WeKan

Overview

WeKan is an open-source Kanban tool for managing projects through boards and cards. It is best suited to teams that want substantial control over workflow, hosting, and access; readers looking for a low-maintenance board should weigh its backup and admin-access terms carefully.

Its range goes well beyond lists and cards: teams can switch among several board views, use rules to automate work, and choose cloud or self-hosted deployment. That flexibility is valuable for varied workflows, but it also makes WeKan a better fit for teams willing to configure and maintain their setup than for people seeking the simplest task tracker.

For other options in the category, see Kanban Software.

Key features

Boards support swimlanes and lists as well as table, calendar, Gantt, and statistics views. Work-in-progress limits let teams set constraints on active work. These options can help different roles review the same workflow in a useful format, though teams will need to decide which views and conventions serve their process.

Cards can hold descriptions, labels, members, dates, checklists, subtasks, custom fields, attachments, comments, dependencies, and templates; they can also be archived. This makes WeKan suitable for work that needs more context than a title and status, particularly when custom fields or dependencies matter. Automation adds trigger-to-action rules, board buttons that run rules, and outgoing webhooks globally or per board, giving teams ways to reduce repeated actions and connect workflows.

WeKan imports Trello, WeKan JSON, CSV or TSV, Excel, Jira, and Kanboard data. Sign-in can use passwords, LDAP, CAS, OIDC/OAuth2, or Sandstorm. Boards can be private or public, with nine per-board roles and organization or team restrictions on membership. These controls give administrators several ways to align board access with an organization, rather than relying on a single permission model.

Attachments and avatars can be stored on a filesystem, GridFS, S3/MinIO, Azure Blob Storage, or Google Cloud Storage. The REST API and Python client offer additional routes for working with WeKan programmatically. The maker documents account lockout after repeated failed sign-ins, content sanitization, security and event logs, and private vulnerability disclosure. Its privacy policy says service data is not given to third parties and that users can export or delete their data.

Pricing

The WeKan app plan costs nothing and has no admin access. It is the clearest choice for users who want a free app and do not need administrative control. The WeKan Cloud plan costs $50 a year, billed 50 euro/year, and includes admin access, unlimited everything, and an available custom domain. That is the paid option for teams wanting cloud hosting with administrative access; the key trade-off against the free plan is that admin access is not included for free.

Commercial support costs what you agree with the maker, billed hourly, for prepaid features, fixes, support, or hosting. Yearly support plans include prepaid hours and a private support chat channel. Commercial support and services are specified for business-to-business customers, including companies, sole proprietors, and organizations, so this is aimed at organizational buyers rather than casual individual support needs.

WeKan Cloud servers are located in Finland. Self-hosting is also available through Windows, Mac, and Linux bundles, Snap, Docker, Sandstorm, and Kubernetes options. The maker supports only the newest WeKan version and recommends daily backups because data can be lost and there is no undo yet. Teams choosing self-hosting should account for that maintenance responsibility; cloud users should still consider the backup guidance.

Platforms

WeKan supports Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Windows, web, API, and self-hosted use. Mobile apps are available for Android and iOS. The broad platform and deployment range makes it possible to fit WeKan into different environments, while the self-hosted options are most useful to organizations prepared to operate their own installation.

Who it's for

WeKan is a strong candidate for teams that need multiple ways to inspect work, detailed cards, automation, granular board permissions, or control over where files are stored. Its import options can also help teams moving from several common task and project tools. It is less compelling for users who want a basic board without operational responsibility: daily backups are recommended, the newest version is the only supported one, and the free app plan lacks admin access.

Pros and cons

Pros: Multiple board views, work-in-progress limits, custom card fields, and detailed card content support structured workflows without restricting teams to a simple list-and-card model.

Pros: Self-hosting, configurable storage destinations, several sign-in methods, and board-level access controls give organizations meaningful deployment and permission choices.

Pros: The free app plan costs nothing, and the cloud plan includes admin access and unlimited everything.

Cons: The free app plan has no admin access, so users who need that control must consider the $50 a year cloud plan or a self-hosted route.

Cons: The maker recommends daily backups because data can be lost and there is no undo yet, adding operational care to an otherwise broad toolset.

Cons: Only the newest version is supported, which may make version maintenance a concern for teams with less capacity to keep installations current.

Alternatives

Choose PLANKA if a self-hosted community edition at free or a Pro Self-Hosted plan at €36 a month better fits your deployment and budget.

MeisterTask is an alternative for readers who prefer a free plan capped at three projects, five notes, and five Content Manager seats, with support for Android, iOS, macOS, web, and Windows.

Consider Planio if a project-management option with a Bronze tier limited to one project, two users, ten customers, and 1 GB storage suits your needs; its Silver plan costs $25 a month.

SwiftKanban may suit teams whose free Team plan's limits of three users and two boards are appropriate.

Pick KanbanFlow if its free plan with no time limit and standard support fits your needs, or if you want its Premium plan at $5 a month.

Trello is worth considering if a free plan capped at 10 collaborators and 10 boards per Workspace is enough for your team.

Doska is another free Kanban option.

Jotform is another option to consider.

Verdict

Choose WeKan if your team needs a configurable Kanban system with varied views, automation, access controls, and a choice between cloud and self-hosting. Its strongest reason to choose is the breadth of control across boards, storage, and deployment; its strongest reason to look elsewhere is the operational burden of backups and version upkeep, compounded by the lack of admin access on the free app plan.