GNOME Calendar vs Xandikos
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted calendar & contacts options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | GNOME Calendar | Xandikos |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Category | Calendar & Contacts | Calendar & Contacts |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | C | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 300 | ★ 606 |
| First released | 2015 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Google Calendar | Google Calendar, iCloud |
What are GNOME Calendar and Xandikos?
GNOME Calendar
GNOME Calendar is a clean and uncluttered desktop calendar application that integrates with GNOME Online Accounts and can connect to self-hosted CalDAV servers for synchronizing events.
- Clean desktop calendar
- CalDAV server support
- GNOME Online Accounts integration
Xandikos
Xandikos is a lightweight CalDAV and CardDAV server that stores all data in a Git repository. This gives version history for every calendar and contact change with minimal infrastructure.
- Git-backed storage with history
- No database required
- Lightweight footprint
GNOME Calendar vs Xandikos: key differences
GNOME Calendar is written in C, while Xandikos is built with Python. Xandikos is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 256 MB for GNOME Calendar. Xandikos has the considerably larger community, at 606 GitHub stars versus 300. Xandikos lists first-class Docker deployment; GNOME Calendar does not.
Why pick each one
Choose GNOME Calendar if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Choose Xandikos if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Python
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is GNOME Calendar or Xandikos better?
Neither is universally better. Xandikos has the larger community, while GNOME Calendar is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are GNOME Calendar and Xandikos free and open-source?
Yes. GNOME Calendar is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Xandikos under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run GNOME Calendar and Xandikos with Docker?
GNOME Calendar: check the project docs for container support. Xandikos: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, GNOME Calendar or Xandikos?
Xandikos has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for GNOME Calendar. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.