Redmine vs Taiga
Both are alternatives to Jira. Here's how they stack up — verified facts, no spin.
Also searched as Taiga vs Redmine — same comparison, one verdict.
Redmine and Taiga are closely matched on ownership (90 vs 88) — this one comes down to pricing and to which trade-offs below you can live with.
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.
Taiga
Open-source agile project management with clean Scrum and Kanban boards, self-hostable and free.
Taiga is an open-source project management platform focused on agile teams, with Scrum and Kanban boards, backlogs, sprints, epics, issue tracking, and a per-project wiki behind a clean, approachable interface. It is built as a Django/PostgreSQL backend with a separate frontend and is fully self-hostable via Docker, with importers from Jira, Trello, Asana, and others. Note the licensing split: the frontend was relicensed to AGPL-3.0 in 2024 while the backend remains MPL-2.0 — both OSI-approved open-source licenses. Taiga fits teams that want a visually pleasant, agile-first tool they can run themselves without per-seat cost.
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.
| Redmine | Taiga | |
|---|---|---|
| Sovereignty ScoreOur transparent 0–100 composite for data ownership and exit cost. | 90 | 88 |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| Local-first data | Yes | Yes |
| License | GPL-2.0-or-later | AGPL-3.0 (frontend, relicensed 2024); MPL-2.0 (backend) — both OSI-approved |
| Pricing | Free / self-host (GPL-2.0-or-later); costs are hosting, maintenance, and optional third-party support only | Free / self-host (open-source); optional paid hosted cloud plans available from Taiga |
| RAM to run it wellThe figure that actually matters, not the vendor's minimum. | 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 | 2–4 GB. A community member running it on a 4 GB AWS t3.medium measured about 1.5 GB in use across all containers (September 2025) |
| Realistic running costWhat the box costs each month if you run it yourself. | $6–12/mo for a 5–20 user instance on a 2 GB VPS | $12–24/mo for a 5–20 user instance on a 4 GB VPS |
| Setup timeHonest first-install estimate, not the marketing quickstart. | 1 hour with the Docker Official Image and a PostgreSQL container; half a day from source | 1–2 hours with taiga-docker, plus time to set up SMTP and TLS |
| Ongoing maintenanceThe part nobody budgets for. | 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. | The app images follow :latest, so updates are a pull and restart. The database, brokers and gateway are pinned, and moving them is your job. Email prints to the console by default, so invitations go nowhere until you configure SMTP. |
Redmine edges it on the Sovereignty Score, but the right pick depends on the trade-offs below.
Weighing both against staying on Jira? Is Jira free? What it actually costs →
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
Taiga
Strengths
- +Fully open-source (AGPL-3.0 frontend, MPL-2.0 backend) and free to self-host with unlimited users and projects
- +Clean, agile-first UI with Scrum and Kanban boards, backlogs, sprints, epics, and issue tracking
- +Self-hosted with your data in a PostgreSQL database you control; REST API for integration
- +Importers from Jira, Trello, Asana, and others help with migration
Trade-offs
- −Multi-service stack (Django, PostgreSQL, Redis, RabbitMQ, Celery) makes self-hosting operationally involved
- −Native SSO options are limited and some setups need plugins or extra configuration
- −Development cadence is steady rather than fast-moving
- −The split frontend/backend licensing is worth understanding if you plan to modify and redistribute it
Which one fits you
The trade-offs above, turned into a decision. Find the line that describes your team.
Choose Redmine
if a lower exit cost matters more to you than any single feature, and fully GPL-2.0-or-later open-source with no paid tier gating core features.
Choose Taiga
if fully open-source (AGPL-3.0 frontend, MPL-2.0 backend) and free to self-host with unlimited users and projects.
Neither, yet
if both carry a real cost you should weigh first — interface is more utilitarian and dated than Jira or the newer alternatives here, and multi-service stack (Django, PostgreSQL, Redis, RabbitMQ, Celery) makes self-hosting operationally involved. 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 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
Self-hosting Taiga
2–4 GB. A community member running it on a 4 GB AWS t3.medium measured about 1.5 GB in use across all containers (September 2025) RAM · 1–2 hours with taiga-docker, plus time to set up SMTP and TLS
$12–24/mo for a 5–20 user instance on a 4 GB VPS
Redmine vs Taiga — common questions
Is Redmine a better fit than Taiga for project management?
It depends on what you are optimising for, and the honest split is this: Redmine scores 90 to Taiga's 88 on data ownership and exit cost, so it is the safer choice if you care about being able to leave. Taiga earns its place on a different axis — fully open-source (AGPL-3.0 frontend, MPL-2.0 backend) and free to self-host with unlimited users and projects. Neither is a wrong answer for every team; the table above is the actual comparison.
What happens if we want to switch later?
Redmine keeps its data local or in open formats, so leaving is an export rather than a negotiation. Taiga 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 Redmine or Taiga?
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 Redmine and Taiga 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.