Odoo Review: Pros, Cons, Pricing
We like Odoo for its effectiveness as a light ERP, offering modularity, simple integration, and ease of use. As companies scale up, they can add modules piecemeal as needed. Odoo offers inventory management functionalities at a lower price point than many cloud-based ERPs.
On the other hand, you’ll need technical expertise or a dedicated support team to deploy the software, integrate third-party apps, or customize the source code to fit your company’s workflows.
- Community version is free
- Heavy customization options
- Double entry inventory system
- Full suite of business applications
- Traceability reports from customer to supplier
- May have to build specific modules yourself
- No centralized support
- Upgrades not free
- Cluttered mobile app
- Client OS Web
- Deployment Cloud or On-Premises
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.
| Pros | Cons |
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Our Ratings
| Usability - 7 | Easy to locate essential functions on the accounting dashboard (invoicing, billing, reconciling transactions); activity log consumes vital workspace and is not collapsible; reconciliation layout would benefit from a side-by-side comparison format. |
| Support - 10 | Provides an emergency phone number, live chat, and an option to submit a support ticket; offers two-factor authentication; features extensive online documentation for developers and end users. |
| Scalability - 7 | Offers core accounting features for small businesses; standard invoicing and billing functionality is great for growing companies; mobile app requires unnecessary scrolling and might complicate on-the-go data entry. |
| Security - 10 | Includes two-factor authentication using a dedicated mobile app like Authy or Google Authenticator; allows configuration of user-access permissions down to specific modules; permits exporting data into xlsx files. |
| Value - 10 | Total cost of ownership is lower than most ERP software; monthly subscription offers unlimited access to all apps for one user. |
| Performance - 7 | Great software speed and performance; final preview for new invoices and bills can sometimes take a while to load; detailed user interface can slow the completion of repetitive tasks. |
| Key Features - 10 | Allows option to enter new bills manually or upload PDF/DOC files; auto-generates printable PDF versions during invoice creation; provides option to send invoices by post automatically for the cost of a local stamp; has localization modules for certain countries that pre-load your default taxes into the database. |
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:
- Click the New Invoice button on the Accounting dashboard.
- Enter your customer’s name, invoice date, payment reference number, etc.
- Add product information, including quantity, price, and taxes.
- Click the Confirm button to approve the invoice.
- 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.
- Start on the Accounting Dashboard and click the New Invoice button.
- Enter your customer’s name, invoice date, payment reference number, etc.
- Fill out your invoice date, payment reference number, and payment terms.
- Add product information, including quantity, price, tax, etc.
- Click the Save & Close button to exit the product details screen.
- Scroll up to find the Confirm button in the upper right-hand corner.
- Select the Send & Print button to preview your invoice.
- 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:
- Click the Create Manually link under the Upload button.
- Enter your vendor’s name, bill due dates, recipient bank, etc.
- Add product information, including quantity, price, tax, etc. Click Confirm.
- Select Register Payment to enter Journal, Payment Method, and Payment Date details.
- 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:
- Click Reconcile X Items on the Accounting dashboard under Bank.
- Odoo opens two panels: bank statement lines on the left, Odoo transactions on the right.
- Click the Validate button to confirm items are a match.
- 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
| Plan | Pricing | Features |
| One App | Free |
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| Standard | $31.10/user/month (annual billing) $38.90/user/month (monthly billing) |
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| Custom | $$46.70/user/month (annual billing) $58.40/user/month (monthly billing) |
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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?
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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.
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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.
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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.
Alternatives
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.
User Reviews of Odoo
We went with Odoo for its user experience and the overall usability of the tool. It’s basically very intuitive. The different modules which are used for research and development are as well. We like the versioning and routings, which is one very important task for our company. The flexibility is impressive.
We were looking for a new WMS system and ended up finding a re-seller of Odoo that does both ERP and WMS integrations. They have a pretty customizeable software that lets us have the modules we need without the extra stuff we dont.
I also really liked how easy and straight forward their system was. We have some not so tech savvy guys and they would easly be able to pick up learning this system.
They also were one of the lowest cost to implement systems so we ended up leaning towards Odoo for our new system.
Customizeable and easy to use
None
In our search for an ERP, we reviewed the major players (Netsuite, Dynamics) and though the systems could meet our needs as a food distirbutor, their pricing was prohibitive. After receiving our recommendations through Software Connect we narrowed it down, focused on Odoo, mainly because of the affordability of the program. We also had a team majority that liked the interface better.
Hasn’t cost me anything yet. They let us use one module for free, until we go to upgrade and I did the inventory module and they gave me inventory AND manufacturing. So right now that doesn’t cost anything. I’ve only used those modules but will be upgrading soon. Support has been pretty good so far.
The search for an ERP began becuase of expansive growth in the company. After looking and comparing several programs, Odoo’s modular architect was the reason we moved forward with them. They offer 100 different apps that you can add on but if needed can start with just one. You pick what you need you at that time. Their pricing was also much more affordable than the other options we looked at.
The software is relative easy to use. But you must work with a team that understands different aspects like accounting, cost analysis, information technology, etc. You must do this in order to get the best result from a software that offers this many modules.
Easy of use and incredible amount of modules available. Good technical support from Odoo in the enterprise version. In the open source version a vast community that can answer your question. Plus Odoo group everywhere from Facebook to Reddit.
To get a complete picture and use of Odoo, a steep learning curve waits, because of the many option that it offers. A good solution is to take a team approach to it’s implementation.
The software was able to adapt and meet the companies needs as they continued to change. The software worked perfect at connecting with their Magento eCommerce website.
It was important to find a solution that encompassed ERP, CRM and HR. Odoo fulfilled that need with a customized Odoo suite.
All goals were met with the Odoo software with ease and efficiency.
Needed to integrate the 3PL with Odoo. Now we can follow order management and the inventory dashboard easier than ever.
Having Odoo on the backend instantly took us to the next level. We upgraded because we wanted a higher quality system with more features and enhancements
With such a bottomless resource of business applications and modules, the possibilities of customization that coincide with Odoo are quite literally endless.
We now have all business processes centralized and are able to access information. This allows us to accurately analyze the information to make more-informed business decisions.
Odoo look great and performs terribly. And to add insult to injury the company is incredibly dishonest. It is almost impossible to import and export data without one of Odoo’s techs. And … you get to pay $250+ per hour just to import and export vital information. Odoo insists that you just need their “onboarding package”. Don’t do it! The first hour and a half is spent running through a powerpoint presentation telling you that you don’t know what you need, but of course they do. Then, weeks later, when they can’t deliver what they promised, they tell you that if you just pay more, they’ll be able to make it work the way they promised in the beginning. A lot of companies have been scammed by this company and then feel stuck because they’ve spent thousands of dollars implementing it. We cut our losses and moved on to a more honest company.
The cards and list feature is very handy.
The company is dishonest and it is almost impossible to make it work correctly without spending THOUSANDS of dollars. When we asked for our money back after 3 months of absolutely nothing working correctly, I was told, “You will never get your money back so quit asking.”
Odoo is more than a ERP, it is a complete suite of business apps for modern companies. It support all business process in just one application, with more than 250 modules and support for small, medium and big companies. Odoo is the present and future of ERP Software. When you start using it, you will love Odoo, as I do.
Capacity for integration and price flexibility.
Localization for some countries.
The costs for this system do not represent a value, we have had the worst experience.
It’s a good full ERP program with marketing and sales features. However, as a manufacturer, it didn’t have the detailed parts tracking and reporting we need. It’s also difficult to import/export because it doesn’t tell what format to import/export in and results in an error message. The training is also a separate price so that is a minus.
Awesome ERP Concept, extreme integration, superb usability. Its clearly one of the best ERPs on the market today for SMEs and Startups alike.
Usability, it is just Fun to use (and you are doing business using it…)
It does have some Bugs and sometimes your process does not fit to the standard. On the SaaS offer this means customization, as the Odoo Appstore is not available on this hosted Version. Also the localizations are still missing out a lot. We are based in Switzerland and had to implement a lot of the “Swiss Finish” ourselves.
As a former Netsuite customer, we had the bar set very high in terms of functionality and flexibility. What we weren’t expecting is the usability to be simple. This software package is so complete it usurps even Netsuite in terms of flexibility and is so easy to use that getting new users on the system and productive is just a matter of a few hours and in some cases, not even that. If Apple were to design an ERP, Odoo would be it. Mobile app gives you almost complete usage available as well.
By far we like the usability best, so easy to use, new users are using the system effectively on Day One.
The ability to change colors of the back end scheme requires customization or the purchase of a 3rd party module
Odoo comes with tons of features that are fully customizable but best of all it is internet ready and no dependent on client configuration.
It’s very easy to set up and also completely modular. the community behind is also here to provide very usefull tips.
Some features are officially covered but when you look into details you often realise it is necessary to build specific modules.
