# Build Your Own Zoom Alternative

- Tool: Build Your Own SaaS Alternative
- Last updated: May 2026

## TL;DR

Zoom generated $4.66B in FY2025 revenue with 3,995 customers paying over $100K annually, but its 40-minute free meeting limit forces paid upgrades and its UX has barely changed since 2020. Jitsi Meet (29,300 GitHub stars, Apache 2.0) provides a self-hosted alternative with no time limits. A custom video platform costs $2M+ and takes 12+ months — Jitsi is the viable path for 99% of organizations wanting to escape Zoom.

## Frequently asked questions

### How much does it cost to build a Zoom alternative?

From scratch: $2M+ with an agency over 12+ months. Using Jitsi Meet self-hosted: $5K–$20K setup + $720/year server costs. Using LiveKit as infrastructure with a custom UI: $50K–$200K over 3–6 months. The SFU media server is the hard part — don't build it from scratch.

### How long does it take to build a Zoom clone?

12+ months to build a competitive video platform from scratch. 3–6 months to build a custom video product on LiveKit (open-source SFU). 1–2 days to self-host Jitsi Meet as a direct Zoom replacement for internal use.

### Are there open-source Zoom alternatives?

Yes — Jitsi Meet (29,300 GitHub stars, Java/TypeScript, Apache 2.0), BigBlueButton (star count unverified, LGPL-3.0), and LiveKit (star count unverified, Go, Apache 2.0). Jitsi is the easiest to self-host for non-developers. LiveKit is better for developers embedding video in custom applications.

### Can Jitsi Meet replace Zoom for a team of 50?

Yes for most use cases. Jitsi Meet on a $60/month server handles 35–50 concurrent participants. For larger meetings, deploy a second server or use Jitsi-as-a-Service. Jitsi lacks Zoom's AI features, Zoom Phone, and enterprise SSO out of the box — but for standard video meetings, it is a full replacement at a fraction of the cost.

### Does Zoom own the recordings of my meetings?

No — Zoom does not claim ownership of your recording content per their ToS. However, cloud recordings are stored on Zoom's servers and accessible to Zoom under their privacy policy. For sensitive meetings, use local recording (stored on your device) or deploy a self-hosted alternative where recordings go directly to your own S3 bucket.

### Can RapidDev build a custom video platform?

Yes — RapidDev has built 600+ apps including real-time communication tools, WebRTC integrations, and video infrastructure on LiveKit and Jitsi. We scope video platform builds from $30K for Jitsi customization to $2M+ for full custom platforms. Book a free consultation at rapidevelopers.com/contact.

### What is the WebRTC 40-participant limit I hear about?

WebRTC in mesh mode (peer-to-peer between all participants) limits practical use to 4–6 participants because each person must upload N-1 video streams. Zoom and all scalable video platforms use an SFU (Selective Forwarding Unit) instead — each participant uploads once to the SFU server, which forwards streams selectively. Jitsi Videobridge and LiveKit are both SFU architectures, enabling hundreds of participants from a single server.

---

Source: https://www.rapidevelopers.com/clone/zoom
© RapidDev — https://www.rapidevelopers.com/clone/zoom