Focalboard vs Plane
Self-host pick — both replace Monday.com (Work management / project boards).
Both Focalboard and Plane self-host as a replacement for Monday.com (Work management / project boards). Pick Focalboard if you want a MIT-licensed codebase (MIT (community) — Mattermost-maintained); pick Plane for AGPL (AGPL-3.0). Both run in roughly the same cost bracket — $5 vps vs $5-10 vps for a small team.
| Focalboardopen-source | Planeopen-source | |
|---|---|---|
| License | MIT (community) — Mattermost-maintained | AGPL-3.0 |
| Setup time | 10min (single binary) | 15min docker-compose |
| Monthly cost | $5 VPS. | $5-10 VPS for a small team. |
| GitHub | mattermost/focalboard | makeplane/plane |
| Replaces | Monday.com | Monday.com + 3 other |
Good fit for
Focalboard
Teams already on Mattermost who want boards inside their chat.
Weak at:Standalone version is in maintenance mode — bundled with Mattermost is the active path.
Plane
Engineering-adjacent teams that want a Linear/Asana hybrid.
Weak at:No native 'work doc' or formula columns.
In a terminal? npx -y github:SolvoHQ/os-alt-cli monday prints Monday.com's self-host options including both —
how the CLI works →
FAQ
Which is easier to self-host, Focalboard or Plane?
Focalboard: 10min (single binary). Plane: 15min docker-compose.
What does each cost to run?
Focalboard: $5 VPS.. Plane: $5-10 VPS for a small team.. Both projects are free and open source.
Do Focalboard and Plane replace the same SaaS?
Yes — both are open-source alternatives to Monday.com.