Background
Dynamics 365 Business Central
In 1984, three young entrepreneurs in Denmark released the precursor application to Navision (which would later become Dynamics NAV) under the name PC&C (Personal Computing and Consulting). In 1987, the developers released Navigator 1.00, which took PC&C’s single-user application and turned it into a client/server-based accounting program which allowed multi-user access. The first version of Navision for Windows was released in 1993.
In 2000, Navision Software merged with Danish firm Damgaard, making it a 1000+ employee company with partners in 25 (primarily European) countries. A mere 2 years later, Microsoft acquired Navision and brought it under the Microsoft Business Solutions umbrella managed by Doug Burgum. Microsoft rebranded Navision (along with Microsoft CRM, Great Plains, Axapta, and Solomon) in 2005 as Microsoft Dynamics NAV.
Dynamics 365 Business Central was released in April 2018 as an “all-in-one business management solution.“ Built on the functionality, code, and development experience of Microsoft Dynamics NAV, Business Central is a native-cloud solution that delivers a modern, browser-based ERP experience. Designed to integrate directly with Office 365, Business Central features extensive customizability and extendibility options via PowerApps, Power Automate (formerly Microsoft Flow), and Power BI. Learn more about integrating Business Central →
Oracle NetSuite
NetSuite, founded by Evan Goldberg in 1998, was one of the world’s first accounting systems that was entirely web-based. From 1998-2007, both the product and company grew rapidly, culminating in a successful 2007 Initial Public Offering. NetSuite was officially acquired by parent company Oracle for more than $9 billion on July 28, 2016, though the two companies had experience working together on the Oracle Small Business Suite in the early 2000’s, when NetSuite was still NetLedger.
NetSuite is currently offered by Oracle as a comprehensive cloud-based ERP and CRM solution designed and priced for small to midsize businesses. More than 16,000 businesses across 200 countries currently use NetSuite ERP. While it is owned by Oracle, NetSuite is not the same as Oracle ERP, a system designed for enterprise organizations.
-
Licensing: $70/user/month. Additional add-ons available.
Billing Frequency: Monthly
Implementation: Financial Accounting Implementations begin at $19,995 USD. Manufacturing implementations, because they are more complex, begin at $30,995 USD.
Other Considerations:
Dynamics 365 Business Central contracts are managed through Microsoft Partners. Business Central licenses can be added removed on a monthly basis limiting cost of a changing business. All major updates are applied automatically by Microsoft at no additional cost to the end user.
-
Common Pros: Advanced financial management functionality, user friendly, integration with Office 365, affordable, cloud-based
Common Cons: Occasional glitches, lacks CRM capabilities on its own.
Dynamics 365 Business Central provides a robust financial management application that is easily scalable. End users will find the cloud-based web application easy to use and enjoy the comprehensive integration with Office 365.
-
Dynamics 365 Business Central 30 day free trials are available. A free trial includes access to a Dynamics 365 Business Central trial account loaded sample data (you have the option to import your own). The free trial also allows you to invite other users from your organization to test for the duration of the trial.
-
Microsoft releases two major updates to Dynamics 365 Business Central per year—in April and October. These updates will include new capabilities, performance improvements, and better support experiences. All releases are automatically updated; however, any major changes to the user experience will be turned off automatically giving administrators time to test and enable these features as they see fit.
-
A major strength of Business Central is its flexibility and ability to integrate with Microsoft and other 3rd party applications. This is done by creating custom apps, installing 3rd party apps from Microsoft AppSource, or working with 3rd party services. Business Central is built to maximize customization, so the majority of app development requires little to no coding.
In addition to the wide range of apps that extend the functionality of Business Central, much can be done to personalize and enhance the interface each user will have. Using the Designer, users can easily drag-and-drop fact boxes, data fields, tables and grids, and other data that was previously hidden. Beyond basic changes, complex enhancements can be made to the UI using Visual Studio.
-
Licensing: NetSuite prices are not published publicly. Estimated pricing is $999/month + $99/user/month.
Billing Frequency: Annual
Implementation: Implementation prices are not posted publicly. Former NetSuite employees report that implementations begin at $25,000 USD for single-module implementations. Mid-sized organizations typically range closer to $90,000-$100,000 USD.
Other Considerations:
NetSuite users report that contracts are often negotiated annually, and pricing generally changes each year. Some users report prices increasing by as much as 10% year-over-year. Because NetSuite is a highly customizable, modular system, as an organization grows or changes, it may find itself requiring additional modules. NetSuite will almost certainly accommodate the growth, but monthly costs will likely increase as well. Personalization in NetSuite is possible through the SuiteCloud, which comes with an additional fee. Some users have complained that the SuiteCloud is rather hard to learn without the correct training courses offered from Oracle, costing up to $1600 for a two day course.
-
Common Pros: Advanced ERP functionality, ease-of-use, scalable
Common Cons: Lack of customer support and training, Lack of integration with 3rd party applications, expensive
NetSuite is regarded as a comprehensive ERP system with exceptional depth and usability. While you cannot purchase individual modules, NetSuite gives small, medium, and large companies the ERP tools they need to succeed.
-
NetSuite 30-day free trials are available through Oracle’s partner channel. A free trial includes complete control over a test account with unlimited access to the application and ability to import your own data.
-
NetSuite has two major version updates per year that are typically released in February/March and August/September. These major releases contain new functionality or enhancements to existing features. NetSuite recommends working with an implementation partner to test and implement every release.
-
NetSuite allows for a similar amount of modification as Business Central does through its SuiteCloud Platform. The SuiteCloud allows users to personalize their dashboards and feeds, build custom apps, and incorporate third-party solutions through SuiteApp.com.
In addition to the SuiteCloud and SuiteApps, NetSuite has connections with SAP, SalesForce, and Google Apps. NetSuite comes out-of-box as a strong but inflexible ERP system, and the SuiteCloud platform that allows users to personalize their settings, build apps, and integrate with others comes with an additional cost. There is also a fee for sandbox environments, which are used to develop and test the customizations you build in a place that will not impact current operations.
Business Central
NetSuite
The Bottom Line
The difference between Business Central and NetSuite when it comes to customization lies in the pricing and licensing details. Dynamics Business Central comes out-of-box with all the tools you’ll need to customize interfaces, develop apps for your business, and download external apps that improve how you operate. This includes the Designer and Visual Studio, sandbox environments, and access to Microsoft AppSource at no additional cost. Nearly every Microsoft business app was made with integrations in mind and Microsoft clearly recommends connecting all of the apps you use to get the most out of each one.