# Jitsi vs BigBlueButton

> BigBlueButton is built for online teaching: presentations, a shared whiteboard, polls, breakout rooms and deep LMS integration with Moodle and others, at the cost of much larger servers and a stricter install. Jitsi Meet is a lighter, general-purpose meeting app that runs on modest servers and embeds anywhere. Choose BigBlueButton for structured classes, Jitsi for everything else.

Source: https://jitsi.help/compare/jitsi-vs-bigbluebutton/
Updated: September 26, 2026
Publisher: Jitsi Help (https://jitsi.help/)

Both are open source and self-hostable. They were designed for different rooms: BigBlueButton for a classroom, Jitsi for a meeting.

## At a glance

| | Jitsi Meet | BigBlueButton |
|---|---|---|
| Designed for | Meetings of all kinds | Online classes |
| Presentation and whiteboard | Screen share, basic whiteboard | Upload slides, rich whiteboard, annotation |
| Polls, breakout rooms | Yes | Yes, classroom oriented |
| LMS integration | Plugins, e.g. Moodle | Deep integration with major LMSs |
| Recording | Jibri, MP4 video | Built-in, web playback format |
| Minimum server | 2 vCPU, 4 GB | Much larger dedicated server |
| Install | Docker or Debian packages on many distros | Specific Ubuntu version, dedicated host |
| Embedding in other apps | Easy (IFrame API, JWT) | Via API and front ends like Greenlight |

## Choose BigBlueButton when

- You run structured courses with slides, whiteboard work and polls.
- Your school already uses an LMS and wants attendance and recordings inside it.
- You can dedicate a large server to it.

## Choose Jitsi when

- Meetings are conversations: team calls, tutoring, consultations, interviews.
- You want to embed video into your own product or website.
- You want a lighter server bill and a simpler install.
- Participants join from anywhere with just a link.

## Recording differences

BigBlueButton records into its own playback format that shows slides, chat and video together in a browser player. Jitsi's Jibri records an MP4 of what a participant would see, which is easy to share, edit or upload anywhere. See [recording with Jibri](/guides/jitsi-recording-jibri/).

## Our view

For education platforms that are really about classes, BigBlueButton earns its weight. For almost every other use, Jitsi is quicker to run and cheaper to host. We specialize in Jitsi: [one-click hosting](/jitsi-hosting/) or [hands-on help](/services/).

## Frequently asked questions

### Is BigBlueButton better than Jitsi for teaching?

For structured classes with slides, whiteboard annotation, polls and grades flowing back to an LMS, yes. For tutoring, small classes and office hours, Jitsi is simpler, lighter and works well, and it also integrates with Moodle through plugins.

### Which needs a bigger server, Jitsi or BigBlueButton?

BigBlueButton. Its documentation calls for substantially larger dedicated servers for production, while a Jitsi server for small groups runs on 2 vCPU and 4 GB of RAM.


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Jitsi Help is an independent service. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by 8x8, Inc. or the Jitsi project. Jitsi and Jitsi Meet are trademarks of 8x8, Inc., used here only to describe the software we host and support.