The server location is a relevant criterion when looking for software: If you choose a software provider from the EU with servers in the EU, you can rely on EU data protection (GDPR). Especially with project management (PM) software, data protection and security is an extremely important issue, since sensitive data is stored. But which project management software meets this requirement?
Find out in the article why the German PM software OpenProject is a safe choice in terms of server location, data protection and customer service.
Overview: Project management software from Germany
Anyone researching PM cloud software will quickly come across well-known solutions such as Jira, Asana or Trello. However, most market leaders for PM software are not based in the European Union and regularly host their servers outside the European Union. And even if software is hosted in Europe, stored data could be made available to US authorities upon request. This is in conflict with the GDPR and would therefore contradict the use of any cloud services with US reference.
If you are specifically looking for PM software from Germany, you need to take a good look. The following PM software providers have both their headquarters and server locations in Germany: OpenProject, Stackfield, InLoox, Factro, awork.
All of the above solutions offer servers in the European Union. In addition, they all offer German-language support, documentation – and, of course, a German user interface.
The best open source PM software from Germany: OpenProject
OpenProject stands out from other German project management software providers mainly because of the following criteria:
A wide range of German-speaking companies and organizations already rely on the Enterprise version of OpenProject, including, for example: City of Cologne, Autoliv, University of Zurich, Fraunhofer, Volksbank Bocholt, Brandenburg State Parliament, Siemens or Charité Berlin. Many more are managing their projects with the free of charge Community version.
European legal security: DSGVO compliant and open source
Of course, the cloud-hosted version of OpenProject is DSGVO compliant. All data - starting with marketing! - is treated with strict confidentiality. Our goal is to minimize data storage, that is, to capture and store only Data that is really necessary. No matter if you are browsing the OpenProject website or using the software. We do not set cookies that are not technically necessary, and we do not collect or process personal data for any purpose other than ensuring our services.
In short: For OpenProject, data protection is not just a legal regulation, but a matter of course.
CEO Niels Lindenthal: “Our goal is to bring OpenProject to perfection as a lighthouse project for data privacy and security in Europe.”
As open source software, the source code of OpenProject is publicly available. This means that numerous people can quickly expose errors and possible security vulnerabilities. Because: Like any software, OpenProject can be affected by security vulnerabilities. These can usually be found and fixed much faster in OpenProject by the vigilant community than in project management software that is not open source.
Good to know: For EU customers it is required by the GDPR to sign a data processing agreement (sometimes called data processing addendum) before using the OpenProject Enterprise cloud edition. To save bureaucratic effort and time for both sides, OpenProject has automated this process.
In addition to data security, data sovereignty is a top priority at OpenProject. Together with other open source software providers, OpenProject is currently working on openDesk - the Sovereign Workplace, an open source alternative to Microsoft, Google and Co. OpenDesk is initiated and supported by the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Homeland of Germany.
Server locations in Europe
OpenProject can be operated on self-managed servers (”on-premises”) or used as software-as-a-service in the cloud. If you decide to use the cloud version of OpenProject, your data will be stored on secure servers within the EU. If you prefer a server location specifically in France, this is also possible without any problems - just contact us!
Important
Prior to March 2026 our services are hosted across both Netways (Germany) and Scaleway (France) data center environments. Starting with March 2026, Scaleway will become our sole data center provider for the EU shard.
Security always includes backups, which are continuously created for OpenProject’s cloud solutions. This means that data can be easily restored in the event of an emergency. Backups are stored on separate servers at OpenProject and encrypted as data-at-rest (with AES-256).
German-speaking support for international customers
Another important criterion when deciding on project management software is customer support. While many people in the DACH region speak English, most feel most confident in their native language, especially when it comes to technical vocabulary. OpenProject, as a German company based in Berlin, offers full German support.
Book training and consulting in German or English, or contact our English- or German-speaking customer support staff. Our digital user guide is also available in German as well as English. And also in Spanish and French - further languages are planned.
Rely on OpenProject for all-around secure data handling in your project management. Software from Germany, with European standards - for international customers.
What does a software solution look like that enables employees in the German federal administration to successfully prioritize, manage, implement, and report on strategic initiatives?
At OpenProject, we had the chance to explore this very question during a hackathon last week, as we are on the shortlist for this software solution. In this article, we will present the exact requirements from the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Modernization of the State (BMDS) and the results we were able to deliver.
The requirements defined by the BMDS are based on PMflex, a comprehensive strategic management solution and integrated project management system developed at the federal level specifically for public administration. PMflex is based on the open source project management methodology PM² provided by the European Commission.
If you already want to “spoil” the results, feel free to watch the following video (available in German only), which we presented to the ministry at the end of the hackathon:
Wanted: A software solution for the strategic implementation of federal digitalization initiatives
During the week of July 14–18, 2025, OpenProject not only released a new software version but also spontaneously participated in a kind of hackathon. The client was the Federal Ministry for Digital and Modernization of the State (BMDS). The ministry is looking for a software solution to implement strategies at the portfolio, program, and project levels.
We at OpenProject are honored to be shortlisted for this solution and used the hackathon to show that all requirements are either already met or will be met in the near future.
Transparency is one of our core values, so in this article we want to share an overview of the hackathon, the requirements, and of course our proposed solutions.
Requirements included:
PMflex compatibility (tailoring)
Consistency across portfolio, program, and project levels
Cross-agency collaboration
Agility
Enjoyable user experience
Challenges for us:
Only one week to develop additional features, comprehensive demo material, documentation, and (video) presentation. All of this alongside our daily business, including the release of version 16.2.
Immersing ourselves in the working environment and various user stories from public administration, which operates very differently than we do internally. Here, our extensive experience with the public sector, especially in connection with openDesk, was a major advantage.
Overview of the required user stories:
Several user stories were provided, each with associated data like budget, status, target states, and more. Every user story included at least one fictional persona, from whose perspective the solution needed to be demonstrated.
Prioritize portfolio elements
Manage portfolio
Report program status
Report project status
In addition to the predefined user stories, we also showcased how the solution could be used on the go via the mobile app.
Delivered: Full commitment for ten new features and implementation in PMflexONE
Alongside 19 developers, many other OpenProject team members were fully engaged in the BMDS hackathon. Despite — or perhaps because of — the short timeframe and complex requirements, the energy and team spirit were tangible across all days, even across our globally distributed remote workspaces.
For Rosanna Sibora, who had her very first week at OpenProject as Chief Product Officer during the hackathon, the team’s commitment, creativity, and passion made a strong impression:
“During the hackathon, I was impressed by how well the self-organized teams collaborated. It clearly showed me how well-aligned the OpenProject team is and how open and empowering the culture is. We proved that 2+2 is definitely more than 4 — and what can be achieved with great collaboration and empowerment.” – Rosanna Sibora, CPO, OpenProject GmbH
OpenProject implementation – behind the scenes:
Full energy and passion, not just from developers
15,000+ lines of new code
Team formation for developing new features, building a demo instance, and designing product mockups for additional features
Daily hackathon stand-ups, retros, and pulse checks with the BMDS and other stakeholders, 100% remote collaboration using other open source tools like Big Blue Button and Element
Daily operations continued in parallel: support and release of OpenProject 16.2
OpenProject implementation – on the product level:
While the current version of OpenProject already supports the majority of requirements, we identified several aspects we wanted to expand or develop from scratch during the hackathon week. Especially relevant across all user stories was the development of features for reporting and managing goals, risks, and budgets.
Here is an overview of our main development focuses during the hackathon:
Let’s take a closer look at what these features and requirement implementations looked like by the end of the hackathon week.
Important
Please note that this is a summary of key developments. Additional features were also planned, designed, and developed during the hackathon. As these features were created in a very short time, they are not yet fully tested or finalized.
Planning and managing portfolios and programs
To support PMflex, OpenProject needed to manage not just projects but also portfolios and programs. Modeling these was the first step during the hackathon. Portfolio, sub-portfolio, and program extend the existing project hierarchy with the ability to group projects and manage them collectively.
Enhancing portfolio and program dashboards
On the overview pages for portfolios, (sub-)programs, or even projects, managers want to see key information about goals, milestones, risks, and budgets at a glance. To enable this, we created widgets during the hackathon that visually aggregate this data: charts for budgets and risks, listings of components with their priority, status, and goal progress. These widgets were implemented as prototypes in a new dashboard using the OpenProject Design System.
Portfolio management with proposal functionality
We created a dedicated module for portfolio management where managers can first create portfolio proposals and then submit them for review. These can be downloaded as PDFs or added to a meeting.
Linking and improved display of budget planning and overviews
OpenProject already supports extensive budgeting and cost tracking, but previously limited this to individual projects. During the hackathon, we added cross-project budgeting, distinctions between planned and booked costs, and modeling of sub-budgets. The overview page and project lists can now display total budgets and their components.
Calculated project scoring
Portfolio managers want to calculate project scores automatically based on project attributes, allowing better evaluation, prioritization, and communication of decisions. This functionality was further developed during the hackathon and activated on the demo instance to display ranking values for project weighting.
It is now possible to apply formulas to freely configurable values that together generate a score. This increases transparency and comparability of evaluations.
This feature is still in development (thanks City of Cologne for their support here), so we’re showing a design draft here:
Risk management and overview
Since risk management is a core requirement for the BMDS, we created a dedicated risk module. It includes a risk matrix that visualizes project, portfolio, or program risks with color-coded severity.
Modeling is based on probability (1–5) and impact (1–5). The system calculates a risk level from these values.
This also means: Risks now have their own data type and are a core part of OpenProject. Users are encouraged to document risks, monitor them regularly, and take countermeasures.
Create status report meetings
Status reports are a key element of PMflex. But they are not just documents — they are often discussed in meetings. That’s why we created a feature to automatically generate status report meetings.
Directly from the overview page, managers can create proposals for a status report meeting with the steering committee. They can select a baseline timeframe and add currently relevant information from the portfolio. The system generates an agenda based on selected changes for further editing.
Documents module with real-time editing
A few weeks ago, OpenProject successfully participated in Hack Days 2025 in Paris, organized by the French government’s digital directorate, DINUM (direction interministérielle du numérique). We’ve now extended those features to enable collaborative real-time editing for multiple users.
To support collaborative creation and sharing of typical PMflex documents, the OpenProject documents module was completely redesigned. It now allows for automatically updated content and real-time collaborative editing.
Mobile app enhancements for portfolio/program management
We have been working on a mobile app (iOS/Android) for OpenProject for some time. During the hackathon, we also developed new functionality to differentiate between portfolio, program, and project levels in the app.
Please note that developing a high-quality mobile app takes time, and we want to ensure the best experience before release. Of course, we will announce availability as soon as it’s ready for users.
AI foundations and support for documents and project/portfolio management
OpenProject was extended with two core services: Haystack to gather relevant information, and a custom LLM (Large Language Model). Both services operate within the same network as OpenProject and have no internet access. No data leaves the cluster for AI usage.
Detailed AI features developed during the hackathon include:
AI-generated status report drafts
Create drafts of status reports based on work packages and attributes visible to the respective user, using a local AI trained on PMflex
AI assistance in project and portfolio management
Display of PMflex-based best practices on the overview page, based on analysis of project data and work packages
A secure local AI assists with introducing best practices and provides timely management recommendations
AI support in documents
Writing tools in the OpenProject editor (translate, rephrase, spell check, generate drafts, etc.)
Familiar AI editing features directly inside the editor
The documents module uses the LLM to perform simple text tasks like summarizations
PDF export of portfolio and program status
We believe in a single source of truth for project data. However, there many use cases where an export is extremely helpful, e.g. when information needs to be documented in external systems. So during the hackathon we built a status report engine that creates pixel-perfext PDF files from the data in the system.
Status information
Budget
Risks
Objectives
KPIs
Milestones
Custom attributes
[…]
Kudos go to the German Federal Ministry of the Interior who sponsored the pdf export of work packages in 2023. The PDF export library we developed laid the foundation for this feature.
As an outlook, we are working on more configuration options to adjust the export to the specific needs. Additionally, we plan to add further charts and illustrations.
Found? – What happens after the hackathon?
At the time of writing, it is still open what the next steps will be for OpenProject and the BMDS. What we do know is that the entire OpenProject team has grown through this experience — and we are proud of what was achieved and delivered during the week.
Regardless of the outcome of the tender, we will finalize, thoroughly test, and potentially release the developed features to our customers in future versions.
All released features will be available either in OpenProject itself or in openDesk, the secure office and collaboration suite designed specifically for the public sector.
If OpenProject is selected in the BMDS tender, the rollout would likely proceed as follows:
Implementation consulting via specialized partners such as ]init[
Demo environments provided through OpenProject’s SaaS infrastructure
Even though the BMDS decision is still pending, this hackathon clearly demonstrated how OpenProject, as an open source solution, can meet the concrete requirements of public administration — quickly, competently, and collaboratively.
There is a visible shift toward data sovereignty, open standards, and independent software solutions — not only, but especially in the public sector.
At a time when digital sovereignty and transparency are essential for governmental institutions, OpenProject offers secure, open source project management and team collaboration software tailored to public sector needs.
Whether it’s resource-heavy infrastructure projects or multi-stakeholder policy implementations, public administrations across Europe are already leveraging its flexible features, such as work packages, Gantt charts, agile boards, time & cost tracking, wikis, and meeting management. This helps them to professionalize workflows while maintaining full control over their data.
OpenProject in Public Sector implementations
Many different public institutions already rely on OpenProject to manage their projects and organize their teams. They have implemented a wide range of use cases. We spoke personally with some of our customers and would like to give a short overview of how they use OpenProject to achieve their goals.
The Federal IT Cooperation (FITKO)
Within the openDesk framework, FITKO uses OpenProject for centralized coordination of IT standardization and to prepare and conduct the IT Planning Board Meetings. Key benefits include meeting management, documentation workflows, Nextcloud integration to link work packages and documents, and secure multi-stakeholder collaboration.
At the District Office Enzkreis OpenProject supports major projects like implementing the Bundesteilhabegesetz and internal change initiatives. What are its strengths for this organization? Visualization in Gantt charts, real-time information exchange, efficient meeting agendas and minutes, and @-mentions for easy communication.
Through features like Gantt charts, Kanban boards, and integrated resource planning, Constance transformed its construction management and facility maintenance into collaborative, transparent, and accountable processes and manages their public order office seamlessly in one platform.
As a hub for hundreds of public and culture-related projects, Chemnitz works with OpenProject to manage multiple projects with standardized templates, which accelerated project planning by 80%. It benefits from its self-hosted on-premises version to maintain their data sovereignty.
City of Cologne is managing a huge project portfolio in OpenProject and is actively contributing as a sponsor for project portfolio management, the Nextcloud integration, and scheduling and progress reporting features.
Brandenburg State Parliament
OpenProject plays a central role in advancing digital governance and transparency for the State Parliament of Brandenburg. With its flexible agile boards, meeting management, and workflows, the parliament coordinates initiatives, legislative processes, and digital strategy implementation. Teams streamline planning, track tasks, and collaborate smoothly across departments, all while maintaining full data sovereignty by self-hosting.
From strategy to execution: How PMFlex guides public sector success
OpenProject doesn’t just handle individual projects. It aligns perfectly with structured public sector methodologies like PMFlex. PMFlex is a – flexible – adaptation of the European PM² standard for project management. As a comprehensive strategy management solution, it links strategic goals with specific key performance indicators and enables end-to-end control at the portfolio, program, and project levels.
Using PMFlex as a framework, organizations clearly define roles, like Project Core Teams and Steering Committees. Along with phases and phase gates, while still being able to work agile inside the execution phase.
Example with PMFlex: On portfolio, program, and project levels
Public institutions often manage complex initiatives on multiple levels. With OpenProject, these align with PMFlex structures:
Aligns initiatives with political goals and digital agendas.
Program
Aggregated views via parent projects with subprojects, global user visibility
Ensures synergy across interrelated projects and shared resources.
Project
Phases, gates, agile boards, work packages, wikis and more
Keeps teams on track, transparent, and audit-ready.
In addition to the features mentioned above, OpenProject’s Meetings module offers the possibility to discuss tasks, risks, and strategies easily and in an audit-proof manner within the system at all levels. And, of course, the highly specific roles and permissions system in OpenProject allows all stakeholders to do exactly what their role requires – no more, no less.
In this way, public organizations can easily track progress on PMFlex indicators, prepare for formal gate reviews, and document results for stakeholders and audit institutions – all in one secure, open source environment.
Top features for the Public Administration
Feature
Benefit
Work packages
Clear task assignment, status tracking, visibility
Gantt charts
Long-term planning, dependency management
Agile boards
Hybrid workflows, flexible prioritization
Time & cost tracking
Budget oversight, resource balancing
Meetings module
Streamlined agendas, documented decisions
Wikis
Knowledge base, shared documentation
Nextcloud integration
All important documents linked to work packages
These features, powered by OpenProject, significantly reduce administrative overhead, foster team collaboration and informed decision-making, and help organizations remain GDPR compliant.
Data sovereignty is more than a buzzword
At OpenProject, data sovereignty is a core principle and not just a buzzword. Public sector organizations can choose between secure cloud hosting in a certified European data center or full control through self-managed on-premises installations. Both options ensure complete ownership and control of sensitive data, in full compliance with European regulations.
OpenProject is fully open source, licensed under GNU GPL v3. Its source code is publicly available on GitHub and openCoDE, providing full transparency and auditability. This openness not only strengthens trust, it enhances security by enabling early detection and resolution of potential vulnerabilities.
Free from vendor lock-in, organizations are empowered to adapt and extend the software as needed. For those seeking additional features and expert support, OpenProject GmbH offers affordable Enterprise packages that are still significantly more cost-effective than proprietary solutions like Microsoft Project or Atlassian Jira.
Ready for digital transformation?
OpenProject empowers public organizations to break free from siloed communication, manual tracking and workflows, and costly vendor lock-ins. By combining open standards with robust collaboration tools, it enables secure, transparent, and efficient governance.
Curious how OpenProject can support your administration? Get in touch with us and we are happy to share more insights into our different use cases.
OpenProject 16.2 has been released and this version introduces new features and improvements again. We look forward to hearing your thoughts and feedback on the latest updates. Please take a few minutes to learn what changes for you. We will summarize the most important changes in this blog article and, as always, please see our release notes that contain all changes, features and bug fixes.
In this blog article, we will focus on the design updates and briefly summarize some more important features. Here is a quick navigation to all feature descriptions:
New header and sidebar with improved navigation and design
The most striking change from 16.1 to 16.2 is the more modern design and improved user experience of the sidebar and header navigation. The reason for these changes is to give the application a more contemporary look and to ensure compatibility with the openDesk application. It is important to us to provide the best possible user experience in openDesk when navigating between the different applications within openDesk.
The updates in OpenProject itself also follow familiar logic. For example, the project navigation has moved consistently into the sidebar. Here’s an overview of what’s new in OpenProject 16.2, regarding header and sidebar navigation:
The hamburger sidebar toggle has moved from the header to the sidebar.
The default sidebar color in light mode is now brighter.
The search and create buttons have a new, more intuitive position in the header.
Please note that these changes will not affect your already customized designs.
See a comparison between OpenProject version 16.1 (top) and 16.2 (highlighted below):
What do you think of these updates? As with any change, it may take some time to get used to the new navigation, but we hope that it will provide you with a better user experience in the long run and a more intuitive start for new users.
Other design updates in OpenProject 16.2
The changes to the header and sidebar weren’t the only design changes: as part of the ongoing updates to the Primer design system, the user interface and process for creating a new project or copying an existing one has also been improved. For example, when you create a project based on a template, you can now immediately select which modules and parts you want to copy and which you want to skip.
Also, in the Relations tab of a work package, the + Relation dropdown now uses second-level navigation: Only the first relations are shown directly, others are displayed when clicking on “Other relations”.
Seamless integration of open source applications with a SCIM API (Enterprise add-on)
While this is a rather technical update, the newly added SCIM API can be a huge benefit for seamless integration with other open source applications. It allows your identity provider (IdP) to automatically provision and de-provision users in OpenProject, based on the open SCIM standard.
This reduces manual work for administrators, ensures your user data stays in sync across systems, and improves overall security.
The SCIM API is available as an Enterprise add-on in the Corporate plan. Administrators can configure SCIM clients directly in OpenProject, generate secure system tokens, and see which users are managed by which client – all within the authentication settings.
This is particularly valuable for organizations looking to connect OpenProject to other open source tools such as Nextcloud or Keycloak, supporting a fully sovereign and integrated digital workspace.
See our system admin guide to learn more about authentication methods for OpenProject.
Non-Latin languages and emojis supported in PDF exports
We’re especially happy about this update, because it makes OpenProject even more international and inclusive: PDF exports of work packages now fully support non-Latin scripts and emojis, so languages like Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and many others appear exactly as intended. This means your multilingual project data and even your favorite emojis are displayed correctly in your exported documents.
Option to disable keyboard shortcuts for better accessibility
Here comes another step in improving accessibility across OpenProject. Users can now disable all keyboard shortcuts in their personal settings. That’s not only helpful for people working with screen readers or other assistive technologies, but also for anyone who prefers to avoid unintended shortcut actions.
Tip
Have you noticed? We recently also updated the font on our website to make it easier to read. While improving the OpenProject application is our main focus, we are also aware of accessibility issues on our website and in our documentation, and we are working to address them.
Smoother experience with Custom fields, Meetings, and My time tracking
Apart from the already mentioned feature updates, OpenProject 16.2 includes many small improvements that make everyday work just a bit smoother.
When creating custom fields or project attributes, you can now pick the field type right at the start — saving clicks and making the setup process clearer.
For meetings, OpenProject is now listed as the organizer in calendar invitations instead of the person who created the meeting. This means everyone can freely accept or decline without accidentally canceling the event for all participants.
And in the My time tracking module, weekly views now collapse future days, helping you stay focused on what matters today.
OpenProject 16.2: Migration, installation, updates and support
You will find more information about all new features and changes in our Release notes or in the OpenProject Documentation.
If you need support, you can post your questions in the Community Forum, or if you are eligible for Enterprise support, please contact us and we are happy to support you personally.
New to OpenProject? To test all features of OpenProject 16.2 right away, create a 14 days free trial instance for our OpenProject Enterprise cloud.
Prefer to run OpenProject 16.2 in your own infrastructure? Here you can find the Installation guidelines for OpenProject.
A very special thank you goes to City of Cologne, Deutsche Bahn and ZenDiS for sponsoring released or upcoming features. Your support, alongside the efforts of our amazing Community, helps drive these innovations. Also a big thanks to our Community members for reporting bugs and helping us identify and provide fixes. Special thanks for reporting and finding bugs go to Michael Lathion, Jason Culligan, Sven Kunze, and Gábor Alexovics.
Last but not least, we are very grateful for our very engaged translation contributors on Crowdin, who translated quite a few OpenProject strings! This release we would like to particularly thank the following users:
William, for a great number of translations into Chinese Traditional.
rmiyata, for a great number of translations into Japanese.
rubenpedrolopez, for a great number of translations into Spanish.
Would you like to help out with translations yourself? Then take a look at our translation guide and find out exactly how you can contribute. It is very much appreciated!
As always, we welcome any feedback on this release. 💙
Every project involves regular meetings: What’s the current status? Who’s responsible for which tasks? Especially in public institutions, it’s crucial to document decisions from meetings clearly and in a way that’s audit-proof. Fully transparent, both internally and externally.
With OpenProject, this is effortless: You can prepare meetings in just a few clicks, link tasks, and create a structured record with responsibilities, outcomes, and a list of participants.
Meeting over? Export and print your meeting directly from the system, formatted as a clear PDF. This way, you have all decisions and responsibilities in black and white — ready for files, audits, or inquiries from citizens.
Document decisions
What’s the core of almost any meeting? Bringing together different perspectives and making decisions. In reality, this often looks quite different. Meetings run over time, participants aren’t sure why they’re there, and in the end, everyone is just as confused as when they started.
How can I record decisions directly during a meeting?
With OpenProject, you record decisions right as the meeting happens. Nothing gets lost, and all participants – and those who couldn’t join – immediately see what was agreed.
To do this, set the meeting status to “In Progress.” This automatically activates a + Outcome button under each agenda item. Any participant can click it to log decisions on the spot.
You can also rearrange agenda items by drag & drop at any time. If certain points turn out to be irrelevant, simply
move them to the backlog at the end,
delete them,
or in a recurring meeting series, push them to the next meeting.
The result is a clear, traceable record that captures your decisions exactly as they were made.
Assign responsibilities
For decisions to be implemented, responsibilities must be crystal clear. In OpenProject, you define right in the meeting who is responsible for which agenda item.
This also avoids those awkward moments when no one starts the conversation because no one feels responsible — instead, everyone can see the name and avatar of the person in charge next to each agenda point.
This cuts down on questions and duplicated coordination. Projects run more smoothly because everyone knows their area of responsibility and the next steps are clear.
How do I assign responsibilities directly in a meeting?
OpenProject’s meeting module offers two ways to add agenda items and define responsibilities:
You can add an existing work package (like a task or ticket), which typically already has an assigned person.
You can create a new agenda item and note the responsible person directly in the text. Of course, you can also link multiple work packages within one item.
In both cases, you can add a responsible person in the top right of the agenda point. You decide whether this person is only presenting the topic or also in charge of following up afterward.
Everything in the minutes — your single source of truth
All items from the meeting automatically come together in a structured record. This is your single, reliable source of truth — without scattered Excel sheets or Word files. With OpenProject, you keep working on tasks and documenting them exactly when they’re discussed. No more memory-based notes that are incomplete or vague.
What does the meeting record include automatically?
Your OpenProject meeting brings it all together: agenda, outcomes, tasks, documents, responsibilities, participants, plus date and time. Everything in one place, available to everyone involved.
You keep your familiar processes while gaining efficiency: build the minutes directly from your agenda and simply add outcomes. This saves time and creates a true reflection of your meeting.
Why is a central record so important?
With a single, always up-to-date document, you establish a clear single source of truth. No more outdated versions buried in emails or spreadsheets.
Even those who couldn’t attend the meeting can easily see what was discussed and decided. Often, one click on the linked work package is enough to view all details and the entire communication thread.
What other tools do I need for my meetings?
OpenProject covers almost everything — from the agenda to tasks to the final minutes. The only additional tool you need is software for the actual video or phone conference if you’re meeting online or in a hybrid setting. Ideally, you’ll use one where you can share your screen and display the meeting in OpenProject at the same time.
Tip
We’re passionate about open source — that’s why our own team uses the open source virtual classroom software BigBlueButton for video meetings. It pairs perfectly with OpenProject.
How does the calendar feature help?
The automatically generated invitation email contains an ICS file. This lets participants add the meeting to their personal calendar with a single click — whether they use Outlook, Thunderbird, or any other tool with iCal support.
Alternatively, you can download the appointment directly from within the meeting to add it to your calendar manually. Even though OpenProject includes its own calendar, we know that for many teams, the main calendar is where everything comes together. That’s why we make integration easy.
Black on white — export and print your minutes
When the meeting is done, you can export and print your minutes right away. This way, all decisions and responsibilities are clearly documented — black on white, audit-proof, and ready for your files.
How do I print my meeting minutes?
Just a few clicks export the minutes as a PDF. You can choose whether to include
a list of participants (above the agenda),
a list of attachments (at the end),
backlog entries,
or outcomes.
You can also add a custom footer text. Click Download, and you’ll get a professionally formatted document, ready to print or archive digitally.
Why does this matter for records and audits?
A printed, audit-ready protocol is essential, especially in public institutions and organizations with strict requirements for written documentation. It lets you prove at any time who decided what and when.
Even though people are ready for digital processes, the requirements behind the scenes often still demand paper. And with OpenProject, you can provide it seamlessly.
Conclusion: Why OpenProject is especially valuable for meetings in public projects
With OpenProject, you permanently document decisions, tasks, and responsibilities — transparent, audit-ready, and accessible to everyone. This doesn’t just help you meet documentation requirements, but also makes your projects more organized and your teams collaborate more effectively.
In public institutions, it’s particularly important to document processes completely and be able to prove at any time who decided what. OpenProject makes this possible without media breaks, without scattered Excel sheets or Word files. Instead, you have one central platform that seamlessly connects planning, execution, and follow-up for your meetings.
This keeps your projects transparent and verifiable at all times. You can be confident that everyone is on the same page — from the first decision to the printed record that clearly documents every outcome.
We are delighted to announce our official partnership with XWiki. This adds another important milestone on our journey to establish a fully open, transparent, and data-sovereign ecosystem as a genuine open source alternative to proprietary tools such as Atlassian Confluence and Jira.
A shared vision for digital sovereignty
Both OpenProject and XWiki have always stood for open standards, transparency, and user control. At a time when data sovereignty and digital independence are becoming increasingly important, a strategic collaboration was the next logical step.
Our goal: Together, we want to offer organizations an integrated, open source alternative to Jira and Confluence, combining a solution for project management and knowledge management – and thus a powerful, privacy-friendly as well as cost-effective alternative to Atlassian tools.
“This partnership strengthens the open source ecosystem and marks an important step for organizations to move away from Atlassian — toward digital sovereignty and independence. We are delighted to have XWiki as an experienced and committed partner at our side that share the same vision and values to further advance open and sovereign software solutions.” – Niels Lindenthal, CEO, OpenProject GmbH
Image: Niels Lindenthal (CEO OpenProject) and Ludovic Dubost (CEO XWiki and CryptPad) at the OSXP in Paris.
“Our partnership with OpenProject is a natural extension of a shared commitment to building open, sovereign digital infrastructure for Europe and beyond. At the same time, it’s a strong affirmation of our joint vision: delivering integrated, open source solutions that respect user freedom and data sovereignty. By combining our expertise, we’re creating a compelling alternative to Atlassian’s Jira and Confluence — one that puts control and transparency back into the hands of the user. It’s a step forward for open-source collaboration in Europe, and most importantly, it responds directly to what our customers have been asking for.” — Ludovic Dubost, CEO and Founder, XWiki SAS and CryptPad
OpenProject + XWiki = Open source stack for modern teams
XWiki is a powerful platform for collaborative knowledge management – ideal as a Confluence replacement. OpenProject offers comprehensive project planning, task management, and issue tracking – a strong alternative to Jira.
The combination of both solutions creates an open, modular stack that enables teams to collaborate efficiently without compromising on control, security, or usability.
Image: Overview of benefits of the open source alternative for Jira (OpenProject) and Confluence (XWiki)
Concrete benefits for our users for switching from Jira and Confluence
This partnership is not just a symbolic alliance – it also brings practical benefits:
Integration in development: We are actively working on an integration between OpenProject and XWiki to enable a seamless user experience.
Joined sales & support: Both partners will be able to offer each other’s services and support packages.
Expanded ecosystem: The connection to other open source providers such as Nextcloud will also be further strengthened by this cooperation.
Both OpenProject and XWiki are part of the openDesk: Therefore both open source applications can also be jointly procured via ZenDiS as part of the openDesk bundle.
Part of the openDesk initiative
Our partnership is part of larger European initiatives such as openDesk, a modular open source suite for public administration and organizations. Under the leadership of the Center for Digital Sovereignty (ZenDiS), leading open source companies such as OpenProject and XWiki are working closely together here alongside many other well-established open source vendors from Germany and Europe.
For a sovereign digital future
With this partnership, we are sending a strong signal for the open source movement in Europe and worldwide. Together with XWiki, we are providing organizations with tools that enable teams to work independently, securely, and collaboratively without vendor lock-in and without compromises on their data sovereignty.
Last month, we wrote a blog post about our participation in Hack Days 2025, a hackathon organized by the digital directorate of the French government, DINUM (direction interministérielle du numérique). In this blog post, we’ll tell you what we did, what we learnt and what all this means for digital sovereignty.
The event
Hack Days brought together over 300 talented developers, designers and innovators from 17 countries to collaborate on open source projects, notably DINUM’s own suite of applications for the public sector in France, called LaSuite. The event also aimed at strengthening European digital sovereignty by exploring the potential for cross-border collaboration.
The 53 different teams worked together over the course of three days to design, develop and pitch their projects to juries at the lovely Jourdan campus of the historic École normale supérieur (ENS).
Our own team consisted of Wieland Lindenthal, Dominic Bräunlein, Bruno Pagno, Eric Schubert and Parimal Satyal.
Our pitch
Before we explain the project in more detail below, here’s a clip of our five-minute pitch:
In the first round of the hackathon, the teams made a 3-minute pitch privately to the juries for a chance to be selected in the top 10 projects. OpenProject was luckily one of those ten, and we were then invited to make our 5-minute public pitch (above) the next day.
The jury consisted of Stéphanie Schaer, director of DINUM; Markus Richter, State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Digital and State Modernization in Germany; Boris Van Hoytema, Quartermaster of the Open Source Program Office within the Ministry of the Interior in the Netherlands; Jean-Baptiste Kempf, the founder of VLC; and Valérie Dagand, managing director of Numeum.
We were very happy to be part of the top three winners, coming in second place.
We would like to congratulate all the winners of the hackathon:
First: Visio Room Connector, which made Meet (LaSuite’s video conferencing tool) compatible with real-world video conference rooms (SIP Video Interoperability).
Public vote: Panographix, which makes it easy for public servants in France to create and share interactive databases and charts directly within Docs using Grist.
Our project
For OpenProject, our goal in the hackathon was to build a deep integration with Docs, a collaborative note-taking app that’s part of DINUM’s LaSuite.
Note
Docs also recently joined the openDesk ecosystem initiated by ZenDiS in Germany. OpenDesk brings together powerful open source tools like OpenProject to offer a digital workplace for public institutions. The collaboration between DINUM and ZenDiS around Docs and OpenProject is an example of cross-border cooperation in digital sovereignty.
Docs is built on BlockNote, an open source rich text editor built on the concept of ‘blocks’. A block can be anything from simple text, a heading, a quote, an image or more complex elements like embedded media, file attachments or custom plugins.
We wanted to harness this extensibility to create a two-way integration such that users could seamlessly go from editing a draft text document in Docs to extracting tasks and text to OpenProject, where they can exist and evolve in a project context.
Such an integration made a lot of sense to us to harness what each tool does best. Docs is a powerful medium to jot down ideas and collaborate with other people, but plain text is not actionable. You cannot easily set an assignee, assign dates, track status, add comments, attach files or integrate with GitHub; all that, however, is very simple to do in OpenProject.
Our integration makes it possible to:
Write a bullet list in plain text and easily turn it into a set of tasks in OpenProject.
Select text from any part of a document and turn it into a user story or work package in OpenProject. We even implemented a basic LLM layer to convert the text to fit a predefined format.
Maintain a ‘live’ link between objects: a change in Docs is reflected near-instantly in OpenProject and vice-versa. This makes it possible to avoid content duplication and have a single source of truth.
Enterprise-grade integration
We used open, enterprise-grade standards like OpenID connect to support single sign-on. This is because we believe that ensuring users can be logged in with the same credentials on OpenProject and on Docs is key to making the user experience seamless and increasing user adoption of both tools.
We also wanted to build the integration in as generic a manner as possible. Because Docs is built with BlockNote, we decided to approach the integration as an OpenProject block within the editor itself, which will make it possible for any other application using BlockNote to also integrate with OpenProject. This was important to use because we believe that lowering the cost of integration between open source tools is key to European digital sovereignty.
What we learnt
We were very impressed with the turnout, the excitement around open source, the quality of the teams and the projects and the organization of such an event. Some learnings we came back with:
Broad interest in sovereign open source software: The event highlighted a significant interest across Europe in developing sovereign open source software. The turnout and enthusiasm were clear indicators that dependence on American big tech is increasingly a concern and that there’s value in working together with other European open source projects.
Diverse strategies across Europe: We observed that different countries have varying strategies for supporting open source development. LaSuite in France has decided, for example, to create and maintain their own forks of open source software, with a consistent UI and UX. Here in Germany, ZenDiS’s approach is to fund the development and integration of existing software that’s served within a unified bundle called openDesk. There is increasing interest in using parts of LaSuite in the Netherlands, too.
Power of integrations: The hackathon highlighted the value of integrations in making tools work together seamlessly. These integrations not only enhance user experience by reducing friction when trying to use multiple open source software but can also lead to higher adoption and user satisfaction.
What next?
We were thrilled to take part in the hackathon and were impressed with both what the other teams developed and how well organized it was. We would like to once again thank the LaSuite team for organizing such an inspirational event and for bringing so many like-minded people and companies together! We truly believe that open source is more powerful when we all work together.
We were also pleasantly surprised by the interest in our Docs–OpenProject integration.
What we worked on in the hackathon was of course an incomplete proof of concept, but we certainly don’t expect to leave things at that. We are currently exploring ways to integrate BlockNote more generically with OpenProject and will also evaluate where we can take our integration with Docs.
You will surely hear more more about this from us very soon.
If you are looking for a project management software and compare different solutions, you will eventually stumble upon Monday.com. We took a closer look at the software and compared it with the free open source software OpenProject to provide a comprehensive overview.
Monday.com was founded in February 2012 as daPulse. After various previous big funding rounds, the company raised another $150 million in Series D round, becoming Israel’s New Top Unicorn. Monday.com offers a suite of tools for process management, project management, productivity, and team management. The platform’s features are diverse and continually evolving. But what about data sovereignty?!
OpenProject on the other hand is free and open source software developed by an active community. Originating as a fork of the open source project management software Redmine in 2011 as an open source project, OpenProject emphasizes data security and privacy. The core development team created OpenProject to address these concerns, licensing it under GNU GPL V3 to ensure software freedom. The software code is published on GitHub. OpenProject is continuously developed and actively maintained by an international community.
Let’s talk about data sovereignty
Monday.com is a cloud-based solution available exclusively as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). As a company primarily operating in the United States, the handling of your data is not entirely transparent. Being proprietary software, users are subject to Monday.com’s terms and decisions, creating potential vendor lock-in issues. Here are some excerpts from Monday.com’s terms of service regarding YOUR CUSTOMER DATA:
“[…]Subject to these Terms, Customer grants us a worldwide, royalty-free, limited license to access, use, process, copy, distribute, perform, export, and display the Customer Data… This license also includes the right to make modifications and derivative works.[…]” [1]
Data Location:”[…]We and our authorized Service Providers (defined below) maintain, store and process personal data in the United States (US), Europe, Israel, Australia, Guatemala, the Philippines, Brazil, Japan, Singapore, the United Kingdom (UK), and other locations[…]”[2]
Data Sharing: “[…]In exceptional circumstances, we may disclose or allow government and law enforcement officials access to your Personal Data.[…]” [2]
What constitutes exceptional circumstances? The ambiguity around terms like “exceptional circumstances” raises real concerns about data privacy.
OpenProject, being open source project management software, can be installed on-premises, providing full control of your data. As an open source software the software code is published on GitHub, being openly monitored by the Community. With a free software, you have the flexibility to use and modify it as needed. The Cloud version is hosted by OpenProject on servers in the European Union, compliant with GDPR and German data privacy and security regulations. For ultimate data sovereignty, you can opt for the on-premises version, maintaining full control within your infrastructure.
Feature comparison
Both Monday.com and OpenProject offer robust collaboration features to meet your project management needs. Monday.com is often praised for its user-friendly design and intuitive interface. However, many of its functionalities rely on third-party integrations, which can introduce dependencies on external updates.
In conclusion, Monday.com is a powerful, web-based project management tool known for its usability and design. However, if data security and sovereignty are top priorities, OpenProject stands out as the preferred choice. As a free and open-source software with a comprehensive feature set, OpenProject ensures greater control over your data.
OpenProject 16.1 has been released and this new version introduces many new features and improvements. We look forward to hearing your thoughts and feedback on the latest updates. Please take a few minutes to learn what changes for you. We will summarize the most important changes in this blog article and, as always, please see our release notes that contain all changes, features and bug fixes.
In this blog article, we will focus on the updates on project portfolio management with the new project phases and phase gates. We will also briefly summarize some more important features. Here is a quick navigation to all feature descriptions:
Create a project life cycle for your project portfolio
With OpenProject 16.1, we’re introducing a key milestone in structured portfolio planning. The new project life cycle feature lets you define distinct phases for each project and make informed go or no-go decisions at specific phase gates. It’s a major step toward managing not just individual projects but entire portfolios with greater clarity and control.
Projects don’t always move in a straight line. Priorities change. Resources shift. Instead of treating phase changes as automatic progress, you can now define phase gates as decision points. These gates mark the end of one phase or the start of the next, depending on your workflow. Think of it like a milestone, but with real decision-making logic behind it.
This approach is closely aligned with PM², the project management methodology developed by the European Commission and widely adopted in the public sector. Project gates can be used to validate scope, check alignment, or reassess priorities. And now, they’re built right into OpenProject.
How to work with project phases in OpenProject
Let’s say you’re on a steering committee and need to decide whether a project should move from Planning to Executing. You can now filter the project list for projects approaching that specific gate and save it as a separate view if you like:
When you start a new project, you first have to enable the phases under Project settings → Project life cycle. If you navigate to the project overview page next, you’ll see a new column on the right side called Project life cycle. Click on any phase to open the calendar and choose the dates. These will then be visible directly on the overview page:
Tip
To help you plan ahead, OpenProject automatically suggests a fixed start date for the next phase based on the one before. For example, if you set the Initiating phase from January 1 to January 31, the Planning phase will automatically start on February 1. If you shift an earlier phase, all following ones will be updated accordingly.
Of course, it makes sense to assign work packages to project phases so you can easily track what needs to be done in each step. Please note that in order to display a new attribute on your work packages, you have to adjust the type settings in the administration first. For example, you could add the project phase to the details section for the work package type Task:
Once that’s done, you can assign a project phase to each work package and filter or sort your tables accordingly:
You can also group your work packages by the project phase, for a more elaborate view:
Working with phases in a project life cycle helps keep your team aligned and your planning process transparent, especially when managing multiple projects at once.
Managing phases and setting up new ones (Enterprise add-on)
While working with the default phases that are used in the PM² framework is a Community feature, setting up new custom phases is an Enterprise add-on available in the Premium and Corporate plan. With this feature, you decide how many phases your projects go through, what they are called, and in which order they appear.
If the Enterprise add-on is enabled, this setting is found in the global administration under Projects → Project life cycle.
You can also decide whether to include phase gates between the phases and whether these gates are used for filtering and reporting. For example, you might want to track decision points like “Go for pilot rollout” or “Ready for audit” in complex project environments.
Export meetings in PDF format
You can now export your meeting agendas and outcomes as PDF documents. This is perfect for archiving or sharing information from the meeting. The export includes all agenda items, descriptions, outcomes, and related metadata in a clean, printable format.
When setting a reminder for a work package, you can now choose from smart default options like “Tomorrow” or “In 3 days”. These quick-select choices make it easier to stay on top of your tasks without manual date picking. If you do not use this feature yet, now would be the perfect time to give it a try!
Working with tight schedules? You can now define a negative lag between related work packages. This means a successor can start before the predecessor ends. Negative lag is particularly useful for overlapping tasks or time-critical parallel planning.
Please note that only working days are taken into account. Also, a negative lag can be counterintuitive, as a lag of 0 schedules the successor one day after the predecessor’s finish date – and so on.
Display hierarchy trees for hierarchy custom fields (Enterprise add-on)
If you’re using hierarchy custom fields (Enterprise add-on), you can now view and expand the entire hierarchy tree directly from the work package view. This makes it easier to understand parent-child relations at a glance.
Improved accessibility for the date picker with ARIA live regions
The date picker component has been updated to improve screen reader support and comply with accessibility standards. ARIA live regions now announce focused dates, helping users with assistive technology navigate date fields more easily.
You will find more information about all new features and changes in our Release notes or in the OpenProject Documentation.
If you need support, you can post your questions in the Community Forum, or if you are eligible for Enterprise support, please contact us and we are happy to support you personally.
New to OpenProject? To test all features of OpenProject 16.1 right away, create a 14 days free trial instance for our OpenProject Enterprise cloud.
Prefer to run OpenProject 16.1 in your own infrastructure? Here you can find the Installation guidelines for OpenProject.
A very special thank you goes to City of Cologne, Deutsche Bahn and ZenDiS for sponsoring released or upcoming features. Your support, alongside the efforts of our amazing Community, helps drive these innovations. Also a big thanks to our Community members for reporting bugs and helping us identify and provide fixes. Special thanks for reporting and finding bugs go to Cameron Dutro and Maxim Béliveau.
Last but not least, we are very grateful for our very engaged translation contributors on Crowdin, who translated quite a few OpenProject strings! This release we would like to particularly thank the following users:
BigSeung, for a great number of translations into Korean.
rmiyata, for a great number of translations into Japanese.
William, for a great number of translations into Chinese Traditional.
Would you like to help out with translations yourself? Then take a look at our translation guide and find out exactly how you can contribute. It is very much appreciated!
As always, we welcome any feedback on this release. 💙
If you are already using OpenProject with your team to manage projects, you might want to explore additional use cases. One of them is ticket tracking: a flexible way to manage internal requests, service tasks, or user support alongside your existing workflows.
While OpenProject is primarily a project and task management tool, we are planning to release additional features in 2025 that will further support using it as a lightweight helpdesk solution.
Creating tickets
In OpenProject, you use work packages as tickets. All team members can create tickets and fill in the relevant information. You can define a dedicated work package type such as ‘Ticket’ or ‘Request’ to structure this.
You could also use the option to automatically create tickets from incoming emails. This is useful when external requests or issues are submitted via email — for example, when OpenProject is used as a lightweight helpdesk tool.
In order to capture all relevant information, you have different options to customize your work packages. One is to customize your work package types. If you like, you could create a work package type TICKET. Or you use the work package type TASK for tickets and add additional types such as sales opportunity to track those differently. Make sure that your work package forms are set up with fields for information that is required. Customize the work package forms to your needs. Remove any fields that are irrelevant, e.g. version. And you could add custom fields to your work packages, such as ticket type to indicate if it was coming in call or email or from your website.
The work package table will show you all tickets with the details that you would like to be displayed. Use the comprehensive filter option to sort the ticket list as needed, e.g. by priority, status, assignee or type of ticket / work package.
In the detail view of your work package, you can add comments to your ticket. If you mention team members with @name, they will receive a notification and reply accordingly.
Set reminders for a specific date and time, or activate date alerts to automatically notify team members when a ticket is due or needs attention (Enterprise add-on). Learn how to configure reminders and date alerts.
Another great new feature that helps you communicating on tickets is using internal comments (Enterprise add-on): For internal discussions that should not be visible to external collaborators (e.g. when a work package is shared). These are visible only to specific roles. Read more in our article on internal comments.
Kanban board to work on tickets
If you prefer a board view to work on your tickets and have a better, visual overview, you can use the agile boards in OpenProject. Choose a status board to know how many tickets are still open or check on your team by viewing the assignee board and how many tickets each team member is working on.
Ticket report
To get a quick overview of all tickets, the project overview can provide information about how many tickets are closed and how many are still open.
This is how you could manage tickets in OpenProject on a small scale which could be an additional benefit to your project management in OpenProject.
This is how you could manage tickets in OpenProject on a small or medium scale – a flexible and transparent solution that complements classic project management workflows.
We are excited to share that OpenProject has once again been recognized as a top-tier project management solution in 2026 by Gartner Digital Markets.
Building on our achievements from previous years, OpenProject earned an expanded set of distinctions in 2026. These new badges highlight our continued focus on strong functionality, ease of use, and high-quality customer support.
Gartner Digital Markets is a Gartner business unit that includes Capterra, GetApp, and Software Advice. It helps software buyers make confident decisions through verified user reviews, research, and insights.
OpenProject awards in 2026
Software Advice recognitions
In 2026, OpenProject received multiple Software Advice badges across core product categories:
Front Runners in Project management and Time tracking categories
Best Customer Support and Most Recommended across multiple categories in 2026:
Task management, Team management, Project management, Small business project management, Marketing project management, Online project management, Project management software for architects, Nonprofit project management, Strategic planning, Project portfolio management.
Capterra recognition
OpenProject was also recognized by Capterra in 2026 with the following distinctions:
Shortlist in Project management, Time tracking and Task management categories.
Best Value and Best Ease of Use in multiples categories:
Construction management, Project management, Project planning, Time tracking, Team management, Task management, Project portfolio management, Nonprofit project management, Strategic planning.
Powered by real user feedback
These recognitions are based on user reviews from real teams using OpenProject in their day-to-day work. We’re proud to see our focus on reliable project delivery, clear collaboration, and strong support reflected in the feedback.
Thank you ❤️
A big thank you to everyone who shared a review and helped us grow. Your input helps us prioritize what matters most and keep improving OpenProject.
Do you know why we forked Redmine back in 2012? The reason was accessibility. At the time, Deutsche Telekom hired us to remove various barriers in Redmine. When the Redmine maintainers showed no interest in reviewing our patches, we made the pivotal decision to fork the project. This allowed us to tackle the issue at its root. And it’s absolutely understandable that the Redmine maintainers, working in their free time, didn’t want to deal with ARIA labels and contrast ratios — there are simply more exciting features on the roadmap.
At OpenProject, we believe that everyone should have access to powerful project management tools, regardless of physical ability. Accessibility is not a checkbox for us. It is a core principle and a constant part of our product development.
OpenProject is accessible to a very large extent. Over the past years, we have invested heavily in making OpenProject more accessible and we have made great progress. With each release, we bring improvements with regard to accessibility. Our goal is clear. We want to be among the leading software providers when it comes to accessibility in open source project management.
Over the next couple of weeks we plan a series of articles to share our lessons learned.
There have already been a great number of achievements with regard to accessibility and a list of prioritized topics to be addressed:
20 releases with 64 accessibility improvements (progress report)
Accessible date pickers for complex scheduling tasks
Automate accessibility testing to avoid regressions
Screenreaders and ARIA live regions
Lessons learned when building the accessible TreeView component for our design system #62667
Why accessibility matters to me
This commitment is not just professional. It is also personal. After finishing school, I completed my civil service by assisting a high school student in his final year. He had a severe physical disability caused by illness. He could no longer walk and could barely operate a mouse. Working with him gave me a deep and lasting understanding of how much accessibility in technology can shape participation and independence.
This experience still resonates with me today and influences how we approach our work at OpenProject.
We have published an official Accessibility Statement on our website that reflects our ongoing commitment.
Building an accessible design system for OpenProject
In 2023, we made a key decision. We would build every new interface in OpenProject using an accessible design system. We chose GitHub Primer as the foundation. It provides robust and accessible core components, addressing crucial topics like color contrast and screen reader compatibility.
A dedicated team of designers and developers is continuously expanding our internal design system based on Primer. These components are reusable across the application, helping us ensure consistency and accessibility everywhere.
Every new view in OpenProject is now developed using this system.
Accessibility is complex and costly
Building accessible software is difficult. It requires deep technical knowledge, specialized design skills, and constant testing. It is also expensive. But it is worth it.
Modern collaborative platforms must support rich interactions like drag and drop or visual timelines. These features are helpful for many users, but they are a challenge for people who rely on screen readers. We work hard to create strong and usable alternatives.
A good example of our commitment is the introduction of the High Contrast Mode. This feature allows users with limited vision or visual impairments to work with OpenProject in a color scheme optimized for clarity and contrast. It improves legibility and reduces eye strain, especially in long working sessions.
To prevent regressions, we run automated accessibility tests with every build. These tests help us detect and fix issues early, long before they can affect our users.
We are grateful to be supported by ZenDiS, who help us with both funding and accessibility expertise. Their support enables us to move faster and with greater confidence.
Independent accessibility audit
The German Federal Ministry of the Interior commissioned an external test of OpenProject’s accessibility. The full test report can be found here (PDF).
We carefully reviewed the findings and resolved many of the reported issues. A list of the items we have already addressed is available in our community tracker.
We continue to improve. Our public roadmap lists further accessibility improvements that are planned for upcoming releases.
Working with the community
OpenProject is built with the support of other open source projects. We use libraries like CKEditor 5, FullCalendar, NG Select, and of course GitHub Primer. These libraries are essential to OpenProject. They save us thousands of hours of work and allow us to focus on what makes our platform unique.
We are happy to see that accessibility is becoming more important in these projects. When a component does not meet all our needs, we contribute back. One example is our work on a Tree View component for Primer, which we are developing to be fully accessible and available for the whole community.
What comes next?
We are not done. Accessibility is a continuous journey. We are proud of the progress we have made. And we are committed to going even further.
Thus, we are moving forward with every release. We eliminate barriers, improve features, and train our teams to consider accessibility from the very beginning and incorporate it in their decisions. That means during planning, design, development, and testing.
Here you find a list of the improvements planned for the next releases:
If you are interested in accessibility at OpenProject and would like to learn more about it, please feel welcome to contact us. Hearing about the real experiences of our users is very valuable to us.
How can open source tools from across Europe work better together? That’s the question OpenProject will explore at HackDays Paris, a hackathon organized by the French government’s DINUM, from June 2–4, 2025. We are thrilled to be a part of HackDays and aim to introduce task management features into the French-built Docs. Specifically, the OpenProject team plans to develop a first prototype exploring an integration with Docs.
Let’s take a look behind the scenes and explore how a shared vision for open source collaboration and Europe’s digital autonomy is becoming reality.
About HackDays Paris
HackDays is an open source hackathon organized by DINUM, the digital directorate of the French government. It brings together developers, UX/UI designers and contributors from across the public sector and open source ecosystem to work on shared goals, build working prototypes, and exchange ideas for a more sovereign digital future.
Under the slogan “We code, we build, we transform”, participants follow the mission to create open source apps aimed at strengthening European digital sovereignty. Specifically, it’s all about everyday collaborative tools. A category that OpenProject perfectly fits in.
Note
Docs, developed by DINUM, has recently joined the openDesk ecosystem initiated by ZenDiS in Germany. OpenDesk brings together powerful open source tools like OpenProject to form a digital workplace for public institutions. The collaboration between DINUM and ZenDiS around Docs and OpenProject is an example of cross-border cooperation in digital sovereignty. HackDays offers a valuable opportunity to strengthen that collaboration and build practical bridges between the two ecosystems.
Integrating task management into Docs with OpenProject
One of the most exciting developments in La suite numérique is the Docs app: a collaborative note-taking tool that supports real-time editing and rich content blocks. The software is built using BlockNote, a flexible JavaScript-based editor. Docs is already used in public institutions across France. Learn more about Docs here.
To demonstrate the potential of deeper collaboration, the OpenProject team at Paris will prototype an integration between OpenProject and Docs. The idea is simple: Users working in Docs should be able to create and link OpenProject work packages directly within the document. That way, notes and discussions can seamlessly turn into structured tasks, all while staying in the same interface.
Planned objectives for our participation at HackDays 2025:
Search and display OpenProject work packages in Docs.
Show dynamic metadata for linked work packages (e.g. type, status, dates).
Create OpenProject work packages directly from within Docs, possibly using selected content.
This prototype is only the beginning. Our broader goal is to show how open source tools — and the public institutions behind them — can work together more effectively.
United in mission and code: Open source software in Europe
Hackathons like HackDays are about more than prototypes. They’re about building relationships, exchanging knowledge, and strengthening the ecosystem of open source solutions in the public sector.
By bringing together tools like Docs and OpenProject, we’re not just solving immediate problems. We’re laying the foundation for a digital infrastructure that is open, modular, and aligned with public values – shaped by those who use it most. At OpenProject, we see a lot of potential in strengthening collaboration between projects supported by ZenDiS, DINUM, and other European partners. HackDays Paris is an important step in that direction.
With increasing pressure on governments to ensure transparency, interoperability, and control over their digital infrastructure, open source collaboration across borders is no longer optional but essential.
We look forward to sharing what we’ve built at the end of HackDays. Open collaboration leads to better tools. Let’s code, build and transform them together.
The OpenProject integration app for Nextcloud was updated to version 2.9! ✨ This update fully supports the OIDC authentication between Nextcloud and OpenProject.
We recommend to update to the newest version of the app through your Nextcloud app center to take advantage of the latest enhancements and fixes.
Changes of the release 2.9.0:
Support OIDC authentication method between Nextcloud and OpenProject
Add option to enable/disable token exchange with external OIDC provider
Add information for OpenProject version and plan required for OIDC setup
Support setup with Nextcloud Hub
Thanks, Nextcloud, for our continued partnership! 💙
OpenProject 16.0 has been released and this new major version introduces a range of new features and improvements. We look forward to hearing your thoughts and feedback on the latest updates. Please take a few minutes to learn what changes for you. We will summarize the most important changes in this blog article and, as always, please see our release notes that contain all changes, features and bug fixes.
In this blog article, we will present these feature updates:
We are especially excited about this improvement: Meeting backlogs make organizing and preparing meetings even easier — and help make the transition from classic meetings to the newer one-time and recurring meeting types even more powerful.
In OpenProject 16.0, users can now collect and manage agenda items flexibly using the new backlog feature. For one-time meetings, the Agenda backlog offers a space to store topics that are not yet scheduled but might be added later. For recurring meetings, the Series backlog allows teams to track open points across all meetings in a series and move items between occurrences as needed — without having to manually copy or recreate them.
Agenda items can easily be dragged from the backlog into a meeting or moved back again. Work packages can also be added directly to the backlog. Even if a meeting has no agenda yet, it can still maintain a list of important topics through the backlog.
Here’s an example of an Agenda backlog for one-time meetings:
And this is how a Series backlog for a recurring meeting looks like – with the option to move an agenda item to the current meeting:
Meeting backlogs bring more flexibility, better preparation, and a clearer structure to the way teams organize discussions — and are another great step toward making OpenProject’s meeting management even more efficient. Learn more about OpenProject meeting management in our documentation.
The end of classic meetings
As we announced earlier in this blog article, the Classic meeting type is no longer available in OpenProject 16.0. Existing classic meetings have been automatically converted into one-time meetings. No data is lost during this transition, apart from the meeting history.
To manage your meetings going forward, you can choose between one-time and recurring meetings. These dynamic formats give you more flexibility to structure your agendas and meeting workflows. For documenting decisions and results, you can use the Outcome feature, which replaces the classic Minutes functionality.
Internal comments in work packages (Enterprise add-on)
A new Enterprise add-on, available in the Professional plan and higher, allows adding internal comments to work packages. Internal comments are visible only to authorized users and help teams keep sensitive information separate from public discussions.
This feature is a further step to replace Atlassian Jira Service Management functionalities.
Automatically generated work package subjects (Enterprise add-on)
Consistent naming of work packages is now easier than ever. Users of the Enterprise Professional plan and higher can now automatically generate work package subjects based on predefined patterns. Subjects are created automatically during work package creation and do not need to be entered manually.
Tracking and reviewing time entries is now even more convenient. OpenProject 16.0 introduces the My time tracking module, which is personal to each user and must be activated by an administrator. Users can view, edit and log time entries either in a structured list or in a new calendar view for better overview.
Release to Community: Graphs on project overview page
We are happy to share that a feature previously available only as an Enterprise add-on is now released to the Community version with OpenProject 16.0: Displaying different types of work package graphs directly on the project overview page.
This means that all users can now display graphs directly on the project overview page to visualize important project information and communicate project status at a glance. Users can choose between different graph types, such as bar charts or pie charts, depending on their needs.
Updated Enterprise plans
With 16.0 OpenProject has updated its Enterprise offering. Each Enterprise plan (Basic, Professional, Premium, Corporate) now comes with a clearly defined set of Enterprise add-ons on top of the additional services and support levels.
This means that, going forward, some new Enterprise add-ons will be introduced in higher-tier plans. For example, the new Internal comments Enterprise add-on is part of the Professional plan.
Important information about these changes:
Pricing remains unchanged.
Support levels remain unchanged.
No features are removed for existing Enterprise customers.
If you are not yet using an Enterprise plan, you can easily test all Enterprise add-ons:
You will find more information about all new features and changes in our Release notes or in the OpenProject Documentation.
If you need support, you can post your questions in the Community Forum, or if you are eligible for Enterprise support, please contact us and we are happy to support you personally.
New to OpenProject? To test all features of OpenProject 16.0 right away, create a 14 days free trial instance for our OpenProject Enterprise cloud.
Prefer to run OpenProject 16.0 in your own infrastructure? Here you can find the Installation guidelines for OpenProject.
A very special thank you goes to the City of Cologne, Deutsche Bahn and ZenDiS for sponsoring released or upcoming features. Your support, alongside the efforts of our amazing Community, helps drive these innovations.
Also, a big thanks to our Community members for reporting bugs and helping us identify and provide fixes. Special thanks for reporting and finding bugs go to alex e, Klaas vT, Daniel Elkeles, Regina Schikora, Çağlar Yeşilyurt, and Александр Татаринцев.
Last but not least, we are very grateful for our very engaged translation contributors on Crowdin, who translated quite a few OpenProject strings. This release we would like to particularly thank the following users:
Сергей Баранов, for a great number of translations into Russian.
Gzyyy, for a great number of translations into Chinese simplified.
rlmpereira, for a great number of translations into Portuguese.
Would you like to help out with translations yourself? Then take a look at our translation guide and find out exactly how you can contribute. It is very much appreciated!
As always, we welcome any feedback on this release. 💙
This module is planned to be released with version 16.0 on May 21, 2025. It will be available in all editions, Enterprise and Community.
Self-organization has become a key skill in today’s remote and flexible work environments. It’s not unusual for new employees to be asked during job interviews: “How well do you organize yourself?” Teams are expected to work independently. Managers are expected to trust them. But trust needs transparency — and the right tools to support it.
One of the most essential aspects of self-organization is managing your own time. And it’s not just about logging hours. It’s about giving people structure, helping them reflect on their work, and enabling teams to stay aligned without micromanagement.
Starting this May with OpenProject 16.0, we are introducing the My time tracking module. It comes with a calendar view and makes it easier than ever to view, log, and manage personal time entries with start and end times.
Read this article to learn more about this exciting update, including two practical use cases.
Track personal start and end times in a calendar view – How it works
Modern time tracking isn’t just about numbers — it’s about visibility. That’s why OpenProject 16.0 will introduce a new My time tracking module, enabling users to log their time with start and end times and visualize it in a calendar view.
This global module is designed for personal use: it helps users reflect on their daily and weekly workload, see time blocks at a glance, and create new entries directly from the calendar. Of course, every time entry in OpenProject is still connected to a work package — so your time tracking remains structured and linked to tasks.
Depending on your configuration, you’ll see either a calendar or list view:
If exact time tracking is enabled, the calendar view is shown by default.
If not, the list view is shown — a simpler overview for users who only track hours, not the start and end times.
Display your calendar either in a Day, Week, Work week or Month view. In the calendar, users can:
Click and drag to create new entries.
Move entries to different times or days.
Resize entries to adjust their duration.
Move an entry to the “No specific time” row on top of each day, to remove start and end time.
Each time entry is color-coded based on the type of its work package — just like in the Team planner, so you can easily identify different items of work.
You can also visually distinguish between working (lighter grey) and non-working days (darker grey). Choose the Work week view to only see the working days that are enabled under Administration → Calendars and dates → Working days and hours.
Tip
Admins can enable exact time tracking in the global administration — and enforce it with the setting Require exact times (Enterprise add-on). This helps organizations improve accountability and prepare for future resource planning features. See the two examples below for different use cases.
When is the list view the better choice?
If the exact time tracking is not enabled, a calendar view does not make much sense. The calendar in the My time tracking module then adds all time entries at the top of each day, which clutters the view. Here, the list view comes in handy and is also set as a default if the exact time tracking is disabled.
Of course, you might also choose the list view if exact time tracking with start and finish date is enabled. It displays your logged times in a collapsible list that also shows sums and other logged information.
Practical benefits: Time tracking for freelancers and growing teams
The new My time tracking module supports different ways of working — from independent teams to organizations with structured planning needs. Let’s look at two example scenarios to show how flexible time tracking with start and end times can be.
Example 1: Small team with freelancers — balancing autonomy and structure
Imagine a small digital agency in Berlin. The team consists of five full-time employees who manage their own schedules and two freelancers who invoice by the hour. Everyone tracks their time — not because they’re told to, but because they want to stay on top of their workload.
With the new calendar view in OpenProject, all team members can:
Quickly enter time directly by clicking and dragging in the calendar.
Get a visual overview of how much time they’ve spent on different tasks.
Spot gaps or overloads in their week at a glance.
For freelancers, start and end times provide the exact data that is sometimes needed in cost reports. For the whole team, it’s a simple way to reflect, stay aligned, and avoid time slipping through the cracks — all without micromanagement.
Example 2: Growing teams who need efficient resource management
Now consider a mid-sized city administration in Germany. The digitalization team has grown to 20 employees, and it’s become harder for department heads to keep an overview of team capacity. At the same time, the organization wants to foster trust and avoid excessive reporting requirements.
By using the My time tracking module with start and end time enforcement (available in the Enterprise edition), admins can:
Ensure that team members always track their time precisely
View consistent data across the organization for reporting and planning
Identify over- or under-allocation of resources early on
Time entries remain private in the personal module, but the structured data feeds into cost reports and will lay the foundation for upcoming resource management features.
Important
The ability to require exact time tracking is available in the Enterprise Professional plan. You can activate it in the Administration → Time and costs → Defaults.
Summary: Calendar-based time tracking with start and end times
The new My time tracking module in OpenProject 16.0 helps you log, review, and manage your personal time entries more intuitively. With a calendar-based interface and support for start and end times, it makes time tracking more visual, structured, and user-friendly.
Whether you’re working independently or as part of a growing team, this module provides the tools you need to stay organized, maintain transparency, and prepare for future planning features.
Two views available: Calendar (default if start/end time tracking is enabled) or list view (default if disabled).
Calendar interactions: Click and drag to create entries, move or resize them, or remove times by dragging to the “No specific time” row.
Color-coded entries: Time entries inherit the color of the work package type to provide visual context.
Workdays vs. non-workdays: Configurable workdays appear with a lighter background, while non-working days are dimmed. A “Work week” toggle hides weekends.
Admin settings:
Enable start and end time tracking (all editions).
Enforce exact time tracking (Enterprise only).
Benefits for teams of all sizes:
For small teams: intuitive tracking and visual workload overview.
For larger organizations: consistent data for reporting and long-term resource planning.
Update May 2025: Internal comments have been released with version 16.0, and are included in our Enterprise professional plan.
With OpenProject 16.0, scheduled for May 21, 2025, we will introduce a new way to communicate with your team: internal comments in the work package Activity tab. This blog post will talk about why we developed this feature, how you can use it and how it might evolve in the future.
Why do we need internal comments?
OpenProject is as much a tool for team communication as it is for project management. In public offices, hospitals, universities and small and large companies, teams use OpenProject to manage the exchange of information.
Most of this information is contained within individual projects and our users sometimes work across multiple projects, each with a limited set of users with different roles. Each of these roles comes with a different set of permissions. For example, project admins generally have full, unrestricted access to the project, project members might have the ability to create only certain types of work packages or execute certain status changes, while external (non-project) collaborators might only be able to read and write comments. This approach allows for fine-grained access control.
In version 13.1 of OpenProject, we introduced work package sharing. This made it possible to invite users who are not project members to individual work packages in a limited capacity, with rights to only view, view and comment, or even modify the shared work package.
Sharing is especially useful when you need to involve people in very specific, small scopes. They might be external collaborators, clients, suppliers or observers. However, until now, anyone who could view a work package could also view all the comments in the Activity tab. This might not always be ideal. There might be times when a core team might want to discuss things related to a work package confidentially amongst themselves and keep that conversation separate from what is visible to all other stakeholders.
That’s where internal comments come in.
Internal communication
Internal comments lets core project members limit the visibility of certain comments to a select group that is a smaller subset of project members.
To use this feature, a project admin will be able to enable internal comments for their project. By default, these internal comments are only visible to the project admin role. To expand who can view these comments, instance administrators can grant a new set of permissions (to view, write and edit internal comments) to any number of roles.
Users who have these roles within their project will then see a checkbox under the comment box labeled “Internal comment”:
Checking this will turn that comment into an internal comment. The background color of the comment box will change to indicate this.
Once posted, the comment will also be marked in the same color, along with a lock icon, to distinguish it from regular comments.
Users without the necessary permissions will not be able to see these comments, nor that new comments were posted. They will not be visible in neither the Activity tab nor the other places where user activity is reported, like the user activity and project activity pages.
A project can include a number of different stakeholders and not all stakeholders should be privy to all information. Ideally, all discussion around a single topic or work package should happen in the same place but because there are currently no visibility controls, confidential conversations need to currently happen elsewhere. This is often a separate work package (in a different project), a Matrix chat room or email. All of these introduce inefficiencies by introducing information duplication and blind spots.
With internal comments, all information and stakeholders can be gathered in one work package that is considered the single source of truth and core project members are nevertheless able to communicate amongst only themselves.
Collaborate with an external client or supplier
Projects often involve external clients or suppliers. They can be invited to a project or an individual work package with specific, limited roles. This reduces the need to organize outside the project context using different incompatible tools.
However, the core project team might want to keep some of their conversation private and limited to a smaller group, for example when discussing rates, negotiations, sensitive financial information or contextual information. With restricted visibility comments, the core team can have a meta-level conversation within work packages that external clients or suppliers cannot access.
Use OpenProject as a helpdesk tool
Implementing internal comments is also a step towards making OpenProject a capable helpdesk tool. Customer support teams can write internal notes only they can view, along with public comments and responses the customer can read and react to.
This will be supplemented in the future with other important helpdesk features such as the ability to set up OpenProject to automatically create work packages based on incoming emails to certain addresses and allow responding to comments via email.
Your feedback
We are excited to release internal comments this May with version 16.0.
As an open source software company, we value the ideas and feedback of our user Community. If you have opinions about these changes or have feature requests, feel free to join our Community instance and share your thoughts.
We would like to thank ZenDiS for sponsoring this feature. We hope you are looking forward to this update as much as we are looking forward to releasing it.
How to choose the best project management software?
Finding the best project management software suited for your organization is a challenging task. We have put together the important criteria to help you make that choice. As an open source software, we of course advocate for choosing an open source project management software.
We prepared a latest overview of the top 5 open source project management software in 2025 for you to compare and see which one could enable you to tackle your challenges best. Take a look at the feature sets, hosting options, prices, security of the open source project management solutions to make an informed decision for your organization.
Please also make sure to check your potential project management software provider’s privacy policy and data security strategy in detail. In a project management software, confidential data is being processed so you have to make sure your data is in the right hands and being protected.
Here are our 5 best open source project management tools in 2025 with different advantages:
OpenProject is the leading open source project management software, licensed under GNU GPL v3.
Free and open source software
The software code is freely available on GitHub and the changes to the source code are transparently traceable any time. With OpenProject there is no vendor lock-in.
As self-hosted versions, the Community and Enterprise on-premises editions provide users with data sovereignty. You will benefit from a set-up with ultimate control over your data and with your preferred technical set up.
If you don’t have the capacity or knowledge to host OpenProject in your environment, we offer the Enterprise cloud edition with secure hosting in the EU or on request in Germany. With the OpenProject Enterprise cloud, you will benefit from a data center and network architecture built to meet the requirements of the most security-sensitive organizations. You can rely on hosting in a high security data center and redundant infrastructure, built for high availability and performance. Continuous encrypted data backups in separate locations, regular data privacy assessment and certification by external auditor are part of the security strategy.
Extensive project management features
OpenProject maps the entire project lifecycle, from project planning, execution and project controlling, to project closure. The software supports classic, agile and hybrid project management. The software includes extensive project management functions, such as project and milestone planning (Gantt charts), task recording, agile boards, project wiki, pre- and post-processing of deadlines, forums, time and cost recording, budgets.
Also, UX and UI play an important role at OpenProject. We invest heavily into our interface design team so that the use of OpenProject is as intuitive as possible and users don’t need much training or a documentation quest before jumping right in.
Configuration
The software is flexibly configurable, can be adapted to individual requirements and is suitable for the respective company processes. With a powerful API, additional systems can be connected if required.
Part of openDesk
OpenProject is one of the software solutions that are used for openDesk – the Sovereign Workplace. The vision of the Sovereign Workplace is to offer a true open source alternative to Microsoft and Google throughout Europe. And OpenProject is ‘openDesk’ ready, which means the current version (and upwards, of course) can be used as part of openDesk.
Active maintenance and development
OpenProject is continuously developed and maintained by an active developer community. New functions, improvements and updates are released regularly. This also allows a quick reaction to possible security gaps.
Professional support and training
OpenProject offers professional support and training. This ensures that users receive both technical and functional support in order to work with the software in the best possible way.
Pricing
The OpenProject Community edition covers a wide range of features and plugins and is free of charge. This is an on-premises version that requires you to host it in your own environment.
The Enterprise cloud and on-premises editions offer you professional support as well as additional premium and security features. Consequently, these are paid plans. Pricing starts from €5.95 per month per user, long-term subscriptions though are cheaper.
OpenProject offers a 14 days free trial which you can extend on request.
GitLab
GitLab is a source code management and DevOps platform that can also be used for project management, licensed under MIT open source license. It has a clear focus on software development. The users benefit from fast deployments, standardization, automation and increased security of the software development process.
GitLab has a vast feature set to allow the mapping of the entire software delivery lifecycle. It offers many specific features targeted at software developers, such as DevOps Reports. Both agile and traditional project management methodologies are supported by GitLab as it also includes timelines, task management and workflows. However, time tracking or budget and costs are features missing in GitLab’s offer.
Overall, one can say that GitLab has a more technical user interface due to the fact that the main target group is software engineers. It might not be as intuitive as other open source project management software in 2025.
Exciting: If you are not entirely convinced by the GitLab offering in terms of project management, but like its feature set, you can use OpenProject with its GitLab integration.
GitLab is available in the cloud and on-premises. The self-installed version provides full data control. GitLab’s cloud version, the GitLab.com core infrastructure, is primarily hosted in Google Cloud Platform’s (GCP) US-East1 region.
The location where your data is stored is important as it determines which regulations and data privacy measures apply (in the EU e.g. the providers have to adhere to GDPR). Feel free to read up more about cloud security.
GitLab Pricing
While there is a free version available (with limited storage, users and features), the paid versions start from $19 per user per month. To test the paid version, GitLab offers a 30 days free trial.
Tuleap
Tuleap is an open source project management software for agile project management, licensed under GNU GPL.
Tuleap comprises all agile project management features like task board, backlog, Kanban boards, burnup and burndown charts, dashboard. It allows you to execute software development, test management, project tracking and agile planning in specific.
If you are an agile or software development team, Tuleap’s clear focus on the agile methodology might work very well for you. For a broader project management approach, you might miss traditional project management features like a Gantt chart or a Wiki, and options to track time, budget and costs. Working in Tuleap, its interface seems very intuitive.
Tuleap is available in the cloud and on-premises. The premium cloud version gives you a hosting choice among providers in France, Switzerland, USA, UK, Korea. There is no information on the basic cloud hosting.
Tuleap Pricing
There is no free version of Tuleap available. The cheapest option is the basic cloud version that starts from 6€ per user per month. However, Tuleap offers a free trial if you contact them.
Taiga
Taiga is an open source project management software whose beginnings date back to a Kaleidos hackathon in 2013. It is licensed under MPL 2.0.
Taiga’s vision was to create an intuitive and visually appealing agile project management tool for developers and designers. Accordingly, Taiga offers a comprehensive feature set for agile project management. It includes Kanban boards, backlog, estimation tool, issue tracking, dashboard and more.
Consequently, classic project management features are not part of Taiga, limiting its use cases to agile methodologies only. Taiga has a very intuitive interface, which makes it easy for users to start working with the software.
Taiga is available in the cloud and on-premises. The cloud version is hosted in the EU by AWS, which means it complies with GDPR in this regard.
Taiga Pricing
There is a free cloud and free on-premises version available. The paid Taiga cloud edition comes with premium support and is at $70 per month (unlimited users).
Orangescrum offers classic as well as agile project management features. Resource management, schedule management (Gantt charts), budget and cost management, issue tracking, time tracking, workflow management as well as backlogs are available.
The on-premises and cloud version include even more features (burndown chart, project overview, task labels, custom task types, recurring tasks, invoicing etc.). Those are premium features and are part of paid plans.
Orangescrum is available in the cloud and self-hosted. The cloud version is hosted with AWS (location not mentioned).
Orangescrum’s privacy policy states that they are taking many steps across the entire company to ensure they will be ready for the GDPR.
Orangescrum Pricing
The Orangescrum open source edition can be downloaded for free. You can add paid support plans to it, from $299 per month. You can try Orangescrum for 15 days for free.
There is a free Orangescrum cloud edition for 3 users and limited storage, paid plans are starting from $8 per user per month. The on-premises version with premium features and support is charged as a once-off (from $4,425), with potential support subscriptions for following years.
Compare the top 5 open source project management software
Choosing the best project management software that fits your organization depends on a variety of criteria, including the features and use cases you want, the size of your team, and hosting preferences. All listed top 5 open source project management software have their advantages.
If you are looking for an open source project management software in 2025, we recommend to have a look at OpenProject, GitLab, Tuleap, Taiga, and Orangescrum.
To give you a quick summary:
OpenProject offers traditional, classic and hybrid project management features with a very intuitive interface. It is available in the cloud and on-premises and focuses on data security and privacy, protecting your confidential data. Therefore, the cloud version is securely hosted in the EU or on request in Germany. The OpenProject Community edition (on-premises) includes a comprehensive feature set and is free of charge.
GitLab has an elaborate feature set that is mainly targeted at software development teams and has a more techy interface. It is available in the cloud and on-premises. The cloud is hosted in the US. They offer a free on-premises version for a maximum of 5 users with limited storage and essential features only.
Tuleap is only for agile project management teams. It offers an intuitive interface. It comes both as on-premises and cloud version. Only for the premium cloud version you can choose the location of the host provider. Tuleap does not offer a free version.
Taiga also only offers agile project management features, though with a very appealing interface. It is available as cloud and on-premises version and the cloud version is hosted in the EU. Taiga offers a free cloud and free on-premises version.
Orangescrum has a big feature set for traditional as well as agile project management with an intuitive interface. There are on-premises and cloud versions, the latter is hosted by AWS but it seems Orangescrum might not comply fully with GDPR. The open source version with reduced feature set is free of charge and there is a free cloud version for a maximum of 3 users.
Regarding the pricing of all top 5 open source project management software, we recommend you visit the individual websites to input your team size and other requirements to find out the detailed pricing as there are many variables that may change the pricing.
Ever wondered what all these project management terms actually mean? Understanding key project management terminology is essential for effective collaboration and successful project execution. In this article, we’ll walk you through fundamental concepts and terms.
If you’re looking for OpenProject-specific definitions, see our Glossary, where we define the most commonly used terms in OpenProject.
Waterfall
Waterfall is sometimes referred to as classic or traditional project management. It is characterized by a sequential flow of tasks. One task is completed before the next can begin. This linear structure gave the method its name — Waterfall.
Because of this sequential nature, careful planning and precise timing are essential. Delays can lead to significant setbacks. A Gantt chart is a typical way to visualize a waterfall project.
Agile
Agile project management recognizes the complexity and uncertainty of many projects. It uses an adaptive approach: a large project is broken into smaller pieces that are handled by cross-functional teams.
Work is done in short cycles, known as iterations or sprints, and customer feedback is integrated regularly. Agile allows for greater flexibility and continuous improvement during the development process.
Scrum
Scrum is a framework used within agile project management. Originally developed in software, it can be applied in many industries. Scrum divides work into small, manageable tasks and emphasizes collaboration, progress tracking, and regular adjustment.
Scrum teams deliver value incrementally. A task board helps visualize the current status.
Sprint
A sprint is a fixed-length iteration in agile development — often lasting one or two weeks. During each sprint, the team works on selected tasks from the backlog. After each sprint, results are reviewed, and the backlog is adjusted based on feedback and progress.
Board
A board is a visual tool used to manage and track tasks in a project. In OpenProject, boards help teams stay organized and collaborate effectively by showing tasks (work packages) in columns such as To Do, In Progress, or Done. This makes boards ideal for agile workflows like Scrum or Kanban, but they are just as useful for managing general task lists, team priorities, or feedback rounds.
In OpenProject, there are basic boards for all users and action boards (with automatic sorting e.g. by status or version) available as Enterprise add-on:
Tip
To learn more about how boards work in OpenProject and which board types are available, read our blog article on Agile Boards.
Kanban
Kanban is a visual approach to agile project management. It focuses on transparency and continuous delivery. A Kanban board shows tasks in columns (e.g., To do, In progress, Done) and helps teams limit work in progress.
Backlog
The backlog is a list of all items that need to be completed to achieve a project goal. Tasks are typically prioritized, and the most important ones are selected for the next sprint. A backlog serves as the central source of truth for the team.
User story
A user story represents a piece of functionality from the user’s perspective — something they want to achieve. Stories should be small enough to complete within a sprint and usually follow a standard format like: “As a [user], I want to [goal] so that [benefit].”
Epic
An epic is a large body of work that represents a big objective or need. It’s typically too large to complete in a single sprint, so it is broken down into smaller user stories that can be tackled incrementally.
Milestone
A milestone marks a significant point in a project — such as deadlines, delivery dates, or decision gates. It helps monitor progress and often represents a non-working task with a specific target date but no duration.
Bug
A bug is an unintended error or issue in the software that affects functionality or performance. Bug tracking is an essential part of product development.
Feature
A feature is a specific piece of functionality that delivers value to the user. In agile teams, features are often driven by user stories and linked to requirements in the backlog.
Story points
Story points are used to estimate the effort required to complete a task, feature, or user story. They are typically assigned using a predefined scale and help teams plan and track sprint velocity.
Burndown chart
A burndown chart is a tool mostly used in Scrum. It is a two-dimensional graph that shows the amount of work remaining (usually measured in story points) versus the time left in a sprint or project. This visual representation helps teams track their progress and stay focused on their goals.
Work package
A work package is a group of related tasks that can be managed and delivered together. In OpenProject, a work package can represent a task, feature, user story, bug, phase, or milestone.
Wiki
A wiki is a collection of collaborative, editable pages where teams can document knowledge, processes, or project information. In OpenProject, each project can have its own wiki, helping centralize documentation.
Dependencies
Dependencies, also known as relations, define how tasks are connected. For example, one task may need to finish before another starts. Managing dependencies helps create realistic timelines and avoid bottlenecks.
Project
A project is a temporary endeavor with a defined goal, timeline, and scope. It can range from small internal improvements to complex product releases. Even though the term is widely used, it’s not always clearly defined. Taking time to align on what constitutes a “project” in your context helps ensure consistent planning and execution.
We are happy to announce the release of OpenProject 15.5. Among other changes, users now can filter for descendants of work packages, which includes children, grandchildren, and deeper levels in the hierarchy. This makes it easier to focus on specific parts of a project hierarchy.
In this blog article, we will take a closer look at these feature updates:
And there are more great updates in this version again. For more details on other changes, features and bug fixes in 15.5, please check out our release notes.
Tip
The next version is already on the horizon: In May 2025, we plan to release OpenProject 16.0 with major feature changes. One change will be the ‘sunsetting’ of classic meetings, meaning users will only be able to create one-time and recurring meetings then. With the release of 15.5, you already see a hint in the application that classic meetings are unsupported. We recommend switching to the newer meeting types now to benefit from recent improvements and to ensure a smooth transition. Read this article to learn more: Classic meetings will be replaced: What changes with OpenProject 16.0
Filter for descendants of work packages
OpenProject 15.5 introduces a helpful new filter to better navigate complex project structures. The Descendants of filter allows you to display all related work packages beneath a selected parent — including its children, grandchildren, and deeper levels.
For example, if you apply the filter “Descendants of” is (OR) “Open Source Conference”, the view will include:
Two direct children: Create sponsorship brochure and hand-outs and Set date and location of conference
Two children of the brochure task — in other words, grandchildren of the main phase: Design brochure and Write brochure text
One grandchild under the location task: Contact sponsoring partners
This filter is available wherever filters are supported, such as work package tables or agile boards. Until now, it was only possible to filter for parent work packages — this new option lets you see the full hierarchy below a selected item, making it easier to focus on a specific part of your project and understand its structure at a glance.
Column for children in work package tables (Enterprise add-on)
OpenProject 15.5 adds a new Children column to work package tables — giving you a faster and more structured way to view hierarchical relationships without needing to apply filters or switch views.
This column shows a clickable dropdown icon alongside the number of child work packages linked to each parent. With one click, you can expand the parent directly in the table to get an immediate overview of its structure. Each child is clearly marked with a Child label, helping you stay oriented even in complex project hierarchies.
This feature is especially useful when working with large datasets or focused views, where quickly understanding relationships between work packages is key.
For example, in a project phase like Open Source Conference, the Children column shows how many related work packages are connected to that phase — helping teams assess scope and progress without leaving the table view.
Note
All relationship columns, including the new Children column, are part of the Enterprise add-ons.
% Complete included in work package table sums
Imagine you’re part of an NGO marketing team planning newsletters, blog articles, and videos for the upcoming year. Each campaign includes several tasks — like writing a blog post titled Behind the scenes: Organizing a field mission or producing the video Meet our volunteers. Both are in progress and marked as 40% complete.
With OpenProject 15.5, it’s now easier to get an overview of your content pipeline: the % Complete value is included in the sum row of work package tables. Alongside Work and Remaining work, this provides a quick snapshot of overall progress — in this case, 42 hours of work planned, 25.2 hours remaining, and an overall completion rate of 40%.
All three values are calculated based on the selected progress tracking mode, giving you accurate insights tailored to your team’s workflow — whether you’re tracking effort manually or automatically.
Advanced accessibility
Accessibility is not just a feature — it’s a fundamental part of building inclusive software. With version 15.5, we’ve taken another step forward in making OpenProject more accessible, especially for users who rely on screen readers or keyboard navigation.
The date picker now provides clearer, more meaningful feedback during manual input, ensuring that everyone can interact with project timelines confidently and independently. This means that screen readers now announce when switching between manual and automatic scheduling modes. Changes to one field, such as the Start date or Duration, are immediately announced when they affect related fields. The “Today” shortcuts come with ARIA labels that give users helpful context — for example, “Select today as start date.”
You will find more information about all new features and changes in our Release notes or in the OpenProject Documentation.
If you need support, you can post your questions in the Community Forum, or if you are eligible for Enterprise support, please contact us and we are happy to support you personally.
New to OpenProject? To test all features of OpenProject 15.5 right away, create a 14 days free trial instance for our OpenProject Enterprise cloud.
Prefer to run OpenProject 15.5 in your own infrastructure? Here you can find the Installation guidelines for OpenProject.
A very special thank you goes to the City of Cologne, Deutsche Bahn and ZenDiS for sponsoring released or upcoming features. Your support, alongside the efforts of our amazing Community, helps drive these innovations.
Also, a big thanks to our Community members for reporting bugs and helping us identify and provide fixes. Special thanks for reporting and finding bugs go to Abhiyan Paudyal, Andreas H., Paul Kernstock, Patrick Stapf, and Stefan Weiberg.
Last but not least, we are very grateful for our very engaged translation contributors on Crowdin, who translated quite a few OpenProject strings! This release we would like to particularly thank the following users:
Yuliia Pavliuk, for a great number of translations into Ukrainian.
Adam Siemienski, for a great number of translations into Polish.
NCAA, for a great number of translations into Danish.
greench, for a great number of translations into Turkish.
Would you like to help out with translations yourself? Then take a look at our translation guide and find out exactly how you can contribute. It is very much appreciated!
As always, we welcome any feedback on this release. 💙
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