head to head · open source
OpenProject vs cairoshell
OpenProject has 16,933 GitHub stars, 3,676 forks, 224 open issues and last shipped yesterday. cairoshell has 3,408 stars, 277 forks, 246 open issues and last shipped 19 days ago. OpenProject leads on adoption by 397% (16,933 vs 3,408 stars). OpenProject is written in Ruby under GPL-3.0; cairoshell is written in C# under Apache-2.0. OpenProject has attracted 22% as many forks as stars, cairoshell 8%. OpenProject 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
| OpenProject | cairoshell | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 17K | ★ 3.4K |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Ruby | C# |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-10-15 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.7K | ⑂ 277 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick OpenProject if
- You weight community size — 17K stars and counting
- You want the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Ruby
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick cairoshell if
- You want the cairoshell feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C#
- You evaluated both and cairoshell fits your workflow better
About OpenProject
OpenProject We empower teams to achieve great things together for the good of society. OpenProject is a web based open source project management software for teams and organizations that require transparency, flexibility, and data sovereignty. Manage projects, portfolios, products, tasks, bugs, agile workflows, roadmaps, and team collaboration in a single platform. OpenProject can be self hosted and is designed for organizations looking for an open source enterprise ready alternative to tools such as Jira, MS Project, Monday, Asana, YouTrack while maintaining full control over their data and infrastructure…
read the full OpenProject overview →
About cairoshell
Cairo Desktop Environment A customizable, intuitive desktop environment for Windows. Cairo is a desktop environment for Windows. Our goal is to develop a desktop experience that increases productivity and advances current technology standards. With a focus on stability, performance, and productivity, Cairo aims to deliver an interface that exceeds expectations and delivers superior ease of use. Download The latest version of Cairo can be downloaded on the Releases page . Requirements Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows 10, or Windows 11 More information For an overview of Cairo features, visit our website…
read the full cairoshell overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is OpenProject or cairoshell more popular?
OpenProject has 16,933 GitHub stars and cairoshell has 3,408. OpenProject has the larger community by that measure.
Are OpenProject and cairoshell free?
Both are open source. OpenProject is licensed under GPL-3.0 and cairoshell under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between OpenProject and cairoshell?
OpenProject is written in Ruby and cairoshell in C#. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, OpenProject or cairoshell?
Choose OpenProject if you want the larger community (16,933 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose cairoshell if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.