Focalboard
Rocket.Chat
| Feature | Focalboard | Rocket.Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free only | Free / from $4/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4 / 5 | 4.1 / 5 |
| Best For | self-hosters, mattermost-users, small-teams, open-source-advocates | security-conscious-organizations, government, self-hosters, enterprises |
| Founded | 2021 | 2015 |
| Kanban Boards | ✓ | ✗ |
| Table View | ✓ | ✗ |
| Calendar View | ✓ | ✗ |
| Templates | ✓ | ✗ |
| Filters | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self Hosting | ✓ | ✗ |
| Channels | ✗ | ✓ |
| Direct Messaging | ✗ | ✓ |
| Video Calls | ✗ | ✓ |
| Federation | ✗ | ✓ |
| E2e Encryption | ✗ | ✓ |
| Marketplace | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Focalboard Pros
- Completely free and open-source
- Self-hostable for data control
- Multiple view types (board, table, gallery)
- Integrates with Mattermost
✗ Focalboard Cons
- Limited to basic project tracking
- No built-in time tracking
- Smaller community than alternatives
✓ Rocket.Chat Pros
- Fully open-source and self-hostable
- End-to-end encryption
- Federation support between instances
- Highly customizable
✗ Rocket.Chat Cons
- Self-hosted requires maintenance
- Mobile apps less polished than Slack
- Smaller app ecosystem
The Verdict
Focalboard is built for self hosters and mattermost users, with a focus on kanban-boards and table-view. Rocket.Chat targets security conscious organizations and government and leads with channels and direct-messaging.
Focalboard uses custom enterprise pricing, while Rocket.Chat starts at $4/mo — a tangible advantage for teams with a fixed budget.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Both tools are a solid fit for self hosters — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.