Looking for the OpenKJ options guide? $5 songbook if you stay — 60-day Full version trial if you switch.
I’m not the original OpenKJ developer. I used OpenKJ for years before building Auto-KJ, and this guide is here to help you decide which setup fits your shows.
If free-forever FOSS is what you want, OpenKJ remains a great choice. I still maintain a community OpenKJ fork with modern OS installers, and Auto-KJ will host your OpenKJ songbook requests for $5/month if you want to stay. Auto-KJ is the upgrade path — not a replacement that pretends OpenKJ disappeared.
Stay on OpenKJ if that's the fit
You have two options if you want to keep OpenKJ:
- Keep OpenKJ, we'll host the songbook. Point OpenKJ's request server at Auto-KJ, paste your API key, and singers search your songbook from a phone. $5/month standalone, or included with the Full version (~$10/mo) and Auto-KJ Lifetime. Pay once. Run up to four shows. Auto-KJ Lifetime is $500, one time. Everything in the full version, with up to 4 shows running at the same time. No monthly bill. Song titles and artists only — your music files never leave your rig.
- Updated OpenKJ builds. Need a prebuilt installer for modern Windows, macOS (Apple Silicon & Intel), or Linux? The community fork releases include modern OS fixes and out-of-the-box Auto-KJ songbook compatibility.
Consider switching if you want Auto-KJ’s rotation rules, built-in singer web app, and cloud-to-LAN request fallback.
What carries over
Your library, untouched. Auto-KJ plays the same MP3+G/ZIP files OpenKJ does. Point it at your existing library folders — the ZIP watcher picks up new tracks automatically, the same way OpenKJ's database update does. Your naming scheme (artist - title - disc ID) parses the same way.
Your workflow. Dual-screen lyrics display, break music between singers, key changer, singer history — the OpenKJ muscle memory transfers. The queue panel will feel familiar within one show.
Your budget, if you want. Auto-KJ's Free version is genuinely free — desk-entered only, no singer phones, dual-screen display, plus a library volume normalizer. If you ran OpenKJ because free mattered, you can run Auto-KJ the same way indefinitely.
What you gain
Phone requests without hosting a separate server. OpenKJ's request server is a separate PHP app you host and wire up yourself. Auto-KJ's singer app is built in: singers open a web app on their phone, find your show by GPS or a show code, browse your songbook, and request — the request lands in your rotation with fair placement applied. No server admin, no port forwarding.
Rotation rules built into the Fairness Engine. OpenKJ keeps the order; you make the judgment calls. The Fairness Engine makes them consistently: late arrivals placed fairly, duets consuming both turns, pause/resume without lost spots, song changes that keep the singer's slot. See the Fairness Engine guide for the rules.
Offline that falls back automatically. Cloud requests when the venue has internet; LAN mode over your own router when it doesn't — switching mid-show without dropping the rotation.
Direct support. You can contact the developer with questions, problems, and suggestions.
What changes when you switch
- It's not open source. If FOSS is the point for you, OpenKJ remains OpenKJ — and the community fork isn't going anywhere.
- Cloud features are paid. Free version = desk, no phones. Full version (~$10/mo, 60-day no-card trial) includes cloud singer phones with our full Social Engine, Break-Wave, full library management, LAN failover, kiosk, remote, and OpenKJ songbook hosting. Extra simultaneous live shows are +$5/mo. That extra show is a Full version add-on. Pay once. Run up to four shows. Auto-KJ Lifetime is $500, one time. Everything in the full version, with up to 4 shows running at the same time. No monthly bill.
- Five desktop builds. Auto-KJ has installers for Windows x64, Windows ARM64, Intel Mac, Apple Silicon Mac, and Linux x64. OpenKJ's multi-platform story still applies if you stay on the fork.
The 30-minute migration
- Download the Free version — no account needed
- Point the ZIP watcher at your OpenKJ library folders
- Let the normalizer scan (optional, but your levels will thank you)
- Run one low-stakes show in manual mode — everything works like OpenKJ
- When you're ready for phone requests, start the 60-day trial and hand singers the show code
If you get stuck during the move, get in touch and describe where you need a hand. You can find downloads and support details in pricing and downloads.
Upgrade when you're ready
Stay on OpenKJ with $5 songbook hosting, or try Auto-KJ Free version tonight. The Fairness Engine simulator shows the product before you install anything.