Everyone likes something for free, right? And digital signage is one of those tools that seems like it should be so simple that you almost don’t need to pay for it.

And after all, there are plenty of options for free digital signage out there. Why would you choose a monthly or annual digital signage package if you can get what you need for free?

There are undoubtedly some good options for free digital signage out there. But whether free digital signage is worth it to you and your business will depend on a multitude of factors, which we’ll take a look at here.

What is digital signage for?

Screens to display information are nothing new. But digital signage and the software that is used to manage it has come a long way in recent years. While TV screens to display ads or simple information have been used in locations such as airports, hospital waiting rooms and retail locations - increasingly the technology is being adopted by workplaces beyond the typical target market.

Some of the reasons for this are due to the expanded integrations with software and the resulting use cases, such as:

• Displaying data dashboards
• Highlighting important communications and messages
• Social media walls and engagement
• Live streaming video such as webinars or presentations
• Dynamic promotional content
• News feeds
• Currency or stock price feeds
• Touchscreen content such as catalog interaction

Some other popular reasons for the rise of digital signage is the highly visible nature as well as the ease of updating.

In short, once you have your screens in place, you can quickly and easily send your content to those screens, saving you time and hassle with printing costs.

So what about those free options?

What do you get with free digital signage?

With most free digital signage solutions, what you’re actually getting is a reduced version of a premium package - or freemium. The theory being that you’re buying into their ecosystem so that as and when you decide to go for a paid package it’s a simple process to go from free to paid.

As such the free digital signage package usually means:

• Basic features
• One to three screens only 
• Limited support
• Limited integrations 
• Sometimes, a watermark on your display
• Time or viewer limitations

However there are also several fully free digital signage packages, often open source or relatively basic. These might not offer the full shebang in terms of features, or they might require technical knowhow to get signage setup and done.

This might be perfectly adequate for your business if you run a single location and you don’t expect to be expanding anytime soon. For example, a quick serve restaurant or coffee shop will likely be happy to sign up for a one screen digital signage package to display their menu for free.

Or, a small real estate agent might be perfectly happy to display their current properties in their window using a three screen limited digital signage package.

What do you need to run free digital signage?

To run any digital signage network, you’ll need:

• A screen (most likely a TV screen)
• A media player such as a Fire Stick or Chromecast - or sometimes just a USB stick
• Digital signage software
• And, usually, access to the local wifi network

With consumer grade smart TVs available for under $200, the barrier to entry for digital signage is very low, especially if you only need to do something simple such as display a welcome message or a menu board.

Read more: How to set up digital signage?

Digital signage software is the component that makes the whole system run, allowing users to upload content, connect devices, schedule and control content and add widgets and elements such as news or weather.

Cloud based digital signage software should allow you to control and update your screens from anywhere. For example, you might have a screen in your retail shop, but you can update the display from your smartphone app from home or by the pool on vacation.

A more basic form of digital signage software requires you to upload the content to a USB stick and then physically connect it to your display. While this is often the cheap digital signage option (or even free), it can quickly become tiresome if you need to update content regularly, or manage multiple devices. 

So what about organizations who are looking at potential expansion or growth in the future? 

Scaling up your digital displays

Many businesses are designed to grow and scale. So while you might run one retail store, one cafe or one logistics warehouse for now, you might have expansion in your business plan. What then?

Many of these free digital signage solutions do expect to scale with you, and so they do offer premium features once you start paying for their pro features. This will probably include:

• Professional support teams
• Security features and data encryption
• Better media player support
• Access to app integration
• Content templates
• No watermark

And because you’ve already been using their software, the theory goes that you can easily adjust from the free tier to the professional tier without too many additional teething problems. Which is, to be honest, usually true.

However once businesses start to reach a certain size, these free or freemium digital signage packages often start to show their limitations. In fact, many of the clients who come to ScreenCloud from a freemium software solution have usually been prompted to move by the poor experience once they reach a certain demand level.

And if you're looking for a Yodeck alternative, you might be looking for a tool that can handle your ambitious plans.

Whether it’s remote access, adding multiple users to manage the content, or simply the usability of the dashboard, there is a reason why people move to premium digital signage packages. And while ScreenCloud doesn’t offer a free package (we do offer a 14 day free trial though), it’s the premium experience and features that justify the price tag for most.

But, if you’re reading an article about free digital signage, chances are you’re looking for a genuinely free package. And there are plenty.

Free digital signage software

This is by no means an exhaustive list of free digital signage software providers, but we do think this is a good starting point into the world of digital signage.

AbleSign.tv

Although it’s a simple software solution, this is a 100% free digital signage package. In fact, they don’t even have a pricing page, so there is definitely no upsell involved (at the moment anyway). Simply download the app and you can connect to unlimited smart enabled screens - totally for free!

You’ll be able to schedule and update your content, as well as upload 4k video, which is often restricted on free digital signage. AbleSign isn’t fully cloud based though, as you’ll need to connect to your media controller to update the content periodically. But, for a free display controller, this might be one of the better options.

OpenSignage.com

A great option for free or cheap digital signage, Opensignage can be downloaded and installed on your choice of media player. Their web based CMS makes it easy to connect and update your signage content, with scheduling and other features you’d expect on premium digital signage. 

While Opensignage is free, many of the useful features need unlocking with paid credits or a subscription. However you can easily create custom screens with a news ticker or time/date widget for free.

Display Monkey

This fully free and open source digital signage software is only available through GitHub, so you do need some coding chops to use it. While this does mean you can create whatever you want and make your digital signage truly custom, the downside is that there is no support.

However if you have some coding experience and you just want to make a simple streaming signage display for free, this might be your best option.

Splash-Tiles.com

This digital signage tool offers some great app integrations such as news feeds, drag and drop display editing and some nifty customization options. The dashboard is a little clunky and dated looking, but perfectly usable. 

With a totally free for life plan, Splash Tiles is a good option for those who just need either simple or very affordable digital signage. They offer a five screen plan for just $25 per year, which although not free, is probably one of the lowest annual packages on the market.

The catch with the totally free package is you’re limited to 200 views per month, which might restrict many. Even the five screen plan limits you to 200 views across those screens, for $25 per month. You’ll need to pay the $75 per year plan for unlimited views across five screens, with five additional screens costing an extra $50 per year.

PyroSign.com

If you’re looking for a full featured free digital signage package, then Pyrosign is a nice solution. Their single screen option is free forever, but you’re limited to 40MB of uploadable data with only community support. However, their paid tier is also very reasonable, with pro packages starting from $84 per year per screen.

As a freemium digital signage package, they are a good option to try before you buy - or simply display a simple signage screen for free. 

Similar companies with a single free screen for life include Yodeck, Play Signage and 

Slideshow.digital

This 100% free digital signage software is great if you’re looking for a service that isn’t looking to upsell. You’ll need an android device to run Slideshow, and the product runs from a USB stick so this isn’t cloud based software.

However, you can quickly and easily download the free tool, edit your slides and insert your USB into any Android screen. Slideshow comes with widgets and integrations, and even touts the fact that there are some interactive features. Although the dashboard looks a little clunky and dated, this is a nifty free digital signage package that could be great for first steps into the digital signage world for no outlay.

PosterBooking.com

While you do get ten screens for free, with remote operation, you do have to put up with a watermark unless you pay for a premium package. But, with that said, if you’re looking for a user friendly dashboard and more free displays and the watermark isn’t an issue then PosterBooking might be for you.

If you prefer to upgrade, ten screens with no watermark costs just $49 per month, which is one of the cheapest deals on the market for a premium digital signage tool.

Chrome Sign Builder

Unfortunately Google's own sign builder software has been discontinued as of January 2025, so this is no longer an option. If you're looking for a Chrome Sign Builder alternative, the options on this list should all suffice. Or, if you're looking for a quality replacement that can offer high level security and scalability make sure to try out ScreenCloud.

Read More: The Best Digital Signage Companies to Choose From

Should I use free digital signage?

There is no doubt that free digital signage software is useful for a huge section of the business world. And this is especially true if you have relatively simple demands for your signage, with minimal updates or additional integrations.

A few questions to ask might be:

Is my content simple and rarely updated?

If you rarely need to update your content then free digital signage might be a good choice. An example of this is a menu board for a coffee shop, a welcome board for an office or safety announcements in a small factory.

If you can set and leave, and display just a few slides on one or two screens then yes a free solution might be for you.

Expecting to create new signage content on a more regular basis? Consider a paid tool instead.

Do I need to manage multiple screens?

If you need one screen and you are unlikely to need more, then yes, free digital signage might be the tool for you.

Need a handful of screens across one location? Yes, you could also likely manage with a free tool like AbleSign or Slideshow. 

Are your screens spread across more than one site, or even more than one time zone? You might need to consider a paid signage tool with support for multiple screens, cloud based software and control and better security.

The more screens you have, the more complex your needs. And when things get complex, you need to ensure the tools you use are making your job easier. 

While a corporate digital signage solution might seem excessive if you just want to display some images on loop, the actual benefits in terms of additional integrations, remote operation and security definitely make it worth the investment.

Do I need software integrations?

Many free signage tools do offer software integrations. But often this feature is either limited or requires some technical input.

When it comes to connecting performance or production dashboards, or streaming live data from an external source, here, you might need to consider a full featured solution. Even if you’re using a freemium product, you might find that the free tier doesn’t allow custom app integrations or easy connections to popular apps. 

Often it is the pro and enterprise digital signage solutions that offer unlimited integrations and customization options.

Check the features and pricing before you make a decision.

Do I need dashboard access for more than one person?

One person in control of your digital signage? No problem - free might be the right tool for you.

But if you have different people or different departments accessing and updating your signage then you may need a solution that makes it easy to add users and edit their permissions.

Do I need to do more than one thing with my digital signage?

These days, digital signage is more than just streaming ads or displaying information.

You might want to use your digital signage to display meeting room availability, stream your monthly all hands meeting, connect conference rooms or present data from your Salesforce dashboard - all at the same time.

While free digital signage tools can be used for different things, it can be increasingly complex to juggle the demands of your workplace with free software.

If you anticipate multiple uses for digital signage, as well as multiple screens, then you should look at digital signage that can handle your demands. 

Is security important to me?

Not all digital signage comes with high level security as standard. And if you’re using a free signage tool, you might be focused more on the content than the security. 

This might be fine for a fast food restaurant, or for a health spa with two screens displaying prices and a welcome sign. But if you share sensitive data, such as data dashboards or integrations with other software, you’ll need to factor in security. 

Paid digital signage tools usually include enterprise grade security and data encryption, meaning less chance of a security risk in your business. For example, ScreenCloud is SOC2 and SOC3 certified, conducts rigorous tests before every update and employs a specialist Data Protection Officer to oversee all aspects of data security. Features which are often missing from free digital signage.

Read more about security at ScreenCloud.

Choosing the best digital signage

The best digital signage for your organization will depend on your requirements, and also the size and potential expansion plans for your business.

Many businesses can certainly manage with the free tier of freemium digital signage software, or even use the features of an open source solution. 

But when it comes to a digital signage solution that gives you the flexibility to integrate software dashboards, connect screens using cloud based software, easy content creation and user management, and with the highest level of security - it’s best to look for the best digital signage software.

You can try ScreenCloud for free for 14 days. If you’re planning on signing up for a free digital signage tool, why not see what the top end software experience is like first? No credit card needed - simply sign up and get started.

Sign up for your free 14 day trial here.