Redmine pricing confuses a lot of teams at first. The software itself is free. The plugins are not. Hosting is a separate decision. And unlike most project management tools, there are no per-user fees at any stage.
That cost model is one of the strongest reasons development teams choose Redmine but only once they understand how it actually works. Teams that approach Redmine expecting a SaaS pricing page are often surprised. Teams that understand the structure from the start make much better decisions about what to buy and when.
This guide explains Redmine pricing across all three layers the software, the plugins, and the hosting so you can plan the full cost before committing.
The short answer: Redmine the software is free and open-source you can install it at no cost on your own server. Plugins are licensed per installation, not per user, so a team of ten and a team of one hundred pay the same licence fee. Hosting adds a server cost if you self-host, or a flat managed hosting fee if you use a service like Redmineflux Managed Cloud. There are no per-seat fees, no pricing tiers, and no feature paywalls based on team size.
The three cost layers are independent of each other.
Redmine can be run for free on your own infrastructure without requiring any plugins. Plugins can be added later without needing to modify your hosting setup. If needed, you can also switch to managed hosting without affecting your existing plugin licenses. Each layer is a separate decision.
Redmine is released under the GNU General Public License. The full software issue tracking, project wikis, time tracking, role management, Gantt view, and email notifications is available at no cost. There is no paid version of Redmine itself. The community maintains and updates it actively; Redmine 6.x is the current stable release.
What “free” means in practice: you download and install Redmine on a server you control. The server has a cost either a cloud VM, a physical machine, or a managed hosting service. The software itself has none.
What “open-source” means in practice: you can inspect the code, modify it, and self-host it indefinitely. You are not locked into any vendor’s upgrade schedule or pricing decisions. If Redmine releases a new version, you upgrade on your own timeline. If you want to run an older version, nothing forces you to upgrade.
Most Redmine plugins including all Redmineflux plugins are licensed per installation. You buy the plugin once and it runs on your Redmine instance for all users, across all projects. The licence fee does not change whether you have 5 users or 500.
That model is the key cost difference between Redmine and SaaS project management tools. SaaS tools charge per user per month. As your team grows, the bill grows at the same rate. Redmine plugin licences stay flat.
What this means across a 3-year horizon:
A team that grows from 15 to 40 people on a typical SaaS tool sees their subscription cost nearly triple over those three years. On Redmine with Redmineflux plugins, the plugin licence does not change. The only cost that grows is the server and server costs scale on infrastructure usage, not headcount.
Plugin options from Redmineflux:
You can buy plugins individually or as a bundle. The All Plugins Pack covers the full Redmineflux suite Agile Board, Gantt Chart, Timesheet, Workload, Custom Dashboard, Test Case Management, Issue Template, and more at a lower combined cost than buying each plugin separately. For teams that need more than two or three plugins, the pack is the practical choice.
See exact plugin pricing on the Redmineflux pricing page.
You manage the server infrastructure. You handle installation, upgrades, backups, and security patches. The cost is your server bill typically a VPS or dedicated machine from a cloud provider.
For a team of 20 to 50 people, a mid-range VPS handles Redmine comfortably. That is the only recurring cost beyond any plugin licences you have purchased.
Best for: Teams with server management experience who want full data control and the lowest possible running cost.
Redmineflux manages the server, handles Redmine upgrades, runs backups, and provides support. Your team gets a fully configured Redmine environment with the plugin suite pre-installed. You own the data and the configuration. Redmineflux handles the infrastructure layer.
The cost is a flat managed hosting fee not per user. It does not change as your team grows.
Best for: Teams that want self-hosted data ownership without the administration overhead of running their own server.
Several hosting providers offer managed Redmine environments. The quality and pricing vary significantly. These are not Redmineflux products confirm plugin compatibility before purchasing.
Consider a 25-person development team that needs sprint boards, Gantt planning, time tracking, and QA management.
On a typical SaaS project management tool at the feature tier required for all four capabilities, that team spends a meaningful amount monthly and the bill increases every time a new developer joins.
With Redmine and the Redmineflux All Plugins Pack:
At 25 people the cost difference is noticeable. At 50 people it is significant. Over three years with a growing team, the total cost of ownership for Redmine is typically a fraction of what the equivalent SaaS subscription costs.
Want to see the full Redmineflux stack running before you make any decisions? Book a Free Demo 30 minutes in a live environment answers most pricing questions more clearly than any guide can.
Four factors determine what Redmine genuinely costs your team:
1. How many plugins you need A team that only needs the Agile Board Plugin pays far less than a team that needs the full suite. Start with the plugins that close your most pressing workflow gaps.
2. Whether you self-host or use managed hosting Self-hosting has lower ongoing costs but requires internal administration time. Managed hosting trades a higher monthly fee for zero administration overhead. For most teams, the administration time is the larger real cost.
3. Team size — but only for server costs Plugin licences do not change with headcount. Server costs do scale slightly as usage grows, but the relationship is not linear. A server handling 30 users handles 60 users with a modest upgrade not a doubled bill.
4. How long you plan to stay on Redmine If your team commits to Redmine for three or more years, the per-installation plugin model becomes significantly more cost-effective than SaaS subscriptions. The savings compound with team growth and time.
Yes. Redmine is free and open-source software released under the GNU General Public License. You can install, use, and modify it at no cost. You need a server to run it either your own or a managed hosting service. The software itself has no licence fee.
Redmineflux plugins are licensed per installation, not per user. You pay once for the plugin and it runs for all users on that Redmine instance. Individual plugin prices and bundle options are listed on the Redmineflux pricing page. The All Plugins Pack covers the full suite at a lower combined cost than individual purchases.
No. Redmine itself has no per-user fee. Redmineflux plugin licences are also per installation, not per user. A team of 10 and a team of 100 pay the same plugin licence fee. This is one of the primary reasons growing development teams choose Redmine over per-seat SaaS tools.
Install Redmine on a VPS (typically low monthly cost), add only the plugins your team needs from Redmineflux, and manage the server yourself if you have the capacity. As the team grows, the plugin costs stay flat and server costs scale modestly with usage. This approach delivers the lowest total cost of ownership over a three-to-five year horizon.
Redmineflux Managed Cloud includes a fully configured Redmine environment with the Redmineflux plugin suite pre-installed, ongoing server management, automated backups, Redmine upgrades, and technical support. It is a flat monthly fee — not per user. You own the data and configuration. Redmineflux manages everything at the infrastructure layer.
Redmineflux tests and supports all plugins on Redmine 5.0.x, 5.1.x, and 6.0.x. Teams running Redmine 4.x should contact support before purchasing to confirm compatibility.
Redmine pricing works differently from almost every other project management tool in the market. The software is free. The plugins are flat-rate per installation. Hosting is a separate cost that scales with infrastructure, not headcount. For teams that plan to grow, that model produces a total cost of ownership significantly lower than per-seat alternatives and the gap widens every time a new team member joins.
