Best Raspberry Pi Security Camera Software: Top 5 Compared

Among the first projects I ever did with my Raspberry Pi was creating a security camera. It was pretty simple: I attached a camera to my Raspberry Pi and installed MotionEye. Over the years, I have worked on many security camera projects, and today I want to show you some of the best options available.

The best security camera software for Raspberry Pi includes Shinobi, Frigate, MotionEye, ZoneMinder, and Kerberos.io. The right choice depends on whether the priority is simple recording, multiple cameras, object detection, or a full web dashboard.

Some of these tools are easy to install and perfect for a basic setup, while others are better suited for more advanced projects with several cameras or AI detection. In this article, I’ll compare the main options and help you pick the one that fits your project best.

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1. Shinobi

If you’re looking for a modern, open-source security camera system for your Raspberry Pi, Shinobi is a great place to start.

Shinobi is a Network Video Recorder (NVR) that lets you monitor multiple cameras from a single, clean web dashboard.

Maybe you want to keep an eye on your front door, backyard, and garage all at the same time. With Shinobi, you can observe all of them from a single place.

One major problem with a lot of open-source software is maintenance. You might find that a project hasn’t been updated in years and no longer works with recent systems. Luckily, that’s not the case with Shinobi.

Shinobi is actively maintained. Don’t be confused with the commits you see on their official GitHub repository, which shows the last commit was made 8 years ago. They have currently moved to GitLab, where the software is actively maintained.

Key Features

• Clean web dashboard: Everything is laid out in a simple interface you can access right from your browser.
• FFmpeg-based with hardware-accelerated H.264: This means smoother video playback without putting too much strain on your Pi.
• Multi-camera support: You can connect and monitor several cameras at once without breaking a sweat.
• Official Raspberry Pi installation guide: Shinobi has dedicated setup documentation for the Raspberry Pi. And even better, it covers different operating systems, including the official Raspberry Pi OS, Ubuntu, and other Linux distros.

Hardware Requirements & Installation

Shinobi can run on older Raspberry Pi boards, but if you’re planning to manage multiple cameras, you’ll want to use a Raspberry Pi 4 or Raspberry Pi 5.

Earlier models can struggle with lag, especially when handling multiple camera streams at higher resolutions. I once tried running Shinobi on a Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+. It worked well, but started lagging when I connected a second camera.

Shinobi also comes in two editions: the Shinobi Pro version and a free Shinobi Community Edition (CE). For most home setups, the Community Edition is more than enough to get you covered. I have actually never tested the Pro version.

To get Shinobi up and running on your Raspberry Pi, follow the official installation guide available on their website.

2. Frigate

Do you want to have a security camera setup that actually thinks? For example, it can tell the difference between your cat walking across the yard and an actual intruder. Then Frigate is your go-to solution.

Frigate is an AI-first NVR that uses real-time object detection to identify people, cars, and animals in your camera feed, not just motion.

One thing I love about Frigate is that all of this processing happens locally on your device. No footage is sent to the cloud, no monthly subscription, and no company storing your video somewhere you can’t control.

But you might ask. If Frigate doesn’t send data to the cloud for AI processing, then how does it use AI? Well, I have explained that in the hardware and requirements section below, where I discuss something called the Coral TPU and the Raspberry Pi AI Kit.

For a lot of people, that alone is reason enough to choose it. Frigate is also a favourite among smart home enthusiasts. If you’re already running Home Assistant, Frigate plugs right into it, making it easy to set up automations — like getting a phone notification the moment someone steps onto your driveway.

That said, Frigate uses a Docker container, so if you haven’t used it before, expect a learning curve before everything clicks. Once it’s running, though, it’s hard to go back to anything simpler.

Key Features

• Real-time object detection: Detects people, cars, and animals as they appear on camera, not just movement.
• All processing done locally: Your footage stays on your device. No cloud, no subscriptions.
• Native Home Assistant integration: Works seamlessly with Home Assistant for smart home automations.
• Customizable detection zones: Define exactly which areas of the frame should trigger an alert, so you’re not getting notified every time a car drives past in the background.

Hardware Requirements and Installation

Frigate will run on a Raspberry Pi 4 or Raspberry Pi 5, but if you want smooth, real-time detection without maxing out your CPU, an AI accelerator is highly recommended. Without one, your Raspberry Pi will be doing all the heavy lifting on its own, which can slow things down pretty quickly once the detections start piling up.

The two popular options are the Coral TPU (USB version) and the Raspberry Pi AI HAT+. Both handle all AI processing separately, taking the heavy lifting off your Pi’s CPU.

To install Frigate on your Raspberry Pi, you can follow this installation guide, which walks you through everything you need to get it up and running.

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3. MotionEye

If you’re just getting started with Raspberry Pi security cameras and you want simple software to get you going, then MotionEye is exactly what you need.

MotionEye is a beginner-friendly, browser-based interface built on top of Motion, a well-known open-source motion detection program.

MotionEye basically takes all the hard parts and wraps them into a clean web UI. I have used MotionEye for quite some time, and honestly, it’s easy to navigate and manage your cameras.

I cannot say it’s the most feature-packed option on this list, but that’s also what makes it great. You set it up, point it at your camera, and it just works.

If you are building your first Raspberry Pi camera project or working with older hardware like the Raspberry Pi 2 Model B, Raspberry Pi 3 Model B/B+, and Pi Zero W/Zero 2 W, MotionEye is a solid starting point that won’t give you a headache.

Key Features

• Browser-based interface: You don’t need to run any commands to manage any camera. Everything is managed from a simple web dashboard that you can access on any device, including your phone.
• Motion detection with email alerts: You can configure the software to send you an email with snapshots of the detected movement directly from the MotionEye settings menu.
• Works on Pi Zero 2W through Pi 5: MotionEye is lightweight enough to run on the earliest Raspberry Pi boards, to recent releases like Raspberry Pi 5. That makes it perfect if you want a low-cost, low-power setup.
• Cloud storage support: MoionEye can automatically back up your recordings to Google Drive or Dropbox, so you don’t lose footage even if someone gets to your Pi.

Hardware Requirements & Installation

One of the best things about MotionEye is that it doesn’t demand much from your hardware. It runs comfortably on a Pi Zero 2W, which makes it one of the cheapest security camera setups you can build.

That said, if you’re planning to run higher resolution streams or add more cameras, a Raspberry Pi 3B+, Raspberry Pi 4, or Raspberry Pi 5 will give you a much smoother experience.

To install MotionEye on your Raspberry Pi, follow our How to Install MotionEye on Raspberry Pi guide, which walks you through the setup from start to finish.

4. ZoneMinder

If you’ve already played around with MotionEye or Frigate and you’re ready to go deeper, ZoneMinder is the next level.

ZoneMinder is a lightweight, self-hosted CCTV and video surveillance system that turns your Raspberry Pi into a Network Video Recorder (NVR) capable of streaming, recording, and analyzing feeds from multiple USB or IP cameras.

It’s one of the oldest and most established open-source CCTV platforms out there. ZoneMinder has been around for over two decades, and it’s still actively developed, which says a lot about how reliable it is.

Honestly, I cannot say ZoneMinder is the easiest software to set up. It runs on top of Apache and MariaDB, so you’re dealing with a proper web server and database installation before you even get to the camera part. But once you have the system up and running, you are good to go.

I wouldn’t recommend ZoneMinder for simple personal projects. It shines in more serious setups. Maybe you want to run multiple cameras across different locations, set up recording schedules, fine-tune motion detection sensitivity, or even deploy across multiple servers.

Key Features

• Supports any analog or IP camera: Whether you have an old analog CCTV camera or a modern IP camera, ZoneMinder can work with it.
• Multi-server deployments — You can spread your setup across multiple servers if one Pi isn’t enough to handle everything.
• Web interface with mobile access — Monitor and manage your cameras from any browser, including on your phone.
• Optional object detection via EventServer — With the EventServer add-on, you can bring in AI-powered object detection, similar to what Frigate does out of the box.
• Detailed logging and reporting — ZoneMinder keeps thorough records of events, which is handy if you ever need to go back and review footage or troubleshoot an issue.
• Flexible recording modes — You can set cameras to record continuously, only on motion, or on a schedule, giving you full control over storage usage.

Hardware Requirements & Installation

ZoneMinder is the most resource-hungry software on this list, so a Raspberry Pi 4 is the minimum you should be working with. A Pi 5 will give you a noticeably better experience, especially if you’re running several cameras at once. Don’t even think about running this on a Pi Zero — it won’t be a fun time.

The setup involves installing Apache, MariaDB, and ZoneMinder itself, so it’s a bit more involved than the other options. But if you follow the right guide, it’s very doable even if you’re not a Linux expert. To get started, check out the How to Install ZoneMinder on Raspberry Pi guide that takes you through every step of the process.

5. Motion (CLI)

Motion is a lightweight, open-source motion detection program that runs entirely from the command line.

You might recognize the name from the MotionEye section earlier. That’s because MotionEye is actually built on top of it.

So while MotionEye gives you a friendly web interface, Motion is the engine running underneath doing all the actual work.

When you run Motion on its own, there’s no web dashboard, no pretty interface, just a lean, powerful tool you control entirely from the command line. That might sound intimidating, but if you’re comfortable with a terminal and you want a security camera setup that uses as few resources as possible, Motion is honestly hard to beat.

It’s a great fit for headless setups, meaning Raspberry Pi boards running without a monitor or keyboard, tucked away in a corner or mounted somewhere out of sight. It’s also perfect if you want to build a custom pipeline where Motion handles the detection and your own scripts handle everything else, like saving footage, sending alerts, or triggering smart home actions.

Key Features

• Zero web server or database dependencies — Motion runs on its own without needing Apache, MariaDB, or any other services running in the background. Less stuff running means more resources for your camera.
• MJPEG streaming — Stream your camera feed directly over the network to any browser or compatible viewer without extra software.
• Script triggering on motion events — When Motion detects movement, it can automatically run a script of your choice. This opens up a lot of possibilities, from sending a custom alert to logging events to a file.
• Home Assistant webhook integration — If you’re running a smart home setup, you can hook Motion directly into Home Assistant using webhooks, so your automations fire the moment something is detected.

Hardware Requirements & Installation

This is where Motion really stands out from everything else on this list. It runs on any Raspberry Pi model, including the Pi Zero and Pi Zero 2W. If you have an old Pi sitting in a drawer collecting dust, Motion is a great reason to bring it back to life.

Since Motion is available directly in the Raspberry Pi OS package repository, installation is straightforward. You can get it running with just a couple of commands:
sudo apt install motion

From there, all the configuration is done through the motion.conf file, where you can set things like resolution, frame rate, motion sensitivity, and what scripts to run when motion is detected.

Other Options Worth Considering

I did not list all the security camera software available for the Raspberry Pi. But that doesn’t mean they’re not worth knowing about. Here are two options that might still be the right fit depending on your situation.

RPi Cam Web Interface

RPi Cam Web Interface was a go-to option for Raspberry Pi camera projects for a long time, and if you’ve been in the Raspberry Pi community for a while, you’ve probably come across it.

RPi Cam Web Interface was built specifically for the original Raspberry Pi camera module and provided users with a simple browser-based interface to view and control their camera feed.

The problem is that it hasn’t aged particularly well. It was built around the legacy camera stack. Since Raspberry Pi OS has moved to a new camera system called libcamera, RPi Cam Web Interface has serious compatibility issues that haven’t been fully resolved. Getting it to work on a modern Raspberry Pi setup is more of a troubleshooting exercise than a straightforward installation.

Kerberos.io

Kerberos.io is a modern, modular surveillance platform that takes a Docker-first approach to security camera software. It’s built around an agent that runs on your device and handles all camera processing locally, with an optional Hub for managing everything from a central dashboard.

The reason it didn’t make the main list is that the setup is heavily Docker-oriented, which adds a layer of complexity that not everyone wants to deal with on a Raspberry Pi.

On top of that, Kerberos has been shifting more toward a SaaS model with its Hub product, which requires a paid license for full functionality. The core Agent is free and open-source, but if you want the more advanced management features, you’ll need to factor in that cost.

How to Choose the Right One (Decision Tree)

I have listed several security camera software programs in this post, and I know it can be a little overwhelming to choose. To make things easier, I put together a quick decision tree below. Just follow the questions, and it will point you to the right software for your setup.

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