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Infor M3 vs SAP Business One comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Infor M3
Ranking in ERP
11th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
14
Ranking in other categories
Activity Based Costing Software (8th)
SAP Business One
Ranking in ERP
5th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
65
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the ERP category, the mindshare of Infor M3 is 5.2%, up from 4.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP Business One is 3.6%, down from 6.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
ERP
 

Featured Reviews

Pravinkumar Bhandare - PeerSpot reviewer
The solution is a reliable, stable, and cost-saving ERP
Different countries have different finance practices, but I believe they need to fine-tune their practices to match industry standards. Practices vary from country to country, for example, in India, it is different than in the US. Sometimes, clients require alternate processes that are not standard, but they claim that these are the standard practices in their industry. At those times, we feel that the option required is not available with the solution. This is not the case only for Infor M3. Other ERPs also have the same problem. We can't mold the ERP to fit the customer's requirements. There are some standards in place because many screens and programs are integrated into the finance process. We can't make modifications to fit the client's requirements. The customer needs specific screens for different users, so if that program is in place, we have one planning tool in Infor M3. Planners need to know all things related to manufacturing, purchase, and sales in order to make decisions about planning. In one of my clients, I came across the requirement that they were asking for user authority in the planning tool. This is not the case though, because all planners need to know all things. However, on the manufacturing side, we can say that the person who is working with machine operations only needs to know machine-related information and doesn't need knowledge of products or sales. That standard industry is available, so we can give access to the user as per their needs. If the maintenance people are there, we can give them limited access, but if the planner is there, we need to give them all access according to industry standards. However, this requirement from the client side is not possible with the standard Infor software, but Infor can consider implementing it if the need is larger for many customers.
Ijlal Naqvi - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy to deploy but needs to improve in the area of BI
If I speak about a feature in the tool that helps with financial management, I would say that of all the products I have ever worked on, used, or implemented, the finance part is pretty much the same in all ERPs and bookkeeping software tools. Finance is a regulated thing. It has to generate financial statements related to all the accounts. All financial management systems will look into the ledger, accounts payable, and accounts receivable. Generally the tool has two models. If the tool's in-house model is opted, then just one person is needed to maintain the product as an ERP administrator. If it is through a partner, then we usually have managed services, so you get access to a whole bunch of resources, technical, functional, finance, manufacturing, supply chain, or resources that you can have as part of the managed services contract. My company does not use much of AI with SAP Business One since it is pretty much manual now. It's still pretty much manual for business process enhancements and it still requires more of a consultative approach with more of a human touch. With SAP S4/HANA, there is a process navigator, process data mining tool that does help users since with the use of AI it provides answers to their questions. Recommendations are subjective to the requirements of the users. I would not recommend SAP Business One to a financial services institution or a bank. I would most definitely recommend it to a small family-owned business with about 20,000,000 of revenue, and that too in the area of discrete manufacturing. I rate the tool a seven out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is highly customizable."
"The most valuable feature of Infor M3 is the level of detail it has about the different manufacturing processes compared to other ERP solutions. Other ERP solutions provide the same level of integration as Infor M3, but Infor M3 specializes in several functions, such as planning and manufacturing."
"The user interface and user experience were good."
"Infor M3 has tailor-made packages for each and every industry."
"Infor M3 has several valuable features, including customer order management and integration capabilities with third-party applications like ION."
"Its ease of use is most valuable. Inquiries are transparent, and it shows good information on each screen. We don't have to go to 14 different screens to find out about one item, which is a big advantage."
"Infor comes up with different tools every year, and they are all compatible with Infor M3, which makes it a more reliable and trustworthy tool. The integration is very smooth."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is the Infor GL tool that allows us to do our application support and development."
"The document search feature is very good."
"One of the biggest advantages of SAP Business One, especially in the public cloud, is that many features are standardized, which reduces the need for customization."
"This is the most efficient ERP that is in the market right now."
"We bought all licenses for the whole package in the very beginning, and now we're just paying for 404 licensed maintenance. It's a standard fee. Of course, we still pay partners for implementation."
"Technical support is quite good. They are helpful and responsive. We are quite satisfied with their level of support."
"SAP Business One has good reports and is simple to customize and use."
"I like that it's stable."
"All parts for inventory control, project budget, accounting, and business information are valuable. It is very friendly to obtain information. It is also very easy to make the changes that we need. We have a developer with us, and he can make the required changes or rules."
 

Cons

"Customer support from Infor is responsive and addresses issues, but the response time can be delayed, which sometimes leads me to explore private vendors."
"The solution's technical support is an area with shortcomings that need improvement, especially the support for the product named M3 rather than the support offered by Infor as an organization."
"Its initial setup was probably complex, but it is a very good system."
"The implementation could be simplified, it's complex."
"An area for improvement in Infor M3 is training. There should be more training resources available for clients. Clients also find it challenging to get consultants or integrators for Infor M3. The product doesn't have enough resources in the market to help clients."
"The solution must provide more learning documents."
"It would be great if Infor added some new workflows in the finance module. I'd also like to see better integration with third-party applications."
"We can't make modifications to fit the client's requirements."
"The user interface could be improved with drag-and-drop functionality that it currently lacks."
"Our company is expanding to different countries, and business is growing. We feel that it is not good enough for the huge volume of the business. On-premises setup is not good enough for the overseas office. We have our onsite premises in Hong Kong, but we have a major sales office in the US. We are looking for a more efficient setup to fulfill our requirements and needs. It can have portals for vendors, suppliers, and customers. I know that they have this feature in version 10, but it still has space to improve."
"It would be ideal if the reporting and dashboards were improved upon."
"Something which would be helpful to management and, from our vantage point as a user, would be to see a simple reporting tool."
"Overall, the integration and the reports can be better."
"There is no dependency, the integration between the other applications."
"We don't have the functionality of the supply chain and mobile applications."
"SAP Business One lacks solutions for some specific use cases, particularly in HR functions and production planning, which require a lot of customization."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"If you compare Infor M3 to SAP, Infor M3 is less expensive than SAP, but if you compare Infor M3 to Dynamics 365, Infor M3 is more expensive. It also depends on the model that you buy. It depends on whether you have the complete package or whether you have separate models."
"Infor M3 is a tier-two product and is cheaper than tier-one products such as SAP and Oracle. However, it is more expensive than some other tier-two products. The licensing cost is dependent on the number of users. Also, if you purchase other tools from Infor as a package, then there may be other discounts offered."
"The cost is between $50 and $100 per user annually."
"There is a yearly licensing cost. The price is based on the modules you need. There are several modules, such as HR module, accounting module, sales module, scheduling module, etc., and the price will vary depending on the number of modules you choose. The customers always say that it's very expensive. It can cost a lot of money if your organization is huge. It's not implemented in a lot of organizations in my country because it's too expensive."
"The tool’s licensing is yearly."
"I'm not part of the team that manages Infor M3 pricing, but it depends on the client, integration, ship-out, and training levels. You get the price from the solution provider, but it would be best to discuss it because nothing is set in stone regarding pricing."
"The price of the solution is reasonable."
"If you are in the US or Canadian the costs of SAP Business One could vary per license, it can be anywhere between $2,000 tor $5,000."
"The price is a bit expensive."
"There is a license to use this solution and the price is good."
"SAP Business One is moderately priced."
"The price of SAP Business One is high for smaller businesses to afford. The currency plays a large part in the fluctuation of the solution's price when we convert the USD to our local currency. $1,400 is for a limited license and $3,700 is for a professional license."
"Its price is reasonable. People are able to spend that much."
"We compared the Microsoft solution with Oracle NetSuite, as they have a price decrease. It is, however, not that much cheaper, and the price is comparable to SAP."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Wholesaler/Distributor
7%
Retailer
7%
Computer Software Company
17%
Manufacturing Company
14%
Healthcare Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Infor M3?
The product's initial setup phase is easy.
What needs improvement with Infor M3?
Improvements could be made in security and scalability. Enhanced changes could be beneficial in security, and while the application is already cloud-based, adding features like daily MRP updates wo...
What is your primary use case for Infor M3?
I use Infor M3 as a robust system primarily in chemical process engineering, such as chemical industries and textile manufacturing. It is designed for discrete and non-discrete manufacturing, parti...
Are there any advantages of SAP S4 HANA over SAP Business One (SAP B1) apart from the cost?
SaP Business One is a complete solution for business management. The software applications are broad, ranging from accounting to project management and human resources. It is very versatile and com...
What do you like most about SAP Business One?
It's user-friendly and comes with comprehensive manuals. So, it is easy to learn to use SAP Business One
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SAP Business One?
The pricing model of SAP Business One is average. It is neither too good nor too bad, and there is room for more flexibility in pricing.
 

Also Known As

Infor Lawson M3, Lawson M3
Business One
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Grosfillex, High Five Sportswear, L_derach, OTK Group, PHS Group, Propper International, Red Wing Shoe Company, Reynolds Catering Supplies, Saudi Diesel, Sheetz, Zeppelin, Zodiac Aerospace
Ego Pharmaceuticals Pty. Ltd
Find out what your peers are saying about Infor M3 vs. SAP Business One and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,686 professionals have used our research since 2012.