Less expensive alternative for Jira on-premises

Table of contents

The two options for Jira users
1. Continue with Atlassian
2. Implementation of a Jira alternative
Why most vendors abandon on-premises software (but we don't)
Alternative to Jira on-prem
One single vendor for the complete stack
From Jira to Easy Redmine: Smooth migration
Jira pricing vs. Easy Redmine pricing
The freedom of open source software
Try cost-saving alternative to Jira

TL;DR

Jira Server is gone, and moving to Atlassian’s Cloud or Data Center is costly—especially for smaller teams. Easy Redmine offers a practical, on-premises alternative with transparent pricing, full-featured tools, and long-term cost savings.

As the markets are slowly turning cold, various companies are looking for ways to reduce their costs. Getting rid of unwanted pricing models is a good starting point!

The two options for Jira users

1. Continue with Atlassian

Atlassian presented its Cloud and Data Center offerings as the logical next step in clients’ operational continuity. However, for many organisations, this transition is far from straightforward due to internal policies, data protection obligations such as GDPR, and strict security requirements they are unwilling or unable to compromise on

On top of it all, the cost of Jira ownership increased and companies with under 500 users are left with no good options because of the steep Data Center price.

Simply put, Atlassian’s decision has effectively removed the option for small and medium-sized businesses to run a fully supported, up-to-date version of Jira on their own servers. For most, maintaining a self-hosted setup is no longer viable.

2. Implementation of a Jira alternative

Implementation is often perceived as a high-risk, complex transition—particularly for high-impact teams. 

Yet, it represents a strategic opportunity—to modernise operations, to optimize your costs, consolidate fragmented toolsets, and improve cross-team collaboration through more adaptable technology.

With Easy Redmine, implementation becomes a cost-efficient decision. There are no inflated tier packages—just transparent pricing based on actual users and needs. Each team member can access the right solution, including flexible, perpetual-use options on demand.

You can also watch the recorded webinar on how to migrate data from Jira to Easy Redmine to get more information.

Why most vendors abandon on-premises software (but we don't)

In recent years, the B2B software market has heavily shifted towards SaaS, leading many providers to abandon on-premises solutions altogether. 

Easy Redmine remains committed to serving those who still need—or prefer—full control over their data infrastructure, with no forced migration to the cloud.

Why do providers cancel servers? All in all, developing and especially delivering cloud software is incomparably easier and cheaper compared to providing on-premises software. 

With on-premises, all operations are more difficult: delivery, installations, configurations, business settings, support, bug resolving, license policy enforcement, and much more.

Alternative to Jira on-prem

For organisations currently tied to Jira, implementation and data migration should not be seen as a burden. With Easy Redmine, it's a strategic opportunity to enhance operational control, reduce costs, and increase long-term flexibility—without compromising on security. 

Easy Redmine software offers a reliable, low-risk Jira alternative designed for companies that require on-premises data hosting but may not operate at the scale or budget of enterprise-level firms.

As a proud member of the Redmine community, Easy Redmine 100% support the freedom and benefits of locally installed open-source software. At the same time, we’ve built a rock-solid network of worldwide data centers and cloud distribution technologies.

Easy Software has been developing Easy Redmine for over 15 years. We’ve managed to evolve from a community Redmine application to a fully professional project management software that can compete with any application on the market and our experience allows us to offer both cloud and on-premises services.

“With 15 years of experience and a full understanding of the challenges related to its own server application delivery, Easy Software commits to providing Easy Redmine as a locally installable application. On-premise delivery is a key aspect of Easy Software's business strategy with the same importance as the SaaS business. We are convinced about the future of on-premise and open source and we believe that organizations have the right to choose.”

- Filip Morávek, founder and CEO at Easy Software

One single vendor for the complete stack

Many Atlassian customers need to replace not only Jira but also Confluence, Service Management, or BitBucket. This can make their search for alternatives overwhelming. 

Luckily we are here to help, as we offer complete stack replacement and guidance through the whole process. What are our alternatives?

• Jira: replaced by Easy Redmine Essentials edition and potential to upgrade to Business edition.
• Confluence: replaced by Knowledge Base 2.0, a new product of Easy Redmine portfolio developed with consideration of Atlassian users' needs to manage documentation
• Service Desk: replaced by traditional Easy Redmine’s Help Desk
• BitBucket: replaced by GitLab and Easy Redmine’s integration to GitLab

WBS in Easy Redmine

From Jira to Easy Redmine: Smooth migration

We never take the transition lightly. That’s why Easy Redmine provides a complete set of tools and support to ensure your transition from Jira is safe, successful, and straightforward.

1. Thorough transition plan and strategy: A shift from one complex software to another requires more than just data migration. We provide planned steps, user training, Easy Redmine pre-configuration, verification of import results, technical tools, and exact steps in onboarding to ensure a smooth process of transition.

2. Advanced Jira importing tool: We significantly adjusted our importing tool so it allows impressing specific user data into a new system while respecting the differences between the 2 applications.

3. Easy Redmine improvements: Easy Redmine is a powerful tool that was designed to provide high adaptability with the best plugins, features, and a new mobile design. It provides more effective project management, clearer communication, a better user experience, and saves you precious time. It is extensible with plug-ins for Resources, Agile, Finances, CRM, HelpDesk, and DevOps.

4. Advanced Confluence importer: Knowledge Base 2.0 is based on verified MediaWiki technology and its distribution BlueSpice. Joining forces with the established vendor of open source, Knowledge Base allows us to bring a complete product with an even higher level of integration to the project tool. It also allows Easy Redmine to bring prepared tools and services which secure the transition of clients' documentation.

5. Service Desk transition plan: Easy Redmine is known for its tight connection between service organization, tickets, and R&D teams with epics, bug backlog, and others.

6. BitBucket transition plan: To secure the continuity of your operations we tested the importer of GitLab and ensured that linking and features between BitBucket and Jira are fully transferred to the Easy Redmine – GitLab stack.

Jira pricing vs. Easy Redmine pricing

We make sure our clients always know how much and for what they are paying. What can they expect from us?

• An on-premises software that is sold traditionally: Permanent licenses and maintenance. The application is yours within the licenses forever plus long-term ownership decreases the total costs. Our maintenance provides new versions and updates but they are never mandatory.
• TCO (total cost of ownership) calculations: Long-term application on your server is cheaper than cloud. To show our clients how their investment is returned back over time we prepare detailed calculations.
• No tiers: Easy Redmine, in both server and cloud, is charged per user with 5-user increments.
• A full-featured software:  Compared to Jira, Easy Redmine has many more native features. Thanks to that, our users have no need to search for 3rd party extensions with difficult maintenance and additional costs.
• Only 4 simple plans: Essential, Business, Platform, and Enterprise, the plans are designed to fit all your business needs. And the plans are calculated per user.
• Certified value added resellers: Also Easy Software works with certified Value Added Resellers which may contribute to your project. If you value deeply long-term cooperation with your VAR of Atlassian, we have opened doors to onboard new partners.

The freedom of open source software

Software vendors often use specific tools to make sure that transferring is very inconvenient for a client. Well, that's not how we want to be. Easy Software has been an open source company since the beginning and the principles of free software are deep in our DNA. And we aren’t talking just about the code. 

How do we give complete freedom to our customers?

• Easy Redmine is the same in the cloud and on-premises and so the transition from cloud to on-premise and vice versa is technically simple.
• Open source approach, so our customers owe the code and can modify it to their needs.
• Easy Software itself, Easy Software partners, and the Redmine community are there to help clients turn standardized software into specific solutions which go far beyond a well-integrated product.
• Cloud or server freedom. There are no technical or commercial obstacles, you can change your mind and continue using your own server or switch to Easy Redmine World Cloud.
• Our updates aren't mandatory.

Try cost-saving alternative to Jira

Easy Redmine differentiates itself from Jira primarily by offering fully‑open-source, hybrid-friendly, on‑premises deployment starting at just 25 users—while Jira’s self‑hosted option (Data Center) requires a 500‑user minimum subscription and lacks true perpetual licensing options.

Easy Redmine gives you robust, integrated Waterfall capabilities—Gantt, WBS, hybrid flexibility, plus resource and budget management—straight out of the box, whereas Jira requires extra tools and setup to reach the same functionality.

It also integrates advanced features like built‑in resource and finance management, CRM, HelpDesk, a Knowledge Base, and AI assistants out of the box—tools that Jira would require separate add-ons or Atlassian Cloud services (Confluence, Bitbucket) to replicate. Finally, Easy Redmine delivers comparable capabilities at a lower total cost of ownership—typically 20–30% cheaper per user, scaling up to 30–50% savings for larger deployments.

Also, we have prepared an even more detailed comparison of Jira vs. Easy Redmine to dig deeper into your research.

Ditch unwanted pricing models and discover how Easy Redmine project management software can help you save and stay secure. Try Easy Redmine now and optimize your project management costs!