Plane 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.
Plane
Open-source project and issue tracking tool
VS
Vikunja
Open-source to-do and project management app
| Feature | Plane | Vikunja |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 100 · Excellent | 90 · Excellent |
| Category | Project Management & Tasks | Project Management & Tasks |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 59,805 | ★ 5,494 |
| First released | 2023 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Jira, Linear, Asana | Todoist, Trello, Asana |
What are Plane and Vikunja?
Plane
Plane is an open-source project management tool for tracking issues, sprints, and product roadmaps with multiple views. It targets software and product teams. It is deployed via Docker.
- Issues, cycles and modules
- List, kanban and gantt views
- Roadmaps and pages
- Modern fast UI
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
Plane vs Vikunja: key differences
Plane is written in TypeScript, while Vikunja is built with Go. Vikunja is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 2,048 MB for Plane. Vikunja is the more established project (first released 2019), while Plane arrived in 2023. Plane has the considerably larger community, at 59,805 GitHub stars versus 5,494.
Why pick each one
Choose Plane if…
- Polished modern interface
- Good for product teams
- Active development
Watch out for
- Resource heavy
- Some features still maturing
Choose Vikunja if…
- Flexible task views
- Lightweight
- Good API
Watch out for
- Smaller ecosystem
- Fewer integrations than rivals
Frequently asked questions
Is Plane or Vikunja better?
Neither is universally better. Plane has the larger community, while Vikunja is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Plane and Vikunja free and open-source?
Yes. Plane is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Vikunja under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Plane and Vikunja with Docker?
Plane: yes. Vikunja: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Plane or Vikunja?
Vikunja has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 2,048 MB for Plane. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.