Plexo

Open source alternative to Internet Download Manager and Folx Pro

4.8K stars
MIT
Active this week
Last commit 1 day ago

Last verified Oct 22, 2026

Manage file and torrent downloads by combining multiple internet connections in parallel; Plexo runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux under the MIT license.

Visit website GitHub4.8K

Read the full breakdownWho it is for, how it works, trade-offs, the quick start and the FAQ

who it's for

Who Plexo is for#

Power users with home broadband plus a cellular hotspot

Plexo combines a home broadband line with a mobile hotspot or USB-tethered phone into a single accelerated download. The adaptive stream allocator assigns more chunks to whichever connection is faster, so the benefit scales with the real speed difference between the two paths.

Skip if:

Skip if your Ethernet and Wi-Fi both connect to the same home router. They share one upstream path and Plexo cannot combine them. You need two connections that each reach the internet independently for multi-network acceleration to work.

macOS users looking past Folx Pro

Folx Pro is the dominant macOS download manager, but it requires a paid upgrade and is macOS-only. Plexo covers direct-link and torrent downloading on macOS with no cost, adds multi-network support, and also runs on Windows and Linux if your workflow spans operating systems.

Skip if:

Skip if you need the Mac App Store distribution model for managed licensing or want Gatekeeper compliance without manual approval steps on install.

Windows users moving past Internet Download Manager

Internet Download Manager has been the default Windows download manager for years but requires a paid license. Plexo offers multi-connection downloads on Windows at no cost, browser extension support for Chrome and Firefox, and torrent support without a separate client.

Skip if:

Skip if you rely on IDM's video-grab feature for streaming sites. Plexo does not include that functionality.

Developers downloading large build artifacts or datasets

Large CI artifacts, dataset archives, and container image layers can saturate a single connection for minutes. Plexo's scheduler lets you queue downloads to run outside work hours, and its Slow mode keeps bandwidth available for calls and streaming while a download runs in the background.

Skip if:

Skip if your download sources do not support HTTP range requests. Those servers fall back to a single stream, removing the multi-connection benefit entirely.

the problem

The problem it solves#

Large file downloads are bottlenecked by a single network connection's ceiling. If your broadband tops out at 50 Mbps, no download manager routing all traffic through that one adapter can exceed that limit. Tools like Internet Download Manager split a file into parallel segments but still send them through a single connection, so you get the benefit of server-side concurrency, not additional bandwidth from the network.

If you have a second internet connection available (a mobile hotspot, a USB-tethered phone, a second broadband line), there is no standard way to use both for the same download simultaneously. Operating systems do not route a single TCP connection across two network interfaces. The result is that a second connection sits idle during downloads when it could be contributing bandwidth.

how Plexo solves it

How it solves it#

Multi-network parallel downloads

Each file is split into chunks distributed across every active network connection you select: Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and USB-tethered phones. Faster connections handle more of the file automatically; stream counts adjust to network, server, and disk performance in real time. Near the end of a download, idle connections race slow chunks so a stalled piece does not drag out the finish.

Direct link and torrent support in one tool

Downloads HTTP and HTTPS direct links alongside BitTorrent magnet links and .torrent files using the same multi-network engine. Torrent peer connections are distributed across selected network adapters, with new peers routed through whichever adapter has the fewest current connections. You can select which files to include in a torrent before or during the download.

Browser extension integration

A Chrome or Firefox extension captures download links from your browser and passes them to Plexo, including downloads that require an authenticated session. You can exclude specific websites from capture and set a file-size threshold below which files are skipped and handled by the browser directly.

Bandwidth controls and scheduling

Set global and per-network speed limits to cap bandwidth usage. Switch to Slow mode during calls or video streaming to keep the connection free. Define daily, weekly, or monthly data allowances per network, and schedule downloads to run at specific times and days of the week.

Queue and bulk download management

Pause, resume, retry, and remove downloads individually or in bulk. Downloads persist across restarts and reconnect automatically after the machine wakes from sleep. Expired links can be replaced without losing the progress already written to disk, and concurrent download limits are configurable.

strengths · trade-offs

Strengths and trade-offs#

Strengths

MIT license, free on all three desktop platformsPlexo runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux and is MIT-licensed with no cost. Internet Download Manager is Windows-only and requires a paid license; Folx Pro is macOS-only with a paid subscription. Plexo covers all three platforms without a licensing fee or per-platform purchase.
Genuine multi-bandwidth aggregation across physical adaptersStandard download managers split a file into segments but route all of them through a single network adapter. Plexo routes each chunk through a physically separate adapter with its own internet path, so adding a mobile hotspot alongside home broadband adds real throughput rather than only server-side concurrency.
Adaptive stream management with end-of-download racingStream counts adjust automatically to match network, server, and disk performance instead of staying fixed. Downloads to slow HDDs reduce streams to avoid disk bottlenecks; faster servers get more concurrent requests. Near the end of a download, idle streams race slow chunks, avoiding the long tail that fixed-stream tools suffer.
Active development with strong early tractionThe repo was created in September 2026 and had its last push on October 21, 2026. It accumulated 4,835 GitHub stars and 333 forks in roughly five weeks, indicating active maintenance and high community interest from a standing start.

Trade-offs

-Speed gain requires physically separate internet pathsAdding a second network only increases download speed when each adapter reaches the internet through its own upstream route. Connecting both Ethernet and Wi-Fi to the same home router shares one upstream connection; Plexo cannot add speed in that configuration. A phone tethered over USB or cellular alongside home broadband does work. This is a hardware and ISP constraint documented in the README, but it surprises users who expect any second adapter to help.
-Windows installer is unsignedThe Windows installer is not code-signed, so Windows Defender shows a SmartScreen warning on first install. You must click 'More info' and then 'Run anyway' to proceed. The README notes this explicitly. The macOS build is code-signed and notarized; Linux packages do not require signing.
-Android USB tethering on macOS requires a third-party drivermacOS has no native driver for RNDIS, the protocol Android USB tethering uses. Using an Android phone as a second connection on macOS requires installing TetherKit via Homebrew before Plexo can see the adapter. iPhone tethering on macOS and all phone tethering on Windows work without extra software.

versus alternatives

Plexo vs alternatives#

Plexo vs Internet Download Manager

Internet Download Manager (IDM) is the dominant Windows download manager, with multi-segment acceleration and browser integration. The key differences from Plexo are platform, licensing, and architecture: IDM is Windows-only and requires a paid license, while Plexo is MIT-licensed and cross-platform. IDM splits downloads into parallel segments over a single network connection; Plexo routes each segment through a separate physical network adapter, adding bandwidth from a second internet path.

Feature	Plexo	Internet Download Manager
License	MIT	Proprietary (paid)
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows only
Torrent support	Yes	No
Multi-network downloads	Yes (separate adapters)	No
Browser extension	Chrome, Firefox	Chrome, Firefox, IE, Edge
Video grab	No	Yes

Plexo is the better choice when you use macOS or Linux, want torrent support in the same tool, or can use a second physical internet connection for extra bandwidth. IDM is worth considering if you are on Windows only and need its video-capture feature for streaming sites, or if you prefer a tool with a longer established support track record.

Plexo vs Folx Pro

Folx Pro is a macOS download manager with a paid subscription, offering segmented parallel downloads and torrent support within macOS. Plexo covers the same feature set cross-platform, adds genuine multi-network bandwidth aggregation from separate adapters, and costs nothing.

Feature	Plexo	Folx Pro
License	MIT	Proprietary (paid)
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	macOS only
Multi-network downloads	Yes (separate adapters)	No
Torrent support	Yes	Yes
App Store distribution	No	Yes (Mac App Store)
Price	Free	Paid subscription

Plexo is the better fit for anyone who works across operating systems, wants to combine a mobile hotspot with home broadband for faster downloads, or wants to avoid a subscription. Folx Pro is worth choosing if you prefer the Mac App Store distribution model for managed licensing or in-app updates within the Apple ecosystem.

install · quick start

Quick start#

bash

Install Plexo from source using Node.js 22.13 and npm 9 or later.
```bash
git clone https://github.com/anmolkapil/plexo.git
cd plexo
npm ci
npm run dev
```

tech stack · detected from GitHub

What it's built on#

Languages: JavaScriptTypeScript
Frameworks: React

frequently asked

FAQ#

Is Plexo free to use?

Yes. Plexo is MIT-licensed and free to download, use, and modify with no paid tier or subscription. Binaries for Windows, macOS, and Linux are available on the GitHub releases page and from getplexo.app. The MIT license permits personal and commercial use.

Does Plexo actually make downloads faster?

Plexo adds speed only when you have multiple internet connections that each reach the internet through their own independent route. A mobile hotspot plus home broadband qualifies; Wi-Fi and Ethernet plugged into the same home router does not, because they share one upstream connection. With genuinely separate paths, each connection contributes its bandwidth to the same download.

Does Plexo support torrents?

Yes. Plexo downloads magnet links and .torrent files alongside direct HTTP/HTTPS links using the same interface. Torrent peer connections are distributed across your selected networks. You can select which files to include in a torrent before or during the transfer, and pause or resume it like a direct download.

How does Plexo compare to Internet Download Manager?

Internet Download Manager is Windows-only and requires a paid license. Plexo runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux and is MIT-licensed. Both use parallel connections per file, but Plexo distributes chunks across multiple physical network adapters for combined bandwidth, while IDM segments over a single connection. Plexo also includes torrent support and browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox at no cost.

What platforms does Plexo support?

Plexo runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. The macOS build is code-signed and notarized. The Windows installer is not yet code-signed, so Windows Defender shows a SmartScreen prompt on first install; click 'More info' then 'Run anyway' to proceed. Linux packages include AppImage, .deb, .rpm, and .tar.gz formats built from the same source.

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Plexo vs Internet Download Manager

Feature	Plexo	Internet Download Manager
License	MIT	Proprietary (paid)
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows only
Torrent support	Yes	No
Multi-network downloads	Yes (separate adapters)	No
Browser extension	Chrome, Firefox	Chrome, Firefox, IE, Edge
Video grab	No	Yes

Plexo vs Folx Pro

Feature	Plexo	Folx Pro
License	MIT	Proprietary (paid)
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	macOS only
Multi-network downloads	Yes (separate adapters)	No
Torrent support	Yes	Yes
App Store distribution	No	Yes (Mac App Store)
Price	Free	Paid subscription

Who Plexo is for#

Power users with home broadband plus a cellular hotspot

Skip if:

macOS users looking past Folx Pro

Skip if:

Windows users moving past Internet Download Manager

Skip if:

Developers downloading large build artifacts or datasets

Skip if:

The problem it solves#

How it solves it#

Multi-network parallel downloads

Direct link and torrent support in one tool

Browser extension integration

Bandwidth controls and scheduling

Queue and bulk download management

Strengths and trade-offs#

Strengths

Trade-offs

Plexo vs alternatives#

Plexo vs Internet Download Manager

Plexo vs Folx Pro

Quick start#

What it's built on#

FAQ#

Similar open-source tools#

Open source tools in these categories#

Developer Tools

Business & Productivity

Find open source alternatives to paid software

Who Plexo is for#

Power users with home broadband plus a cellular hotspot

Skip if:

macOS users looking past Folx Pro

Skip if:

Windows users moving past Internet Download Manager

Skip if:

Developers downloading large build artifacts or datasets

Skip if:

The problem it solves#

How it solves it#

Multi-network parallel downloads

Direct link and torrent support in one tool

Browser extension integration

Bandwidth controls and scheduling

Queue and bulk download management

Strengths and trade-offs#

Strengths

Trade-offs

Plexo vs alternatives#

Plexo vs Internet Download Manager

Plexo vs Folx Pro

Quick start#

What it's built on#

FAQ#

Similar open-source tools#

Open source tools in these categories#

Developer Tools

Business & Productivity

Find open source alternatives to paid software