Plex
Plex is a global streaming platform combining free ad-supported movies/TV and 1,300+ FAST channels with self-hosted personal media server software, serving 25M+ monthly active consumers and self-hosting enthusiasts worldwide via subscriptions, advertising, and rentals.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersLos Gatos, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Plex does
Plex is a global streaming and personal media platform operating the free, ad-supported Plex streaming service in nearly every country worldwide alongside the self-hosted Plex Media Server application. The company serves two interlocking consumer segments: mass-market cord-cutters who use Plex's 50,000+ free ad-supported on-demand titles and 1,300+ FAST linear channels (the world's largest FAST line-up), and tech-savvy self-hosters who run their own Plex Media Servers to organize, transcode, and stream personal video, music, and photo libraries across devices. Plex's technology stack combines a proprietary media server with hardware-accelerated transcoding (VideoToolbox, V4L2, Quick Sync), a cross-service universal watchlist and discovery engine that aggregates Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, Prime Video, and Apple TV/iTunes, and FAST/AVOD infrastructure supporting 600+ live channels and HDR-enabled playback via a Technicolor partnership.
The company monetizes through four streams: (1) programmatic CTV advertising across on-demand content and FAST channels via partners including Amagi, TripleLift, and Xumo; (2) the Plex Pass subscription ($6.99/mo, $69.99/yr, or $249.99 lifetime rising to $749.99 on July 1, 2026) unlocking hardware transcoding, mobile activation, DVR, and Plexamp/Plex Dash exclusives; (3) the Remote Watch Pass subscription ($2.99/mo) introduced in 2025 to gate remote streaming of personal media; and (4) transactional movie rentals launched in February 2024 at $3.99 per film. Plexamp also generates affiliate/referral revenue through a TIDAL integration covering 60M+ songs.
Founded in 2009 and headquartered in Los Angeles as a 100% remote global company with 101–250 employees, Plex, Inc. is a privately held Delaware corporation that has raised approximately $120 million across rounds in 2010, 2014, 2021, 2022, and 2024 from investors including Intercap, Kleiner Perkins, and Klass Capital. The company is led by CEO Keith Valory, CPO/co-founder Scott Olechowski, CTO Schuyler Ullman, CFO Jason Eustace, and first CMO Matt DiPietro (appointed January 2025 from Twitch). Recent strategic moves include the June 2026 launch of the Plex Social discovery platform, the 200% Lifetime Pass price increase, and the rollout of Remote Watch Pass to smart TVs and game consoles.
Plex firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Plex
- Legal name
- Plex, Inc.
- Website
- https://plex.tv
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Plex is a global streaming platform combining free ad-supported movies/TV and 1,300+ FAST channels with self-hosted personal media server software, serving 25M+ monthly active consumers and self-hosting enthusiasts worldwide via subscriptions, advertising, and rentals.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Plex industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Free Ad-Supported Streaming (FAST/AVOD)
- NAICS
- Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (516210), Software Publishers (513210)
- SIC
- Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Distribution (7822)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Audio Subscription Bundles & Super-Apps (Music+Podcasts/Audiobooks) (MPAIACAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Live Streaming & Low-Latency OTT Orchestration (LL-HLS, DASH, WebRTC) (MPAHAJAK), DRM, License Delivery & Content Protection (Widevine/FairPlay/PlayReady) (MPAHAJAI)
Keywords
Where Plex is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Los Gatos
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Plex business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Advertising (AVOD / FAST): Ad-supported free streaming across on-demand movies/TV and 1,300+ live FAST channels; revenue from programmatic CTV advertising through partners including Amagi, TripleLift, and Xumo.
- Plex Pass Subscription: Recurring monthly ($6.99), annual ($69.99), and lifetime ($249.99, rising to $749.99 on July 1, 2026) subscriptions unlocking premium personal-media features including hardware transcoding, remote streaming, Plexamp exclusives, mobile activation, and DVR.
- Remote Watch Pass Subscription: New lower-tier subscription introduced April 2025 to gate remote access to personal media after ending free remote streaming; priced $1.99/month or $19.99/year intro, $2.99/month or $29.99/year standard (effective June 1, 2026).
- Movie & TV Rentals: Transactional digital rentals marketplace launched in early 2024, offering premium movie rentals (e.g., starting at $4.99 in Canada, $3.99 in U.S.) through Plex's app and partners.
- Premium / Subscription Hybrid (Freemium): Freemium core: Plex Media Server and free ad-supported streaming are free for all, with premium upgrades to Plex Pass or Remote Watch Pass gating power-user features; tiered pricing drives land-and-expand upgrades.
- TIDAL Music Integration (Plexamp): 30-day free trial and seamless integration of TIDAL's 60M+ high-quality song catalog inside Plexamp; revenue share / affiliate economics with TIDAL.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Plex Media Server - Free tier for local streaming |
| Subscription | Monthly | Remote Watch Pass - Lower-tier remote streaming subscription |
| Subscription | Monthly | Plex Pass Monthly |
| Subscription | Annual | Plex Pass Annual |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Plex Pass Lifetime |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Free Ad-Supported Streaming (AVOD/FAST) |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Movie Rentals (Transactional) |
Go-to-market motion5 records
Distribution channels10 records
Marketing channels8 records
Plex product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Plex operates a free, ad-supported streaming platform delivering more than 50,000 on-demand movies and TV titles plus 1,300+ live FAST channels across nearly every country worldwide, alongside its free Plex Media Server software that lets users organize and stream personal media libraries to any device. Premium tiers (Plex Pass, Remote Watch Pass) unlock hardware-accelerated transcoding, remote streaming, mobile activation, DVR, and the Plexamp audiophile music player; complementary offerings include a movie rental marketplace and cross-service universal search/discovery.
Product overview
Plex operates as a unified streaming and personal-media platform combining a free, cross-device media server application (Plex Media Server) with a portfolio of companion apps (Plexamp, Plex Photos, Plex Dash), subscription tiers (Plex Pass, Remote Watch Pass), and consumer-facing streaming services (Free On Demand movies/TV, Live TV, Rentals, Plex Arcade). The same account unlocks social discovery (Plex Discover, Discover Together with Lists/Discussions/Match Score), a public Developer API, and Plex's own media-player apps that bridge personal libraries with cross-service search across Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, Apple TV/iTunes, and more. Plex Media Server is the core free product, Plex Pass is the premium tier that unlocks hardware transcoding, remote streaming, DVR, downloads, and member-only companion apps, while Remote Watch Pass offers a stripped-down option strictly for remote streaming of personal media.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Plexamp: Custom music player companion app built for audiophiles, integrated with Plex Media Server libraries and TIDAL.
- Plex Dash
- Plex Photos
- Plex Labs
- Plex Discover
- Plex
- CordCutter
Products and services
- Plex Media Server
Quantifiable outcome
- 25+ million global monthly active users
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Plex
Customer profileNamed customers14 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Plex technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration12 records
AI capability5 records
Feature7 records
Plex partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
22 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.
- LionsgateflagshipPlex partnered with Lionsgate in September 2019 to expand its ad-supported video library and continues to license Lionsgate films for its free streaming lineup. Lionsgate is one of the major content partners monetizing Plex's free ad-supported service.
- Warner Bros. DiscoveryflagshipPlex partnered with Warner Bros. in 2019 to launch into free ad-supported streaming, with Warner Bros. movies and TV shows forming a major part of Plex's free ad-supported catalog. Plex has signaled the Warner Bros. deal as the first of many major studio partnerships.
- AMC Networks / CrackleflagshipPlex added AMC and Crackle as content partners for its free ad-supported streaming service. AMC contributes free live TV channels and on-demand titles while Crackle distributes its programming through Plex's platform.
- NBCUniversalcoreIn February 2025, Plex boosted its free streaming lineup with 20 new channels including a slew of NBCUniversal and A+E Network channels, expanding distribution of NBCUniversal content via Plex's FAST channel ecosystem.
- A+E NetworkscorePlex added A+E Network channels as part of its 20 new channels launch in February 2025, expanding Plex's free FAST channel lineup with A+E's content.
- FOX CorporationcoreIn February 2023, Plex teamed up with FOX to launch 4 new free channels on its streaming service, expanding FOX's reach via Plex's CTV distribution.
- T-MobilecoreIn April/May 2024, Plex partnered with T-Mobile to grow its Connected TV reach, leveraging T-Mobile's distribution to expand Plex's CTV audience.
- TechnicolorcoreIn March 2025, Plex announced a partnership with Technicolor to enhance its AVOD services with Advanced HDR format, supporting high dynamic range playback of FAST, AVOD, and live sports content including the Paris Games and UEFA European Football Championship.
- AmagicorePlex joined Amagi's CTV content marketplace in January 2023 as a platform partner; in May 2026 Amagi launched its In-Content Ads platform with Plex among the deploying partners, enabling programmatic advertising overlays/squeezebacks/PiP ads across streaming channels.
- TripleLiftcoreIn November 2025, TripleLift announced a major expansion of its Programmatic Pause Ads solution including new publisher integrations with Xumo and Plex to enhance CTV advertising effectiveness on Plex's platform.
- XumominorXumo and Plex jointly participate in TripleLift's Programmatic Pause Ads expansion (November 2025) and distribute third-party AVOD content like Creator Television (Sabio Holdings).
- ATX TVcorePlex and ATX TV announced a five-city Friday Night Lights roadshow to celebrate the series' 20th anniversary, with screenings, cast reunions, and Q&A sessions at Alamo Drafthouse locations (Dallas, San Antonio, San Francisco, Brooklyn, Kansas City) beginning July 9, 2026. The roadshow is part of NBC's ongoing NBC100 centennial celebration.
- PBS / Capitol Broadcasting / Gray MediaminorTechnicolor's broadcast partners that expanded Advanced HDR distribution alongside the Plex partnership for HDR-enabled AVOD streaming.
- ShortsTVminorPlex added a free global short movie channel from ShortsTV in September 2022, launching Shorts in the U.S. on the Plex platform.
- Rakuten TVminorIn June 2022, Rakuten TV launched on the Plex app, expanding Rakuten's distribution via Plex's free streaming platform.
- Nexstar Digital / The HillminorIn August 2022, Nexstar Digital launched 'The Hill' political-news FAST streaming channel on Plex, expanding Plex's news category with Nexstar's political content.
- Hearst (Very Local)minorIn June 2022, Hearst's Very Local streaming channel launched on Plex, adding Hearst's local-news content to Plex's free streaming lineup.
- Bell MediaminorIn June 2024, Bell Media's 10 FAST channels set to launch on Plex (and Roku Channel), expanding Plex's Canadian content distribution.
- TIDALcorePlexamp integrates with TIDAL to provide seamless access to 60 million high-quality songs, with TIDAL's music catalog beautifully organized inside the user's Plex music library. A 30-day free trial is offered.
- Moniker PartnersminorMoniker Partners is the luxury corporate retreat and incentive travel agency that worked with Plex on a multi-day corporate retreat in France; their work won the 2026 SITE Crystal Award for Excellence in Incentive Travel: Europe.
- Sabio Holdings (Creator Television)minorIn October 2025, Sabio Holdings launched its Creator Television AVOD service on Plex and Xumo Play, expanding the distribution channels for its creator-led streaming network of original content from social media creators.
- Open PR / various media outletsminorPlex's Plex Gear merchandise store (https://plex-gear.myshopify.com/) and various media-outlet partnerships for co-marketing campaigns (CordCutter microsite at cordcutter.plex.tv).
Scale indicators12 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Plex competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Tubi: Fox-owned free ad-supported streaming service and one of the largest FAST/AVOD platforms in the U.S. Tubi is a direct competitor to Plex's free streaming offering, with a comparable library of licensed movies/TV, ad-supported model, and similar target market of cord-cutters seeking free, legal streaming.
- Pluto TV: Paramount-owned FAST/AVOD streaming service offering 700+ free live channels and on-demand movies/TV. Pluto TV is a direct competitor to Plex's FAST channel line-up with similar ad-supported monetization, content licensing approach, and cord-cutter audience.
- The Roku Channel: Roku's owned free ad-supported streaming service with thousands of free movies, TV shows, and live linear channels. The Roku Channel is a direct competitor to Plex with a similar AVOD/FAST model, but with a structural advantage of being pre-installed on Roku's massive installed base of CTV devices.
- Xumo: Free ad-supported streaming service offering 350+ free live channels and on-demand content, owned by Comcast/Charter. Xumo is a direct peer of Plex, distributing many of the same content partners (e.g., Creator Television via Sabio) and integrating with the same programmatic CTV ad platforms (TripleLift, Amagi).
- Jellyfin: Free, open-source personal media server software that lets users self-host and stream their own video, music, and photo libraries. Jellyfin is a direct competitor to Plex Media Server, targeting the same self-hosting power-user segment, but with a community-driven, no-paid-tier model.
- Emby: Personal media server software that organizes, streams, and transcodes user-owned video, music, and photo libraries. Emby is a direct competitor to Plex Media Server, with a freemium subscription model (Emby Premiere), hardware transcoding, and similar self-hosting target audience.
Broad incumbents
- Samsung TV Plus: Samsung's free, ad-supported FAST service pre-installed on millions of Samsung smart TVs globally. Samsung TV Plus is a broad incumbent competing with Plex's FAST line-up, with a structural OEM-distribution advantage and backed by Samsung's hardware ecosystem.
- Vizio WatchFree+: Vizio's free ad-supported streaming and FAST channel service integrated into Vizio Smart TVs. WatchFree+ competes with Plex's FAST offering on the same CTV surface and benefits from Vizio's device installed base, recently expanded via Walmart acquisition of Vizio.
Others
- JustWatch: Cross-service streaming search engine and universal watchlist that aggregates content from Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, Hulu, and other SVODs. JustWatch is a direct competitor to Plex Discover/Universal Watchlist in the cross-service discovery category, though it lacks Plex's FAST, personal media server, and social layers.
- Reelgood: Cross-service streaming aggregator and universal watchlist for movies and TV across SVODs and AVODs. Reelgood competes with Plex Discover in the universal-search and watchlist category, offering a focused aggregator experience but without Plex's FAST channels or personal media server.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Plex social profiles
Digital presencePlex financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Plex leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Plex subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Plex funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors3 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Plex M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Plex
What does Plex do?
Plex operates a free, ad-supported streaming platform delivering more than 50,000 on-demand movies and TV titles plus 1,300+ live FAST channels across nearly every country worldwide, alongside its free Plex Media Server software that lets users organize and stream personal media libraries to any device. Premium tiers (Plex Pass, Remote Watch Pass) unlock hardware-accelerated transcoding, remote streaming, mobile activation, DVR, and the Plexamp audiophile music player; complementary offerings include a movie rental marketplace and cross-service universal search/discovery.
Is Plex a public or private company?
Plex is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Plex founded?
Plex was founded in 2009. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Plex based?
Plex is headquartered in Los Gatos, United States, in the North America region.
How does Plex make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Advertising (AVOD / FAST) is the primary driver. The others are plex Pass Subscription, remote Watch Pass Subscription, movie & TV Rentals, premium / Subscription Hybrid (Freemium) and TIDAL Music Integration (Plexamp).
Who are Plex's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Tubi, Pluto TV, The Roku Channel, Xumo, Jellyfin and Emby. Broad incumbents are Samsung TV Plus and Vizio WatchFree+. Others are JustWatch and Reelgood.
Does Plex have an API?
Yes. Plex offers a public Plex Media Server API for developers to integrate with and build on top of the Plex platform. Documentation is published at developer.plex.tv and includes the API surface for media server interaction. Developer documentation is at developer.plex.tv.
What industry is Plex in?
Plex's product category is Free Ad-Supported Streaming (FAST/AVOD). Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAIACAC, Audio Subscription Bundles & Super-Apps (Music+Podcasts/Audiobooks), with a secondary code of MPAHAJAK, Live Streaming & Low-Latency OTT Orchestration (LL-HLS, DASH, WebRTC). Its NAICS code is 516210 and its SIC code is 7822.