head to head · open source
OpenProject vs Kanba
OpenProject has 16,933 GitHub stars, 3,676 forks, 224 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Kanba has 660 stars, 116 forks, 11 open issues and last shipped 3 months ago. OpenProject leads on adoption by 2,466% (16,933 vs 660 stars). OpenProject is written in Ruby under GPL-3.0; Kanba is written in TypeScript under MIT. OpenProject has attracted 22% as many forks as stars, Kanba 18%. 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| OpenProject | Kanba | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 17K | ★ 660 |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Ruby | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-08-08 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.7K | ⑂ 116 |
| 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 Kanba if
- You want the Kanba feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Kanba 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 Kanba
🌐 Language English 简体中文 繁體中文 日本語 한국어 हिन्दी ไทย Français Deutsch Español Itapano Русский Português Nederlands Polski العربية فارسی Türkçe Tiếng Việt Bahasa Indonesia Open source, lightweight Trello alternative designed for makers and indie hackers. Focus on simplicity, speed, and scalability. Built with modern stack: Tailwind CSS, shadcn/ui, Supabase, Stripe integration. Supports unlimited projects, team collaboration, dark/light mode, and seamless user experience. Perfect for solo devs and small teams who want full control without unnecessary complexity. 🌟 If you find this project useful, consider giving it a…
read the full Kanba overview →
More in Business Software
Related comparisons
More Project & Work Management projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Project & Work Management field.
Frequently asked questions
Is OpenProject or Kanba more popular?
OpenProject has 16,933 GitHub stars and Kanba has 660. OpenProject has the larger community by that measure.
Are OpenProject and Kanba free?
Both are open source. OpenProject is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Kanba under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between OpenProject and Kanba?
OpenProject is written in Ruby and Kanba 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, OpenProject or Kanba?
Choose OpenProject if you want the larger community (16,933 stars) or its GPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Kanba if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.