Selection and evidence
We consider functional fit, licence, self-hosting, portability, integrations and operating responsibility.Read more
Product profiles link to official project sources and identify the reviewed edition. Initial profiles are desk reviews, not benchmark or deployment certifications.
Software Freedom Score
Assess 15 criteria on a 0–2 scale: 0 means a material restriction, 1 means partial or conditional support, and 2 means a documented portable option.Read more
All criteria have equal weight. Score = sum of points ÷ 30 × 100, rounded to the nearest whole number. Unknown evidence stays unscored; a numeric product score is published only when all 15 criteria have evidence.
- Source availability and licence rights.
- Self-hosting, data export and direct database access.
- API access and standards-based authentication.
- Plugin dependency and recurring licence dependency.
- Hosting flexibility and alternative maintenance providers.
- Migration complexity, community health, security update activity and documentation.
How to apply the 0–2 scale
For source, self-hosting, data, APIs and authentication, 2 requires a documented complete route for the reviewed use case; 1 is partial, edition-dependent or needs a separate component; 0 means unavailable or materially restricted. For dependencies and migration, 2 means low dependency with a tested exit, 1 means manageable conversion or add-ons, and 0 means a substantial blocker. For providers, community, security and documentation, 2 requires current evidence of multiple viable maintainers or a consistent documented process; 1 means limited evidence; 0 means absent or end-of-life.
Exit difficulty
Low means standard exports and few dependencies. Medium means data transformation or several integrations.Read more
High means critical custom logic, complex permissions, regulated records or a tightly coupled architecture. These are editorial planning categories, not delivery estimates.
The free lock-in check
The calculator uses ten user-reported factors scored 0, 1 or 2 for portable, partial and restricted.Read more
Unknown answers are conservatively treated as 2 and explicitly reported. Risk score = points ÷ 20 × 100. Below 30 is low, 30–59 medium, and 60 or more high. This is a different measure from Software Freedom Score.
TCO and complexity tools
The TCO tool compares user-entered one-time and recurring costs over the same number of years, without assuming savings.Read more
The complexity tool adds points for ten migration dimensions and reports low below 7, medium from 7 to 13, and high from 14. These are screening tools, not quotations.
Corrections and conflicts
Email the page URL and evidence to [email protected]. We disclose relevant commercial relationships, document limitations and leave unsupported claims unscored.