arbtt vs Kimai
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted time tracking options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
arbtt
Automatic rule-based time tracker for desktops
VS
Kimai
Professional time tracking for teams and freelancers
| Feature | arbtt | Kimai |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Time Tracking | Time Tracking |
| License | GPL-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Haskell | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 354 | ★ 4,871 |
| First released | 2009 | 2006 |
| Replaces | RescueTime, ManicTime | Toggl, Harvest, Clockify |
Why pick each one
Choose arbtt if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Written in Haskell
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is arbtt or Kimai better?
Neither is universally better. Kimai has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are arbtt and Kimai free and open-source?
Yes. arbtt is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Kimai under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run arbtt and Kimai with Docker?
arbtt: check the project docs for container support. Kimai: yes.