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Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central vs SAP ERP comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 12, 2025

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

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Busi...
Ranking in ERP
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
64
Ranking in other categories
Activity Based Costing Software (2nd)
SAP ERP
Ranking in ERP
2nd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
104
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the ERP category, the mindshare of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is 6.3%, down from 6.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP ERP is 20.2%, down from 22.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
ERP
 

Featured Reviews

StefaanVandesompele - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides end-to-end accounting and finance module at reasonable pricing
365 Business Central integrates with Office 365 to streamline the invoice approval process. This allows businesses to manage and approve invoices efficiently within a unified system. Our organization plans to transition to the Dynamics 365 environment, where various functions will be centralized. We will consolidate everything into one system instead of maintaining multiple databases for each country with local data. Dynamics 365 is fully integrated, which should address many of our challenges when we migrate to this new environment. We look forward to seeing how it performs in practice. The project is progressing well overall, though integrating it with other tools and ensuring Dynamics 365 operates smoothly can be challenging. Dynamics 365 is user-friendly and effective. However, a deeper understanding of its technical capabilities and architecture might be necessary to optimize its use fully. The software landscape is evolving, and achieving the best reporting and functionality with just a click can be complex. A clear vision of what you want to achieve with Dynamics 365 is essential. Proper preparation and configuration are crucial to achieving the desired outcomes. This principle applies not only to Dynamics 365 but to all software packages. Understanding the system's flexibility and adaptability based on your specific business needs is key to its successful implementation. Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.
Srinivasan Kuppuswamy - PeerSpot reviewer
The amazing, robust framework with unlimited scalability earns its #1 status
The solution is not ready for the current e-commerce environment. Its was built for large enterprises who need to predictably optimize their human, material, and financial resources. ERP has evolved and businesses are changing. There are not many large corporations. Most are small enterprises with the capabilities of large enterprises through networking and platform integration. Some companies promote products but get things done with other enterprises as a network. Companies do not want to create new capacity but want to leverage existing capacity with innovative products. They do not want to spend resources on duplicating capacity or facilities. I do not think any ERP product is ready to support this environment so ERPs as a whole might end up being used for back-office functions only. It is not easy to evolve an ERP product because its intent is to integrate functions and processes within an organization. Whereas, in the new business model, processes are not limited to one's own enterprise but cut across different enterprises. There is no enterprise solution as this point in time for the current e-commerce environment so companies must integrate with many solutions.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The initial setup is pretty straightforward."
"The value for money is very high as it fits the business well."
"The tool covers most of the business requirements that most companies have, especially financial institutions."
"The platform offers a robust and comprehensive cycle for supply chain and inventory management, with features like minimum and maximum settings, dynamic monitoring of inventory levels, and integration with Microsoft's AI capabilities."
"It is a scalable solution. There are more than 5,000 end users in my organization."
"The initial setup is easy - because it stands on Microsoft offerings, it's simple and intuitive to use."
"The audit trails, which include any IP system, are very useful."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is cloud accessibility."
"I like the solution's ability to close plans and resource requirements in deals."
"The most valuable features are that it's very customizable and it's flexible."
"Their tech support is always good."
"The Material Management and Sales and Distribution modules are great. The Financial Accounting module is also great."
"SAP ERP offers a wide range of functional modules, including payroll, HR, financials, and others."
"The most valuable features of SAP ERP are that its robust, user-friendly, and secure."
"The most valuable features of SAP ERP is the flexibility and functionality. It is one of the best ERPs I have seen in the market."
"SAP ERP has a good user interface with a lot of functionalities and good interface options."
 

Cons

"The performance and virtual machine backup is not good with this solution and need improvements."
"There is a need for improvement in consolidation and multi-country master data management."
"Customization and costs could be improved."
"The Power BI integration could be more seamless."
"Microsoft Dynamics NAV could be improved in terms of exporting income statements and balance sheets. Currently, there is a feature, but you can only have the last three years. I spent some time trying to improve the KPI portion that exports the data, that already calculates the sub forms or subtotals, but they weren't able to break that up into different dimensions. They've now managed to crowd the separate table and you can export that, but it's only for the last three years. So, they could improve this solution by getting the chart of accounts or the account schedules to be exported, where you can go further than just three years with it."
"The price of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central could be reduced."
"There is a book for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central explaining how to use it. But it is not easy to use, and it is not easy to learn."
"In Thailand, the support here could be better. The process to get an answer is too long."
"We will not make any major changes, and we are not expecting any enhancements or new features from SAP because they already have a new solution. No development is happening on SAP ERP because SAP has come up with a new version called SAP S/4HANA, which is memory-based technology. We are planning to upgrade to SAP S/4HANA, but we don't know when it will happen. We are in the preparation phase."
"It would also help if it were more open, more flexible, with more standard products."
"The only feature that is not available in our current version is web access."
"The UI could use improvement."
"I always prefer using an S/4HANA system."
"I think we have not seen any tangible benefits from SAP ERP."
"One thing that is lacking in ERP is a good user interface. It is currently very clumsy and complex. Another thing is that reporting capability of SAP ERP is customizable, but it is not very good. Its development time is also very high if you require specialized technical services. If you want to do any changes to the report or develop a new report, you need people with specialized skills. Business processes are very straightforward and standardized as per the industry standards. However, the way it works is a bit complex, and you need to know a lot of things. There are different things that can be complex for a general user. A lot of information is being provided in ERP. A general user doesn't require all this information, and it creates a lot of confusion. Its learning curve is very high."
"License fees are too high."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is reasonable."
"The price of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is reasonable. We pay monthly for the use of the solution."
"The price of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central could improve. It is costly. We are paying for the solution on a monthly basis."
"I think the pricing is the best; it's cost effective for sure."
"There is an annual cost of using Microsoft Dynamics NAV. The cost is approximately 140,000 INR."
"The on-premises model of Dynamics NAV is very expensive, hence our plan to migrate to Dynamics 365 Business Central, which appears to fit our needs better in terms of pricing. Compared to competitors, the cloud version of Dynamics is in the middle; not too high and not too low."
"Business Central charges a monthly fee of $70 to $100 per user."
"$80-$100 per license, per month."
"There is a license needed to use this solution."
"SAP is quite expensive."
"This is a costly product."
"There are licensing costs."
"I rate SAP ERP's pricing a six or seven out of ten."
"The licensing costs are slightly on the higher side. They need to make it more competitive."
"Some components are available at an additional cost, depending on the type of contract that you have."
"The solution has moved from a licensing model to a rights-based, subscription model in the cloud."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
6%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Manufacturing Company
14%
Computer Software Company
12%
Retailer
6%
University
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft Dynamics NAV?
The platform offers a robust and comprehensive cycle for supply chain and inventory management, with features like minimum and maximum settings, dynamic monitoring of inventory levels, and integrat...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Dynamics NAV?
The pricing for Dynamics 365 Business Central is reasonable. The value for money is very high.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Dynamics NAV?
There is a need for improvement in consolidation and multi-country master data management.
Is Anaplan better than SAP ERP?
There are different aspects of both Anaplan and SAP ERP that I like and dislike. Anaplan improves forecast accuracy and drives up the quality of analytics. Rather than spending all of their time co...
What do you like most about SAP ERP?
The solution has made the most significant impact on our human resources function, specifically in HR operations and HR analytics. One feature of SAP ERP that I found most valuable is its use of co...
What needs improvement with SAP ERP?
There is a need for improvement in the business analytics aspect in financial reporting and also in sales and marketing analytics.
 

Also Known As

Dynamics NAV, MS Dynamics NAV
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Harris Farm Markets, Mister Spex GmbH, Bounce Foods, Eurofin Services SA, Medica Medizintechnik, Associated Gaskets, Onduline, Sitka Surfboard Corporation, World Animal Protection
B&G Manufacturing, Unilever, Life is good Inc., Joy Global Inc., City of Cape Town, Bhopal Municipal, Corporation (BMC), adidas Group, Butcher & Packer Supply Company, Franklin Valve L.P., Evoshield, Prime Meats, a Norsan Group company, EMC Corporation, Varian Medical Systems Inc., FC Bayern Mªnchen AG, AkzoNobel Chemicals B.V., T¾V Rheinland, Pacific Drilling S.A., Fire & Rescue New South Wales, University of Amsterdam, Pa_alon S.A.
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central vs. SAP ERP and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
837,501 professionals have used our research since 2012.