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KANBAN GUIDES

Free to read. Open to explore.

Two guides.
A clearer understanding of Kanban.

Read The Kanban Guide and the Open Guide to Kanban. Explore the practices, understand their differences, and find the edition in your language.

Which guide should I read?

Start with the essentials

Choose The Kanban Guide for a minimal shared reference.

Explore the wider context

Choose the Open Guide to Kanban for expanded guidance.

Compare the guides

The Kanban Guide

Purpose
Minimal, official reference
Ethos
Focused, stable, canonical
Audience
Kanban system members wanting a clear baseline
Use Case
What is Kanban at its core?
Content
Clear, lightweight, and essential
Update Model
Periodic, curated
Read guide →

Open Guide to Kanban

Purpose
Community-expanded handbook
Ethos
Inclusive, evolving, collaborative
Audience
Teams blending Kanban with other approaches
Use Case
How do we apply Kanban in our context?
Content
Rich with examples and extensions
Update Model
Community-driven, iterative
Read guide →

The Open Guide to Kanban is an adaptation of the May 2025 Kanban Guide. Each publication has its own edition history.

About Kanban Guides

Kanban Guides is the home of The Kanban Guide and the Open Guide to Kanban, with online editions, translations, and supplied PDFs.

The Kanban Guide provides a minimal reference. The Open Guide to Kanban is an expanded adaptation for knowledge work. Their authorship and edition histories remain distinct.

The Open Guide to Kanban is an open source project that thrives on community collaboration. Whether you want to suggest improvements, report issues, or contribute content, we welcome your participation. The Kanban Guide is not open to contributions here, but is included here for reference. Together, we can make these resources even more valuable for the Kanban community worldwide and anyone wishing to improve the flow of value (potential and actual realized value).

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Contributors

The contributors listed below are a collection of all contributors across all guides and versions.

The Kanban Guide

Open Guide to Kanban

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