Bluelane vs OpenFamily
Bluelane
bluelane.io
OpenFamily
openfamily.appSide by side
| Figure | Bluelane | OpenFamily |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $4/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 2 | 2 |
| Spec score · Family Locator Apps | 8.4 (#4) | 8.3 (#8) |
| Integrations | The site credits MapTiler and OpenStreetMap on its route maps. | Android notifications use UnifiedPush through ntfy, and the app does not require Google Play Services. |
| Product | Bluelane shares a live location and route from an iPhone so friends can follow in a browser. | OpenFamily is a self-hosted family GPS location tracker for household location sharing. |
Plans
In their own words
OpenFamily
OpenFamily is a free, open-source, self-hosted GPS tracker for household location sharing. Its live map shows family members with photo avatars, battery levels, last-seen times, and movement states, with updates through WebSocket. Saved places can trigger arrival and departure alerts. Safety tools include SOS with a ten-second countdown, check-ins with notes, and non-emergency requests for family help. Location history includes map trails, place stays, stops, and in-transit segments; detailed history is retained for 90 days. People join using invite codes and can be assigned admin, member, or child roles. A web admin panel manages accounts and families, creates invites, configures optional SMS, downloads the Android APK, and displays the map. OpenFamily runs as a Docker Compose stack on a VPS, Synology NAS, home server, or LAN machine. It supports Android, iOS, web, API, and self-hosted use. Account and location data are stored in PostgreSQL on the operator's server; default map tile hosts can see the area being viewed.