The best self-hosted game streaming setups in 2026
A fair roundup of self-hosted game streaming in 2026 — Sunshine/Moonlight, Apollo/Artemis, Parsec, Steam Link, and punktfunk — with the best pick for each use case.
Want to play your PC games on any device, on your own hardware, with no monthly subscription? Self-hosted game streaming is in great shape in 2026. Here's a fair roundup of the main options and which one fits which use case.
The contenders
Sunshine + Moonlight
The open-source default: the Sunshine host plus Moonlight clients everywhere. Mature, free, and backed by a huge community. The friction points are virtual displays on Linux and HDR quirks — covered in punktfunk vs Sunshine + Moonlight.
Apollo / Artemis
A Sunshine fork that adds a built-in virtual display and a few quality-of-life tweaks. It's the closest thing to first-class virtual displays within the Sunshine family.
Parsec
Polished and low-latency, but proprietary and freemium. Excellent UX, though it's closed source, Linux-host support is limited, and there are privacy and cost trade-offs.
Steam Link / Steam Remote Play
Smooth and free, but tied to Steam — non-Steam launchers and arbitrary hosts are second-class citizens.
punktfunk
A ground-up Rust stack: on-demand virtual displays, native clients per platform, native 10-bit HDR, a QUIC + FEC transport, and arbitrary resolutions — while staying GameStream-compatible so stock Moonlight still works.
Best by use case
Best for a Linux or headless host
punktfunk (native virtual displays, no EDID hacks — see virtual displays on Linux) or Apollo (built-in virtual display).
Best for ultrawide and 32:9
punktfunk — arbitrary resolutions validated up to 5120×1440 at 240 fps.
Best for the Apple ecosystem
punktfunk's native Swift clients for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and the often-underserved Apple TV.
Best for the Steam Deck
punktfunk via a native Decky plugin, or Moonlight installed as a non-Steam game.
Best for the widest client support
Sunshine + Moonlight — the broadest client reach and the most battle-tested stack.
How to choose
The through-line for all of these is the same: your own hardware, your own library, and no subscription. If you're on Linux or headless, gaming ultrawide, in the Apple ecosystem, or on a Steam Deck, punktfunk is built to remove the friction. If you want the most proven option with the widest client list, reach for Sunshine + Moonlight.