Plane, OpenProject and Taiga are open-source project management tools whose source code is publicly available, and they are free to use when you install them on your own server. That said, the free options come with limits, such as caps on users or storage and features reserved for paid plans. GeckoFlag, on the other hand, is a self-hosted tool sold as a one-time $30 purchase. This page compares the four tools on pricing, setup and maintenance, and features, with a focus on one point: even when the software is free, you still have to provide and maintain the server yourself.
Last updated: September 29, 2026 (information about other tools is based on their official websites and other public sources)
First: Plane, OpenProject and Taiga Are All Excellent Tools
We want to say this up front: Plane, OpenProject and Taiga are all excellent project management tools. Their source code is open, they are supported by communities of developers and users around the world, and all three are still under active development.
Each has real strengths: Plane has a modern, easy-to-use interface, OpenProject offers serious planning and management features built around its Gantt charts, and Taiga makes agile work with Scrum and Kanban easy. For teams that can build and run their own servers, they are strong options that cost nothing to use.
This page is not meant to criticize any of these tools. It is here to help you consider GeckoFlag as an option with a different approach to providing and maintaining the server.
The Short Answer: Who Each Tool Is For
GeckoFlag
Teams that want simple issue tracking on their own web hosting without Docker or command-line work, and agencies and freelancers who want to run it under their own brand for each client.
Plane
Software development teams that can build and run a server with Docker and want to organize work with cycles (sprints) and modules in a modern interface.
OpenProject
Organizations that need serious project planning built around Gantt charts and can run a server environment that includes PostgreSQL in-house.
Taiga
Development teams that want to run agile projects with Scrum or Kanban and can build and maintain a server environment made up of several services.
Comparison at a Glance
| Category | GeckoFlag | Plane | OpenProject | Taiga |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deployment | Self-hosted only | Self-hosted / official cloud | Self-hosted / official cloud | Self-hosted / official cloud |
| License | Commercial license (source code included) | Community Edition: AGPL-3.0 | Community edition: GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Software cost | One-time $30 (perpetual license) | Community Edition is free | Community edition is free | Self-hosted version is free |
| Paid plans | None (updates are free too) | Pro $6/user/month, Business $13/user/month (billed annually). Same pricing for cloud and self-hosted | Basic €5.95 / Professional €10.95 / Premium €15.95 per user per month (annual contract). Corporate: quote on request | Official cloud: €5 / €20 / €60 per month (unlimited users; project and storage limits per plan) |
| Users | ✓No user limit in the system | Community Edition: no limit. Free plan (cloud and Commercial Edition): up to 12 users | Community edition: no limit. Paid plans: 25-user minimum (Premium 100, Corporate 250) | No limit (the cloud free plan is limited in projects and to 10 MB of storage) |
| Requirements | PHP 8.2+ and MySQL/MariaDB (Apache/Nginx) | Docker (Docker Compose). An external database and storage are recommended for production | Docker or Linux packages. PostgreSQL 16+ | Docker recommended. Several services, including a Python (Django) backend, an Angular frontend, PostgreSQL and RabbitMQ |
| Server guideline | Runs on common shared hosting | 2 cores and 4 GB RAM or more (8 GB recommended for production) | 4 cores and 4 GB RAM or more (up to about 200 users) | A VPS or similar that can run several services around the clock |
| Standard web hosting | ✓Tested on many shared hosting providers | ✗Needs a VPS or similar that runs Docker | ✗Needs a VPS or similar | ✗Needs a VPS or similar |
| Installation | Browser-based installer (no Docker or Composer needed) | Command-line work required | Command-line work required | Command-line work required |
| Updates & backups | From the admin panel (upload an update ZIP, manual backups) | Done yourself on the server | Done yourself on the server (PostgreSQL versions also need managing) | Done yourself on the server |
| Kanban board | ✓Built in | ✓Built in | ✓Boards | ✓Built in |
| Gantt chart | ✓Built in (admins can view all projects at once) | ✓Gantt layout | ✓Built in (a core feature) | ✗Not available (no plans to add it) |
| Scrum (sprints) | ✗No dedicated feature | ✓Cycles | ✓Backlogs | ✓Built in (a core feature) |
| Wiki & docs | ✓Wiki | ✓Pages | ✓Wiki | ✓Wiki |
| Modifying the source code | ✓Allowed (no redistribution or resale) | ✓Allowed (under the AGPL-3.0 terms) | ✓Allowed (under the GPL-3.0 terms) | ✓Allowed (under the AGPL-3.0 terms) |
✓ = supported · △ = partially supported / extra work needed · ✗ = not supported. Information about Plane, OpenProject and Taiga is based on public sources as of September 2026. Please check each official website for the latest specifications and pricing.
What You Still Need When the Software Is Free
Plane, OpenProject and Taiga cost nothing for the software when you run them on your own server. To keep using them, however, your team has to take on the following preparation and ongoing work.
- Providing a server — All three assume a VPS or cloud server that can run Docker and several services around the clock. Plane lists 2 cores and 4 GB RAM or more (8 GB recommended for production), and OpenProject lists 4 cores and 4 GB RAM or more. They cannot run on typical shared hosting built for PHP.
- Setting it up — You build the environment from the command line, using tools such as Docker Compose. Taiga, for example, combines several services: a Python (Django) backend, an Angular frontend, PostgreSQL, RabbitMQ and more.
- Maintenance and operations — You need to keep applying updates, back up your data including the database, respond to security fixes and recover from outages. OpenProject officially supports PostgreSQL 16 or later, so you also need to keep an eye on your database version.
For teams with engineers who are used to building and running servers, this is not a big burden. Otherwise, server costs and staff time become a hidden cost.
GeckoFlag runs on many common web hosting plans that offer PHP and MySQL/MariaDB, and it does not need Docker. Its dependencies are bundled, so Composer is not needed either: after uploading the files, you simply follow the browser-based installer. Backups and updates are handled from the admin panel. For step-by-step instructions, see the installation guide and the Namecheap setup example.
Pricing: Free Open Source, Paid Plans and a One-Time Purchase
- GeckoFlag — A one-time $30 purchase that includes free future updates. There are no per-user fees. The only other cost is the server you install it on (one license covers one domain).
- Plane — The Community Edition is free and has no user limit. Features such as workflows and approvals, audit logs, SSO (SAML, OIDC, LDAP), epics and integrations with GitHub or Slack come with the paid plans (Pro $6 and Business $13 per user per month, billed annually), and self-hosted use follows the same pricing as the cloud.
- OpenProject — The Community edition is free. Team planner, portfolio management, SSO, custom themes and logos and similar features belong to the paid Enterprise editions, which require at least 25 users for Basic and Professional, 100 for Premium and 250 for Corporate.
- Taiga — Free when you run it on your own server, with no feature restrictions. The official cloud has a free plan (one public and one private project, up to 10 MB of storage) and paid plans at €5, €20 and €60 per month, all with unlimited users.
Example: A 20-Person Team Using a Paid Plan for 3 Years
Plane Pro (billed annually, $6 per user per month) comes to $4,320 for 20 users × 36 months. OpenProject Basic (annual contract, €5.95 per user per month) requires at least 25 users, so even a 20-person team pays for 25 users × 36 months: €5,355. Taiga's official cloud Basic plan (€20 per month, up to 500 MB of storage) comes to €720 over 36 months. GeckoFlag costs just $30 for the license, no matter how many people you add.
If you use any of the three open-source tools in their free versions on your own server, the software costs nothing. What you need in that case is a VPS or similar server and time for setup and maintenance. (GeckoFlag's server costs, taxes and exchange-rate effects are not included.)
Feature Differences
In terms of the number of features, all three open-source tools go further than GeckoFlag. Plane offers cycles (sprints), modules, pages (documentation) and several layouts, and OpenProject is a full-scale project management tool with Gantt charts, a wiki, boards, time tracking and more. Taiga covers what agile teams need, including a Scrum backlog and sprints, Kanban and epics.
GeckoFlag keeps things simple and focused on what issue tracking needs. Issues can have a title, issue type, status, priority, assignee, start and due dates and more, and parent/child issues, a Kanban board, a Gantt chart, a wiki and file sharing are all built in. Statuses and priorities can be customized freely from the admin panel, and GeckoFlag also offers custom branding to change the site name and logo, as well as support for 15 languages that each user can switch between.
When GeckoFlag Is Not the Right Fit
- You don't want to manage a server at all (you need a cloud version) — GeckoFlag is only available as a self-hosted product. Plane, OpenProject and Taiga all offer official cloud versions.
- You need Scrum sprint management, time tracking, SSO or integrations with development tools — the three open-source tools are a better fit.
- You want the software to cost nothing at all and can build and maintain the server yourself — using an open-source tool for free is a better fit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Plane, OpenProject and Taiga are free, so why choose GeckoFlag?
All three are free as software when you run them on your own server. However, you need to provide a server such as a VPS that runs Docker, and handle updates, backups and security for several services, including PostgreSQL, yourself. GeckoFlag is a one-time $30 purchase, but it runs on common web hosting with PHP and MySQL/MariaDB and needs neither Docker nor command-line work. It suits teams that want to keep the effort and cost of server management down.
Does Plane's Community Edition have a user limit?
According to Plane's official open-source page, the Community Edition (AGPL-3.0) has no user limit. The Free plan on the cloud and the Free plan of the self-hosted Commercial Edition are limited to 12 users. To use the paid Pro and Business plans, you need to switch to the Commercial Edition.
When do you need OpenProject's paid edition?
The free Community edition already includes core features such as Gantt charts, boards and a wiki. Team planner, portfolio management, SSO and custom themes and logos are features of the paid Enterprise editions. Basic (from €5.95 per user per month) and Professional require at least 25 users, and Premium requires at least 100.
Does Taiga have Gantt charts?
Taiga has no built-in Gantt chart, and in April 2026 the Taiga team said on its community forum that there are no plans to add one. Taiga focuses on agile development with Scrum and Kanban. If you want to manage schedules with a Gantt chart, GeckoFlag or OpenProject are options.
Can I try GeckoFlag before buying?
Yes. GeckoFlag has a demo site where you can check the screens and how it works before you buy.
Want to Try GeckoFlag for Yourself?
Explore the demo site to see the screens and how it works before you buy.
References
- Plane Pricing
- Plane Open Source (Community Edition)
- Understanding Plane's editions (Plane Developers)
- Plane self-hosting requirements (Docker Compose)
- OpenProject Pricing
- OpenProject System requirements
- Taiga Deployment & pricing options
- Taiga production setup (Taiga Docs)
- Taiga 6.10.1 release (May 2026, Taiga Community)
- Is Gantt Chart Support on the Roadmap for Taiga? (Taiga Community)
- See the GeckoFlag vs Jira comparison
- See the GeckoFlag vs Redmine comparison