SHSelfHostIndex

ActivityWatch vs Clockify Selfhost Cattr

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?
AC ActivityWatch Automatic, privacy-first time tracking for your devices VS CL Clockify Selfhost Cattr Open-source time tracking and team productivity
FeatureActivityWatchClockify Selfhost Cattr
CategoryTime TrackingTime Tracking
LicenseMPL-2.0Apache-2.0
LanguagePythonPHP
Setup difficultyEasyMedium
Min. RAM128 MB512 MB
Deploymentbinary, sourcedocker, bare-metal
GitHub stars★ 18,527★ 97
First released20162019
ReplacesRescueTime, ManicTimeHubstaff, Time Doctor

Why pick each one

Choose ActivityWatch if…

  • Released under the MPL-2.0 license
  • Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
  • Mature project with 18.5k GitHub stars
  • Written in Python
ActivityWatch details

Choose Clockify Selfhost Cattr if…

  • Released under the Apache-2.0 license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Written in PHP
  • Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Clockify Selfhost Cattr details

Frequently asked questions

Is ActivityWatch or Clockify Selfhost Cattr better?

ActivityWatch is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Clockify Selfhost Cattr if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are ActivityWatch and Clockify Selfhost Cattr free and open-source?

Yes. ActivityWatch is licensed under MPL-2.0 and Clockify Selfhost Cattr under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run ActivityWatch and Clockify Selfhost Cattr with Docker?

ActivityWatch: check the project docs for container support. Clockify Selfhost Cattr: yes.

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