Streamlink: The Ultimate Open Source Streaming CLI Tool

What is Streamlink?

Streamlink is a powerful Python library and command-line interface that extracts and pipes video streams from hundreds of services directly into your preferred video player. With 11.4k GitHub stars, 1.2k forks, and 284 contributors, it's one of the most popular streaming tools available.

Forked from the abandoned Livestreamer project in 2016, Streamlink has evolved into a mature, actively maintained solution with version 8.2.1 (March 2026 release).

Why Choose Streamlink?

✅ Avoid resource-heavy websites - No ads, no bloat, pure streams ✅ Plugin system - Supports Twitch, YouTube, and 100+ services ✅ Cross-platform - Windows, macOS, Linux, BSD ✅ Multiple outputs - VLC (default), filesystem, metadata extraction ✅ Developer-friendly - Full Python API + CLI

Quickstart in 1 Command

streamlink "https://twitch.tv/yourstream" best

That's it! Streamlink automatically launches VLC with the highest quality stream available.

Key Features

Universal Plugin Support

Check the plugins page for complete service support. New services can be added via simple plugin development.

Flexible Output Options

# Save to file
streamlink "STREAMURL" best -o output.mp4

# Read stream info only
streamlink "STREAMURL" --json

# Custom player
streamlink "STREAMURL" best -p mpv

Installation Made Easy

Windows: Download installer from releases macOS: brew install streamlink Linux: pip install streamlink or package manager

Full docs: streamlink.github.io

Active Development

• 5,850 commits and counting
• 99.8% Python codebase
• Comprehensive test suite (GitHub Actions)
• High code coverage
• Regular releases with new plugins

Recent updates include plugin rewrites (cdnbg plugin) and Python 3.10+ support.

Perfect For

• Streamers watching Twitch/YouTube
• Developers building streaming apps
• Cord-cutters avoiding website bloat
• Archivists saving live streams
• DevOps automating stream processing

Get Involved

Streamlink welcomes contributions! Check CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines on plugins, bug fixes, and AI-assisted contributions.

Support the project: GitHub Sponsors

Streamlink proves open source excellence - lightweight, powerful, and community-driven. Install it today and experience streaming without the website baggage!