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Comparison · PM

Planka vs Leantime

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Planka and Leantime — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Shared themes:project-managementself-hosted

Planka vs Leantime: at a glance

FeaturePlankaLeantime
SectorPMPM
Velocity score5.05.0
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesproject-management, kanban, self-hosted, kubernetesproject-management, self-hosted, permissions, plugins
Last editorial update8d ago2d ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is Planka?

Planka's Helm chart wakes up with 2.3.0 and 2.3.1 a day apart, still without notes.

The entries tracked for Planka, the self-hosted Kanban board, are Helm chart releases for deploying it on Kubernetes. After three months of quiet, chart 2.3.0 landed on November 4 and 2.3.1 the next day, each with the same one-line description and no change notes.

Read the full Planka trajectory →

What is Leantime?

Leantime swaps role ranks for real permissions and syncs with your calendar app.

Leantime moved from 3.10 to 3.14 between October and 10 November. v3.14.0 replaces role-rank checks with specific permission checks across projects, timesheets, users, API keys, to-dos, milestones and sprints, and opens the calendar to plugins; a new CalDAV plugin syncs both ways with Nextcloud, Radicale and Apple Calendar. Earlier releases added mobile push, per-project modules, global search and self-updating plugins.

Read the full Leantime trajectory →

Planka vs Leantime: editorial side-by-side

P5.0

Planka's Helm chart wakes up with 2.3.0 and 2.3.1 a day apart, still without notes.

◆ Current state

The entries tracked for Planka, the self-hosted Kanban board, are Helm chart releases for deploying it on Kubernetes. After three months of quiet, chart 2.3.0 landed on November 4 and 2.3.1 the next day, each with the same one-line description and no change notes.

◆ Where it's heading

The chart moves in bursts: a minor version followed quickly by a patch, as with 2.0.2 and 2.0.3 in February. Without notes, the feed shows deployment upkeep, not the app's feature direction.

◆ Prediction

A quick patch after a minor suggests 2.3.0 had a deployment bug; whether 2.3 tracks a new Planka app release is not visible here.

L5.0

Leantime swaps role ranks for real permissions and syncs with your calendar app.

◆ Current state

Leantime moved from 3.10 to 3.14 between October and 10 November. v3.14.0 replaces role-rank checks with specific permission checks across projects, timesheets, users, API keys, to-dos, milestones and sprints, and opens the calendar to plugins; a new CalDAV plugin syncs both ways with Nextcloud, Radicale and Apple Calendar. Earlier releases added mobile push, per-project modules, global search and self-updating plugins.

◆ Where it's heading

The release cadence is roughly one feature version every two weeks, split between finer access control and a plugin marketplace that carries more functionality. Core changes increasingly exist to give plugins stable hooks, as the calendar rework shows.

◆ Prediction

Expect more marketplace plugins built on the new calendar and permission hooks, and further permission work extending to the remaining modules.

Alternatives to Planka and Leantime

Other PM products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Planka or Leantime.

See all Planka alternatives → · See all Leantime alternatives →

Recent activity from Planka and Leantime

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 3d agoLeantimev3.14.0: per-permission access checks and a CalDAV sync plugin
  2. 8d agoPlankaPlanka Helm chart 2.3.1
  3. 9d agoPlankaPlanka Helm chart 2.3.0
  4. 14d agoLeantimev3.13.2: digest changes, OIDC PKCE, marketplace install reporting
  5. 14d agoLeantimev3.13.1: clearer plugin install errors
  6. 14d agoLeantimev3.13.0: mobile push, per-project modules, Laravel 12
  7. 29d agoLeantimev3.12.0: self-updating plugins and a shared interface library
  8. 1mo agoLeantimev3.11.0: global search across the workspace
  9. 3mo agoPlankaPlanka Helm chart 2.2.0
  10. 8mo agoPlankaPlanka Helm chart 2.1.0
  11. 8mo agoPlankaPlanka Helm chart 2.0.3
  12. 8mo agoPlankaPlanka Helm chart 2.0.2

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Planka and Leantime?

Both compete on the same themes — project-management, self-hosted — within PM. Planka and Leantime are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 5.0 vs 5.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is Planka better than Leantime?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Planka and Leantime are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 5.0 vs 5.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other PM products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to Planka?

Top Planka alternatives in PM are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Planka alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/planka for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to Leantime?

Top Leantime alternatives in PM are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Leantime alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/leantime for the full list with editorial commentary on each.