Odoo Review: Pros, Cons, Pricing

What Is Odoo ERP?

Odoo is an open-source ERP software that integrates CRM, manufacturing, eCommerce, and more business apps. Among the Odoo apps, we’ll concentrate on the accounting module and its core bookkeeping features.

Odoo’s accounting module offers functionality in accounts payables and receivables, bank synchronization, and reporting. You can extend the accounting app’s functionality with the tax report module. Taxes and reports are pre-configured in Odoo based on your fiscal localization package.

Our Ratings

Who Uses Odoo ERP?

We recommend Odoo for small companies with one to ten employees and mid-sized businesses with 50 to 200. It’s best for organizations that have outgrown spreadsheets or simple accounting and inventory software. Odoo shines with its modular structure, allowing you to add components as needed. This is a draw for companies looking to pay only for what they use, especially as they scale up.

Odoo Makes Invoicing Simple

Generating an invoice in Odoo is relatively simple, though we found the form layout counterintuitive. Here’s how to create an invoice in Odoo:

1. Click the New Invoice button on the Accounting dashboard.
2. Enter your customer’s name, invoice date, payment reference number, etc.
3. Add product information, including quantity, price, and taxes.
4. Click the Confirm button to approve the invoice.
5. Select Send & Print and Save when you are satisfied with the preview.

Odoo will prompt you to download and email the invoice. We love that you can send the invoice automatically by post for the cost of a local stamp.

Invoicing in the Odoo App

Generating a new invoice on the Odoo app follows the same process. We found the process a little harder to navigate on a mobile device.

1. Start on the Accounting Dashboard and click the New Invoice button.
2. Enter your customer’s name, invoice date, payment reference number, etc.
3. Fill out your invoice date, payment reference number, and payment terms.
4. Add product information, including quantity, price, tax, etc.
5. Click the Save & Close button to exit the product details screen.
6. Scroll up to find the Confirm button in the upper right-hand corner.
7. Select the Send & Print button to preview your invoice.
8. Click Save when you’re satisfied with the invoice preview.

Odoo will navigate you to a final screen where you will again click Send & Print This triggers an email sent to your customer’s email and allows you to download a print version of the invoice to your device.

Adding Odoo Vendor Bills

We found uploading your vendor bill directly to Odoo fast and efficient: Go to the Accounting Dashboard. Click the Upload button on the Vendor Bills card. Select the document from your internal files and click Open to upload.

Odoo parses the bill, auto-fills the relevant fields, and then drops it into your drafts. We were impressed with the quick process, and Odoo accurately reflected the data presented in the original document.

If you manually add a vendor bill, it follows the same process as invoicing:

1. Click the Create Manually link under the Upload button.
2. Enter your vendor’s name, bill due dates, recipient bank, etc.
3. Add product information, including quantity, price, tax, etc. Click Confirm.
4. Select Register Payment to enter Journal, Payment Method, and Payment Date details.
5. Click the Create Payment button to post the bill.

Odoo Bank Reconciliation

Odoo allows you to check if your balance in Odoo synchronizes with your bank details. We found the layout confusing, as line items are not presented in a direct one-on-one comparison. However, we could search by vendor name and transaction amounts when there was no clear match for a transaction.

The process looks like this:

1. Click Reconcile X Items on the Accounting dashboard under Bank.
2. Odoo opens two panels: bank statement lines on the left, Odoo transactions on the right.
3. Click the Validate button to confirm items are a match.
4. Click the To Check button to mark items with no obvious match for investigation.

You can also create different reconciliation models to tell Odoo when it’s okay to auto-validate transactions. For example, under “Configuration,” you can create a rule to auto-validate any transactions where invoices and bills have a perfect match.

What Features Are Missing?

Odoo is an excellent ERP pick for businesses of any size, particularly those in the manufacturing sector. However, there are a few key elements that your team should address before jumping in:

• Simple Maintenance: Businesses moving to Odoo should devise a clear implementation plan and have the technical expertise on hand to deploy the software, integrate third-party apps, or customize the source code to fit your company’s workflows.
• Free Plan Viability: Odoo’s free plan is limited to one app, plus any secondary apps it depends on to function correctly. While it is promoted as a “free” option, in actuality, through the course of normal use, you’ll 99% of the time require the paid version.

Odoo Pricing

Odoo offers first-year savings and further discounts with annual subscriptions:

• The standard monthly rate is $31.10 per user. An annual subscription reduces this to $24.90 per user per month.
• New customers receive a promotional rate: $24.90 per user per month for the first year with an annual plan, then $31.10.
• For monthly plans, the promotional rate is $31.10 for the first year, then $38.90.

What is the difference between Odoo Community vs. Enterprise?

Odoo offers two editions of its software: Community and Enterprise. Odoo Community is available as an open-source version. It’s free to download, use, and modify. You can access Community without any licensing fees.

Enterprise is the commercial version of the software. It’s a paid subscription with regular updates, additional support, and features catering to specific industry needs, such as advanced inventory.

What are the different types of hosting in Odoo?

• Odoo Online is a software as a service platform with automatic technical support, daily database backups, and upgrades. This hosting type limits your third-party apps and source alterations.

• The second type is On-Premises, which allows unlimited customization with any apps and source code alterations. However, you’re going to need advanced technical knowledge to do this.

• Odoo.sh is a hybrid option that manages hosting but still allows you to customize source code. Odoo.sh also provides some tooling to help manage version upgrades and testing. It guarantees 99.9% uptime and includes daily backups.

Is Odoo accounting really free?

Odoo accounting is free if you do not upgrade to a second app. The One App Free plan allows unlimited users to access one free app in a cloud-hosted database on Odoo Online. However, you will incur a monthly fee once you deploy additional modules in project management, time tracking, HR, CRM, etc.

Do big companies use Odoo software?

Larger companies use Odoo because it’s an open-source enterprise resource planning (ERP) software designed to handle an organization’s complex, interconnected processes. Because anyone can access its source code, Odoo is highly customizable to meet the specific business needs of companies like DelMonte Philippines, Sodexo/Idealis Consulting, and Toyota Material Handling.

Which industries use Odoo?

The use of Odoo as an ERP solution is widespread in various industries. The top sectors include manufacturing, education, energy, healthcare, hospitality, and retail. Odoo’s open-source architecture means organizations can tailor the software’s code to align with unique organizational workflows. Furthermore, Odoo offers operational-specific applications so businesses can add what they need as they scale up.

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Summary

We recommend using Odoo if you’re looking for a customizable ERP solution that grows with your company and meets your specific business requirements. This platform integrates easily with third-party and Odoo apps from point-of-sale to warehouse management, so adding modules as needed is not an issue.

Regarding Odoo’s accounting app, you can easily track sales and expenses, generate invoices and vendor bills, and synchronize your bank account for accurate reconciliation. However, companies should prepare to invest resources for implementation and ongoing maintenance, either through their internal IT team or consultants.

That said, Odoo provides extensive documentation for developers and end users. Its accounting module supports multi-company and -currency systems, giving it an edge over other applications with similar functionality and pricing.