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ERP · head to head

ADempiere vs Metasfresh

ADempiere logo

ADempiere

ERP

Community-run open source ERP forked from Compiere, with no vendor behind it

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Metasfresh logo

Metasfresh

ERP

Open-source ERP for mid-sized wholesale and manufacturing

From
€99/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only ADempiere has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: ADempiere there is no company behind it, so there is no support contract to buy, no SLA, no escalation path and no roadmap commitment; if your implementation partner leaves the market you own the problem entirely.; Metasfresh cloud hosting is charged separately from user licences at EUR 299 per month on monthly billing or EUR 249 per month on annual billing
  • They diverge on capability: ADempiere covers Application dictionary, Metasfresh covers Supply chain.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ADempiere and Metasfresh actually diverge.

Attributes where ADempiere and Metasfresh differ
AttributeADempiereMetasfresh
Starting priceFree€99/month
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hostedSelf-hosted, Cloud, Web
FoundedUnknown2015

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (ERP).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in ADempiere

  • Application dictionary
  • Financial accounting
  • Order to cash and procure to pay
  • Inventory and warehouse
  • Point of sale
  • Workflow engine
  • Java and PostgreSQL stack
  • gRPC and REST services

Only in Metasfresh

  • Supply chain
  • Inventory
  • Purchasing
  • Accounting
  • Wholesale management
  • Custom modules
  • EDI systems
  • Business analytics

Both cover

  • Manufacturing

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

ADempiere

  • A manufacturer in Latin America with an existing ADempiere consulting partner that needs localised tax and accounting behaviour a global vendor will not buildnot Metasfresh
  • A company that wants to modify ERP screens and document workflows without a vendor change request, using the application dictionary rather than codenot Metasfresh
  • An organisation with a hard requirement to keep financial data on its own servers under its own control with no cloud dependencynot Metasfresh
  • A systems integrator building a vertical ERP product on a permissive base it can fork and ship without paying a licence feenot Metasfresh

Metasfresh

  • Open source ERP for procurement, sales, warehouse and accountingnot ADempiere
  • Hosting an ERP in a German data centre on a dedicated servernot ADempiere
  • Self hosting an ERP where the source code must be inspectablenot ADempiere

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

ADempiere

  • There is no company behind it, so there is no support contract to buy, no SLA, no escalation path and no roadmap commitment; if your implementation partner leaves the market you own the problem entirely.
  • The official website adempiere.net does not resolve, which strands most of the historic documentation and tutorials that search engines still point at and makes onboarding a new developer considerably harder.
  • The last conventional stable release, 3.9.4, is from January 2023, so despite ongoing GitHub activity a buyer evaluating on release cadence sees a project moving slowly.
  • iDempiere, a later fork of the same codebase, absorbed much of the developer community, so ADempiere competes for contributors with its own descendant and is the smaller of the two ecosystems.
  • The interface and the Java Swing heritage feel dated, and staff coming from a modern cloud ERP will need training and will complain; expect resistance from finance and warehouse users during rollout.

Metasfresh

  • Cloud hosting is charged separately from user licences at EUR 299 per month on monthly billing or EUR 249 per month on annual billing
  • The EUR 79 per user per month annual rate requires minimum user quantities that depend on company size; monthly billing costs EUR 99 per user per month
  • The mandatory starter package covering setup, customisation, project management and training is priced individually on request
  • Standard support is email only during business hours; a 24/7 SLA is a separate contract on request
  • All published prices exclude VAT
  • Projects larger than the L size starter package require an individual quote

Pricing, plan by plan

ADempiere

Free
  • Community editionFree
    • GPL v2 licensed, no licence fee
    • Full ERP, CRM, supply chain and POS modules
    • Self-hosted on your own infrastructure

Metasfresh

€99/month
  • Starter Package$null/custom
    • Initial system setup
    • Customization of windows and documents
    • Project management
  • User Fee$99/month
    • Monthly billing
    • Access to all developments
    • Support and integration
  • User Fee (annual)$79/month
    • Annual billing minimum
    • Access to all developments
    • Support and integration
  • Cloud Hosting$299/month
    • Monthly billing
    • Secure data transfer
    • Real-time backup

Which should you pick?

Choose ADempiere if

  • You need application dictionary.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted.
  • You also want financial accounting.
ADempiere review

Choose Metasfresh if

  • You need supply chain.
  • You work on Self-hosted, Cloud, Web.
  • You also want inventory.
Metasfresh review

Questions people ask

Is ADempiere or Metasfresh better?
Neither clearly leads. ADempiere starts at Free and Metasfresh at €99/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ADempiere or Metasfresh?
ADempiere has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for ADempiere and €99/month for Metasfresh.
Does ADempiere or Metasfresh run on more platforms?
ADempiere runs on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted. Metasfresh runs on Self-hosted, Cloud, Web.
Can I use ADempiere for free?
Yes. ADempiere has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Metasfresh starts at €99/month.
What is ADempiere best used for?
ADempiere is most often used for a manufacturer in latin america with an existing adempiere consulting partner that needs localised tax and accounting behaviour a global vendor will not build, a company that wants to modify erp screens and document workflows without a vendor change request, using the application dictionary rather than code, an organisation with a hard requirement to keep financial data on its own servers under its own control with no cloud dependency, a systems integrator building a vertical erp product on a permissive base it can fork and ship without paying a licence fee. Of those, a manufacturer in latin america with an existing adempiere consulting partner that needs localised tax and accounting behaviour a global vendor will not build and a company that wants to modify erp screens and document workflows without a vendor change request, using the application dictionary rather than code are not what Metasfresh is typically brought in for.
What can ADempiere do that Metasfresh cannot?
ADempiere covers Application dictionary, Financial accounting, Order to cash and procure to pay, Inventory and warehouse. Metasfresh covers Supply chain, Inventory, Purchasing, Accounting. Both handle Manufacturing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ADempiere: Should I choose ADempiere or iDempiere?

Look at iDempiere first. It is a later fork of the same codebase with a more active community and a modular OSGi architecture. Choose ADempiere if a specific partner or localisation you need only exists there.

Metasfresh: What is metasfresh's monthly user fee?

metasfresh charges per-user monthly fees starting at 99 euros per user with monthly billing or 79 euros per user with annual billing (minimum user quantity required based on company size). This includes access to all ERP developments, support, integration, and custom configuration.

Source
ADempiere: Is ADempiere free?

The software is GPL licensed with no licence fee. The cost is implementation, customisation and permanent in-house maintenance, which for a real deployment is substantial.

Metasfresh: How much does metasfresh cloud hosting cost?

metasfresh Cloud Hosting costs 299 euros per month with monthly billing or 249 euros per month with annual billing. This includes secure data transfer, real-time backup, dedicated German server infrastructure, and comprehensive support.

Source
ADempiere: Is the project still alive?

Development continues on GitHub with commits into 2026, but the official website is down and the last stable release is from January 2023. Treat it as maintained rather than actively advancing.

Metasfresh: Is there a one-time setup fee for metasfresh?

Yes, metasfresh includes a Starter Package with one-time costs for initial system setup, customization, project management, and multiplier training with online meeting room access. Exact pricing is available upon request based on company size and requirements.

Source
ADempiere: What is the application dictionary?

It is the metadata layer inherited from Compiere that stores the definition of every window, field and validation rule as data, so you can change the application without touching source code.

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