What is a good free tool for live streaming community events?
In short: Restream. It has a free option that allows you to stream an event on two platforms live (Youtube and Linkedin for example) and have a very polished output. For more 1:1 community interactions Zoom is a nice alternative.
For the Swiss Service Design Week 2025 and 2026 we have used Restream for running the live remote events.
The tool has a free tier that is very generous if you are okay to have the Restream logo on the top right of your screen and if you don't need to stream your event to more than two platforms.
I choose Restream over Zoom when I want the events to feel more professional in the look, and when the focus is not in the 1:1 interaction between community members.
Restream has a much more polished layout where on the fly you can change the layout. Which is really nice to create rhythm. And if you stream the live event to Youtube, another nice perk is that you have the event fully recorded and published on Youtube right after the event ends. No need to download the file, edit it, and upload to Youtube. Plus with the live layout change, it feels already very polished.
This article was written on a refurbished Remarkable II tablet with a type folio cover. The illustration was made drawn by hand on the same tablet.If you are curious you can download the original note below.
