Changing your financial and business management software represents a significant investment of time and money. Invariably, one of the first questions will be, “How much does an ERP system cost?”

The answer is: It depends on what you need.

ERP applications are complex and there are many factors that need to be considered before a final price can be given. However, since there are many elements in common among most ERP products, we can provide some general guidance on typical, user-based ERP pricing. For specific information on Acumatica’s modern, consumption-based pricing model, see Acumatica ERP Pricing.

Before you read any further, you should be familiar with the terms included in the section, “Clearing the confusion from buzzwords around the cloud,” from What is Cloud ERP Software?

In general, you either buy the software license outright or pay a monthly subscription for the license. There are advantages and disadvantages to both, including:

• Tax advantages of capital vs. operating expenses
• Paying one large upfront cost vs. on-going monthly costs
• Total cost of ownership over the lifetime of the product

When purchasing the software outright, you will also be expected to pay an annual maintenance fee for upgrades. Upgrades are usually included as part of subscription pricing.

Before you read any further, you should be familiar with the terms included in the section, “Clearing the confusion from buzzwords around the cloud,” from What is Cloud ERP Software?

In addition to the base software cost, almost all ERP vendors will charge a fee for every user of the system (Acumatica does not). Users are typically categorized as “heavy” users (those users that need access to the system all day as part of their work, like the accounting staff) and “light” users (those users that only use the system occasionally for price lookups or to enter time and expenses). Licenses are either given to specific user names that can only access one system at a time (named users) or by the total number of users that can access the system at the same time (concurrent users).

Your ERP cost will also vary depending on your industry. For instance, a large manufacturing or distribution company will need to augment base Accounting and Financial functions with capabilities such as inventory management, bills of material, and shipping and receiving, functions that most strictly service companies don’t need. These additional functions add to the overall cost of the base product.

Instead of enforcing a “one-size-fits-all” cost structure, Acumatica ERP pricing is determined by your needs and requirements. Your Acumatica partner will take the time to work with you, understand your specific requirements, determine the proper resources and modules for your company, and present you with an accurate price for your license.

Contact SWK Technologies today or take a tour of Acumatica to find out if it is right for your company.