Jira alternatives: 5 free & open-source picks
Curated, verified, and actually free. No trials, no crippled tiers. Star counts and last-activity dates checked by hand, not scraped and forgotten.
The closest modern Jira-shaped escape hatch; the self-hosted stack is not a weekend hobby
The enterprise project suite; free in money, expensive in menus
Issue tracking, time sheets, Gantt, and wikis from the era when software admitted it needed configuration
Scrum and kanban without Atlassian archaeology; reporting and integrations are thinner
A full project tracker for ten people; user eleven is where JetBrains remembers billing
last updated 2026-08-06 · no votes, no pay-to-list · just what's real
FocalboardStill recommended everywhere; Mattermost stopped maintaining it and the last standalone release was April 2023
| tool | license | running it | platforms | stars | active |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plane | open source | self-host, real ops | web, self-hosted | 55,600 | 2026-08 |
| OpenProject | open source | docker to self-host | web, self-hosted | 15,200 | 2026-08 |
| Redmine | open source | self-host, real ops | web, self-hosted | 6,000 | 2026-08 |
| Taiga | open source | self-host, real ops | web, self-hosted | 844 | 2026-08 |
| YouTrack | free (closed) | they host it | web, ios, android | — | — |
A Jira ticket is often connected to a pull request, deployment, support case, audit trail, roadmap, and three teams' reporting rules. Rebuilding the visible board is straightforward; replacing the shared organizational contract around issue IDs, permissions, automations, and history is not. The subscription buys continuity and integration upkeep more than draggable cards. If none of that applies to you, any pick above saves $108.6 a year.
Is there a free alternative to Jira?
Yes: Plane, OpenProject, Redmine and 2 more. Every tool on this page is either open source or genuinely free to use long-term: no trials, no crippled tiers.
Should I just build my own Jira?
Our verdict is KINDA. Issues, workflows, a backlog, sprints, and a board are a credible multi-day build for one small team. The replacement stops being small when Jira is the company's system of record: custom schemes, permissions, automation, reporting, marketplace apps, two-way integrations, and years of workflow history are the product people are actually paying not to migrate. If you'd rather build, the exact one-shot prompt is free at canivibecodeit.com/jira.
