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IFS Cloud Platform vs Microsoft Dynamics AX comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

IFS Cloud Platform
Ranking in ERP
11th
Ranking in Activity Based Costing Software
7th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
31
Ranking in other categories
CRM (15th), Customer Experience Management (7th), Field Service Management (2nd), Help Desk Software (9th), Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) (2nd), Local Government CRM (4th), IT Asset Management (8th), IT Service Management (ITSM) (6th), License Management (3rd)
Microsoft Dynamics AX
Ranking in ERP
5th
Ranking in Activity Based Costing Software
3rd
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the ERP category, the mindshare of IFS Cloud Platform is 2.4%, up from 2.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Dynamics AX is 6.4%, up from 6.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
ERP
 

Featured Reviews

Brendan Fisher - PeerSpot reviewer
Robust, customizable, and modern
IFS is a very large and complex software, and implementation of IFS can be challenging and may lead to a difficult lengthy project. It can take between 12 and 24 months in some cases to deploy. I have found that not all clients are fully aware of how big the task is that they're undertaking when they make a decision to move to software like this. Companies need to be more aware of the complexity of an ERP implementation project and while I fully recommend moving to IFS, it is not easy and does require business change when adopting an ERP solution. New features are a difficult ask - I work across multiple industries and everyone would probably choose a different feature. Maybe BIM in Construction or Customs link-ups for importers/exporters.
SherifAnter - PeerSpot reviewer
The sales and distribution modules are robust, and reliable, and seldom encounter issues
In GP, there are certain features like financial reporting that aren't part of the core GP package. Users might need to install additional components for these features. For example, there's a reseller product called Management Reporter, but many users would prefer to have the reporting capabilities integrated within GP itself, rather than relying on external tools. The manufacturing module in GP is quite basic, and those who require more advanced manufacturing capabilities often turn to third-party modules or tools. Additionally, you might be aware that in 2028, GP is expected to reach its end of life. Microsoft has already ceased selling GP to new customers. It's essentially the same product, but this marks the final year for GP's availability.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"We could quickly understand what was going on and what the customer wanted to do."
"The main reason for the ERP project was to bring together our fourteen sites, which had until then worked in separate silos."
"The solution overall is very versatile and flexible, especially compared to other products."
"There are fewer fields on the user screen compared to other products. This makes the UI a little bit easier to understand."
"The most valuable features of IFS Applications in the latest version are the new user Arena interface. It's from Apps 9, but it brings more flexibility in usage, especially around different devices, such as mobile usage, which doesn't restrict you from using a computer. We are it for the HR side, and it's proving quite good. It has a new modern feel to it similar to a standard cloud application which enhances the user experience."
"There are fewer fields on the user screen compared to other products."
"Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a nine or ten out of ten since it is an extremely scalable solution that can be used for various use cases with thousands of users."
"I like the connectivity and interfaces. In V10, it's easy to modify the interfaces and layouts, but it's becoming more complicated in the cloud. IFS is excellent at asset maintenance and incident management. They have specialized modules for IFS that cover incident and asset management and everything else connected to finance. The reporting in IFS is also easy to use."
"The relation between CRM and Sales, that's the main strength of this ERP."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Dynamics AX is material planning."
"The most valuable feature for us is the manufacturing module. It addresses our product costing for tuna canning."
"We're using the solution for financial modules, specifically focusing on consolidation, financial configuration, management reporting for warehousing, sales. Most of the features of Microsoft Dynamics AX are good. The overall structure and functions are great. The solution is stable. The initial setup is straightforward."
"Support is really good."
"The tool's most important capabilities are for retail and finance. Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 doesn't have many integration capabilities, but Microsoft 365 has the most capabilities to integrate with any type of standalone software and has many more features."
"There's a moderate amount of scalability available."
"The tool's most valuable feature is reporting."
 

Cons

"I'm a business analyst, so I do a lot of customer-facing work. I take calls from businesses I have to troubleshoot. One thing that bugs me is the error messages you get from IFS. If I get an error message, I have to dig to find the cause because, often, the error message doesn't precisely describe the problem. It'll hint about where the problem lies, but you have to work to find the root cause. It doesn't help in my situation. You expect an error message to point to the field or what is causing the issue."
"IFS Applications is not robust enough to handle high-volume transactions, so it's not suitable for larger enterprises."
"There were initial difficulties when I started using the application."
"Customization needs to be improved."
"An area for improvement would be transactions, which can be tedious to complete as the process is very complex."
"We have upgraded to the latest version right now. We have issues with the quality. We tried to enroll in their Evergreen program which was meant to help us adopt any service update or anything that the tool’s providers come up with."
"The support provided by IFS Applications has room for improvement. I'm based in Poland, and when my company had an issue, finding people from IFS to give my company the support it needed was difficult."
"The user interface can be improved. When you're clicking through the screens, there are some icons or symbols that really need updating and would be more useful and noticeable if they are aesthetically pleasing."
"The product needs better admin control. There is room for improvement in flexibility, reporting, and dashboards. Artificial intelligence should be incorporated. I have concerns regarding partners, specifically in the implementation and deployment of Microsoft Dynamics."
"This solution could be improved with more expert resources and an easier implementation process."
"The product needs improvement in procurement planning. It also needs to include a production scheduling feature."
"The older version of Microsoft Dynamics AX that we are using is not as scalable as the newer version."
"I would never recommend moving to an obsolete product that cannot get support."
"It is being decommissioned."
"The integration could improve for the future."
"The 2012 version is obsolete, and we don't have any support for it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There's an additional yearly cost for support."
"Licensing is on an annual basis, with no additional costs."
"Compared to SAP, the pricing for IFS Applications was very affordable. People using the solution would find that it's worth the money."
"The additional cost that comes with the solution includes the overhead of the people who are trying to fix the tool issues. These people are trying to reproduce the issue and report it to the technical support and testing with them which is huge. It is the cost of quality in the end."
"It is better to buy implementation services from IFS than from partners"
"There are varying license levels that you can purchase."
"We pay for a license to use the solution, which is not very expensive."
"IFS Applications is expensive software, but it's on par with SAP and Oracle. It's for large enterprises and government entities and not for small and medium-sized enterprises. They have one licensing model, but if you want to have a module-specific license, they provide component-based licenses. Unlike SAP and Oracle, it doesn't have different levels of licensing. It's one level of licensing."
"We pay for licensing yearly to use Microsoft Dynamics AX."
"The solution is on-premises and we do not pay for a license."
"The price of the solution could benefit from being less expensive."
"I purchased the license once, and there is a license with a partner that I pay for annually."
"Go for cloud implementation, if cost is critical."
"One client was looking at a $5M SAP proposal and we got AX in just under $2M, and they were very happy with it as they have several sister companies that face $500K SAP upgrades/maintenance seemingly annually."
"The yearly licenses are priced okay."
"The pricing is expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
20%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Construction Company
7%
Energy/Utilities Company
7%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Retailer
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IFS Applications?
Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a nine or ten out of ten since it is an extremely scalable solution that can be used for various use cases with thousands of users.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IFS Applications?
The product is reasonably priced. The costs are justified by the value provided, considering the comprehensive features and minimal need for customization. I rate the pricing a seven out of ten.
What needs improvement with IFS Applications?
I am not able to recall much about batch. Documentation-wise, they need more. There is not much available online, and the documentation availability is on the lower side compared to other products,...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Dynamics AX?
It is no longer supported from a security perspective, so it is not getting updated. Other than that, before it became obsolete, it did its job, and there were not any major complaints. However, it...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Dynamics AX?
Right now, we are moving to a new ERP platform. It is in the cloud, and because of that, the cloud pushes updates every quarter, which could technically break our products. We are looking into an a...
 

Also Known As

IFS Applications, Assyst, IFS Cloud
Dynamics AX, Axapta, MS Dynamics AX
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

China Airlines, Electrolux Group, Babcock, Cimcorp, Sky, Multiplex, Veolia. 
ConQuaestor, D & H Distributing, Sunny Queen, Mesa Associates, Britax Childcare, Ibema, Arafa, Sabo S.p.A.
Find out what your peers are saying about IFS Cloud Platform vs. Microsoft Dynamics AX and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
839,080 professionals have used our research since 2012.