Kimai vs timetrace
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted time tracking options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Kimai
Professional time tracking for teams and freelancers
VS
timetrace
Simple command-line time tracker for projects
| Feature | Kimai | timetrace |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 90 · Excellent | 13 · At risk |
| Category | Time Tracking | Time Tracking |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | PHP | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,025 | ★ 794 |
| First released | 2006 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Toggl, Harvest, Clockify | Clockify, Toggl |
What are Kimai and timetrace?
Kimai
Kimai is a free, web-based multi-user time tracking application. It tracks work time across projects and activities and generates invoices and exportable reports.
- Multi-user time tracking
- Invoice generation
- Detailed reporting and exports
- Plugin marketplace
timetrace
timetrace is a simple command-line time tracker that records hours spent on projects and tasks directly from the terminal. It stores records as local files and produces reports for billing and review.
- Terminal-based tracking
- Local file storage
- Project and task records
- Reporting commands
Kimai vs timetrace: key differences
Kimai is written in PHP, while timetrace is built with Go. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Kimai versus GPL-3.0 for timetrace. Timetrace is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Kimai. Kimai is the more established project (first released 2006), while timetrace arrived in 2021. Kimai has the considerably larger community, at 5,025 GitHub stars versus 794. Kimai lists first-class Docker deployment; timetrace does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Kimai if…
- Mature and actively maintained
- Strong invoicing features
Watch out for
- Configuration can be involved
Choose timetrace if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Kimai or timetrace better?
Neither is universally better. Kimai has the larger community, while timetrace is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Kimai and timetrace free and open-source?
Yes. Kimai is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and timetrace under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Kimai and timetrace with Docker?
Kimai: yes. timetrace: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Kimai or timetrace?
timetrace has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Kimai. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.