eLabFTW vs Focalboard
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted project management & tasks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
eLabFTW
Electronic lab notebook for research labs
VS
Focalboard
Open-source project and task management boards
| Feature | eLabFTW | Focalboard |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Project Management & Tasks | Project Management & Tasks |
| License | AGPL-3.0-only | MIT |
| Language | PHP | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 300 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,390 | ★ 26,376 |
| First released | 2023 | 2021 |
| Replaces | — | Trello, Asana, Notion |
Why pick each one
Choose eLabFTW if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0-only license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (1.4k GitHub stars)
- Written in PHP
Frequently asked questions
Is eLabFTW or Focalboard better?
Neither is universally better. Focalboard has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are eLabFTW and Focalboard free and open-source?
Yes. eLabFTW is licensed under AGPL-3.0-only and Focalboard under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run eLabFTW and Focalboard with Docker?
eLabFTW: check the project docs for container support. Focalboard: yes.