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OpenProject

Open-source project management with Gantt charts, Scrum boards, time tracking, and cost management

GPL-3.0 OpenProject GitHub stars OpenProject latest release OpenProject last commit Website ↗

Overview

OpenProject is a comprehensive open-source project management platform that covers the full spectrum from classic waterfall (Gantt charts, milestones, cost tracking) to agile (Scrum, Kanban boards). It’s particularly strong in European enterprise environments where GDPR compliance and data sovereignty are priorities.

Unlike modern issue trackers like Linear or Plane that focus on software development, OpenProject serves broader project management needs including construction (BIM module), consulting, and operations teams that rely on time tracking and budget management.

Key Features

  • Gantt Charts — Interactive timeline with dependencies and milestones
  • Agile Boards — Scrum and Kanban with sprint management
  • Time Tracking — Log time per work package with cost rates
  • Budget Management — Track planned vs actual costs per project
  • Team Planner — Drag-and-drop resource allocation view
  • Wiki & Documents — Built-in knowledge management per project

Pricing: Self-Hosted vs OpenProject Cloud

Users OpenProject Cloud OpenProject (self-hosted) Savings
10 users $72.50/mo (OpenProject Cloud) $0 (community) $72.50/mo
25 users $181.25/mo $10/mo (VPS) $171.25/mo
50 users $362.50/mo $10/mo (VPS) $352.50/mo
100 users $725/mo $20/mo (VPS) $705/mo

Pros

  • + Full project management — Gantt, Scrum, Kanban, time tracking
  • + Cost management and budget tracking
  • + BIM (Building Information Modeling) support
  • + Strong GDPR compliance (German company)
  • + Mature codebase with 13+ years of development

Cons

  • - UI feels enterprise/corporate — not modern or playful
  • - Community edition lacks some features (boards, team planner)
  • - Ruby on Rails stack limits contributor pool
  • - Resource-heavy compared to lighter alternatives

Deployment Options for OpenProject

🐳

Docker

Self-host with Docker Compose

🚀

Coolify

One-click via Coolify panel

☁️

Elestio

Managed hosting from $9/mo

🫛

PikaPods

Simple managed hosting

Frequently Asked Questions

OpenProject vs Jira?
OpenProject for classic project management (Gantt, budgets, time tracking). Jira for software development with deep CI/CD integration. OpenProject is simpler to learn; Jira has a larger plugin ecosystem.
Is the Community Edition enough?
For basic project management with work packages, Gantt charts, and wiki — yes. Board view, team planner, and enterprise SSO require the paid Enterprise edition.
Can I import from Jira?
Not directly from the UI. OpenProject provides a REST API for data import. Community migration scripts exist for Jira-to-OpenProject migration.
What are the server requirements?
Minimum 4GB RAM, 2 vCPUs, 20GB storage. Requires PostgreSQL. Docker or native Linux installation supported.

Our Verdict

OpenProject is a comprehensive open-source project management platform that covers the full spectrum from classic waterfall (Gantt charts, milestones, cost tracking) to agile (Scrum, Kanban boards). I...

Best for: Teams that need classic project management (Gantt charts, budgets) not just issue tracking