7 jobs · 14 apps
Best open source software for freelancers
For a freelancer, a self-hosted stack starts with Odoo for invoicing, Frappe HR for time tracking and Twenty for clients. Each section takes the top-ranked apps in one catalog category, scored on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits.
A freelancer's toolkit of self-hostable apps for invoicing, time tracking, clients, scheduling and files, ranked with the freelancer profile.
Updated · data from GitHub, refreshed nightly
Top picks
- Rank 1:
Odoo
odoo/odoo
Free open source ERP system.
ERP & InventoryPythonDockerOdoo has 54,848 GitHub stars, uses the LGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 10,679 commits in the last year; it replaces QuickBooks and Square POS.
- Rank 2:
ERPNext
frappe/erpnext
ERP system to help you run your business.
ERP & InventoryPythonDockerERPNext has 39,821 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 6,664 commits in the last year; it replaces QuickBooks and Square POS.
1 of 7 · 2 picks
Invoicing and accounting
- 1
Odoo
Free open source ERP system.
ERP & InventoryDockerOdoo has 54,848 GitHub stars, uses the LGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 10,679 commits in the last year; it replaces QuickBooks and Square POS.
- 2
ERPNext
ERP system to help you run your business.
ERP & InventoryDockerERPNext has 39,821 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 6,664 commits in the last year; it replaces QuickBooks and Square POS.
2 of 7 · 2 picks
Time tracking
- 1
Frappe HR
Complete HRMS solution with over 13 different modules right from employee management, onboarding, leaves, to payroll, taxation, and more.
HR & Time TrackingDockerFrappe HR has 8,879 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 2,742 commits in the last year; it replaces BambooHR and Workday.
- 2
Ever Gauzy
Open business management platform for collaborative, on-demand and sharing economies (ERP/CRM/HRM/ATS/PM).
HR & Time TrackingDockerEver Gauzy has 8,194 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 1,967 commits in the last year; it replaces BambooHR and Workday.
3 of 7 · 2 picks
Clients (CRM)
- 1
Twenty
A modern CRM offering the flexibility of open source, advanced features, and a sleek design.
CRMDockerTwenty has 57,949 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 7,656 commits in the last year; it replaces Salesforce and HubSpot.
- 2
Krayin
CRM solution for SMEs and Enterprises for complete customer lifecycle management.
CRMDockerKrayin has 23,970 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 483 commits in the last year; it replaces Salesforce and HubSpot.
4 of 7 · 2 picks
Scheduling
- 1
Cal.diy
Online appointment scheduling system.
Booking & SchedulingDockerCal.diy has 48,880 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 1,893 commits in the last year; it replaces Calendly.
- 2
Rallly
Create polls to vote on dates and times (alternative to Doodle).
Booking & SchedulingDockerRallly has 5,285 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 1,513 commits in the last year; it replaces Calendly.
5 of 7 · 2 picks
Projects and tasks
- 1
Gitea
Git with a cup of tea! Painless self-hosted all-in-one software development service, including Git hosting, code review, team collaboration, package registry and CI/CD.
Project ManagementDockerGitea has 58,319 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 1,696 commits in the last year; it replaces GitHub and GitLab.
- 2
Plane
Track issues, epics, and product roadmaps in the simplest way possible (alternative to JIRA, Linear and Height).
Project ManagementDockerPlane has 60,414 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 678 commits in the last year; it replaces Jira and Asana.
6 of 7 · 2 picks
File sharing
- 1
qBittorrent
Free cross-platform bittorrent client with a feature rich Web UI for remote access.
File SharingqBittorrent has 40,592 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-2.0 license and had 460 commits in the last year.
- 2
slskd
A modern client-server application for the Soulseek file sharing network.
File SharingDockerslskd has 4,010 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 1,056 commits in the last year.
7 of 7 · 2 picks
Passwords
- 1
VaultwardenFeatured
Lightweight Bitwarden server API implementation written in Rust.
Password ManagersDockerVaultwarden has 68,572 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 181 commits in the last year; it replaces Bitwarden and 1Password.
- 2
Bitwarden
Password manager with a webapp, browser extension, and mobile app.
Password ManagersDockerBitwarden has 20,244 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 1,544 commits in the last year; it replaces Bitwarden and 1Password.
What open source software should a freelancer use?
For a freelancer, a self-hosted stack starts with Odoo for invoicing, Frappe HR for time tracking and Twenty for clients. Each section takes the top-ranked apps in one catalog category, scored on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits.
Is it worth self-hosting as a freelancer?
If you already pay for several per-user tools, one small VPS can run invoicing, time tracking and file sharing for a few dollars a month. Keep backups off the server, since you are your own IT department.
Is Odoo free?
Yes. Odoo is open-source software released under the LGPL-3.0 license, so you can self-host it at no cost. You only pay for the server it runs on, and some projects also offer an optional paid cloud plan.
Can I run this stack with Docker?
13 of the 14 apps here publish Docker images, including Odoo, ERPNext and Frappe HR, so most of the stack can run side by side with Docker Compose on one server. Size the server for the heaviest app and add off-site backups.
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