# ERPNext — ERP

ERPNext by Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd. holds a panel rating of 2.5/5 from 6 AI judges (category median 3/5), as of 2026-10-29. Provenance: Rest of world; sovereignty: not determined.

- Vendor: Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (https://frappe.io/erpnext)
- Category: [ERP](https://whats-best.ai/software/erp.md)
- Provenance (editorial classification): Rest of world
- Canonical page: https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/erpnext
- Alternatives: https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/erpnext/alternatives ([markdown](https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/erpnext/alternatives.md))
- Data as of: 2026-10-29 · evaluated 2026-10-29 · oldest source captured 2026-10-26

**AI-generated.** Every score, rationale and verdict here is written by a panel of AI judges from public evidence — an analysis, not a hands-on test. Every fact quotes the vendor page it was read from. No score can be bought. How scores are made: https://whats-best.ai/methodology

## At a glance

- Vendor: Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
- Headquarters: Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 28 Oct 2026
- Data hosting: Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 28 Oct 2026
- Free plan: Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 28 Oct 2026

## The panel's verdict

ERPNext is the free and open-source ERP from Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd. It scores highest on production and projects at 7-8 and on orders and inventory at 7, where judges cite purchase-to-pay documentation — accepted and rejected warehouses, serial and batch tracking, barcode capture at goods receipt, landed costs — and multi-level bills of materials with routings, workstation costing and enforced quality inspection. Integration and portability draw 6-8: GPL-3.0 licensing, documented self-hosting and site data exportable into other ERPNext instances earn credit, but no public API reference or webhooks appear on the captured pages. Sovereignty is the weakest criterion, with no score above 4: an Indian contracting entity under Indian law with Mumbai arbitration, data may be stored across the world, and offsite backups stored in India. Judges split on pricing transparency, 5 versus 6 — tiers from "$5 onwards /mo" to "$125 onwards /mo" against "onwards" scaling, resource limits and unpriced Starter Packs and Enterprise plans — and on production depth at 8 versus 7, with the same undocumented MRP runs and capacity planning weighed differently. One judge recorded zero across the board.

**Speaks for it:**
- Purchase-to-pay chain documented from purchase order through goods receipt to invoice, with stock ledger entries and payables posting at each step
- Multi-level bills of materials documented with routings, workstations for costing and scheduling, scrap and by-products, and quality inspection that blocks submission
- Open source under GPL-3.0 with self-hosting on your own server and site data exportable in a format importable into other ERPNext instances
- Hosting priced publicly in three tiers — "$5 onwards /mo", "$20 onwards /mo" and "$125 onwards /mo" — with no per-user pricing and no fee for the software itself
- Three go-live routes described: self-implementation from documentation, guides and videos, Starter Packs from certified partners, and a network of 200+ partners

**Held against it:**
- Contracting entity is Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd. under Indian law with arbitration in Mumbai, data may be stored across the world, and offsite backups are stored in India
- We found no public information on GoBD compliance, XRechnung or ZUGFeRD, dunning or bank feeds, while the documented e-invoicing covers India's GST system
- The DATEV export and tax-consultant hand-off come from a third-party marketplace app whose listing notes it is not approved or endorsed by DATEV eG
- We found no public information on sales-side picking, shipping labels, storage bins or connectors for shops and marketplaces
- Plans are "onwards" prices with resource limits set at Frappe's discretion, pricing may be modified at its sole discretion, and Starter Packs and Enterprise plans are unpriced

**Best for:**
- You run discrete manufacturing and need documented multi-level bills of materials with routings, workstation costing and enforced quality inspection
- You have a tech team and value a GPL-3.0 system you can self-host, with site data exportable into other ERPNext instances
- Your operation centres on goods receipt — barcode scanning, serial and batch tracking, accepted and rejected warehouses
- You want to avoid per-user licence costs and pay only for hosting

**Avoid if:**
- You need an EU legal and hosting chain for your commercial records — the terms place the contract with Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd. under Indian law with Mumbai arbitration, and the privacy policy says data may be stored across the world with offsite backups in India
- You require a committed availability guarantee — the terms state Frappe does not guarantee uninterrupted access
- You close German books needing GoBD documentation or XRechnung and ZUGFeRD — the captured e-invoicing pages cover India's GST e-invoice, and we found no public information on these German requirements
- You must compute your full first-year cost before committing — the tiers are "onwards" prices with resource limits at Frappe's discretion, pricing may be modified at its sole discretion, and Starter Packs and Enterprise plans are unpriced

## Scores by judge and criterion

Scores out of 5, each judge scoring independently against the published rubric (v1). "n/r" = not rated: the vendor publishes no price, or the judge found no public information on that criterion.

| Criterion | The Managing Director | The Head of Finance | The Operations Lead | The Online Retailer | The IT Integrator | The Skeptic |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Finance, tax & compliance | 0/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 |
| Purchasing, inventory & order processing | 0/5 | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 |
| Manufacturing, services & projects | 0/5 | 4/5 | 4/5 | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 |
| Integration, API & data portability | 0/5 | 4/5 | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | 3/5 | 3.5/5 |
| Rollout, roles & operations | 0/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 |
| European sovereignty | 0/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 |
| Pricing transparency | 0/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 2.5/5 | 2.5/5 | 3/5 |
| **Weighted verdict** | **0/5** | **3/5** | **3.5/5** | **3/5** | **3/5** | **3/5** |

### The judges

- **The Managing Director** (v1.0): Runs a sixty-person wholesaler that outgrew an invoicing tool, two Excel stock lists and a shop backend nobody reconciles. Wants one system that goes live without stopping the business for a quarter, an implementation path and cost they can plan before signing, and a vendor that will still be there when the contract renews.
- **The Head of Finance** (v1.0): Closes the books for three companies every month and has retyped one supplier invoice too many. Wants incoming e-invoices read and matched to the purchase order, GoBD stated with a procedure documentation, DATEV for the tax adviser, intercompany postings that balance, and every figure traceable to the order and the person behind it.
- **The Operations Lead** (v1.0): Runs purchasing, two warehouses and a small assembly line, and is the one called when a delivery is promised from stock that is not there. Wants goods receipt booked on a scanner, stock per bin and batch, purchase proposals from real demand, and bills of materials that plan next week's production instead of a whiteboard.
- **The Online Retailer** (v1.0): Sells on a Shopware shop, Amazon and eBay from one warehouse with eight staff, and oversold a bestseller twice last Christmas. Wants stock synchronised across every channel, orders, labels and returns handled in one place, OSS VAT done right, and a price that does not jump with every thousand orders.
- **The IT Integrator** (v1.0): Looks after IT for a mid-sized manufacturer and has to connect the ERP to the shop, the bank, payroll, the BI tool and a supplier's EDI. Wants a public, versioned API with webhooks and a sandbox, roles and an audit log, hosting and subprocessors named, and a full export the day the company leaves.
- **The Skeptic** (v1.0): Has watched ERP projects run a year late and twice over budget, the partner's day rate the real price. Reads "ERP" that is an invoicing tool with a stock column, "GoBD-ready" with no procedure documentation, "open API" without a public reference, and a module price list that stops where implementation starts, and asks how the data gets out again.

## European sovereignty — proven facts

Built only from facts on the vendor's own pages; a dimension we could not prove is left open, never scored as zero. Headline: not determined.

| Dimension | Finding | Points | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal entity | Not determined | — | — |
| Ownership | Not determined | — | — |
| Data residency | Not determined | — | — |
| Subprocessors | Not determined | — | — |

## Key facts

Each fact is the vendor's own statement, cited to the source page it was read from ([S*n*] → Sources).

**Compliance**
- Children data: no [S4]
- Customer owns data: yes [S3]
- Data portability erpnext export: yes [S4]
- Data processors list: https://cloud.frappe.io/data-processors · yes [S4]
- Data roles: processor · controller [S3]
- DPA available: yes · EU-GDPR · DPDP Act 2023 [S3]
- DPA available: EU-GDPR · India DPDP Act 2023 · yes [S3]
- GDPR representative: EU · UK · Prighter · yes [S4]
- Google API limited use: yes [S4]
- Google user data policy: yes · yes [S3]
- Grievance officer: yes [S4]
- ISO 27001: yes [S3]
- ISO 27001: yes [S3]
- License gpl: GPL-3.0 [S2]
- No automated decision making: no [S4]
- Policy languages: English · Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India [S4]

**Data**
- Backup location: India [S4]
- Backup retention: 6 [S4]
- Backup retention months: 6 [S4]
- Billing retention: longest duration permitted by law [S4]
- Breach notification: yes [S3]
- Breach notification: yes [S3]
- Confidentiality: yes [S3]
- Google API: yes [S3]
- Offsite backups: yes [S3]
- Offsite backups: yes · yes [S3]
- Ownership: yes [S3]
- Retention: yes · yes [S3]
- Retention after termination days: 180 [S4]
- Retention deletion: per subscribed plan · yes [S3]
- Retention post termination: 180 [S4]
- Withdraw consent method: account settings at https://cloud.frappe.io · contact grievance officer [S4]

**Hosting**
- Backup location: India [S4]
- Data locations: worldwide [S4]
- Data residency: yes [S4]
- Frappe cloud: Frappe · Frappe Cloud [S2]
- Frappe cloud: Frappe Cloud · yes [S1]
- Self host: GPL-3.0 · yes [S2]

**Integrations**
- API first: yes [S1]
- Marketplace: https://frappe.io/cloud/marketplace/search [S3]
- Open source: ERPNext · Frappe Framework · Frappe HR · Frappe CRM [S3]
- Policies incorporated: https://frappe.io/support-sla · https://docs.frappe.io/cloud/sites/backups · https://frappe.io/cloud/privacy [S3]
- Rest API ecosystem: yes · yes [S1]
- Terms of service URL: https://frappe.io/cloud/terms [S4]

**Legal**
- Affiliate definition: 50 [S4]
- Affiliation definition: 50 [S4]
- Arbitration: Mumbai, India · English · Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 [S3]
- Arbitration: English · 1 · Mumbai, India [S3]
- Children definition: 18 · no [S4]
- Datev endorsement: no [S5]
- Effective date: 2026-04-01 [S3]
- Effective date: 2026-04-01 [S3]
- Entity: Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd. [S4]
- Entity name: Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd. [S4]
- Governing law: Mumbai · India [S3]
- Governing law: Mumbai courts · India [S3]
- Grievance officer: Grievance Redressal page · yes [S3]
- Jurisdiction india: India · no [S4]
- Jurisdiction india: India [S4]
- Language: English [S4]
- Last updated: 2026-04-01 [S4]
- Last updated: 2026-04-01 [S4]
- Law enforcement requests: 0 [S4]
- Liability cap: fees paid in preceding 12 months [S3]
- Marketing optout: yes [S4]
- Operator: Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd. [S3]
- Operator entity: Frappe Technologies Pvt. Ltd. [S3]
- Ownership deemed: invoice holder deemed account owner [S3]
- Policy change notice: 14 [S4]
- Policy change notice days: 14 [S4]

**Pricing**
- Billing dispute window: 30 [S3]
- Billing dispute window days: 30 [S3]
- Credits non refundable: no [S3]
- Dedicated plan: monthly · USD · Everything in Hetzner, plus · Superior Dedicated Server isolation · Server snapshots, autoscaling · Stronger reliability guarantees · Global data centre locations · Product Warranty · 125 [S2]
- Fees for software zero: Services · 0 [S3]
- Hosting based: pay only for hosting · no [S1]
- Model: yes · no [S2]
- Payment methods: yes · yes [S3]
- Price modification rights: yes [S3]
- Refunds credits: no [S3]
- Servers plan: monthly · USD · Shared or Dedicated instances · Unified or Separate App & DB · Best price-performance ratio · Limited uptime guarantees · Only incident support · 20 [S2]
- Sites plan: monthly · USD · Single site · Managed upgrades & backups · Lowest entry cost · Scripting & custom apps · Product Warranty · Hosting on shared servers · 5 [S2]
- Software fee: 0 · yes [S3]
- Tax exclusive: no [S3]
- Taxes: yes [S3]

**Product**
- Accepted rejected warehouses: Supports separate Accepted Warehouse and Rejected Warehouse on item rows [S8]
- Account ownership rule: invoice holder deemed account owner [S3]
- Accounting dimensions: Cost Center, Project, Branch or custom dimensions [S7]
- Accounting dimensions: Cost Center, Project, Branch, custom dimensions [S7]
- Accounting features: multi-subsidiary · multi-currency · general ledger · accounts payable/receivable · financial statements · fixed assets · global tax and compliance [S1]
- Additional discount: Additional Discount control available on receipt [S8]
- Affiliated policies: https://frappe.io/support-sla · https://docs.frappe.io/cloud/sites/backups · https://frappe.io/cloud/privacy [S3]
- Allocate full amount to stock: Allocate Full Amount to Stock Items increases inventory value without increasing tax-bearing amount [S8]
- Amendment notice period days: 14 [S3]
- Amendment period: 14 [S3]
- Auto cancel einvoice setting: Optional setting 'Automatically Cancel e-Invoice on Invoice Cancellation' in GST Settings [S6]
- Auto cancel setting: Automatically Cancel e-Invoice on Invoice Cancellation · GST Settings [S6]
- Automated decision making: no [S4]
- Backflush setting: Default consumption method configurable via Manufacturing Settings 'Backflush Raw Materials Based On' [S9]
- Barcode scanning: Barcode/scan support for identifying items at receipt [S8]
- Bom alternative item: yes [S9]
- Bom balance item: yes · 1 [S9]
- Bom cost auto update: yes [S9]
- Bom costing: BOM costing section gives approximate manufacturing cost from valuation rates and operation costs [S9]
- Bom costing: yes [S9]
- Bom dashboard documents: Document types creatable from BOM dashboard after submit (list follows in page image) [S9]
- Bom definition: BOM is a list of items and sub-assemblies with quantities required to manufacture an Item [S9]
- Bom definition: BOM is a list of items and sub-assemblies with quantities required to manufacture an Item [S9]
- Bom do not explode: yes [S9]
- Bom exploded materials: yes [S9]
- Bom immutable after submit: no [S9]
- Bom immutable after submit: cancel, duplicate, resubmit · no [S9]
- Bom inspection: Quality Inspection can be made mandatory for raw materials and finished goods [S9]
- Bom inspection required: yes [S9]
- Bom is active option: yes [S9]
- Bom is default option: yes [S9]
- Bom options: Is Active · Is Default · Inspection Required · Allow Alternative Item · Allow Same Item Multiple Times · Set rate of sub-assembly item based on BOM · Is Phantom BOM [S9]
- Bom percentage quantities: yes · percentages must total exactly 100% · only one balance item allowed · mixed percentage/manual-qty BOMs not allowed [S9]
- Bom phantom: yes [S9]
- Bom prerequisites: Item · Operation · Workstation · Routing [S9]
- Bom project link: yes [S9]
- Bom project link: yes [S9]
- Bom rate basis options: Valuation Rate · Last Purchase Rate · Price List [S9]
- Bom same item multiple times: yes [S9]
- Bom template: BOM Template supports template/variant items and variant BOM creation [S9]
- Bom template: yes [S9]
- Bom website display: yes [S9]
- Bom website display: yes [S9]
- Bom with operations: BOM with Operations supported for operation costing [S9]
- Bom with operations: yes [S9]
- Close action: yes · no [S8]
- Compatible versions: 13 · 14 · 15 · 16 [S5]
- Consume components based on: BOM · Material Transferred for Manufacture · yes [S9]
- Credit note correction: After 24 hours, corrections require a credit note and a new invoice [S6]
- Data portability erpnext: yes [S4]
- Datev consultant handoff: Exports DATEV report with master data as ZIP file for import into tax consultant's DATEV system [S5]
- Datev CSV export: Exports raw General Ledger entries in DATEV CSV format [S5]
- Datev CSV export: Exports raw General Ledger entries from ERPNext in DATEV CSV format [S5]
- Datev integration overview: DATEV Integration app connects ERPNext with DATEV workflows used by German accounting teams and tax consultants [S5]
- Datev not datev endorsed: no [S5]
- Datev publisher: ALYF GmbH · DATEV Integration [S5]
- Datev settings fields: DATEV Settings configured with client number, tax consultant number, and temporary contra account [S5]
- Datev unternehmen online email: Sends submitted vouchers to DATEV Unternehmen Online by email; outgoing vouchers convertible to PDF, incoming vouchers can send attached files [S5]
- Datev unternehmen online setup: Setup: enable integration, choose sending email account, select voucher type, add target DATEV email address, choose attachments or generated prints [S5]
- Datev unternehmen online vouchers: Sends submitted vouchers to DATEV Unternehmen Online by email; outgoing vouchers convert to PDF; incoming vouchers send attached files [S5]
- Datev uo configuration: sending email account · voucher type · target email address · attachments vs generated prints [S5]
- Datev version compatibility: 13 · 14 · 15 · 16 [S5]
- Duplicate invoice check: Supplier Invoice No helps prevent duplicate entry [S7]
- Duplicate invoice check: yes [S7]

**Subprocessors**
- Processor list URL: https://cloud.frappe.io/data-processors [S4]

**Support**
- Channel portal only: support portal https://support.frappe.io/ [S3]
- Channels: free online documentation · community forums · video tutorials · technical support via HelpDesk [S1]
- Exclusions: customizations excluded from support [S3]
- Grievance redressal: Grievance Redressal page [S4]
- Out of scope fees: yes [S3]
- Partners: 200+ [S1]
- Portal: https://support.frappe.io/ · support portal · yes [S3]
- Related docs: Related docs: GST/e-invoice/e-way bill help, generating and cancelling e-invoice, e-Invoice and e-Waybill FAQs [S6]
- Right to nominate: yes [S4]
- Self implementation: docs · guides · videos · community forum · yes [S1]
- SLA URL: https://frappe.io/support-sla [S3]
- SLA URL: https://frappe.io/support-sla [S3]
- Supervisory authority: yes [S4]

155 more facts on the canonical page: https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/erpnext

## Questions

### Is ERPNext European?

No. whats-best.ai classifies ERPNext as Rest of world.

### Where does ERPNext store data?

Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 28 Oct 2026.

### Does ERPNext have a free plan?

Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 28 Oct 2026.

### What are the best alternatives to ERPNext?

As of 29 Oct 2026, the panel rates [Odoo (4/5)](https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/odoo-erp), [weclapp (3.5/5)](https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/weclapp-erp) and [Haufe X360 (3.5/5)](https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/haufe-x360) highest among the other 13 ERP products evaluated. Ratings that look equal are rounded to half stars; the order uses the unrounded rating, then the name. The highest-rated European alternative is [Odoo](https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/odoo-erp) (EU-Made). Ratings are the AI panel’s opinion, formed from public evidence: [how scores are made](https://whats-best.ai/methodology#ordering). The full list, with European products first: [ERPNext alternatives](https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/erpnext/alternatives).

## What this page leaves out

- 8 pricing facts could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and were left out of this page and of the panel’s material.
- 4 product facts could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and were left out of this page and of the panel’s material.
- 3 compliance facts could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and were left out of this page and of the panel’s material.
- 3 support facts could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and were left out of this page and of the panel’s material.
- 1 integrations fact could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and was left out of this page and of the panel’s material.
- 1 sovereignty dimension could not be confirmed on the vendor’s own pages and is shown as unknown.

## Sources

- [S1] Vendor homepage: https://frappe.io/erpnext (checked 2026-10-26)
- [S2] Pricing page: https://frappe.io/erpnext/pricing (checked 2026-10-26)
- [S3] Terms naming the legal entity: https://docs.frappe.io/legal/terms/frappe-cloud-terms (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S4] Privacy policy: https://docs.frappe.io/legal/policies/privacy-policy (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S5] Finance, tax & compliance — found from sitemap: https://docs.frappe.io/erpnext/datev-integration (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S6] Finance, tax & compliance — found from sitemap: https://docs.frappe.io/erpnext/e-invoice-failed-or-cancel (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S7] Purchasing, inventory & order processing — found from sitemap: https://docs.frappe.io/erpnext/purchase-invoice (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S8] Purchasing, inventory & order processing — found from sitemap: https://docs.frappe.io/erpnext/purchase-receipt (checked 2026-10-28)
- [S9] Manufacturing, services & projects — found from sitemap: https://docs.frappe.io/erpnext/bill-of-materials (checked 2026-10-28)

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Cite as: whats-best.ai, "ERPNext — ERP", AI panel analysis, as of 2026-10-29. https://whats-best.ai/software/erp/erpnext

Corrections: https://whats-best.ai/correct/1009?target=page