ERP · head to head
Dolibarr vs Laravel
Dolibarr
ERP
Modular open source ERP and CRM for very small businesses, installable on shared hosting
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Dolibarr the core is deliberately shallow, so a serious requirement such as advanced manufacturing, EDI or a specific payment gateway usually means buying a DoliStore module from a third-party author, and the quality and maintenance of those modules varies widely.; Laravel performance overhead from abstractions, middleware pipeline, and multiple layers can slow applications compared to minimal frameworks
- They diverge on capability: Dolibarr covers Module toggles, Laravel covers Eloquent ORM.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Dolibarr and Laravel actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).
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 Dolibarr
- Module toggles
- Third-party management
- Quotes to invoices
- Stock and warehouses
- Double-entry accounting
- Projects and time
- Point of sale
- DoliStore
Only in Laravel
- Eloquent ORM
- Artisan CLI
- Blade templating
- Middleware
- Authentication
- Caching
- Queue system
- Event broadcasting
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Dolibarr
- A two-person consultancy wants quotes, invoices and basic accounting self-hosted on an existing five euro a month shared hosting account with no server administration.not Laravel
- A French or Spanish small business needs VAT handling and accounting exports that match local practice out of the box rather than after configuration.not Laravel
- An association or nonprofit needs membership, subscription and donation tracking alongside ordinary invoicing without paying per member.not Laravel
- A small distributor wants stock, purchase orders and sales orders in one system and is willing to buy a DoliStore module rather than commission bespoke development.not Laravel
Laravel
- Web application developmentnot Dolibarr
- API developmentnot Dolibarr
- E-commerce platformsnot Dolibarr
- Content managementnot Dolibarr
- Enterprise applicationsnot Dolibarr
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Dolibarr
- The core is deliberately shallow, so a serious requirement such as advanced manufacturing, EDI or a specific payment gateway usually means buying a DoliStore module from a third-party author, and the quality and maintenance of those modules varies widely.
- Accounting was designed around French practice, and the chart of accounts, VAT model and fiscal exports need real work to satisfy accountants in the United States, the UK or Australia.
- The interface is functional rather than designed and shows its age against Odoo, which makes internal adoption harder when staff are comparing it to consumer-grade software.
- Upgrades between major versions can break paid third-party modules, because module authors update on their own schedules and there is no guarantee your combination will work on version 24 the day it ships.
- Support is community forums unless you buy a partner contract, and the documentation is a wiki of uneven quality with substantial parts written in French, so English-only teams hit dead ends.
Laravel
- Performance overhead from abstractions, middleware pipeline, and multiple layers can slow applications compared to minimal frameworks
- Dependency management is complex with many interdependent packages requiring careful version coordination
Pricing, plan by plan
Dolibarr
Free- Self-hostedFree
- Full GPL source, all core modules
- Unlimited users
- You provide PHP and MySQL hosting
- Partner cloud hosting$14/month
- Managed hosting from DoliCloud or a certified partner
- Backups, updates and support included
- Typically 10 to 30 euros per user per month
Laravel
Free- Open SourceFree
- Full framework
- Artisan CLI
- Eloquent ORM
- Laravel Forge$12/month
- Server management
- Deployment automation
- SSL certificates
- Laravel Vapor$39/month
- Serverless deployment
- Auto-scaling
- AWS integration
Which should you pick?
Choose Dolibarr if
- You need module toggles.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Self-hosted, Docker, Windows, macOS, Linux, Android.
- You also want third-party management.
Choose Laravel if
- You need eloquent orm.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, CLI.
- You also want artisan cli.
Questions people ask
- Is Dolibarr or Laravel better?
- Neither clearly leads. Dolibarr starts at Free and Laravel at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Dolibarr or Laravel?
- Dolibarr starts at Free and Laravel at Free.
- Does Dolibarr or Laravel run on more platforms?
- Dolibarr runs on Web, Self-hosted, Docker, Windows, macOS, Linux, Android. Laravel runs on Web, CLI.
- Can I use Dolibarr for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Dolibarr best used for?
- Dolibarr is most often used for a two-person consultancy wants quotes, invoices and basic accounting self-hosted on an existing five euro a month shared hosting account with no server administration., a french or spanish small business needs vat handling and accounting exports that match local practice out of the box rather than after configuration., an association or nonprofit needs membership, subscription and donation tracking alongside ordinary invoicing without paying per member., a small distributor wants stock, purchase orders and sales orders in one system and is willing to buy a dolistore module rather than commission bespoke development.. Of those, a two-person consultancy wants quotes, invoices and basic accounting self-hosted on an existing five euro a month shared hosting account with no server administration. and a french or spanish small business needs vat handling and accounting exports that match local practice out of the box rather than after configuration. are not what Laravel is typically brought in for.
- What can Dolibarr do that Laravel cannot?
- Dolibarr covers Module toggles, Third-party management, Quotes to invoices, Stock and warehouses. Laravel covers Eloquent ORM, Artisan CLI, Blade templating, Middleware.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Dolibarr: Is Dolibarr genuinely free?
Yes. The full application is GPL with no user limit and no paid edition of the core. You pay only for hosting, optional DoliStore modules and optional partner support.
Laravel: Is Laravel free and open source?
Yes, Laravel is completely free and open source under the MIT License. You can use, modify, and distribute it without restrictions.
SourceDolibarr: Can it run on shared hosting?
Yes, that is its main practical advantage. It needs only PHP and MySQL or MariaDB, so an ordinary cPanel account is enough.
Laravel: What are the key features Laravel provides?
Laravel includes an ORM (Eloquent), database migrations, authentication, authorization, caching, queues, email, testing, and deployment tools. It supports multiple databases and provides starter kits for full-stack and API development.
SourceDolibarr: How does it compare to Odoo?
Odoo is deeper and better presented but its useful modules are in the paid Enterprise edition and it needs a proper deployment. Dolibarr is thinner but free end to end and far easier to host.
Laravel: Can I deploy Laravel on any server?
Yes, Laravel can be deployed on any PHP server. You can use shared hosting, VPS, or managed platforms like Laravel Cloud, which starts at $5/month with auto-scaling and git-like branching.
SourceDolibarr: Does it handle UK or US accounting?
Not comfortably out of the box. The accounting module reflects French conventions and needs configuration and often a local module to satisfy an accountant elsewhere.
Laravel: Does Laravel have testing and local development tools?
Yes, Laravel includes Dusk for browser testing, PHPUnit for unit tests, and Herd (free for basic use) for local development environments with built-in PHP, Composer, and Nginx support.
SourceRelated pages
Other head to heads
- Dolibarr vs Odoo
- Dolibarr vs Metasfresh
- Dolibarr vs ADempiere
- Dolibarr vs Tryton
- Dolibarr vs Axelor
- Dolibarr vs iDempiere
- Dolibarr vs NetSuite
- Dolibarr vs Apache OFBiz
- Dolibarr vs TallyPrime
- Dolibarr vs Epicor
- Dolibarr vs Ivalua
- Dolibarr vs OpenBravo
- Dolibarr vs Comarch
- Dolibarr vs Dynamics AX
- Dolibarr vs Ecount
- Dolibarr vs Exact Online
- Dolibarr vs Focus Softnet
- Dolibarr vs Holded
- Dolibarr vs Django
- Dolibarr vs MySQL
- Dolibarr vs Node.js
- Dolibarr vs Remix
- Dolibarr vs Drupal
- Dolibarr vs Vue.js
- Dolibarr vs SolidStart
- Dolibarr vs TanStack Start
- Dolibarr vs Alpine.js
- Dolibarr vs NestJS
- Dolibarr vs Next.js
- Dolibarr vs Flask
- Dolibarr vs Ruby on Rails
- Dolibarr vs Sass
- Dolibarr vs SolidJS
- Dolibarr vs Spring Boot
- Dolibarr vs Strikingly
- Dolibarr vs Svelte
- Laravel vs Odoo
- Laravel vs Metasfresh
- Laravel vs ADempiere
- Laravel vs Tryton
- Laravel vs Axelor
- Laravel vs iDempiere
- Laravel vs NetSuite
- Laravel vs Apache OFBiz
- Laravel vs TallyPrime
- Laravel vs Epicor
- Laravel vs Ivalua
- Laravel vs OpenBravo
- Laravel vs Comarch
- Laravel vs Dynamics AX
- Laravel vs Ecount
- Laravel vs Exact Online
- Laravel vs Focus Softnet
- Laravel vs Holded
- Laravel vs Django
- Laravel vs MySQL
- Laravel vs Node.js
- Laravel vs Remix
- Laravel vs Drupal
- Laravel vs Vue.js
- Laravel vs SolidStart
- Laravel vs TanStack Start
- Laravel vs Alpine.js
- Laravel vs NestJS
- Laravel vs Next.js
- Laravel vs Flask
- Laravel vs Ruby on Rails
- Laravel vs Sass
- Laravel vs SolidJS
- Laravel vs Spring Boot
- Laravel vs Strikingly
- Laravel vs Svelte