Best Free Digital Signage Software in 2026 (Free Plans Compared)
Quick answer: in 2026 five vendors still offer a permanent free tier and three open-source projects are free to self-host. The widest hosted free plan with no ads, no watermark and no time limit is DigitalSignage.com (first 3 screens free forever, then $3 per screen per month); ChannelOS gives 1 screen free forever with a ChannelOS banner on the screen, OptiSigns 3 screens with its branding on screen, PosterBooking 10 screens free for 3 months with a watermark, then from $52 per month for 10 screens. The table below is verified against each vendor's own pricing page and re-checked daily by the State of Digital Signage Pricing 2026 dataset.
Want the widest free plan? Create a free DigitalSignage.com account: 3 screens free forever, no credit card, no ads, no watermark, and the same SignStudio editor paying customers use. Your first screen is live in about two minutes on the TV you already own.
Create your free account What the free plan includes
Every free plan, side by side
| Vendor | Free plan in 2026 | Catch | After the free tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| DigitalSignage.com | 3 screens, forever, no ads, no watermark, 1 GB storage | Storage cap; no proof-of-play on the free tier | from $3 per screen per month (Plus+), or $895 one-time mediaSERVER. Create a free account |
| ChannelOS | 1 screen, forever, with a ChannelOS banner on the screen | One screen only; runs in the TV's own browser (Android TV, Google TV, webOS, Fire TV) | $5 to $6 per screen per month (Solo, removes the banner); Agency $200 a month yearly for 25 screens, then $6 per screen yearly |
| Yodeck | 1 screen, only while the account has exactly 1 screen | New accounts since March 2, 2026 start with a 30-day trial of up to 5 screens, then drop back to the 1 free screen | $8 Basic, $12 Premium, $16 Enterprise per screen per month |
| OptiSigns | 3 screens | OptiSigns branding shown on screen | $10 Standard to $30 Engage per screen per month |
| ScreenCloud | None permanent (trial only) | Trial expires | from $20 per screen per month (Core) |
| PosterBooking | 10 screens free for 3 months, with a watermark | New customers only; the vendor says the offer may be modified or cancelled | from $52 per month for 10 screens (Home Basic), $6.49 per screen from the 11th; Business Pro $520 per month, unlimited screens |
| PiSignage | 2 screens | Raspberry Pi players only | $35 per player in year one, then $20 a year (about $1.67 a month) |
| ScreenTinker (open source) | Managed cloud free plan (1 display) plus a 14-day Pro trial; unlimited if you self-host the MIT-licensed server | Young project (2025); self-hosting means you run the server | cloud Pro plans are paid |
| Xibo (open source) | Unlimited, self-hosted | You run and secure the server; Android, webOS, Tizen and ChromeOS players are one-time paid licences ($28 to $85) | Xibo Cloud from $4.90 per display per month, players included |
| Anthias (Screenly OSE) | Unlimited, one Raspberry Pi each | Each Pi is managed on its own; no central cloud | Screenly's commercial product is separate |
Sources: each vendor's published pricing page, verified September 2026. If a number is out of date, the dataset page carries a correction form.
What "free" usually hides
- Screen caps that shrink. Yodeck's single free screen disappears the moment you add a second one, and new accounts now sit through a 30-day trial before they reach it. Check whether the cap is permanent.
- Branding. OptiSigns' free tier puts the vendor's logo on your screens. Fine for a break room, not for a storefront.
- Time limits. ScreenCloud has no permanent free tier at all; the trial ends and the meter starts at $20 per screen per month.
- Self-hosting cost. Xibo and Anthias are genuinely free software, but somebody has to run the server, apply updates and keep it reachable from every screen. For one or two screens that can be worth it; for a chain it rarely is.
- Features withheld. Proof of play, white-label studios and SSO are almost always paid features. The question is whether the free tier keeps the everyday ones: scheduling, templates, remote monitoring and offline caching.
Which free plan fits which situation
- A cafe, church, gym or small office with 1 to 3 screens: DigitalSignage.com. Three permanent screens, no ads, no watermark, and the same SignStudio editor paying customers use, so you never migrate. Create a free account and the first screen is live in minutes.
- Exactly one TV, forever: ChannelOS (1 screen free with a ChannelOS banner on the screen, plays in the TV's own browser) or DigitalSignage.com (3 screens, so room to add a second TV later without paying).
- A school or club with up to 10 screens for a 3-month project: PosterBooking, 10 screens free for 3 months with a watermark, then from $52 per month for 10 screens.
- A tinkerer with Raspberry Pis: PiSignage (2 free screens) or Anthias (free, one Pi at a time).
- An IT team that wants to own everything: Xibo, self-hosted. Budget the server and the paid commercial players if you use Android or smart-TV screens.
- Anyone who expects to grow past 10 screens: compare the per-screen rate you will pay later, not the free tier. At 50 screens the yearly software bill ranges from about $1,800 (DigitalSignage.com at $3) to $12,000 (ScreenCloud at $20). The cost guide has the worked examples.
How we compared
Free tiers were taken from each vendor's public pricing page in September 2026, not from third-party roundups. Where a vendor blocks the price page or does not publish a number, the table says "not published" rather than guessing. DigitalSignage.com publishes this guide and is one of the vendors in it; every competitor figure links to its source in the dataset so you can check it yourself.
Related guides
All figures in these guides come from the State of Digital Signage Pricing 2026 dataset (verified September 2026, CC BY).
Head-to-head comparisons
- Yodeck vs OptiSigns
- ScreenCloud vs Yodeck
- OptiSigns vs ScreenCloud
- Rise Vision vs Yodeck
- Xibo vs Yodeck
Vendor pricing explained
- Yodeck pricing 2026
- OptiSigns pricing 2026
- ScreenCloud pricing 2026
- Rise Vision pricing 2026
- NoviSign pricing 2026
Alternatives
- Alternatives to Yodeck, OptiSigns, ScreenCloud and Rise Vision
- NoviSign alternatives
- Xibo alternatives
- PosterBooking alternatives
- PiSignage alternatives
- Alternatives to Appspace, Korbyt, Scala and X2O
Buying guides
- Digital signage cost per screen 2026
- Digital signage for restaurants and menu boards
- Digital signage for schools, churches, gyms and small business
Try it on your own screens, free
DigitalSignage.com, which publishes this guide, runs a permanent free plan: the first 3 screens are free forever (no credit card, no ads, no time limit), then from $3 per screen per month. The free SignPlayer runs on Windows, Mac, Android and Android TV, Chrome OS, Raspberry Pi, iPad or any modern web browser. Start free · 2026 pricing · Free plan details
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free digital signage software?
For a permanent free plan with no ads, no watermark and no credit card, DigitalSignage.com is the widest: the first 3 screens are free forever with about 90% of the features, then from $3 per screen per month. ChannelOS gives 1 screen free forever with a ChannelOS banner on the screen; PosterBooking gives 10 screens free for 3 months with a watermark, then from $52 per month for 10 screens; OptiSigns gives 3 screens with its branding on screen; PiSignage gives 2 screens on Raspberry Pi; Yodeck's free tier applies only while an account has exactly 1 screen, and new accounts since March 2026 start with a 30-day trial, then drop back to the 1 free screen. Xibo, Anthias and ScreenTinker are free open-source servers you host yourself.
What is the best free digital signage CMS?
Hosted and free: DigitalSignage.com (3 screens forever, browser-based SignStudio editor). Self-hosted and free: Xibo for a complete CMS, Anthias for a few Raspberry Pi screens.
Which digital signage software has no monthly fee per screen?
Three ways to avoid a per-screen monthly fee: DigitalSignage.com's free plan (first 3 screens, forever) or its one-time $895 mediaSERVER on-premise license for larger networks; self-hosted open source such as Xibo or Anthias, where the cost is your own server and time; and PiSignage's per-player license, $35 per player in year one and then $20 a year (about $1.67 a month), rather than a monthly meter.
Can I run digital signage completely free?
Yes, for small networks. Reuse a TV you own, add a $30-$60 Android stick or a Raspberry Pi, install the free player, and use a free plan: DigitalSignage.com covers 3 screens forever with no ads, OptiSigns 3 with branding, PosterBooking 10 for 3 months with a watermark. The only cost is the player hardware if you do not already have it.
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This guide is maintained by MediaSignage Inc., the operator of DigitalSignage.com. Last verified September 19, 2026.