Kimai
Best open source
toggl track alternative
Kimai is the #1 open-source time-tracking alternative for toggl track. See how Kimai measures up to toggl track, so you can choose the right solution for your business.
Kimai vs Toggl: Which Time Tracking Software Fits Your Team Best in 2025?
Choosing the right time tracking software can make a huge difference in productivity, transparency, and billing accuracy of a freelancer, an agency, or a business owner managing a big team.
When selecting a time tracking tool, most users consider:
- Features: Does it cover everything from tracking and reporting to invoicing and project management?
- Price: Is it affordable (or even free) for the size of your team?
- Flexibility: Can it adapt to your current workflow, integrations, and tech stack?
- Accessibility: Does it support both desktop and mobile platforms, and can it be self-hosted or cloud-based?
- Scalability: Will it still fit your needs as your business grows?
The year 2025 also brings focus on data privacy, automation, and team transparency in time management tools. At the same time the market offers a range of solutions for every use case, from solopreneurs to large enterprise teams, and you can always find the solution that best fits your needs.
Let’s explore the best time tracking tools for 2025 and see how Kimai compares with Toggl Track — two popular choices among professionals and successful teams worldwide.
Kimai: #1 Open Source Time Tracking System
Kimai is a fully open-source time tracking solution designed to be flexible and scalable in the long term. It can be self-hosted on your own server, giving you full control over your data and configuration. Alternatively, it is available as a cloud solution with flexible subscription plans.
In this comparison, we’ll focus on the self-hosted version and its strengths:
- Simple, clean interface
- Free forever and open source — no hidden limitations or paid upgrades required
- Powerful feature set including time tracking, expense management, project reports, and invoicing
- Unlimited users and projects even on the free self-hosted version
- Integrations & plugins for extended functionality (API, authentication, automation tools)
- Perfect for teams that value data privacy and want to stay independent from vendor lock-ins, made in Austria, hosted in Germany
Kimai’s combination of enterprise-level flexibility and open-source freedom makes it one of the best time tracking and invoicing solutions for 2025 — a perfect fit for agencies, software companies, educational institutions, and non-profits.
Toggl Track: {make-sure-it’s}-free time tracking
Toggl Track is one of the most well-known names in the time tracking category. It offers individuals and small teams a user-friendly interface and quick setup. However, its pricing structure can become restrictive as your team grows.
Pros of Toggl:
- Simple, minimalist interface
- Cloud-based system — no setup or hosting needed
- Integrations with many project management tools
Cons of Toggl:
- The free plan limited to five users (according to Toggle Track’s official website as of October 2025)
- Advanced reporting, team management, and billing features require paid plans starting from 9 Euro per user monthly
- No self-hosted option available — data stored on Toggl’s servers
While Toggle OÜ is originally from Estonia, Toggl Inc. is located in the USA.
Due to U.S. regulations such as the CLOUD Act, data hosted with U.S.-based providers may be subject to access requests by U.S. authorities — which can pose privacy concerns for organizations operating under EU data protection standards.
Toggl Track is a solid entry-level tool, but as soon as your team scales, you might hit feature walls or sharp price increases that make open-source alternatives like Kimai more attractive.
Kimai vs. Toggl quick comparison
| Feature | Kimai (On-Premise) | Toggl Track |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free (limited), Paid from ~€9/user/month |
| Hosting | Self-hosted | Cloud only |
| Users | Unlimited | Up to 5 (free plan) |
| Invoicing | ✅ Built-in | ❌ Only with integrations |
| Customization | High (plugins, API) | Limited |
| Data privacy | Full control (self-hosted) | Managed by Toggl |
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for a time tracking solution that grows with you, Kimai is more than just a Toggl alternative — it’s a complete open-source ecosystem for time management, reporting, and invoicing.
✅ No user limits
✅ No subscription fees
✅ No compromises on privacy or flexibility
👉 Start with Kimai Cloud or On-Premise version, both for free — and see why teams around the world are choosing Kimai.
Migration from toggl to Kimai
If you are currently using toggl, but looking for a GDPR-compliant or just a cheaper alternative, then Kimai might be the right tool for you.
Kimai has an CSV importer, that allows to transfer your toggl data. All you have to do is export the data like this:
Please read the importer documentation to find out more.
All your time-tracking needs in one platform
Time is money, and tracking it effectively has become a necessity for project-based teams. Kimai is a powerful time-tracker that's been the favorite of many businesses worldwide. But how does it stack up against toggl track? Dive into this comprehensive comparison to find out why businesses are choosing Kimai over toggl track
See the difference
Compare Kimai vs. toggl track: choose the options that make the most sense for your business.
Kimai
- Open source software :
- Available on-premises :
- Available in the cloud :
- Server location : Your choice
- Max. customers : Unlimited
- Max. projects : Unlimited
- Max. activities : Unlimited
- JSON API :
- Invoicing :
- Data export :
- SAML :
- Support : Forum (GitHub)
- Backups :
- TLS Certificate : Additional costs
- Custom domain : Additional costs
- Automatic upgrades :
- Server maintenance :
- IP access restriction :
- Custom content : Paid plugin
- Audit trail logs : Paid plugin
- Custom fields : Paid plugin
- Expense management : Paid plugin
- Task planning : Paid plugin
- Translations : Paid plugin
- Working hours, vacation, sickness, public holidays : Paid plugin
Kimai Cloud
- Open source software :
- Available on-premises :
- Available in the cloud :
-
Server location
:
Hetzner Cloud
Germany (Falkenstein) - Max. customers : Unlimited
- Max. projects : Unlimited
- Max. activities : Unlimited
- JSON API :
- Invoicing :
- Data export :
- SAML :
- Support : Email, Forum
- Backups : Daily
- TLS Certificate :
- Custom domain :
- Automatic upgrades :
- Server maintenance :
- IP access restriction :
- Custom content :
- Audit trail logs :
- Custom fields :
- Expense management :
- Task planning :
- Translations :
- Working hours, vacation, sickness, public holidays :
toggl track
- Open source software :
- Available on-premises :
- Available in the cloud :
- Server location : United States
- Max. customers : Unlimited
- Max. projects : Unlimited
- Max. activities : Unlimited
- JSON API :
- Invoicing :
- Data export :
- SAML :
- Support :
- Backups :
- TLS Certificate :
- Custom domain : Additional costs
- Automatic upgrades :
- Server maintenance :
- IP access restriction :
- Custom content :
- Audit trail logs :
- Custom fields :
- Expense management :
- Task planning :
- Translations :
- Working hours, vacation, sickness, public holidays :
Germany (Falkenstein)
Please note that the above information were manually compiled from the toggl track website. For the comparison, the best matching plans were chosen.
