OpenProject vs Kanboard
Both are alternatives to Trello. Here's how they stack up — verified facts, no spin.
Also searched as Kanboard vs OpenProject — same comparison, one verdict.
OpenProject and Kanboard are closely matched on ownership (91 vs 86) — this one comes down to pricing and to which trade-offs below you can live with.
OpenProject
A full open-source project management suite for teams that outgrow a simple board.
OpenProject is a complete, self-hostable project management platform: Kanban-style boards sit alongside Gantt charts, backlogs, roadmaps, work packages, time tracking, and fine-grained permissions. The Community edition is the entire open-source codebase and is fully functional with no feature paywall; paid Enterprise tiers add professional support and a handful of add-ons (which are themselves open source and periodically folded back into Community).
Kanboard
A minimalist, low-overhead Kanban board for teams who want speed over features.
Kanboard is a lightweight, self-hosted PHP Kanban application focused on simplicity: boards, swimlanes, task automation rules, subtasks, and time tracking, extendable through a plugin system. It runs on very modest hardware (a small VPS is plenty) and has no external database service dependency by default (SQLite works out of the box, with MySQL/PostgreSQL supported for larger installs).
Side by side
10 points of comparison, every one read from a verified field. Green marks the side that wins a row outright. A dash means we do not hold that fact — never that it is zero.
| OpenProject | Kanboard | |
|---|---|---|
| Sovereignty ScoreOur transparent 0–100 composite for data ownership and exit cost. | 91 | 86 |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| Local-first data | Yes | Yes |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Pricing | Free / self-host (Community edition); paid Enterprise on-premises support from ~$5.95/user/month, or Enterprise Cloud hosting from ~$4.95/user/month | Free / self-host (paid cloud hosting plans available from the maintainer) |
| RAM to run it wellThe figure that actually matters, not the vendor's minimum. | 4 GB. The vendor sizes its minimum for up to 200 users, so a 5–20 person team fits inside it | 1 GB for Kanboard plus PostgreSQL on one box. It is a PHP app, and no source I found says a small team needs more |
| Realistic running costWhat the box costs each month if you run it yourself. | $24–48/mo for a 5–20 user instance on a 4 vCPU / 4–8 GB VPS | $5–6/mo for a 5–20 user instance on a 1 GB VPS |
| Setup timeHonest first-install estimate, not the marketing quickstart. | 1–2 hours with the official Docker Compose repo, longer if you put your own TLS proxy in front | 15 minutes with Docker, 30 on an existing PHP host |
| Ongoing maintenanceThe part nobody budgets for. | A minor release roughly every month in 2026 (17.4 in May, 17.9 on 30 September). Major versions must be taken one at a time, because going from X to X+2 needs X+1 in between, and the vendor strongly recommends a backup before each. | Low. The author calls it maintenance mode: small fixes and no major features. The community still ships releases: six between January and August 2026. Pin a version tag and read the ChangeLog before each upgrade, as the docs advise. |
OpenProject edges it on the Sovereignty Score, but the right pick depends on the trade-offs below.
Weighing both against staying on Trello? Is Trello free? What it actually costs →
OpenProject
Strengths
- +Genuinely not an open-core product — the vendor states plainly that Enterprise plans pay for support and add-ons, not for unlocking withheld features
- +Covers a much broader project-management surface than Trello: Gantt charts, backlogs, budgeting, and formal work-package tracking
- +Strong documentation and an active global community with regular releases
- +Enterprise add-ons are periodically released back into the free Community edition
Trade-offs
- −Heavier to run than a Kanban-only tool — a Ruby on Rails + PostgreSQL stack needs more server resources than Wekan or Kanboard
- −The extra structure (work packages, roadmaps, backlogs) is more than most Trello users need if all they want is a simple card board
- −Steeper learning curve for a team used to Trello's minimalism
- −Professional support requires an Enterprise subscription; community-only support is the default on Community edition
Kanboard
Strengths
- +Very low resource requirements — runs comfortably on a small, cheap VPS
- +Free MIT license with a genuinely simple, fast interface
- +Built-in automation rules and time tracking without needing plugins
- +Plugin ecosystem covers common gaps (Gantt, LDAP, extra integrations)
Trade-offs
- −Visual design is utilitarian — noticeably plainer than Trello or Wekan
- −Smaller contributor base than Wekan or Vikunja, so feature velocity is slower
- −Fewer native views than richer PM tools (no built-in Gantt or table view without a plugin)
- −Collaboration features (comments, mentions, notifications) are narrower than larger suites
Which one fits you
The trade-offs above, turned into a decision. Find the line that describes your team.
Choose OpenProject
if a lower exit cost matters more to you than any single feature, and genuinely not an open-core product — the vendor states plainly that Enterprise plans pay for support and add-ons, not for unlocking withheld features.
Choose Kanboard
if very low resource requirements — runs comfortably on a small, cheap VPS.
Neither, yet
if both carry a real cost you should weigh first — heavier to run than a Kanban-only tool — a Ruby on Rails + PostgreSQL stack needs more server resources than Wekan or Kanboard, and visual design is utilitarian — noticeably plainer than Trello or Wekan. If either of those is a dealbreaker for your team, the shortlist is wrong rather than the choice.
What it takes to run these yourself
Real requirements and honest running costs, not the vendor quickstart.
Self-hosting OpenProject
4 GB. The vendor sizes its minimum for up to 200 users, so a 5–20 person team fits inside it RAM · 1–2 hours with the official Docker Compose repo, longer if you put your own TLS proxy in front
$24–48/mo for a 5–20 user instance on a 4 vCPU / 4–8 GB VPS
Self-hosting Kanboard
1 GB for Kanboard plus PostgreSQL on one box. It is a PHP app, and no source I found says a small team needs more RAM · 15 minutes with Docker, 30 on an existing PHP host
$5–6/mo for a 5–20 user instance on a 1 GB VPS
OpenProject vs Kanboard — common questions
Is OpenProject a better fit than Kanboard for project management?
It depends on what you are optimising for, and the honest split is this: OpenProject scores 91 to Kanboard's 86 on data ownership and exit cost, so it is the safer choice if you care about being able to leave. Kanboard earns its place on a different axis — very low resource requirements — runs comfortably on a small, cheap VPS. Neither is a wrong answer for every team; the table above is the actual comparison.
What happens if we want to switch later?
OpenProject keeps its data local or in open formats, so leaving is an export rather than a negotiation. Kanboard is still self-hostable, so the files stay on your server either way — but it is not local-first by design, so check what its export produces before you rely on it.
Can I self-host OpenProject or Kanboard?
Both can be self-hosted. The difference is what it costs you in time rather than whether it is possible — see the setup and maintenance rows above.
Are OpenProject and Kanboard both alternatives to Trello?
Yes — both appear in our Trello comparison, which is why they are worth putting side by side. People usually arrive here already having decided to move off Trello and now choosing between the two replacements, which is a narrower and much easier question.
More Trello head-to-heads
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Facts verified 2026-07-18. Licenses and pricing change — spotted something out of date? That's a correction we want.