A lightweight macOS app that turns your Mac into a Chromecast/AirPlay (airplay is still in development and not available yet) streaming server for your local video library. Pick a video file, and Mango serves it (transcoding on the fly when needed) to a browser-based control center you can cast from to any Chromecast device on your network.
If you just want to cast a movie file from your Mac to a Chromecast without running a full media server platform, Mango is a lightweight alternative to Plex and Jellyfin:
- Zero setup — no Docker containers, no library scans, no metadata agents to configure. Download it, pick a file, and cast it.
- Native TV playback — Mango casts straight into Chromecast's own built-in default player, so your TV shows a standard, native Cast experience instead of a custom branded receiver app.
- Multiple Audio and Subtitle track support — Mango supports track selection and reliably plays audio/subs from video container.
- Lightweight and fast — a small native C++ engine instead of the heavier server processes behind Plex and Jellyfin, so it starts instantly and stays out of the way.
- Built-in Chromecast troubleshooting — a live-checking diagnostic panel for the most common casting problems (no Cast device found, unsupported browser, local network permissions), which neither Plex nor Jellyfin surfaces as directly.
- A real native macOS app — not a self-hosted server you have to babysit. Mac App Store distribution with automatic updates is coming soon; for now, grab it from Releases below.
Mango isn't trying to replace everything Plex or Jellyfin offer. Mango is for casting a video file to your TV as simply and reliably as possible. It is a lightweight alternative for anyone who doesn't need a full media server just to watch one movie.
Grab the latest build from the Releases page, unzip it, and drag Mango Streaming Server.app to your Applications folder.
This build isn't notarized by Apple, so macOS Gatekeeper will warn that it's from an "unidentified developer" the first time you open it. This is expected — pick one of the following:
- Right-click (or Control-click) the app → Open → confirm Open in the dialog.
- Or open System Settings → Privacy & Security, scroll down, and click Open Anyway next to the Mango Streaming Server entry.
- Or, in Terminal:
xattr -cr "/Applications/Mango Streaming Server.app"
You only need to do this once.
- macOS 15.7 or later
- A Chromecast (or other Google Cast-compatible) device on the same Wi-Fi network as your Mac
- Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge for casting — some Chromium-based browsers (Brave, plain Chromium builds) omit real Google Cast support
- Launch Mango Streaming Server — it starts the local server automatically.
- Click + Add Movie in the web UI (opened via the app, or the address shown in the app window) and pick a video file. Mango reads its media info and adds it to your library.
- Select a movie, choose audio/subtitle tracks, and hit Play to cast it to your TV.
- If something doesn't work, click Video not working? in the web UI for a built-in troubleshooting checklist (it live-checks a few of the most common causes for you).
The native app window also shows the server's local and network addresses (with one-click copy) and a shortcut to launch a Chromium-based browser straight to the control center.
Mango bundles ffmpeg/ffprobe binaries built under the LGPL license (no GPL-only components
enabled). See the FFmpeg project for details.