Craving to learn how to shape your organization and workflows effectively by keeping record of every task and staff at your fingertips? Is your business spread in a number of countries and places?
Are you and your team members looking for a single system software or Enterprise Resource Planning software (ERP) to manage everything with convenience and productivity?
If yes, then you are on the right page as we’ll be discussing what an ERP software is, the types, the best ERP software in the market and how such a software can help our organization to grow more.
But before proceeding further, let us quickly and briefly understand what ERP software is.
Best ERP Software Shortlist
Here’s my pick of the 5 best software from the 10 tools reviewed.
- Oracle NetSuite — Best for what-if resource scenario modeling
- SYSPRO — Best ERP software for Microsoft platform users
- Odoo — Best ERP software for SMBs
- Acumatica — Best ERP software for advanced analytics using AI and machine learning
- ERPNext — Best free ERP software
What is ERP Software?
Enterprise Resource Planning or ERP software acts as one system that provides all the information and operations leading to transparency about what all is happening around in an organization or its franchise.
The ERP software helps you to manage and shape the company’s functions, workflows and overall performance as for a company which is spread in more than one place, it becomes difficult for managers to operate/manage everything manually.
What are the types of ERP?
There are primarily three types of ERP with their own features and advantages or disadvantages. All the three types of ERP are discussed below in brief:
- On-site/On-premise ERP:
This type of ERP takes place within the organization and is mostly controlled by a dedicated and talented group of people to manage all the application and technical maintenance.
- Cloud-based ERP (highly popular):
This type of ERP is handled by some third party like machine learning or Artificial intelligence that manages everything in the cloud through automation and doesn’t require a group of people.
- Hybrid ERP:
Hybrid ERP has the traits of both On-premise ERP and Cloud-based ERP. Some of the data and applications are on-premise and some of them are on the cloud.
List of The Best 10 erp software in 2024
As we have discussed what ERP software is and its three major types, let us go through the best 10 ERP software, their significant features, plans, pricing, pros and cons.
Oracle NetSuite
Pros
- Easy management.
- Simple automation.
- Revenue management.
Cons
- Difficult to search from the search bar.
- Less tips and manuals available.
With 37,000+ active customers, 200+ countries and supporting 25+ languages, Oracle NetSuite is an all-in-one cloud business management solution that makes decisions better, operations simplified and helps you run your global company with ease. It helps you automate financial processes, flawlessly manage orders and more.
Features:
Here are some of the other essential specifications that Oracle NetSuite offers, such as:
- Quick Financial Management:
Oracle NetSuite helps in regular financial transactions, ensures transaction completion and gives a real-time view of your company’s financial processes.
- Enterprise Performance Management:
Oracle NetSuite Enterprise Performance Management includes budgeting, planning, forecasting, reporting processes and more smoothly and effectively for the entire organization.
- Easy Supply Chain Management:
The production and distribution of materials in an organization is always a crucial part of every organization. NetSuite makes this process easier and faster through an extended supply chain.
Plans and Price
NetSuite allows you to pay a one-time implementation fee for initial setup and as your company grows, you can simply activate new modules. For the pricing, you need a license from the sales.
SYSPRO
Pros
- ERP solutions for industry.
- Easy to use.
- Effective inventory system.
Cons
- No free trial available.
- Costly
SYSPRO ERP is particularly designed for the distributors and manufacturers in order to manage the workflow of the business more efficiently with advanced emerging technologies, personal demonstration for customized ERP according to your business needs, 100% flexibility, scalability and excellent customer support.
Features:
There are a number of benefits and features of using SYSPRO ERP like automation, high security and many more. Some of the important ones are mentioned below:
- Faster Document Services:
SYSPRO ERP makes the processes of supplier invoices extremely fast with fewer errors which leads to reduced manual work through automation and digitization.
- The Product Catalog:
This feature by SYSPRO ERP enables businesses or companies to make listings or catalogs of all their products together with promotion and pricing.
- Warehouse Management System Marshaling:
This means that it enables packing, staging and combining multiple sales orders into a single shipment. Then, printing outer labels on the basis of packaging.
Plans and Price
As Syspro has a customized system of pricing, go to ‘Contact Syspro’ from the main website, after which you can fill-in your details and talk to them about your business requirements.
Odoo
Pros
- Open-source development model.
- Provides vast selection.
- Integration with business functions.
Cons
- Free plan allows only one app.
With 40+ community apps, Odoo is one of the world’s largest business apps stores as it can give you apps for each and every business need of yours. Want to design custom screens, custom reports or web hooks? Enjoy customizing all this with the help of the Odoo Studio. Everything at a really fair price.
Features:
- Supply Chain and Inventory:
Odoo’s supply chain, advanced features like cross-docking, dropshipping and smart double-entry inventory system is all about making warehouse management more efficient.
- Time-saving Technology:
Odoo uses time-saving technologies such as AI-powered invoice digitization and management of expenses and revenues through automation helps in saving time and working more efficiently.
- Sales Management:
The sales management feature by Odoo allows simple creation, electronic signature, polished quotations, online options for payment and more for faster services.
Plans and Price
Below is the simple comparison in the pricing and features between Microsoft Dynamics NAV and Odoo to have a clear understanding of Odoo and its features.
Acumatica
Pros
- Single log-in.
- Simple navigation and user-friendly.
- Customizable reporting.
Cons
- Creating reports is time-consuming.
- Security setup is not easy.
Looking for a single ERP software for all requirements of your mid-market companies and customers? Acumatica Cloud ERP is the right one for you as it has a number of benefits and features for mid market companies such as integration with tools already in use, award-winning UI, empowering collaboration and more.
Features:
- Continuity and Efficiency:
Document management anytime, anywhere and from any device with flexible teams maintains the operations in continuity and efficiency.
- Effortless financial management:
To manage costs, profits, payroll, cash, taxes percentage completed with various languages and currencies helps in effortless financial management.
- Organize your business:
Manage budgets, projects and track all issues, changes, activities, project documents, job costs and more from a single platform.
Plans and Price
Go to the main website and ‘Schedule a demo’ which is free. They will give you a short demonstration about how they actually help your business grow more.
ERPNext
Pros
- Simple interface.
- Customizable.
- Flexible.
Cons
- Difficult implementation.
- Issues in upgrading.
ERPNext is world’s #1 and 100% open source ERP with 15+ modules covering a wide range of activities and operations from accounting, manufacturing to e-commerce. It has 40+ ways to customize business objects from ERPNext’s user-interface. Lower the cost of your small or large business ownership with better security, latest innovations and more.
Features:
- HR and Payroll:
This feature is created for all companies, teams and employees with a clean UI, easy communication, zero complexities to handle heavy workflow.
- Project Management:
All-in-one platform for scheduling, managing, planning and organizing projects with ease. It also allows you to share and upload multimedia files and to sync email accounts to ERPNext.
- Asset Management:
It allows you to have all the asset related information at a single place such as status, location, insurance, warranty, schedule, transfer, movements and more.
Plans and Price:
ERPNext offers two plans: Small Business at $49.26/month and Enterprise which is custom and best for the organizations with complex processes. For details, you need to contact the sales and discuss the pricing.
Microsoft Dynamics 365
Pros
- User-friendly.
- Effective tools available.
- Easy to personalize.
Cons
- Not so good customer support.
- Costly.
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a unique and new type of business application for your new business opportunities and consists of multiple applications working together to give all-in-one solutions such as managing sales, earning customers with customer service, business central, automated project-based businesses and more.
Features:
In order to learn more about multiple applications and features offered by Microsoft Dynamics 365, we have some of the important ones mentioned below in detail.
- Dynamics 365 Field services:
With optimized scheduling, contract management, customer communications, mobile apps, connected field service and more to stay connected, detect issues when needed.
- Dynamics 365 Commerce:
With this application, you can drive unified commerce, create a modern store experience according to changing needs of customers, and innovate with an adaptable platform to connect other apps.
- Dynamics 365 Business Central:
It includes facilities such as financial management, audit trails (to track changes), CRM integration, intercompany transactions and more.
Plans and Price
The plans and pricing of Microsoft Dynamics 365 is divided into various categories like Business Central Essentials, Business Central Premium, Customer Service Professional and Sales Professional with different pricing. You need to choose according to your business needs.
Oracle ERP Cloud
Pros
- Auto accounting.
- Easy to process and upload data.
- Auto pricing.
Cons
- Sometimes slow.
- Difficult navigation.
Oracle ERP Cloud is a modern and complete cloud ERP with advanced capabilities for your business and your team like AI and automation eliminate the manual processes that may slow down your workflow. Predict, detect, act on new situations and launch business models faster. ERP products include financial management, project management and more.
Features:
To learn more about the various products that Oracle ERP Cloud offers, we have some of them mentioned below in detail.
- Risk management and compliance:
Automate monitoring with AI, control of user access that helps in continuously protecting your data and processes from exposure to harmful activities.
- Enterprise Performance Management:
This product includes features like dashboards, reports, smart view for office, task management, personalized flows for users, flexible configurations and more.
- Oracle Procurement:
It automates business processes, improves supplier relationship management, enables strategic sourcing and simplifies buying with greater profit and improved savings.
Plans and Price
To start your cloud trial, you need to contact sales through live chat, call or sending a message directly to sales. They will let you know all the details related to your business and their plans.
Epicor
Pros
- Highly customizable.
- Super Fast.
- Easy supply chain management.
Cons
- Complicated for new users.
- Not so flexible.
Are you a manufacturer looking for ERP software created particularly by manufacturing experts? Epicor is created with deep knowledge of all the industries that it serves. It helps you manufacture, retail, distribute, supply, automate and analyze the performance and on the growth opportunities.
Features:
Below are the major features and specifications that Epicor offers in order to have a better understanding of it.
- Epicor BisTrack:
Offers features like centralized delivery dispatch system; inventory and warehouse, value-added services like installed sales, millwork; customer management to contact sales easily.
- Epicor Decor Fusion:
POS software created for decorating retailers and independent paint with capabilities like sales order processing, paint tinting formula tracking, purchase order processing, flexible and more.
- Epicor Kinetic:
A global cloud ERP solution created for discrete, make-to-order manufacturing, to help them increase profit with real-time business intelligence and built-in collaboration tools.
Plans and Price
In order to learn about the pricing, you need to contact sales and click on ‘I’d like to request pricing information’ after which a live chat pops up before you and you can simply discuss your business requirements there.
SAP ERP
Pros
- Common tools for daily business needs.
- Real-time data.
- Streamlined-system.
Cons
- No pricing transparency.
- Costly.
Adopting your first ERP or trying to migrate from an existing one to the cloud? SAP ERP is the right ERP software for you as it gives you a complete ready-to-run solution together with analytics capabilities and artificial intelligence. It allows you to create innovative business models and benefit from them.
Features:
SAP ERP brings everything that your unlimited business needs and has a number of features. Some of them are discussed below in detail.
- Purchasing and Inventory Control:
Allows you to control costs and optimize purchasing activities with procurement processes, master data management, warehouse and accounting integration.
- Business Intelligence:
Allows you to create accurate reports with features like report creation and customization, interactive analysis, intuitive tools, analytics and predefined metrics.
- Reporting and Analytics:
Help your employees to make smart and fast decisions with the features like interactive dashboards and reports and real-time analytics to access information faster.
Plans and Price
The plans by SAP ERP are divided into four with different pricing and features. You can easily choose the plan based on your business requirements.
Sage group
Pros
- Good customer support.
- Simple dashboards.
- Client management.
Cons
- Difficult editing.
- API not user-friendly.
With 11,000+ employees, they have served millions of businesses in 20+ countries for small-sized and medium-sized businesses. You can grow your business with AI-powered accounting and ERP with a number of other useful products like Sage Intacct, Sage HR, Sage X3 and more.
Features:
Below are the various features offered by Sage X3 which is not just an ERP but a scalable solution for unlimited business growth:
- Quick Production Management:
Manage all the manufacturing processes with the features like BOM planning, Quality control, Shop floor control, Project management and more.
- Real-time inventory monitoring:
The real-time inventory monitoring allows you to grow and stay ahead of time and demand with effective features such as sales management, customer service, purchasing and more.
- Real-time global visibility:
Control your business with real-time global visibility and local compliance with features like budgets and accounting, financial reporting, fixed assets, multi-currency and more.
Plans and Price
Sage group offers different plans for small business such as Sage 50 from $58.92/month, Sage HR from $17/month and Sage Timeslips from $47/month. Similarly, it also offers plans for medium-sized companies and accountants or bookkeepers.
What are the Benefits of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems?
Now that we know what the best ERP software companies are, let us quickly understand the primary benefits of Enterprise Resource Planning Systems briefly.
- Increases productivity and reduces manual work since the employees and managers have more visibility, it saves time and labor.
- Saves money because when an owner buys an ERP software, she/he is also saving the overall cost as the automation may reduce the other manual operational costs.
- Enables organized workflows as an ERP implementation may help in systematic functioning and also open the door for business improvements.
- Helps in real-time reporting of finance, orders, inventory, marketing, sales, procurement, HR and many more to give you the latest view of your business.
- Offers flexibility in the entire system so that your business can meet the required expectations with fully customized features.
What factors are considered when choosing erp software?
Choosing an ERP software may be difficult for you but we have decided to help you by highlighting the various factors that you can keep in mind while selecting ERP software for your organization.
- Customization:
Pick the ERP software that offers customization because customizing and modifying the products and tools on the basis of the business requirements.
- Functionality:
Choose the ERP that offers you each and every facility such as sales and marketing, finance management, manufacturing, warehouse management, supply chain management and more.
- Scalability:
Go with the ERP software that ensures you the expected future growth for your business and adaptability for the requirements and changing standards.
- Latest technology:
Pick the ERP software that comes with the latest technologies and tools such as business intelligence, data security, integration, simple user-interface and more to run smoothly.
FAQ’s
Conclusion
We can have a number of benefits of using an ERP software such as increased productivity, speed and visibility with zero manual work that may delay the workflow.
For this, we have so many ERP software for different types and sizes of business such as SYSPRO, EPRNext, Oracle ERP Cloud and many more that helps our business grow more efficiently and smoothly.