head to head · open source
Backlog.md vs itsaplan
Backlog.md has 7,273 GitHub stars, 480 forks, 55 open issues and last shipped 7 days ago. itsaplan has 2,155 stars, 281 forks, 29 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Backlog.md leads on adoption by 237% (7,273 vs 2,155 stars). Backlog.md is written in TypeScript under MIT; itsaplan is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0. Backlog.md has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, itsaplan 13%. itsaplan was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Backlog.md | itsaplan | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 7.3K | ★ 2.2K |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-10-29 | 2026-11-03 |
| Forks | ⑂ 480 | ⑂ 281 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Backlog.md if
- You weight community size — 7.3K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick itsaplan if
- You want the itsaplan feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and itsaplan fits your workflow better
About Backlog.md
Backlog.md Markdown‑native Task Manager & Kanban visualizer for any Git repository AI agents write the code. You review the tasks: before, during, and after. npm i g backlog.md Backlog.md turns any folder into a self‑contained project board powered by plain Markdown files and a zero‑config CLI. Why Backlog.md in the AI era AI agents can now produce more plausible code in an hour than you can carefully read in a day. The bottleneck is no longer writing code. It's your attention. You can't meaningfully review 15,000 generated lines in one sitting, but you can read a screenful of task specs with acceptance criteria…
read the full Backlog.md overview →
About itsaplan
Open source alternative to Linear, Jira, Trello, and Plane, with AI agents built in Self hosted project management and issue tracking. The difference: AI agents work here like any teammate — and everything is available over the REST API, webhooks, and MCP. If It's a Plan looks useful to you, star the repo ⭐ — it helps other people find it. Website · Discussions · Contributing · Security · Leave a review About It's a Plan is a full issue tracker on its own: projects, boards, cycles, custom fields, and dashboards. Use it that way and never turn on a single agent. The difference: AI agents work here like any…
read the full itsaplan overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Backlog.md or itsaplan more popular?
Backlog.md has 7,273 GitHub stars and itsaplan has 2,155. Backlog.md has the larger community by that measure.
Are Backlog.md and itsaplan free?
Both are open source. Backlog.md is licensed under MIT and itsaplan under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Backlog.md and itsaplan?
Backlog.md is written in TypeScript and itsaplan in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Backlog.md or itsaplan?
Choose Backlog.md if you want the larger community (7,273 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose itsaplan if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.