Kimai
Best open source
OpenProject alternative
Kimai is the #1 open-source time-tracking alternative for OpenProject. Learn how Kimai measures up to OpenProject, so you can choose the right solution for your business.
Kimai vs OpenProject: Which time tracking software fits your team best in 2026?
Kimai is the #1 open-source time-tracking solution designed for teams and businesses seeking flexibility and control over their time tracking infrastructure. Discover why more than 7000 companies worldwide trust Kimai for their time tracking needs and find out how it compares to OpenProject’s offerings. Whether you’re evaluating a new time tracking app, analyzing OpenProject pricing options, or planning a OpenProject migration, Kimai provides a compelling alternative with superior features and cost savings.
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 2026 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 2026 and see how Kimai compares with Toggl Track — two popular choices among professionals and successful teams worldwide.
Kimai features most used
Not all time tracking tools are created equal. The best solutions for agencies offer a specialized set of features to streamline your workflows.
JSON API
Featuring an extensive JSON API for reading and writing data, so external apps and custom tools can communicate with Kimai.
Read moreCustomer Portal
Share client and project statistics and timesheets with anyone using a secret URL, optionally password protected.
Read moreTeams
Teams connects users into logical groups, like departments. Limit access to data by assigning customers and projects to your teams.
Read moreSAML
Log in and register users with SAML via your existing SSO identity provider, like Google Workspace, Authentik or Azure Active Directory.
Read moreInvoicing
Configurable invoice templates, options for entry grouping, configurable invoice numbers, and multiple formats like PDF and DOCX.
Read moreReports and analyses
Analysis of recorded times by users, customers, projects, activities, tags, time periods and more.
Read moreOpenProject: open source project management
OpenProject is an open source project management software for optimizing the collaboration of separated teams. It takes into account the entire project lifecycle. Features include project portfolio management and project and release planning. OpenProject offers a free Community Edition as well as an Enterprise Version, between €5.95 and €15.95 per user & month.
While OpenProject is a software with an extensive project-management feature set, it is not a time-tracking software. It can track time, but this is not it’s main purpose and many advanced time-tracking features are missing. Are you looking for an explicit time-tracker? Then Kimai might be the right choice for you.
Kimai is the best open source time-tracker alternative to OpenProject.
What users say about Kimai
At Kimai, we've designed our time tracking platform to meet the needs of agencies, teams, and freelancers. Our intuitive interface and powerful features help companies like yours work smarter and more profitably. You can now “listen” to the reviews of the real users.
When I started to identify a time reporting software for our medium size enterprise (~30 people distributed all over United States and Canada) in the software service industry for onsite and remote services, I had several programs in my mind. In my specification I had the following things to be covered
- Customer related time reporting
- Project related time reporting
- Time approval
- Various hierarchies in user and access levels
- Open data interface for potential interfaces to other software packages (such as various payroll software packages for Canada and US, ERP for invoicing)
- Time budget for hourly packages
- Time reporting to customers with time budget
- The data is mine and I always want to have access to it
- I would like to create plugins if I need to add features that do not yet exist
I continued my search but always came back to Kevin Papst’s time reporting software Kimai. So I installed it on a shared host. I continued to set up a few users and imported a few customers, projects and finally understood how activities are to be set up (global and local). This is a feature that surprised me even more. Well implemented! I finally rolled it out to a small group and then the entire team. The time reporting is now fully implemented within 2 months from first idea to fully operational.
Then the demands grow with the possibilities: I purchased a few plugins and these were installed as simple as the main software. Then, when I had even more requests that I didn’t find an answer by plugins, I reached out to the developer Kevin asking for help with changing a report and he simply answered to consider this for the entire software, not just a module for me. It may be within some of the next releases.
In summary, Kimai is a flexible time reporting package with active code, modern, responsive and fast user interface and a fast responding support.
Thanks, Kevin, for this nice software package!
Frank
Roptec GmbHI love how I can combine time tracking, expense tracking, and invoicing into one app without features hidden behind nagging subscriptions. I can click one button to invoice my clients now! Seriously a godsend. Also, the clean UI is well thought-out and simple to learn. Highly recommend this one!
Isaac Mailach
FreelancerWe recently made the switch from Toggl to a self-hosted Kimai. As a TYPO3 agency, open source, data sovereignty, and full control over the software were essential to us. We wanted to decide ourselves when to enable specific features and have the freedom to implement our own customizations. The migration of data from Toggl to Kimai was smooth, and our team quickly adapted to the interface, which resembles Toggl but offers more advanced options—especially for reporting and analytics.
Stefan Schütt
Pagemachine AGWe have been using Kimai for our time management for a short time and are very satisfied. A nice design and easy operation were important to us, but the biggest plus point is the support: The team responds quickly and addresses all wishes and concerns, even if a special solution is needed. Therefore, we absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for a time tracking solution 👍
Jasmin
klose brothersKimai was my first foray into open-source software; my company tasked me with migrating an old Kimai plugin called Period Insert, which I eventually decided to publish. My experience has been very positive. I am impressed by Kimai’s ease of use and by how my small contribution to it has been used around the world. I am also grateful to Kevin for his open communication and assistance with publishing the plugin, which served as a warm introduction to the open-source community. Kimai is a model example of how open-source software can improve the lives of people, not just companies. I highly recommend it!
Alan Nguyen
Software DeveloperAll 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 OpenProject? Dive into this comprehensive comparison to find out why businesses are choosing Kimai over OpenProject
See the difference
Compare Kimai vs. OpenProject: choose the options that make the most sense for your business.
Kimai
On-Premise
- 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 :
OpenProject
Professional
- Open source software :
- Available on-premises :
- Available in the cloud :
- Server location :
- Max. customers : Unlimited
- Max. projects : Unlimited
- Max. activities : Unlimited
- JSON API :
- Invoicing :
- Data export :
- SAML :
- Support : Email, Forum, Phone (Germany)
- Backups : Manually
- TLS Certificate :
- Custom domain :
- Automatic upgrades :
- Server maintenance :
- IP access restriction :
- Custom content :
- Audit trail logs :
- Custom fields :
- Expense management : Partially
- Task planning :
- Translations :
- Working hours, vacation, sickness, public holidays :
Germany (Falkenstein)
Please note that the above information were manually compiled on 2024-11-19 from the OpenProject website. For the comparison, the best matching plans were chosen. Prices are subject to change. For the most current pricing, please visit the respective websites.
Kimai is open source
Kimai is #1 open-source time-tracking software, providing unparalleled transparency and flexibility. By choosing Kimai, you’re investing in a secure, cost-efficient solution with complete control over your data and the ability to customize it exactly as your team needs.
Self-host with complete control
Kimai offers a self-hosted edition that puts data privacy to the front. With on-premises deployment, you maintain complete control over your sensitive business information, ensure compliance with stringent data protection regulations, and achieve a level of security that's often challenging with cloud-only solutions. Plus, Kimai's API allows seamless integration with your existing tools and workflows.
EU-based data protection
If you decide to go with the cloud edition, you can be sure that your data is safe. With the headquarters located in Austria (EU), it is GDPR-compliant by default and all data is stored in Germany (Hetzner Cloud, Falkenstein). Learn more about our privacy-first approach
Conclusion
In today's digital age, data security is paramount. Kimai promises secure data protection and state-of-the-art encryption, ensuring that your business's sensitive information remains confidential.
Kimai offers a well-rounded solution that caters to a variety of workflows and use-cases for most project-based teams and companies. Its ease of use, integration capabilities, and commitment to data security and privacy make it a top choice for businesses seeking an efficient time-tracking software.