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ERP · head to head

ADempiere vs QAD ERP

ADempiere logo

ADempiere

ERP

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

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
QAD ERP logo

QAD ERP

ERP

Cloud ERP for global manufacturers

From
$600/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.; QAD ERP no published pricing; requires custom quote
  • They diverge on capability: ADempiere covers Application dictionary, QAD ERP covers Manufacturing execution.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ADempiere and QAD ERP actually diverge.

Attributes where ADempiere and QAD ERP differ
AttributeADempiereQAD ERP
Starting priceFree$600/month
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hostedCloud, Web, Mobile
FoundedUnknown1979

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
  • Manufacturing
  • Point of sale
  • Workflow engine
  • Java and PostgreSQL stack

Only in QAD ERP

  • Manufacturing execution
  • Supply chain management
  • Quality management
  • Financial management
  • Business analytics
  • Quality systems
  • Supplier management
  • Analytics

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 QAD ERP
  • A company that wants to modify ERP screens and document workflows without a vendor change request, using the application dictionary rather than codenot QAD ERP
  • An organisation with a hard requirement to keep financial data on its own servers under its own control with no cloud dependencynot QAD ERP
  • A systems integrator building a vertical ERP product on a permissive base it can fork and ship without paying a licence feenot QAD ERP

QAD ERP

  • Enterprise resource planningnot ADempiere
  • Manufacturing operationsnot ADempiere
  • Supply chain managementnot 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.

QAD ERP

  • No published pricing; requires custom quote
  • Sales-oriented contact model

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

QAD ERP

$600/month
  • Standard$600/month
    • Core manufacturing
    • Financial management
    • Supply chain
  • Advanced$1500/month
    • Advanced modules
    • Quality management
    • Advanced analytics

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 QAD ERP if

  • You need manufacturing execution.
  • You work on Cloud, Web, Mobile.
  • You also want supply chain management.
QAD ERP review

Questions people ask

Is ADempiere or QAD ERP better?
Neither clearly leads. ADempiere starts at Free and QAD ERP at $600/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ADempiere or QAD ERP?
ADempiere has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for ADempiere and $600/month for QAD ERP.
Does ADempiere or QAD ERP run on more platforms?
ADempiere runs on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted. QAD ERP runs on Cloud, Web, Mobile.
Can I use ADempiere for free?
Yes. ADempiere has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. QAD ERP starts at $600/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 QAD ERP is typically brought in for.
What can ADempiere do that QAD ERP cannot?
ADempiere covers Application dictionary, Financial accounting, Order to cash and procure to pay, Inventory and warehouse. QAD ERP covers Manufacturing execution, Supply chain management, Quality management, Financial management.

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.

QAD ERP: How is QAD ERP priced?

QAD does not publish pricing on their website. Potential customers are directed to request a demo or contact QAD sales directly to discuss pricing and specific requirements.

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.

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.

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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