Kimai vs Wakapi
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted time tracking options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Kimai
Professional time tracking for teams and freelancers
VS
Wakapi
Self-hosted coding activity and time tracking server
| Feature | Kimai | Wakapi |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Time Tracking | Time Tracking |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | PHP | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 4,871 | ★ 4,398 |
| First released | 2006 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Toggl, Harvest, Clockify | WakaTime, RescueTime |
Why pick each one
Choose Wakapi if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (4.4k GitHub stars)
Frequently asked questions
Is Kimai or Wakapi better?
Neither is universally better. Kimai has the larger community, while Wakapi is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Kimai and Wakapi free and open-source?
Yes. Kimai is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Wakapi under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Kimai and Wakapi with Docker?
Kimai: yes. Wakapi: yes.