Jellyfin app for Linux: the free way to watch your library
How to watch Jellyfin on Linux — install Swiftly Player free with one command, sign in with Quick Connect, and other good clients.
By Swiftly Player2 min read
Disclosure: we build Swiftly Player, one of the clients in this article. We point out where other apps do better.
Jellyfin has no single official Linux app either. Swiftly Player is a free one, built on GTK 4: it plays through VLC without asking the server to transcode, and one command installs it on Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE or Arch. The same app runs on Windows, iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV, and on Android in a closed test.
Set it up in 3 steps
- Install. Run this in a terminal — it works out your distribution and adds the Swiftly package source:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/paulherter/swiftly-player/main/Linux/Installieren/swiftly-installieren.sh | bashPaste it into a terminal and press Enter.
- Connect. Enter your server address, or choose Quick Connect and approve the code from another signed-in device.
- Watch. Pick a title from your library and press play.
What you get
- Direct Play through VLC, so the server does not transcode
- Skip Intro, Skip Recap and Skip Credits, plus automatic next episode, from Intro Skipper data
- Audio and subtitle choice remembered per series
- External subtitle files
- Multiple servers and accounts at once
- Quick Connect sign-in
- Requests through Seerr without leaving the app
- Resume on this device: pick up a film paused on your phone or Mac with one tap
- Free, no account with us, no tracking
Other good options
- Jellyfin Desktop — the Jellyfin project's own client, the web interface in a window with libmpv for playback, on Flathub. Flathub
- Fladder — a Flutter app with downloads, Seerr and Skip Intro, also on Flathub. Flathub · source
- Jellyfin MPV Shim — a lighter client from the Jellyfin project that can also act as a cast target and supports SyncPlay. source
For more on how these compare on Windows, which shares most of the same clients, see Best Jellyfin clients for Windows.
The full comparison: Best Jellyfin client for Linux.
FAQ
Does the installer work on any Linux distribution?
It detects Debian/Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE or Arch and adds the matching package source, per the project's README. Other distributions are not covered by the script.
Does Swiftly Player cost anything?
No. It is free, with no subscription, and no account with Swiftly itself.
Do I still need a Jellyfin account?
Yes — the same account you already use in a browser, on your own server. Swiftly does not add an account of its own. Quick Connect signs you in with a code, and Jellyfin keeps your playback position on the server, so Resume on this device works no matter where you paused.
