Sustainable Substitutes for SAP

SAP is an enterprise resource planning software.

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Reasons to avoid SAP

SAP is criticised for its role in consolidating Big Tech market power, with ongoing EU antitrust investigations alleging monopolistic practices that restrict competition and data access. The company faces persistent scrutiny over privacy concerns, including opaque data handling and mining and is criticised for a lack of transparency in its operations and data collection. SAP's use of AI raises ethical and transparency concerns.

Choose open-source, transparent ERP software instead.

Ethical and Sustainable SAP Alternatives

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SuiteCRM

An open-source, affordable and customisable Customer Relatation Management system.

SuiteCRM is fully open-source, ensuring transparency, customization, and community-driven development.
SuiteCRM Ltd is based in Scotland (UK). SuiteCRM is developed and maintained in the EU/UK.
SuiteCRM can be self-hosted, giving businesses full control over their data and infrastructure.
SuiteCRM does not include advertisements, maintaining a professional and clean interface.
SuiteCRM prioritises user privacy, particularly in self-hosted environments.
SuiteCRM itself does not have built-in, mandatory AI, but it supports AI integrations via third-party modules and tools.
Self-hosting the community edition is completely free apart from the hosting costs.
SuiteCRM offers a modular design, enabling customisation and scalability according to specific business needs.
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ERPNext

An open-source, affordable and customisable Enterprise Resource Planning system.

ERPNext does not include AI bloat in its core product. AI-based extensions are available though.
ERPNext is designed to be privacy-friendly, particularly in self-hosted environments, minimising data exposure.
ERPNext features a modular design, allowing users to customise and extend functionality based on their requirements.
ERPNext does not display advertisements, ensuring a clean and professional user experience.
ERPNext is free of charge, making it accessible to businesses of all sizes.
ERPNext can be self-hosted, giving businesses full control over their data and infrastructure.
ERPNext is fully open-source, ensuring transparency, customization, and community-driven development.
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Odoo

An open-source Customer Relation Management and Enterprise Ressource Planning suite.

The community edition (self-hosted) is free of charge.
Odoo is designed with privacy in mind, especially when self-hosted.
Odoo does not display advertisements, providing a clean and uninterrupted user experience.
Odoo features a modular architecture, allowing users to enable or disable specific applications based on their needs.
Odoo can be self-hosted, giving businesses full control over their data and infrastructure.
Odoo is based in Belgium, ensuring compliance with GDPR and strong European privacy laws.
Odoo is open-source, allowing full transparency, customization, and community-driven development.
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The 4 main issues with SAP

Big Tech - Big Tech companies do not nourish people and planet. This is especially true in times of political tension.

SAP is one of the largest ERP companies, contributing to market monopolisation. Recent legal actions, such as the Celonis v. SAP case, allege that SAP has used its market power to restrict data access and stifle competition, reinforcing its monopoly in the ERP sector. Source: Law360: Monopolization Claims Against SAP Survive Dismissal (2025)The Register: EU probes SAP over alleged software support stranglehold (2025)

Privacy Concerns - User data is likely to be stored and used against users' best interest.

SAP has faced criticism for its data privacy practices, including concerns over data mining, lack of user control and data breaches due to security vulnerabilities. Despite SAP’s public commitments to privacy and compliance with GDPR, reports indicate ongoing challenges with transparency and data handling, especially in complex ERP environments. Source: Ars Technica: SAP warns of high-severity vulnerabilities in multiple products (2025)

Lack of Transparency - Opacity in operations, data handling, or supply chains, making it difficult for users to understand practices.

SAP has been criticized for its lack of transparency in data collection and usage, especially related to its recent shift towards cloud based data storage. Opacity raises concerns about data security, compliance, and user trust. Source: InsightSoftware: Distrust of SAP DataHeise: Users continue to dislike SAP's rigorous cloud course (2024)

AI Bloat - Service has unnecessary or harmful AI features.

SAP has integrated AI automation tools into its core product. Demand was and adoption is low for this unnecessary feature.Heise: SAP's AI: Companies struggle with S/4 transition and neglect Joule (2025)