OpenProject vs Taiga: Which Should You Self-Host?
Quick Verdict
Taiga is the better choice for agile software teams that follow Scrum or Kanban. OpenProject is the better choice for organizations that need Gantt charts, resource planning, cost tracking, and traditional project management alongside agile boards.
Overview
Both are mature, open-source project management platforms with active development. OpenProject (GPLv3, started 2012) focuses on enterprise project management with Gantt charts as a headline feature. Taiga (MPL 2.0, started 2014) focuses on agile methodology with sprint planning, backlogs, and user stories as its core.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | OpenProject | Taiga |
|---|---|---|
| Gantt charts | Yes (interactive, drag-and-drop) | No |
| Scrum boards | Yes (basic) | Yes (full: sprints, backlogs, burndown) |
| Kanban boards | Yes | Yes |
| User stories / Epics | Work packages (similar) | Yes (native support) |
| Sprint planning | Yes (basic) | Yes (advanced: sprint backlogs, velocity) |
| Burndown charts | No | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes (built-in, per work package) | Yes (per task) |
| Cost reporting | Yes (budget tracking, rates) | No |
| Wiki | Yes (integrated) | Yes (per-project) |
| Calendar view | Yes | No |
| Meeting management | Yes | No |
| Resource planning | Yes (enterprise) | No |
| Custom fields | Yes (extensive) | Yes (limited) |
| API | REST + GraphQL (enterprise) | REST (well-documented) |
| Mobile app | Yes (progressive web app) | No (responsive web only) |
| LDAP/SSO | Yes | Yes (OAuth, LDAP) |
| License | GPLv3 | MPL 2.0 |
| Active development | Very active (monthly releases) | Active (quarterly releases) |
Installation Complexity
| Aspect | OpenProject | Taiga |
|---|---|---|
| Docker containers | 1 (all-in-one) or 3 (slim) | 9 (microservices) |
| Setup time | 5 minutes | 15 minutes |
| Config complexity | Low (few env vars) | Medium (multiple services to configure) |
| Default port | 8080 | 9000 |
| Admin creation | Default admin/admin | CLI: ./taiga-manage.sh createsuperuser |
| Official Docker support | Yes (well-maintained) | Yes (official repo) |
OpenProject wins on setup simplicity. The all-in-one image bundles PostgreSQL and Memcached — one container, two volume mounts, running in minutes. Taiga’s microservices architecture (9 containers: backend, frontend, two RabbitMQ instances, events server, async worker, protected file server, Nginx gateway, PostgreSQL) is more complex but handles separation of concerns well.
Performance and Resource Usage
| Metric | OpenProject | Taiga |
|---|---|---|
| RAM (idle) | ~800 MB (all-in-one) | ~1.5 GB (9 containers) |
| RAM (under load) | ~2-4 GB | ~2.5 GB |
| CPU (idle) | Low | Low-medium |
| Disk (base) | ~1 GB | ~2 GB |
| Minimum recommended | 4 GB RAM, 4 cores | 2 GB RAM, 2 cores |
| Scales to | 1,500+ users (with tuning) | Hundreds of users |
OpenProject is heavier per-instance because it’s a single monolithic Rails app doing everything. Taiga’s microservices add up to more total RAM but each individual service is lighter. For small teams (<20 users), Taiga is more efficient. For large organizations, OpenProject scales better with its tunable worker model.
Community and Support
| Metric | OpenProject | Taiga |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | 10k+ | 17k+ |
| License | GPLv3 | MPL 2.0 |
| Paid edition | Yes (Enterprise: SSO, resource planning) | No (fully open source) |
| Documentation | Extensive (docs.openproject.org) | Good (docs.taiga.io) |
| Community | Active forums + GitHub | Community forums + GitHub |
| Release cadence | Monthly | Quarterly |
| Company backing | OpenProject GmbH (Germany) | Kaleidos Ventures (Spain) |
Taiga is fully open source with no paid enterprise tier — every feature is available in the community edition. OpenProject gates some features (resource planning, advanced authentication, team planners) behind its Enterprise plan.
Use Cases
Choose OpenProject If…
- You need Gantt charts — this is OpenProject’s killer feature and Taiga doesn’t have them
- You manage projects with budgets, cost tracking, and time reporting
- Your organization follows traditional/hybrid project management (waterfall + agile)
- You need meeting management integrated with project tracking
- You need a calendar view for deadlines and milestones
- You want the simplest Docker setup (one container, done)
Choose Taiga If…
- Your team follows Scrum with sprints, backlogs, and burndown charts
- You want a cleaner, more intuitive UI that non-technical team members can use immediately
- You need full agile features without paying for an enterprise tier
- You want a more permissive license (MPL 2.0 vs GPLv3) for integration into other products
- Your team is small-to-medium and doesn’t need Gantt charts or cost reporting
- You want epics and user stories as first-class objects (not generic “work packages”)
Final Verdict
These tools target different project management styles. OpenProject is a traditional project management platform that also does agile. Taiga is a pure agile platform.
For most software teams doing Scrum or Kanban, Taiga is the better fit — its sprint planning, backlog management, and burndown charts are more refined than OpenProject’s agile features. The UI is cleaner and team adoption is easier.
For project managers who need Gantt charts, budgets, resource allocation, and meeting minutes alongside basic agile boards, OpenProject is the clear choice. It’s the closest self-hosted equivalent to Jira + Microsoft Project combined.
If neither fully fits — you just need a simple Kanban board without the overhead — look at Planka or Plane.
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