Focalboard vs phpCollab
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?
Focalboard
Open-source project and task management boards
VS
phpCollab
Lightweight project collaboration for teams and clients
| Feature | Focalboard | phpCollab |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Project Management & Tasks | Project Management & Tasks |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 26,376 | ★ 56 |
| First released | 2021 | 2002 |
| Replaces | Trello, Asana, Notion | Basecamp |
Why pick each one
Choose phpCollab if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in PHP
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Focalboard or phpCollab 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 Focalboard and phpCollab free and open-source?
Yes. Focalboard is licensed under MIT and phpCollab under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Focalboard and phpCollab with Docker?
Focalboard: yes. phpCollab: check the project docs for container support.