Focalboard vs Leantime
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted project management & tasks options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Focalboard
Open-source project and task management boards
VS
Leantime
Goal-oriented project management for teams
| Feature | Focalboard | Leantime |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 69 · Good | 93 · Excellent |
| Category | Project Management & Tasks | Project Management & Tasks |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 26,483 | ★ 11,645 |
| First released | 2021 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Trello, Asana, Notion | Asana, Trello, Notion |
What are Focalboard and Leantime?
Focalboard
Focalboard is an open-source project management tool with kanban boards, tables, and calendar views for organizing work. It targets teams wanting a self-hosted Trello-style board. It is deployed via Docker or as part of Mattermost.
- Kanban, table and calendar views
- Personal and team boards
- Integrates with Mattermost
- Templates for common workflows
Leantime
Leantime is an open-source project management system designed around goals, strategy, and accessibility for non-technical teams. It targets small businesses and creatives. It is deployed via Docker or a PHP stack.
- Goals and strategy boards
- Idea management and research
- Kanban and gantt views
- Designed for non-technical users
Focalboard vs Leantime: key differences
Focalboard is written in TypeScript, while Leantime is built with PHP. Licensing differs — MIT for Focalboard versus AGPL-3.0 for Leantime. Leantime is the more established project (first released 2019), while Focalboard arrived in 2021. Focalboard has the considerably larger community, at 26,483 GitHub stars versus 11,645.
Why pick each one
Choose Focalboard if…
- Clean Trello-like UI
- Lightweight
- Mattermost integration
Watch out for
- Development has slowed
- Fewer power features
Choose Leantime if…
- Goal-focused approach
- Accessible to non-techies
- Active development
Watch out for
- Less known
- Some features still evolving
Frequently asked questions
Is Focalboard or Leantime better?
Focalboard is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Leantime if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Focalboard and Leantime free and open-source?
Yes. Focalboard is licensed under MIT and Leantime under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Focalboard and Leantime with Docker?
Focalboard: yes. Leantime: yes.