TCExam vs TAO
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted learning & courses options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | TCExam | TAO |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 80 · Excellent | 5 · At risk |
| Category | Learning & Courses | Learning & Courses |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | PHP | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, docker | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 621 | ★ 137 |
| First released | 2004 | 2010 |
| Replaces | ExamSoft | ExamSoft, Questionmark |
What are TCExam and TAO?
TCExam
TCExam is an open-source system for electronic exams and computer-based assessment. It enables educators to author tests, deliver them online, and grade them automatically with detailed reports.
- Online exam delivery
- Automatic grading
- Many question types
- Detailed reporting
TAO
TAO is an open-source platform for authoring, delivering, and scoring computer-based assessments and exams. It supports the QTI standard and is used for large-scale standardized testing.
- QTI-compliant items
- Secure exam delivery
- Item authoring tools
- Detailed result analytics
TCExam vs TAO: key differences
Both projects are written in PHP. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for TCExam versus GPL-2.0 for TAO. TCExam is the lighter option, starting around 1,024 MB of RAM against 2,048 MB for TAO. TCExam is the more established project (first released 2004), while TAO arrived in 2010. TCExam has the considerably larger community, at 621 GitHub stars versus 137.
Why pick each one
Choose TCExam if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in PHP
Choose TAO if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in PHP
Frequently asked questions
Is TCExam or TAO better?
TCExam is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider TAO if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are TCExam and TAO free and open-source?
Yes. TCExam is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and TAO under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run TCExam and TAO with Docker?
TCExam: yes. TAO: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, TCExam or TAO?
TCExam has the smaller minimum footprint at 1,024 MB of RAM, compared to about 2,048 MB for TAO. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.