Workboard vs Redmine
The modern Redmine alternative
Redmine has been quietly running teams for two decades, and it looks it. Workboard is the same idea, self-hosted and free, with an interface from this decade.
Short answer: is Workboard a good Redmine alternative?
Workboard is a modern, MIT-licensed alternative to Redmine. Both are free and self-hostable, but Redmine is a Rails application from 2006 whose kanban boards, single sign-on, and modern conveniences generally come from third-party plugins. Workboard ships boards, workflows, SSO, time tracking, and realtime updates as core features.
- License
- MIT, versus GPLv2 for Redmine
- Hosting
- Both self-host. Workboard is Docker plus PostgreSQL
- Single sign-on
- Built in on Workboard, LDAP or plugins on Redmine
- Pricing
- $0 self-hosted for both, Workboard Cloud from $4 / month
Redmine details checked on 19 August 2026. Redmine, Workboard pricing.
Why teams choose Workboard
No plugin archaeology
A usable Redmine often means a stack of community plugins, each pinned to a Redmine version. Workboard's boards, workflows, and SSO are part of the product and upgrade with it.
People will actually open it
Redmine's interface is functional and unloved. Workboard is a fast single-page app with realtime board updates, which matters when adoption is the hard part.
A cloud option when you want one
Redmine has no first-party hosting. Workboard gives you the same MIT-licensed software either self-hosted or managed from $4 a month.
When Redmine is the better choice
Redmine is battle-tested, endlessly extensible, and still maintained, with an ecosystem covering almost anything through plugins. If you already run it, know its quirks, and depend on that ecosystem, there is no urgent reason to move. Workboard is for teams starting fresh who want less to maintain.
Workboard vs Redmine, answered
Is Redmine still maintained?
Yes. Redmine is still actively developed and released under GPLv2, but its core interface and workflow model have changed little in years, and much of the modern functionality lives in third-party plugins.
What is the best modern Redmine alternative?
Workboard if you want something small, modern, and MIT licensed. OpenProject if you want a Redmine-descended platform with Gantt charts and enterprise support. Plane or Huly if you want a Linear-style interface.
Does Workboard support LDAP?
Workboard authenticates through Google, GitHub, Discord, or any OIDC provider, which covers most directories through an identity provider such as Keycloak, Authentik, or Entra ID. There is no direct LDAP bind.
Can I migrate Redmine issues to Workboard?
There is no dedicated importer. Redmine has a REST API and Workboard has a public API plus per-project JSON import, so a scripted migration is straightforward for someone comfortable with either API.