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Microsoft Dynamics AX vs SAP Business ByDesign comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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 AX
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
56
Ranking in other categories
ERP (5th), Activity Based Costing Software (3rd)
SAP Business ByDesign
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Cloud ERP (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Enterprise Resource Planning solutions, they serve different purposes. Microsoft Dynamics AX is designed for ERP and holds a mindshare of 6.3%, down 6.5% compared to last year.
SAP Business ByDesign, on the other hand, focuses on Cloud ERP, holds 10.2% mindshare, up 9.5% since last year.
ERP
Cloud ERP
 

Featured Reviews

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.
Majid-Mustafa - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides custom versions of reports personalized for users
For AI initiatives, you need to purchase a separate AI license to integrate with SAP Business ByDesign. I'd recommend SAP Business ByDesign for large companies that want to check data graphically, especially for monthly income, expenses, and taxes in the millions or trillions. Overall, for large-scale companies, I'd rate it ten out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"AX is nearly a Tier One product, so implementations are long, but there's a lot of flexibility. Also, the ability to handle different issues found in larger organizations."
"Support is really good."
"It was an okay solution when we delivered hardware and we had to do maintenance."
"It is easy to use, and it has a great UI. It has very well-structured modules. In terms of setup and configuration, they're logically placed, which makes it easy for any user to pick up information and learn more about the system, rather than just be plain key users of that business operating system."
"The most valuable features of Microsoft Dynamics AX are field services and the vendor collaboration portal. Both of the features are very good."
"Supply Chain Management is an excellent feature."
"All its features are valuable."
"It is a scalable solution. Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"When we were using it, we did see an immediate benefit, especially in the inventory on consignment issue. We were a biotech pre-revenue company and most of our manufacturing was outsourced. So being able to track inventory within the system without creating a financial impact was very key for us."
"The most valuable feature of SAP Business ByDesign is it has a streamlined design."
"It has a quick implementation and onboarding of users. It is flexible with reports and powerful."
"The standard system is stable."
"When comparing SAP Business ByDesign to much larger ERP solutions, such as SAP ECC 6.0 or SAP S/4HANA, SAP Business ByDesign is more user-friendly and easier to implement."
"I like its modern approach. It is very modern and new technology."
"The most valuable features of Business ByDesign are the integration of its modules, analytics, and dashboards."
"The most helpful feature is the integrations. Integrating the tool with SAP S/4HANA Cloud is easy, facilitating implementation and deployment. The runtime analysis checks for real-time analytics to see if the software works properly. This is a powerful feature."
 

Cons

"The UI has room for improvement and can be more user-friendly."
"The on-premises and desktop versions are not user-friendly."
"The manufacturing module in GP is quite basic, and those who require more advanced manufacturing capabilities often turn to third-party modules or tools."
"The product needs improvement in procurement planning. It also needs to include a production scheduling feature."
"From a consultant's point of view, I recommend an enhancement in terms of detailed documentation for the products on the website."
"Microsoft Dynamics AX should include more connectors for third-party integrations. It should also include more features that AI models can govern."
"The product takes some training to get up to speed on all functionality and modules in Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 ERP system."
"It is no longer supported from a security perspective, so it is not getting updated."
"I would like the tool’s interface to be better. Currently, we use a client application to access the product. I want that to be replaced with a web version. I would like to improve the tool’s internet availability. I also want the product’s setup to be easier."
"SAP Business ByDesign is a very vast product, but it has to be a bit more centralized. All the models need to be more centralized for a better experience."
"The Purchase to Pay process could benefit from further sophistication and additional functionality. It would be helpful for the user community to receive clearer information about the future roadmap of the business. Unfortunately, there were some confusing articles in the German press towards the end of last year about the future of SAP Business ByDesign. Therefore, more clarity is needed in the support function to address this."
"SAP Business ByDesign can improve the flexibility and user-friendliness of the reporting during the implementations. Customizing the reports inside the device requires a lot of knowledge and most of the time a developer level is needed. For example, if you want to have a more specific reporting layout."
"The payroll module of the solution could improve."
"The solution does not support customization for forms and reports. It's not flexible in case you need some enhancements in business processes."
"The database needs to be more customizable."
"Scalability is difficult."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product's license renewal cost could be better."
"The tool is cheap."
"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."
"Microsoft Dynamics AX is not expensive."
"I purchased the license once, and there is a license with a partner that I pay for annually."
"Comparatively, Business Central appears to be more cost-effective. Microsoft offers Business Central at only $70 per user per month in the US. In contrast, GP requires an initial investment, including around $9,000 for the GP license for three users and additional expenses for hardware. Therefore, the initial investment for GP is quite substantial. On the other hand, cloud-based ERP products like Business Central do not entail the same upfront investment and operate on an ongoing, subscription-based model."
"It is $180 to $200 per user per month with a minimum of 20 users, which makes selling the product a bit difficult."
"The solution is expensive."
"The cost starts anywhere between fifty thousand dollars and up depending on the number of licenses."
"We have to pay yearly."
"The tool’s subscription is yearly. There is no flat pricing involved and everything has a range. Pricing depends on the functionality that you would use. You need to also pay for the additional hosting and maintenance costs."
"The price of the solution could be better. They have to come up with a new strategy."
"The price of SAP Business ByDesign is less expensive than SAP S/4HANA. However, the price is on par with other similar competitors, such as Microsoft."
"The pricing depends on company size. It's cheaper for small companies and more expensive for large ones."
"I rate the price of SAP Business ByDesign a seven out of ten."
"The tool’s pricing is expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Computer Software Company
25%
Real Estate/Law Firm
9%
Healthcare Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Microsoft Dynamics AX?
Microsoft Dynamics AX has several areas that need improvement, particularly when compared to larger systems. It lacks the concept of month-end closing, which is essential for tight control over fin...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Dynamics AX?
I primarily use Microsoft Dynamics AX ( /products/microsoft-dynamics-ax-reviews ) for the financial module, which includes the general ledger, account payable, account receivable, inventory, and pu...
What do you like most about SAP Business ByDesign?
The most valuable features of SAP Business ByDesign are customer invoicing and cost and revenue, from which I get the data for my project reports.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SAP Business ByDesign?
The pricing depends on company size. It's cheaper for small companies and more expensive for large ones.
What needs improvement with SAP Business ByDesign?
There might be some hurdles when integrating with SAP ECC, but integration with SAP S/4HANA Cloud is smooth.
 

Also Known As

Dynamics AX, Axapta, MS Dynamics AX
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

ConQuaestor, D & H Distributing, Sunny Queen, Mesa Associates, Britax Childcare, Ibema, Arafa, Sabo S.p.A.
Standard Bank of South Africa, AOK Bundesverband, PT XL Axiata Tbk, Tvoy Dom, Schaidt Innovations GmbH & Co. KG, DeLaval International AB, EMC Corporation, Lenovo, Castle Importing Inc., Unilever, Rifle Paper Co., RAK Ceramics, Rough Country, B&G Manufacturing, Life is good Inc., Joy Global Inc., City of Cape Town
Find out what your peers are saying about SAP, Microsoft, Oracle and others in ERP. Updated: April 2025.
850,671 professionals have used our research since 2012.