Colanode vs Baïkal
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted groupware options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Colanode
Collaboration suite with real-time messaging, rich text pages, file
VS
Baïkal
Lightweight CalDAV and CardDAV server with web admin
| Feature | Colanode | Baïkal |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Groupware | Groupware |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,006 | ★ 3,258 |
| First released | 2026 | 2012 |
| Replaces | — | Google Calendar, iCloud |
Why pick each one
Choose Colanode if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 5k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is Colanode or Baïkal better?
Neither is universally better. Colanode has the larger community, while Baïkal is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Colanode and Baïkal free and open-source?
Yes. Colanode is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Baïkal under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Colanode and Baïkal with Docker?
Colanode: yes. Baïkal: yes.