Icecast + Liquidsoap on a VPS (2026): 24/7 Radio Streaming

Build a 24/7 radio stream with lightweight tools.
Table of Contents
- Why Icecast + Liquidsoap
- VPS specs
- Install overview
- Auto-restart tips
- Monitoring
- Audio pipeline basics
- Related guides
1. Why Icecast + Liquidsoap
Simple, robust, and perfect for lo-fi music.
2. VPS specs
Small CPU and RAM; stable bandwidth.
3. Install overview
Use packages or Docker; configure mounts and sources. Keep source bitrates modest (e.g., 128–192 kbps AAC), and set proper mount auth. Place Icecast behind a reverse proxy for HTTPS.
4. Auto-restart tips
Use systemd or a watchdog script. For simple loops, a while-loop script pairs well with sensible sleep/retry delays.
5. Monitoring
Track uptime and listener counts. Use Uptime Kuma for endpoint checks and Prometheus exporters for metrics.
6. Audio pipeline basics
Normalize loudness to keep stable listening levels, and avoid clipping. Keep crossfades short to reduce artifacts and keep CPU usage low.
7. Related guides
- Streaming VPS
- Uptime Kuma on a VPS
- FFmpeg 24/7 Basics
- Hosting options: /vps-hosting
See /streaming for VPS plans.
