Redmine
6.3/10Free, open-source, self-hosted web application for issue tracking and multi-project management, with Gantt charts, wikis and time tracking, aimed at technical teams.
Data last updated November 2026 · Our methodology
Overview
Redmine is an open-source project management and issue tracking application written in Ruby on Rails and released under the GPL v2 licence. Jean-Philippe Lang first released it in 2006. It supports multiple projects in one installation, role-based access control, configurable trackers and workflows, and custom fields on issues, time entries, projects and users. Each project gets a wiki, forums, news, documents and file storage. Planning views include a Gantt chart and a calendar, and time tracking is built in. Its version-control integration covers Subversion, Git, Mercurial, Bazaar and CVS. Users can create issues by email, and organisations can authenticate through LDAP. A REST API in XML and JSON covers issues, projects, users, time entries, wiki pages and more. There is no licence fee, and the software has no paid tiers. Your costs are hosting, setup and maintenance of a Rails server, plus any commercial plugins or themes you add. Redmine suits software development teams, IT departments and organisations that need full control over their data and have in-house technical staff to run the server. Its main limitation is the dated interface. Agile boards, Kanban and advanced analytics also depend on third-party plugins, and reviewers say performance can drop on large, complex projects. Security and compliance depend on how you host and configure your own installation.
Our Rating
Who Redmine is best for
Good fit
It has issue trackers and native Git, Subversion and Mercurial integration for software teams.
The vendor names IT departments, and it offers self-hosting, LDAP and email-to-issue creation.
- Mid-Market7/10
It handles multiple projects, roles and custom workflows well for IT and development teams with in-house administrators.
Issue tracking and version-control integration suit software makers.
Less suited
There is no licence cost, but the business needs someone with the technical skills to host and maintain it.
There are no licence fees, but it needs Rails skills to run.
LDAP and self-hosting help with data control, but there is no vendor support and reviewers report slowdowns on large projects.
Self-hosting gives the full data control that public bodies often need, though no government features are named.
It has roadmapping through Gantt charts and trackers, but agile boards need plugins.
Running and maintaining a server is a heavy load for a solo user.
The issue-tracker design and dated interface suit technical users more than marketers.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- No licence fees under GPL v2, so the only costs are hosting and administration.
- Trackers, workflows and custom fields on issues, projects, users and time entries can all be configured in depth.
- Built-in Gantt chart, calendar, time tracking, and per-project wiki and forums cover many needs without plugins.
- Native integration with Git, Subversion, Mercurial, Bazaar and CVS suits software teams.
- The REST API in JSON and XML, with API-key authentication, supports automation.
Cons
- Reviewers widely describe the interface as dated.
- Agile boards and Kanban need third-party plugins and configuration.
- Reviewers report that it becomes slow on big or complex projects.
- Self-hosting needs Ruby on Rails skills, and there is no official vendor support.
- Advanced analytics need plugins, and some commercial plugins cost roughly $99 to $499.
Key Features
Redmine Pricing
Open source (self-hosted)
- GPL v2 licence
- Community support only
- Unlimited projects and users
- Self-hosted, so you pay for your own infrastructure
Frequently Asked Questions
The software is free and open source under GPL v2. You pay for your own hosting and maintenance, plus any paid plugins or themes you choose.
Not in the core product. Reviewers note that agile boards come from third-party plugins and may need significant configuration.
Yes. Its REST API supports XML and JSON for issues, projects, users, time entries, wiki pages and more. An administrator has to enable it, and you authenticate with HTTP Basic or an API key.
Subversion, Git, Mercurial, Bazaar and CVS.
Redmine is self-hosted open-source software, so compliance depends on how you host and configure your own installation. It supports LDAP authentication and role-based access control.
Yes. Time tracking is built in, and you can add custom fields to time entries.
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