What Is Scrypted?
Scrypted is a video integration platform that takes streams from cameras and makes them appear in other smart-home systems. The documentation lists HomeKit (including HomeKit Secure Video), Google Home, Alexa and Home Assistant as targets; the platform is built from plugins, one per camera brand or feature. The maker is Vysor, Inc., the company named in the documentation’s privacy policy.
Scrypted NVR is a paid plugin on top of it. It records 24/7 and adds smart detections, face recognition, licence plate recognition, natural-language search of the recording history and AI Summaries, with iOS, Android, desktop and browser apps. The separate LLM plugin supplies the language model for the summaries.
Get It
Scrypted installs as a desktop app on Mac and Windows, or as a server on Linux, Proxmox VE, Unraid and NAS systems, with iOS and Android apps for viewing.
Option | How to get it |
|---|---|
| Mac and Windows | Desktop app installers on GitHub Releases: .dmg for Apple Silicon and Intel Macs, .exe for Windows; the documentation says the desktop app requires a paid licence |
| iPhone and iPad | Scrypted on the App Store |
| Android | Scrypted on Google Play |
| Linux | Docker Compose with host networking, or the desktop app as a .deb package, which the documentation recommends only as a viewer for Scrypted NVR |
| Proxmox VE, Unraid, NAS | Proxmox VE is the recommended host for dedicated Intel or AMD servers; Unraid, ReadyNAS, Synology and QNAP use Docker, per the installation guide |
| Browser | nvr.scrypted.app after installing the Scrypted Cloud plugin, or the browser’s install-as-app option |
| Website | scrypted.app |
| Documentation | docs.scrypted.app |
| Privacy policy | Scrypted Privacy Policy, last updated on 22 February 2024 according to the page |
| Source code | github.com/koush/scrypted; licensing varies by directory |
Version reviewed: desktop app 0.147.1, released on 19 September 2026; the server repository’s latest release tag is 0.147.0 from 13 September 2026. Docker Desktop on Mac or Windows does not work with Scrypted because host networking is unavailable there, per the documentation.
Requirements
For Scrypted NVR the documentation recommends a 9th-generation Intel CPU on Windows, a 6th-generation one on Linux or Apple Silicon on macOS, plus a drive of at least 1 TB.
Server speed
- What the sources say:
- A rough chart lists an Intel N100 for 12 cameras, a Dell Wyse 5070 for 5, and a Mac mini with 16 GB or an Intel Core Ultra 125H for 20 or more
Storage
- What the sources say:
- At least 1 TB; surveillance drives are recommended, flash drives and SD cards should not be used because of the write volume
Cameras
- What the sources say:
- Local RTSP cameras with ONVIF and H.264 are officially supported; Ring, Google/Nest, Arlo, Wyze, custom firmware such as Thingino and battery cameras are not
Local LLM
- What the sources say:
- Apple Silicon Mac with 16 GB, NVIDIA or AMD GPU with 12 GB, or AMD AI MAX; the listed models need from 5 GB (Qwen3.5-4B) to 26 GB (Qwen3.5-35B-A3B)
Detection hardware
- What the sources say:
- CPU, GPU, Apple Neural Engine, Intel NPU or Coral accelerator
These figures come from the NVR hardware guide and the LLM page; a separate minimum for the free platform without the NVR was not checked.
How to Get Started
The steps follow the documentation; PromptQuorum has not run them.
- 1Install Scrypted
Why it matters: Use the desktop app on Mac or Windows, or Docker, Proxmox VE or Unraid on a server, then open the management console at https://localhost:10443 and accept the certificate warning. - 2Add and validate your cameras
Why it matters: Add each camera as described in the camera setup pages; the documentation advises verifying cameras in the free version before starting an NVR trial. - 3Connect your smart-home platform
Why it matters: Install the HomeKit, Google Home, Alexa or Home Assistant plugin and add the cameras there. - 4Optional: add the NVR and an LLM
Why it matters: Install the Scrypted NVR plugin and sign in with the billing-portal account; for AI Summaries, install the LLM plugin and pick a cloud key or a local model.
Features Confirmed by the Sources
Every item below comes from the website or the documentation; none has been tested here.
- Platforms. HomeKit with HomeKit Secure Video, Google Home (not on iOS), Alexa and Home Assistant.
- Scrypted NVR. 24/7 recording, timeline and event views, face recognition, licence plate recognition, rich notifications and adaptive bitrate streaming.
- AI Summaries and AI Search. Short natural-language descriptions of detections sent as push notifications, and natural-language search across all cameras’ history.
- LLM plugin. ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini with your own API key, or local models hosted through llama.cpp, including Qwen3.5 and Gemma 4 variants; AI Summaries can use either route.
- Hardware-accelerated detection. Object detection plugins run on CPU, GPU, Apple Neural Engine, Intel NPU or Coral, and Cluster Mode can offload models to a GPU on another machine.
Data Flow and Privacy
Detection and recording run on your own server, but AI Summaries stay in the house only if you choose a local model. The documentation says local models let AI Summaries run entirely on-premises without sending images to the cloud; with a cloud provider, the images go to that provider under its own policy.
Viewing from outside your network uses the Scrypted Cloud plugin and a Scrypted Cloud login. The documentation’s privacy policy names Vysor, Inc. as the company; PromptQuorum has not analysed what the cloud service stores.
📌Note: These are the maker’s statements, not audit results. PromptQuorum has not inspected network traffic, the cloud service or the code.
Who Should Use It
- HomeKit and Google Home users with local RTSP or ONVIF cameras who want those streams in their home app.
- Home Assistant users who want camera streams with smart detections in their setup.
- Owners of a Mac mini, Proxmox box or NAS who want a self-hosted NVR with optional local AI summaries.
What We Could Not Verify
- Prices. The documentation gives no amount for the NVR subscription or the desktop licence and the billing portal needs a login, so no price is stated here.
- Licensing. The repository’s LICENSE file says licensing varies by directory and some plugins may need GPL compliance; the server package declares ISC, and the licence of each plugin and of the NVR was not checked.
- Performance. Camera counts per machine, detection accuracy and summary quality are the maker’s figures and were not measured.
- Cloud data handling. What Scrypted Cloud stores for remote viewing was not analysed.
- Local-model quality. Whether the listed local models write useful event summaries for your cameras is untested.
Competitors and Alternatives
Home Assistant Assist
- Platforms:
- Linux, web, iOS, Android
- Price / license:
- Free / Apache-2.0
- Key difference:
- Voice assistant inside Home Assistant, not a camera platform
Articles about Home Assistant Assist (1)
- Home Assistant Assist Review: Local Voice Control and LLM AgentsUpdated October 24, 2026
No other camera or NVR app has a PromptQuorum review yet. Scrypted lists Home Assistant as a target platform, so the two are not strict rivals. Confirm each app’s current price, license and platforms on its own listing before choosing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I get a refund for Scrypted NVR?
No. The purchase policy says all sales are final and cancelled subscriptions end on the next renewal date without proration; a payment reminder is emailed one week before billing.
Does Scrypted work with Ollama?
The documentation says Ollama and LM Studio do not provide fully compliant OpenAI endpoints and may not work correctly. It prefers the LLM plugin’s own llama.cpp and also recommends vLLM and SGLang.
Can Scrypted run on a Raspberry Pi?
The hardware guide says Raspberry Pi 4 and low-performance NAS devices are not recommended for Scrypted NVR; it gives no verdict for the platform without the NVR.
Verdict
Scrypted is an actively developed way to get local IP cameras into HomeKit, Google Home, Alexa or Home Assistant, with a paid NVR and optional local LLM summaries on top. Against that, it is a video platform rather than a local LLM app, the NVR and desktop app cost money at undisclosed prices, repository licensing varies by directory and PromptQuorum has not tested any of it. It suits people with local RTSP or ONVIF cameras who accept a paid NVR; for a pure local chat setup it is the wrong tool.
Sources
- Scrypted website — product overview and platform list, checked 1 November 2026.
- Scrypted documentation — installation, desktop app, LLM plugin, NVR features, AI Summaries, apps and hardware guide, checked 1 November 2026.
- Scrypted Privacy Policy — company name and data-protection terms, checked 1 November 2026.
- Scrypted on GitHub — LICENSE file, package metadata and commit history, checked 1 November 2026.
- Scrypted desktop app releases — version 0.147.1 of 19 September 2026 and its file list, checked 1 November 2026.
- Scrypted on the App Store — seller name and listing, checked 1 November 2026.