saves up to 20%
The pricing page toggles between monthly and annual billing and says annual saves up to 20%.
Wowza
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Viloud or Wowza?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Viloud is cheaper to start with: $29 a month, against $195 a month for Wowza. Viloud starts at $29 per month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly), and Wowza starts at $195 per month for Streaming Engine, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Viloud or Wowza?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Viloud nor Wowza 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.