Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

AudioRelay VS LibrePods

Compare AudioRelay VS LibrePods and see what are their differences

AudioRelay logo AudioRelay

Listen to your PC audio, use your phone as a mic or stream audio from your phone

LibrePods logo LibrePods

AirPods liberated from Apple's ecosystem. Contribute to kavishdevar/librepods development by creating an account on GitHub.
  • AudioRelay Landing page
    Landing page //
    2020-09-20

PC audio to Android
Turn your Android device as a wireless speaker for your computer.
Easily receive all your PC audio over Wi-Fi or USB.
Listen wirelessly to music, movies, or games on your Android device with low delay.

Android mic to PC
Use your phone as a microphone for your PC, or simply listen to your phone's mic.

Android audio to another device
Listen to your phone's audio on your PC, or share your audio with another Android device.
This feature requires Android 10.

Visit https://audiorelay.net to install AudioRelay for Windows, Linux, or Mac.

Usage examples
- Stream audio over the network - Listen to your PC and phone audio at the same time - Audio monitoring - Replace a mic or a speaker - Send the audio of your computer to a distant speaker via your phone - Play music on multiple devices (Premium)

Features
- Easy setup - Low latency on Wi-Fi or USB - Uses audio compression to reduce network traffic (https://opus-codec.org/) - Has multiple buffer settings - Remotely control your device's volume from your PC - Customize the name of your devices - Available in multiple languages (thanks to the contributors at https://translations.audiorelay.net)

Premium
- Wireless audio listening on multiple devices - Play and pause playback directly from the notification - Customize the buffer settings - Choose the audio quality - Remove microphone time limits - Remove the ads - Future premium features

  • LibrePods Landing page
    Landing page //
    2026-05-15

AudioRelay

$ Details
freemium
Platforms
Windows Android Linux Mac OSX

LibrePods

Website
github.com
$ Details
-
Platforms
-

AudioRelay features and specs

  • Multi client
  • No delay
  • USB

LibrePods features and specs

  • Open Source & Free
    LibrePods is a fully open-source project licensed under GPL-3.0, allowing anyone to use, modify, and contribute to it without any cost. This means no ads, no tracking, and full transparency in how the app works.
  • AirPods Features on Android
    LibrePods brings Apple AirPods features to Android devices that are normally exclusive to iOS, including Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) controls, Transparency mode, Adaptive Audio, Conversational Awareness, ear detection, and battery level reporting.
  • Accessibility Service Integration
    The app integrates with Android's accessibility services to provide features like automatic media pause on ear removal and conversational awareness, mimicking the seamless experience Apple provides on iOS devices.
  • Detailed Battery Information
    LibrePods provides granular battery level information for each individual AirPod (left and right) as well as the charging case, displayed through persistent notifications and a dedicated UI, which stock Android does not natively support for AirPods.
  • Active Development & Community
    The project is actively maintained with ongoing development, feature additions, and community contributions. It supports multiple AirPods models including AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4, with new features being added over time.

Possible disadvantages of LibrePods

  • Limited Device Compatibility
    LibrePods primarily supports AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 with ANC. Support for older or other AirPods models may be limited or incomplete, meaning not all AirPods users can benefit from the full feature set.
  • Requires Accessibility Permissions
    The app requires broad accessibility service permissions to function properly, which can be a security concern for some users as these permissions grant significant access to device interactions and data.
  • Not on Google Play Store
    LibrePods is not available on the Google Play Store and must be installed via sideloading APKs or building from source, which makes installation and updates less convenient for average users and may raise security concerns.
  • Potential Stability Issues
    As a community-driven open-source project that relies on reverse-engineered Bluetooth protocols, users may encounter bugs, crashes, or inconsistent behavior. The app may break with AirPods firmware updates since Apple does not officially support third-party integrations.
  • Battery Drain Concerns
    Running persistent Bluetooth monitoring services, accessibility services, and notification listeners in the background can contribute to increased battery consumption on the Android device compared to not using the app.

Analysis of LibrePods

Overall verdict

  • LibrePods is a solid open-source project that brings AirPods features like battery status, noise control modes, and ear detection to Android devices, offering a privacy-respecting alternative to Apple's ecosystem lock-in.

Why this product is good

  • It's free and open-source, allowing full transparency and community contributions
  • Enables AirPods features on Android that are normally exclusive to Apple devices
  • Respects user privacy by avoiding proprietary tracking or telemetry
  • Actively developed with community support on GitHub
  • Fills a genuine gap for users who own AirPods but use Android phones

Recommended for

  • Android users who own Apple AirPods and want fuller functionality
  • Privacy-conscious users seeking open-source alternatives
  • Tech enthusiasts and tinkerers comfortable with GitHub projects
  • People who want features like battery monitoring and noise control outside Apple's ecosystem

AudioRelay videos

How to Use your Smartphone as a Speaker (Wireless and USB)

LibrePods videos

No LibrePods videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to AudioRelay and LibrePods)
Music Streaming
100 100%
0% 0
iPhone
0 0%
100% 100
Audio
100 100%
0% 0
Music
77 77%
23% 23

User comments

Share your experience with using AudioRelay and LibrePods. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, AudioRelay seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 17 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

AudioRelay mentions (17)

  • Phone mix?
    Nice tip, https://audiorelay.net also works nicely. Streaming the ASIO driver is a bit fiddly, but can be done with Jack 2 audio connection kit. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Wireless Dongle for 3.5mm Headset (see attached pic) is there something like that? cant find anything online. Dont really know what to search for.
    I also had the same conundrum as you but I didn't want to spend money so I used this: https://audiorelay.net/. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Stream my PC audio through my notebook speakers
    I see a lot of software that can stream a desktop audio through a phone, like Soundwire or Audiorelay, but I'm looking for something to use my notebook speakers instead and I can't seem to find one. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Audio layout for duel pc steaming (info in comments)
    2- Install AudioRelay software on both computers. This is an amazing software and simple as it can be. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Anyway to stream Real-Time audio from my Windows PC to my phone
    When I was on android I used this https://audiorelay.net/, but havent found any replacement good enough. Airfoil hasnt been updated in 3 years and has multiple seconds of delay. Source: almost 4 years ago
View more

LibrePods mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of LibrePods yet. Tracking of LibrePods recommendations started around May 2026.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing AudioRelay and LibrePods, you can also consider the following products

SoundWire - SoundWire does audio mirroring (audio cast). You can use any music player on your PC or laptop like Spotify, YouTube, or iTunes and stream low-latency live sound over WiFi directly to your Android device.

CAPod - A companion app for AirPods on Android.

Airfoil - This software is from the Rogue Amoeba company, built to run on Mac and Windows platforms. Itโ€™s an audio-based software that allows the computers sound to play over a network device. Read more about Airfoil.

AirPodsDesktop - AirPods desktop user experience enhancement program, for Windows and Linux (Linux support is WIP)

Stream What You Hear - Stream What You Hear.

MagicPods - Add little magic to your Airpods