Zoom / Teams / Google Meet → Jitsi Meet
No account needed. No download — runs in your browser. Free forever. End-to-end encryption available. France is building sovereign videoconferencing on the same technology.
Try Jitsi in your browser
2 minutesOpen your browser and go to meet.jit.si. Type a meeting name — any name works (use something unique, not "test"). Click "Start meeting". Allow camera and microphone access when prompted. That is it. You are in a video call. No account, no download, no signup. Share the link with anyone to join.
Your camera feed appears in the browser. The meeting URL is in the address bar, ready to share.
Start a test call with someone
3 minutesSend the meeting link to a friend or family member via Signal, email, or any messenger. They click the link and join directly in their browser — no app download needed. Test audio quality: can you hear each other clearly? Test video: is the image smooth? Try screen sharing by clicking the share screen button at the bottom. This works exactly like Zoom.
Both participants see and hear each other. Screen sharing works. The experience feels familiar.
Configure your settings
3 minutesClick the gear icon (bottom left) to open settings. Set your display name — this shows for other participants. Choose your preferred camera and microphone if you have multiple. Enable background blur or choose a virtual background under the video settings. Set audio to start muted by default for group calls — less chaos when joining.
Your name appears in the participant list. Background blur or virtual background is active. Audio settings are configured.
Enable end-to-end encryption
1 minuteIn the meeting, click the security shield icon (bottom toolbar). Toggle on "End-to-end encryption". When enabled, the call is encrypted between participants — the Jitsi server cannot see or hear the content. Note: end-to-end encryption disables some features like recording and phone dial-in. For sensitive conversations, enable it. For casual calls, standard encryption is already strong.
A shield icon shows in the meeting with "End-to-end encryption is on". Each participant sees a verification emoji string.
Use Jitsi for your next real meeting
2 minutesNext time you would normally create a Zoom, Teams, or Google Meet meeting, go to meet.jit.si instead. Type a descriptive meeting name and send the link. For group calls up to 10-15 people, Jitsi works very well. For larger meetings or webinars (50+ people), Zoom still has an edge with breakout rooms and webinar controls. Use the right tool for the job.
Your meeting runs smoothly. Participants join without needing to install anything or create accounts.
Troubleshooting
- Audio or video quality is poor
- Jitsi quality depends on your internet connection. Close other tabs and streaming services during the call. Use a wired connection if possible. On mobile, the Jitsi Meet app (available on App Store and Google Play) often performs better than the browser. Lower your video quality in settings if bandwidth is limited.
- Group calls with many people lag
- Jitsi works best with up to 10-15 participants. For larger groups, quality can degrade. Ask participants to turn off video when not speaking. For meetings with 20+ people, consider using the tile view and asking non-speakers to mute. For large webinars (50+), Zoom still has an advantage.
- Someone cannot join the meeting
- Jitsi works best in Chrome, Brave, and Firefox. Safari has limited support — if someone on an iPhone or Mac has trouble, ask them to download the free Jitsi Meet app from the App Store. Corporate firewalls sometimes block Jitsi — if this happens at work, the person may need to use their phone on mobile data instead.
- No breakout rooms or recording
- Jitsi does not have Zoom-style breakout rooms. For workshops that need them, Zoom is still the better tool. Recording is available on some Jitsi instances (including meet.jit.si) via the "Start recording" button, but it requires a Dropbox connection. For important recordings, use a local screen recorder instead.