What is Loomio used for?

Loomio is open-source software that helps groups discuss proposals, gather input, vote and record clear decisions without endless meetings. It is a good fit for cooperatives and nonprofits making board decisions, unions and membership groups voting on proposals, and distributed teams reaching agreement without meetings.

Is Loomio open source?

Yes. Loomio is open source under the AGPL-3.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at loomio/loomio and is written mainly in Ruby.

Yes. Loomio is open source, so the software itself is free to use. A managed cloud version is also available, with paid plans from $39 per month.

Can I self-host Loomio?

Yes. Loomio can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.

What is Loomio an alternative to?

Loomio is an open-source alternative to Groups.io and Google Groups. Other open-source alternatives to Groups.io include Discourse.

Is Loomio actively maintained?

Yes. The most recent commit to Loomio was on 2 October 2026, and the latest release is v3.9.0, published on 23 September 2026. The project has 2.6k stars on GitHub.

Loomio: open-source alternative to Groups.io, Google Groups

About Loomio

Loomio is open-source software for making decisions together. It gives a group a dedicated place to share context, discuss proposals, gather input, vote and record the outcome, so participants in different time zones can take part without scheduling more meetings. Each discussion, reason and outcome stays in one searchable record of what was decided and why.

The project says it is used by cooperatives, nonprofits, boards, unions, community groups, membership organizations and distributed teams. It aims to help groups move important decisions out of scattered email and chat threads, involve the right people, work through differences and agree on what happens next. Transparency and inclusiveness are the stated goals.

You can start a free trial of the hosted service at Loomio.com, or set up your own Loomio server from the source. A development environment guide is provided for contributors. The application is written in Ruby, licensed under AGPL-3.0, and bug reports are handled through GitHub issues, with email available for other contact.

Key features

Discussion threads attached to proposals
Voting and input gathering
Recorded outcomes with reasons
Searchable decision history
Asynchronous participation across time zones

Good fit for

→Cooperatives and nonprofits making board decisions
→Unions and membership groups voting on proposals
→Distributed teams reaching agreement without meetings

Built with: Ruby
Tags: decision-making; collaboration; voting; governance; ruby; self-hosted; nonprofit; proposals

Loomio: questions and answers

What is Loomio used for?: Loomio is open-source software that helps groups discuss proposals, gather input, vote and record clear decisions without endless meetings. It is a good fit for cooperatives and nonprofits making board decisions, unions and membership groups voting on proposals, and distributed teams reaching agreement without meetings.
Is Loomio open source?: Yes. Loomio is open source under the AGPL-3.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at loomio/loomio and is written mainly in Ruby.
Is Loomio free?: Yes. Loomio is open source, so the software itself is free to use. A managed cloud version is also available, with paid plans from $39 per month.
Can I self-host Loomio?: Yes. Loomio can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.
What is Loomio an alternative to?: Loomio is an open-source alternative to Groups.io and Google Groups. Other open-source alternatives to Groups.io include Discourse.
Is Loomio actively maintained?: Yes. The most recent commit to Loomio was on 2 October 2026, and the latest release is v3.9.0, published on 23 September 2026. The project has 2.6k stars on GitHub.