Last checked October 16, 2026
Best Free Alternatives to TiviMate (2026)
TiviMate is a TV player for Android TV. You add a playlist from a service you are allowed to use. It can save favorite channels, search, catch up, record, and show more than one channel. TiviMate does not sell channels. It does not give you streams.
What you pay for TiviMate
The public site does not list a dollar price. Premium is a paid add-on for app features, on up to 5 devices. The site lists a lifetime option. Paying does not include any channels.
The site says a paid plan turns on features of the app only. It does not include channels, streams, or other media. The app is for Android TV. It is not made for phones and tablets.
How close is it?
How this works100 means it does everything the paid app does. #1 is the closest free app that did not pay us. An ad, when one is sold, is marked and sits after #1. Paying does not change the score. Open source means you can use, change, and share the code. Run it yourself means the app can live on a computer you control.
- #1 · ClosestFree. Code is private.
OTT Navigator
A free Android TV player. It does not sell channels.
Last checked October 16, 2026 · Rules: Proprietary
Android - #2Open source
Kodi
A free media player. IPTV needs the IPTV Simple Client add-on.
Last checked October 16, 2026 · Rules: GPL-2.0-or-later
AndroidWindowsLinuxMaciOS - #3Open source
Jellyfin
A free media server with Live TV. The code is GPL-2.0.
Last checked October 16, 2026 · Rules: GPL-2.0
Run it yourselfWebAndroid - #4Open source
IPTVnator
A free desktop IPTV player. The code is MIT.
Last checked October 16, 2026 · Rules: MIT
MacWindowsLinuxWebRun it yourself
Feature by feature
Full means it does the whole job. Partial means it does some of it. Missing means it does not. Not checked counts as zero. The number under each feature is how much it counts. A bigger number moves the score more.
Scroll sideways to see every app.
| Feature | OTT Navigator#1 · 85 | Kodi#2 · 71 | Jellyfin#3 · 67 | IPTVnator#4 · 65 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Play a playlist you addCounts for 10 | FullThe FAQ says it is only a player. You add an M3U playlist or a provider login. | FullThe add-on plays M3U playlists, including live TV and radio. | FullThe Live TV setup guide has an M3U tuner. The file or URL is a playlist you supply. | FullM3U and M3U8 from a file or a URL. Xtream and Stalker logins work too. You supply them. |
| Android TV appCounts for 10 | FullThe FAQ says it runs on Android TV and Google TV. | FullKodi publishes an Android app. The add-on lists Android builds. | FullThe official Android TV app can watch Live TV from your server. | MissingThe project says there is no build for a television. It is a desktop and browser app. |
| Favorite channelsCounts for 5 | FullUser profiles can keep their own favorites. | PartialPlaylist groups come from the group-title tag. A separate favorite-channel button was not in the add-on readme. | PartialJellyfin can mark items as favorites. A channel-bookmark list was not in the Live TV setup guide. | Full |
| Search channels and showsCounts for 5 | PartialThe guide lists shows. The FAQ says recordings can be found with search. A channel search box is not spelled out. | PartialThe guide can be browsed. A TiviMate-style search box was not in the add-on readme. | PartialThe Live TV guide shows what is on. A search of channels and shows was not in the setup guide. | FullThe project lists search with the channel list. |
| Catch-upCounts for 6 | FullThe FAQ documents catch-up tags in a playlist. Catch-up is not listed as a Premium feature. | FullThe add-on documents catch-up when the provider supports it. | MissingCatch-up is not in the Live TV setup guide. | FullTV archive and catch-up are listed for the desktop app. |
| RecordingCounts for 6 | MissingThe FAQ says recording, added in version 1.7.5.2, is part of Premium. | MissingThe add-on can show some items as recordings. It does not document recording a live channel to disk. | FullThe site says you can set recordings. The guide is required before you can schedule them. | FullThe site says the desktop app can record live TV. |
| Watch more than one channelCounts for 5 | FullStudio mode can show up to 9 videos. Picture-in-picture is also in the FAQ. | Missing | Missing | Missing |
| More than one playlistCounts for 4 | FullThe FAQ has a section on many providers. | FullSince Kodi 20, more than one M3U and guide pair is supported. | FullThe setup guide lets you add tuner devices. More than one M3U tuner can be added. | FullYou can add more than one playlist or provider login. |
| Parental controlsCounts for 4 | FullThe FAQ covers a PIN and separate user profiles. | FullLive TV parental control can lock channels behind a PIN. The wiki page is updated for Kodi 21. | PartialThe server has user accounts. A channel PIN was not in the Live TV setup guide. | MissingA parental lock was not in the feature list checked for this page. |
What it costs
OTT Navigator
- Free plan
- The player is free to install. You bring your own playlist. Recording is part of Premium.
- A standard Premium purchase covers 5 devices.
- The FAQ does not list a dollar price.
- They host it
- No hosted price on file.
- Run it yourself
- This app does not run on your own computer. It is an Android app. You do not run an OTT Navigator server.
Kodi
- Free plan
- Kodi is free. The IPTV Simple Client add-on is free. You bring your own playlist.
- They host it
- No hosted price on file.
- Run it yourself
- This app does not run on your own computer. It is not a server you host for other people. You install the player on the device where you watch.
Jellyfin
- Free plan
- The server and the official clients are free to download. There is no paid tier on the Jellyfin site.
- They host it
- No hosted price on file.
- Run it yourself
- Moderate. You install the server, add an M3U tuner, and add XMLTV guide data if you want the guide and recordings.
IPTVnator
- Free plan
- The desktop app and the browser version are free. The project says it never sells channels or playlists.
- They host it
- No hosted price on file.
- Run it yourself
- Moderate. A Docker image can serve the browser app. The desktop app is the one with catch-up and recording.
Did you switch?
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Closest pair
Move from TiviMate to OTT Navigator
Both apps are players. You add the same playlist you are allowed to use. Channels do not come with either app.
Read how to switch