OpenProject vs Redmine
Both are alternatives to Jira. Here's how they stack up — verified facts, no spin.
Also searched as Redmine vs OpenProject — same comparison, one verdict.
OpenProject and Redmine are closely matched on ownership (95 vs 90) — this one comes down to pricing and to which trade-offs below you can live with.
OpenProject
TOP PICKGPL-3.0 self-hosted project management with Gantt, agile boards, and portfolio features in the free Community Edition.
OpenProject is a mature, GPL-3.0 open-source project management platform developed by OpenProject GmbH in Germany. Its free, self-hosted Community Edition covers a broad feature set — work packages, Scrum and Kanban boards, Gantt-based scheduling, time tracking and cost reporting, wikis, and portfolio management — with unlimited users and projects. A separate Enterprise edition (cloud or on-premises) adds premium and security add-ons such as SSO and certain admin features under a paid subscription. It is a strong fit for teams that want a comprehensive, Jira-style tool they run and own themselves, particularly where EU data residency and GDPR alignment matter.
Redmine
GPL-2.0 veteran project management and issue tracker — lightweight, extensible, and runs on modest hardware.
Redmine is a long-established, GPL-2.0-or-later open-source project management and issue-tracking web application built on Ruby on Rails. It provides flexible issue tracking, role-based access control, Gantt charts and calendars, per-project wikis and forums, time tracking, custom fields, and integration with source-control systems, extended by a broad plugin ecosystem. It is fully self-hosted, database-agnostic, and light enough to run on modest hardware. Redmine is a solid choice for technical teams that want a stable, no-subscription tracker they fully control, and that don't mind a more utilitarian interface and some configuration to reach modern conveniences.
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 | Redmine | |
|---|---|---|
| Sovereignty ScoreOur transparent 0–100 composite for data ownership and exit cost. | 95 | 90 |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| Local-first data | Yes | Yes |
| License | GPL-3.0 (Community Edition); Enterprise add-ons under a separate commercial subscription | GPL-2.0-or-later |
| Pricing | Free to self-host (Community Edition, GPL-3.0); paid Enterprise cloud/on-premises tiers from about €5.95/user/month for premium and security add-ons | Free / self-host (GPL-2.0-or-later); costs are hosting, maintenance, and optional third-party support only |
| 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 | 2 GB for Redmine plus PostgreSQL or MySQL on one box. Each app process sits at 256–512 MB and can spike past 1 GB on large issue trees or expensive queries |
| 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 | $6–12/mo for a 5–20 user instance on a 2 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 | 1 hour with the Docker Official Image and a PostgreSQL container; half a day from source |
| 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. | Point releases drop in cleanly. Each major moves Rails (5.0 brought the Zeitwerk loader, 6.0 Rails 7.2, 7.0 in 2026 Rails 8.1), and it becomes a project if you run plugins. Back up the database and files/ before each one. |
OpenProject is Macrostack's recommended Jira alternative, so it's our pick here.
Weighing both against staying on Jira? Is Jira free? What it actually costs →
OpenProject
Strengths
- +GPL-3.0 Community Edition is genuinely open-source and free for unlimited users and projects
- +Broad, mature feature set including Gantt scheduling, agile boards, time tracking, cost reporting, and portfolio management
- +Fully self-hosted via Docker or native packages, so your project data stays on infrastructure you control
- +EU-based vendor with GDPR-aligned self-hosting; the GPL-3.0 license reduces the risk of a restrictive relicense
- +REST API and active, regular release cadence from a dedicated core team
Trade-offs
- −SSO/2FA and some advanced admin and security features are reserved for the paid Enterprise edition
- −Runs on a Ruby on Rails + PostgreSQL stack that needs a real server and ongoing maintenance, not a one-click app
- −You are responsible for backups, updates, database migrations, and SSL when self-hosting
- −Heavier to deploy and operate than lightweight tools, which can be more than a small team needs
Redmine
Strengths
- +Fully GPL-2.0-or-later open-source with no paid tier gating core features
- +Lightweight and cross-database; runs comfortably on modest hardware, including small VPS or homelab setups
- +Long track record, very stable, with a large plugin ecosystem and REST API
- +Self-hosted with your data in a standard SQL database you control
Trade-offs
- −Interface is more utilitarian and dated than Jira or the newer alternatives here
- −Advanced planning (e.g. richer agile boards, portfolio views) often depends on third-party plugins of varying quality
- −Release cadence is steady but slower than fast-moving projects like Plane
- −You handle installation, upgrades, backups, and plugin compatibility yourself
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 gPL-3.0 Community Edition is genuinely open-source and free for unlimited users and projects.
Choose Redmine
if fully GPL-2.0-or-later open-source with no paid tier gating core features.
Neither, yet
if both carry a real cost you should weigh first — sSO/2FA and some advanced admin and security features are reserved for the paid Enterprise edition, and interface is more utilitarian and dated than Jira or the newer alternatives here. 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 Redmine
2 GB for Redmine plus PostgreSQL or MySQL on one box. Each app process sits at 256–512 MB and can spike past 1 GB on large issue trees or expensive queries RAM · 1 hour with the Docker Official Image and a PostgreSQL container; half a day from source
$6–12/mo for a 5–20 user instance on a 2 GB VPS
OpenProject vs Redmine — common questions
Is OpenProject a better fit than Redmine for project management?
It depends on what you are optimising for, and the honest split is this: OpenProject scores 95 to Redmine's 90 on data ownership and exit cost, so it is the safer choice if you care about being able to leave. Redmine earns its place on a different axis — fully GPL-2.0-or-later open-source with no paid tier gating core features. 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. Redmine 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 Redmine?
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 Redmine both alternatives to Jira?
Yes — both appear in our Jira comparison, which is why they are worth putting side by side. People usually arrive here already having decided to move off Jira and now choosing between the two replacements, which is a narrower and much easier question.
More Jira head-to-heads
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Facts verified 2026-10-12. Licenses and pricing change — spotted something out of date? That's a correction we want.