Kanboard

Minimalist project management focused on the Kanban method, in PHP, now in maintenance mode because its author considers it complete.

9.9k stars, 2k forks PHP On GitHub since January 2014

Visit website View on GitHub How to run it

What is Kanboard?

Kanboard keeps project management to the essentials: a kanban board with swimlanes, work-in-progress limits, tasks, subtasks, comments and simple analytics. It is light enough to run on modest hosting with SQLite, MySQL or PostgreSQL, and plugins extend it with integrations and themes. Its README says the application is in maintenance mode, meaning it has reached its goals and only receives fixes rather than new features. The interface is translated into about 30 languages.

Good fit if

  • You want a stable, simple board that will not change under you.
  • You run on cheap PHP hosting.

Look elsewhere if

  • You want new features and a modern interface: Kan or Kaneo.
  • You need full project management: OpenProject.

Before you adopt it

Kanboard has been MIT-licensed since July 2015, when it moved from AGPL-3.0. Maintenance mode means bug and security fixes only, which suits teams that value stability over new features.

Drafted with AI from the project's README and repository data, then checked against that data on 30 October 2026. Report a correction

Kanboard health: is it still maintained?

59 of 100, actively developed

  • Activity
    46 commits in the last 90 days, the latest on 31 October 2026.
    20 / 30
  • Contributors
    7 people wrote the 46 commits of the last 90 days; the most active wrote 73% of them.
    12 / 20
  • Releases
    9 releases in the last 12 months; the latest, v1.2.57, on 31 October 2026.
    18 / 20
  • Replies to issues
    Maintainers answered 15% of recent issues, with a median first reply after 10 days.
    5 / 20
  • Security practices
    OpenSSF Scorecard 4.3 of 10.
    4 / 10

Read from GitHub on 1 November 2026. How the score works

Kanboard license: is it open source?

Kanboard uses MIT, an open-source license approved by the OSI.

  1. January 2014First published on GitHub under AGPL-3.0.
  2. 25 July 2015Changed to MIT. Commit: Switch to MIT license
  3. TodayMIT.

How to run Kanboard yourself

Docker
Dockerfile or compose file in the repository
Compose file
docker-compose.mysql.yml: 2 services (mysql)
Setup effort
2 of 5, judged from the compose file
Kubernetes
No Helm chart in the repository
Desktop and mobile
No app builds in GitHub releases
Interface languages
31 languages

Install instructions: kanboard.org or the README on GitHub.

Alternatives to Kanboard

  • KaneoProject management that doesn't become the project. Boards, Gantt charts, and GitHub integration. Self-host… 78 health · MIT · 9.7k stars
  • LeantimeLeantime is a goals focused project management system for non-project managers. Building with ADHD, Autism,… 65 health · AGPL-3.0 · 11.9k stars
  • PLANKAElegant open source project tracking. Self-hosted Kanban for teams — free Community edition, with PLANKA Pro… 56 health · PLANKA Community License · 12.7k stars
  • OpenProjectOpenProject is the leading open source project management software for product, project and portfolio… 82 health · GPL-3.0 · 16.9k stars
  • PlaneOpen-source Jira, Linear, Monday, and ClickUp alternative. Plane is a modern project management platform to… 79 health · AGPL-3.0 · 61.8k stars

All 26 projects in Project & task management

Questions about Kanboard

Is Kanboard open source?

Yes. Kanboard is published under MIT, an OSI-approved open-source license.

Is Kanboard still maintained?

Its health score is 59 of 100 (actively developed). It had 46 commits in the last 90 days, the latest on 31 October 2026, and its latest release came out on 31 October 2026.

Did Kanboard change its license?

Yes. It moved from AGPL-3.0 to MIT on 25 July 2015.

How do I run Kanboard?

You can run it with Docker. The README on GitHub has the exact steps.

What are the alternatives to Kanboard?

Close alternatives in the Project & task management category include Kaneo, Leantime, PLANKA.