Focalboard vs Vikunja
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
Vikunja
Open-source to-do and project management app
| Feature | Focalboard | Vikunja |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 69 · Good | 90 · Excellent |
| Category | Project Management & Tasks | Project Management & Tasks |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 26,483 | ★ 5,494 |
| First released | 2021 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Trello, Asana, Notion | Todoist, Trello, Asana |
What are Focalboard and Vikunja?
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
Vikunja
Vikunja is an open-source to-do app and project management tool with lists, kanban, gantt, and calendar views. It targets individuals and teams wanting flexible task management. It is deployed via Docker or a single binary.
- List, kanban, gantt and calendar views
- Reminders and recurring tasks
- REST API
- Lightweight single binary
Focalboard vs Vikunja: key differences
Focalboard is written in TypeScript, while Vikunja is built with Go. Licensing differs — MIT for Focalboard versus AGPL-3.0 for Vikunja. Vikunja is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Focalboard. Vikunja 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 5,494.
Why pick each one
Choose Focalboard if…
- Clean Trello-like UI
- Lightweight
- Mattermost integration
Watch out for
- Development has slowed
- Fewer power features
Choose Vikunja if…
- Flexible task views
- Lightweight
- Good API
Watch out for
- Smaller ecosystem
- Fewer integrations than rivals
Frequently asked questions
Is Focalboard or Vikunja 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 Vikunja free and open-source?
Yes. Focalboard is licensed under MIT and Vikunja under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Focalboard and Vikunja with Docker?
Focalboard: yes. Vikunja: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Focalboard or Vikunja?
Vikunja has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Focalboard. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.