Proposals
BasicQuotations with custom print formats and pricing rules. They do not show solar savings or system output.
What can ERPNext help you do?
- 01
Run solar installs as projects
You break each install into milestones and tasks, often from a project template. You link costs, timesheets and stock to the project. That shows if a job made money.
- 02
Buy and track panels and inverters
Purchase orders, approvals, supplier scorecards and warehouses are built in. Serial and batch tracking help you trace each panel or inverter.
- 03
Quote and invoice customers
The CRM covers leads, opportunities and quotations. Sales orders and invoices follow, with tax rules for many countries.
- 04
Handle service and repairs
The support module tracks tickets, SLAs and maintenance visits. That fits after-sale service on built systems.
- 05
Track company equipment
The assets module covers buying, depreciation and scrapping of tools, vehicles and equipment.
Key features
Each feature shows what we found on ERPNext’s own website, and how sure we are.
CRM
BasicLeads, opportunities, quotations, territories and newsletters.
Lead management
BasicLead records in the CRM module. We found no solar lead sources built in.
Permits and plan sets
Not foundWe found no permit tools. The EPC page only names permits as a project risk.
Financing
Not foundWe found no tools for customer loans. Frappe lists a separate Lending app in its docs.
Project management
AdvancedProjects, milestones, tasks, templates, timesheets, budgets and a customer view of progress.
Operations and repair (O&M)
BasicService tickets, SLAs, a self-service portal and scheduled maintenance visits. Not solar-specific.
Integrations
BasicThe site says ERPNext is API-first and Frappe Cloud offers 150+ apps to install. We found no solar tools named.
API
AdvancedREST API and webhooks that fire on document events like a new quotation.
AI and automation
Not foundWe found no AI features on the ERPNext pages we read.
Mobile
BasicThe company says all modules can be used from a phone in the browser. We found no app store listing on these pages.
Reporting
AdvancedCustom reports, dashboards, consolidated multi-company accounts, and project profit tracking.
Not what ERPNext is for, so not scored: Solar design, 3D modelling, Shade analysis, Power estimate, Battery design, Monitoring.
Feature scorecard
| Feature | What we found | Our notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solar design | Not its job | ERPNext is a general business system. It has no solar design tool. Use a design tool next to it. | Oct 2026 |
| 3D modelling | Not its job | ERPNext is a general business system. It has no solar 3D roof modelling. | Oct 2026 |
| Shade analysis | Not its job | ERPNext is a general business system. It has no solar shade analysis. | Oct 2026 |
| Power estimate | Not its job | ERPNext is a general business system. It has no solar energy estimates. | Oct 2026 |
| Proposals | Basic | Quotations with custom print formats and pricing rules. They do not show solar savings or system output. | Oct 2026 |
| CRM | Basic | Leads, opportunities, quotations, territories and newsletters. | Oct 2026 |
| Lead management | Basic | Lead records in the CRM module. We found no solar lead sources built in. | Oct 2026 |
| Permits and plan sets | Not found | We found no permit tools. The EPC page only names permits as a project risk. | Oct 2026 |
| Financing | Not found | We found no tools for customer loans. Frappe lists a separate Lending app in its docs. | Oct 2026 |
| Project management | Advanced | Projects, milestones, tasks, templates, timesheets, budgets and a customer view of progress. | Oct 2026 |
| Battery design | Not its job | ERPNext is a general business system. It has no solar battery sizing. You can stock batteries as items. | Oct 2026 |
| Monitoring | Not its job | ERPNext is a general business system. It has no solar system monitoring. | Oct 2026 |
| Operations and repair (O&M) | Basic | Service tickets, SLAs, a self-service portal and scheduled maintenance visits. Not solar-specific. | Oct 2026 |
| Integrations | Basic | The site says ERPNext is API-first and Frappe Cloud offers 150+ apps to install. We found no solar tools named. | Oct 2026 |
| API | Advanced | REST API and webhooks that fire on document events like a new quotation. | Oct 2026 |
| AI and automation | Not found | We found no AI features on the ERPNext pages we read. | Oct 2026 |
| Mobile | Basic | The company says all modules can be used from a phone in the browser. We found no app store listing on these pages. | Oct 2026 |
| Reporting | Advanced | Custom reports, dashboards, consolidated multi-company accounts, and project profit tracking. | Oct 2026 |
Who is ERPNext best for?
| Type of business | Fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Home solar installers | Partial fit | Covers stock, jobs and invoices, but has no home solar sales tools. |
| Business (commercial) installers | Partial fit | Project costing and buying fit business jobs, with no solar design. |
| Solar farm developers | Partial fit | Assets, projects and multi-company accounts can scale, but nothing is solar-farm specific. |
| EPCs (design and build firms) | Strong fit | The company has an EPC industry page, and projects, buying and stock are deep. |
| Solar designers and engineers | Weak fit | There are no design tools. |
| Solar sales teams | Partial fit | Basic CRM and quotes, but no savings or finance proposals. |
| O&M and asset teams | Partial fit | Tickets, SLAs and maintenance visits exist, but no monitoring. |
By company size
Solo installer
Partial fit
Hosting starts at $5 a month, but setup takes time.
Small team
Partial fit
Cheap to run, but you may need a partner for setup.
Growing company
Strong fit
No per-user fee, and stock, projects and accounts grow with you.
Large company
Strong fit
Multi-company, dedicated servers and enterprise plans are offered.
Who shouldn’t choose ERPNext?
- You need solar design or 3D roof models.
- You want proposals that show savings and loans.
- You need system monitoring.
- You have no one to set up and look after an ERP.
- You want a tool that works on day one with no setup.
ERPNext pricing
Starting price
Free, hosting from $5 a month
Some prices on website · Checked 6 October 2026
- Price model
- Free software; pay for hosting per month
- Free plan
- Yes, free and open source
- Free trial
- 14 days
- Demo
- Yes
Self-host
$0
free (GPL-3.0)
- Full ERPNext code
- You run your own server
Frappe Cloud Sites
From $5 (INR 410)
per month
- Single site on shared servers
- Managed upgrades and backups
- Offsite backups
- Custom domain
- Product Warranty
Frappe Cloud Servers
From $20 (INR 1,800) on the ERPNext pricing page, a low-cost tier with limited uptime promises. From $40 (INR 3,600) on the Frappe Cloud pricing page.
per month
- Own virtual machine
- Unlimited sites
- Snapshots and auto-scaling
- A higher-reliability tier from $125 (INR 5,400) a month is also listed
Enterprise
Ask the company
- Talk to solution consultants
What changes the price
- No per-user pricing. You pay for hosting.
- Implementation is a separate cost if you hire a partner.
- Prices shown in USD and INR.
- Two Frappe pages show different server starting prices: $20 and $40 a month. The $20 tier has limited uptime promises and only incident support.
- After the trial you pay by card, prepaid credit, or a yearly wire transfer.
- Self-hosting is free under the GPL-3.0 open-source license. Frappe Cloud Sites start at $5 (INR 410) a month.
- The company says ERPNext works for almost any country, with partners for local tax rules.
Paid add-ons
- Implementation by Frappe partners
- Starter Packs for migration help
- Product Warranty (bug-fix support)
- Priority SLA on server plans (optional)
Check current pricing on frappe.io Prices change often. We never guess a price that is not on the website.
Ease of use
Learning curve
High
It is a full ERP, so there is a lot to set up. The company itself points DIY users to the docs and others to partners or Starter Packs. A no-code builder helps you add fields and forms for solar work.
Training offered: ERPNext documentation · Frappe School · Community forum · Partner implementation
We have not tested ERPNext hands-on yet. This is based on what the maker offers and how the product is set up.
Integrations
Other
- REST API
- Webhooks
- Frappe Cloud marketplace (150+ apps)
- Frappe Helpdesk
AI and automation
| Capability | Status | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| AI design | Not found | No design tools. |
| AI proposals | Not found | Quotes use print formats. No AI found. |
| AI sales assistant | Not found | We found no AI helper. |
| AI lead qualification | Not found | We found no AI lead scoring. |
| Forecasting | Not found | We found no AI forecasts. |
| Automation | Verified | Approval workflows, automatic ticket assignment and webhooks on document events. |
Our assessment
ERPNext does not sell AI on the pages we read. Its automation is rule-based: approvals, assignments and webhooks. That is useful, but it is not AI.
API and automation
- Public API
- Yes
- Webhooks
- Yes
What you can do with it
- Read, create and update any record type over REST
- Webhooks on document events, with conditions and custom headers
- Custom apps and scripts
Useful for
- Linking your design or proposal tool
- Sending leads from your website
- Syncing with monitoring or accounting tools
Security and large-company readiness
Only what the company publishes. “Could not read” means we could not open the page, not that the feature is missing.
Encryption
Not foundWe found no encryption details on the security page. It is a bug-report policy.
Single sign-on (SSO)
Not foundNot found on the pages we read.
SOC 2
Not foundWe found no SOC 2 claim.
GDPR
Not foundNot found on the pages we read.
User permissions
VerifiedRoles and permissions down to single fields.
Audit logs
VerifiedFrappe Cloud says it keeps audit logs of SSH access to your server. We found no detail on in-app audit logs on this page.
Data hosting
VerifiedFrappe Cloud is multi-cloud. You can pick provider and region, or host it yourself.
Backups
VerifiedFrappe Cloud runs automatic backups, including offsite backups.
Setup and support
Getting started
You can self-implement with the docs, buy a Starter Pack from certified partners, or hire a partner for a full setup.
- Self-implement with docs
- Starter Packs
- Partner implementation
- Enterprise consultants
Customer support
You can raise tickets only for apps you bought support for. Product Warranty covers bug fixes, not how-to help.
- Support portal tickets
- Community forum
- Documentation
- Partners
Pros and cons
What we like
- No per-user feesYou pay for hosting, from $5 a month, not per seat.
- Open sourceGPL-3.0 code you can self-host and change.
- Deep projects and stockProject costing, serial tracking and buying approvals suit install work.
- Real API and webhooksREST API and event webhooks are documented.
- Service tickets built inSLAs and maintenance visits help after-sale work.
What could be better
- Nothing built for solarNo design, savings proposals, permits or monitoring.
- Setup is workThe company points most buyers to partners for implementation.
- Support costs extraTickets only for apps you bought support for.
- Security papers not shownWe found no SOC 2, SSO or encryption details.
- Price pages disagreeServer plans start at $20 on one page and $40 on another.
What users say on other sites
Ratings and short quotes from other review sites, with the reviewer’s name as that site shows it. We link to every source. These do not change our evidence score.
Checked 6 October 2026. Quotes are copied word for word and shortened only with “…”. How we use outside reviews
ERPNext alternatives
Tools people switch to, and when each one makes more sense.
Odoo
Evidence score 7.1/10
Pick it if you want an ERP with more ready-made apps and paid hosting with support.
Read the reviewSolar Ladder
Evidence score 6.0/10
Pick it if you want a solar-specific CRM and project tool in India.
Read the review
Scoop Solar
Evidence score 7.4/10
Pick it if you need install field work set up for solar.
Read the review
SolarNexus
Evidence score 6.8/10
Pick it if you want US solar sales and install workflow in one tool.
Read the reviewSame company: Frappe Cloud, Frappe Helpdesk. Frappe’s own hosting service for ERPNext. Most of what you pay goes here.
Main competitors
- Odoo: Also an open-source ERP sold to the same growing companies.
- Solar Ladder: Competes for solar EPC project and stock work.
How we score solar software
We have not given any product a quality score yet. That needs at least eight checked user reviews. Instead, the evidence score shows how much we could confirm on the company’s own website.
Points for each feature
| Verified, advanced | 10 |
|---|---|
| Verified, basic | 8 |
| Company claim only | 6 to 7 |
| Not found or not offered | 0 |
| Could not read, or not its job | left out |
Jobs we score, equal weight
- Solar design
- Shade and power estimate
- Proposals and finance
- CRM and leads
- Permits and projects
- Batteries
- Monitoring and O&M
- Integrations and API
- AI and automation
- Mobile and reporting
- Clear pricing
Each job is the average of its features. A job where we found none of its features is not this tool’s job, so it is left out. The overall score is the average of the jobs that apply, plus clear pricing. Read how we check facts · How we research · Editorial guidelines
Sources and checks
- Company siteERPNext home
- Company siteERPNext pricing
- Company siteFrappe Cloud pricing
- Company siteProjects module
- Company siteEPC industry page
- Company siteAssets module
- Company siteSupport module
- Company siteEnterprise
- Company siteREST API docs
- Company siteWebhooks docs
- Company siteSecurity policy
- Company siteSupport portal
- Company siteAbout Frappe
See a mistake? Tell us and we will check it again. Fixes go in our corrections log.
Frequently asked questions
How much does ERPNext cost?
The software is free and open source. Hosting on Frappe Cloud starts at $5 a month (INR 410). A partner to set it up costs extra. We read this on 6 October 2026.
Does ERPNext have a free trial?
Yes. Frappe Cloud gives you 14 days free. After that you must pick a paid hosting plan to keep your site.
Is ERPNext good for small installers?
It is cheap to run, but it takes setup. A small team without an IT person may need a partner.
Does ERPNext have a CRM?
Yes. It has leads, opportunities, quotations and territories. It has no solar savings proposals.
Can ERPNext design solar systems or size batteries?
No. It has no design or battery tools. You can stock batteries as items and track them by serial number.
Does ERPNext have an API?
Yes. It has a REST API and webhooks that fire on events like a new quotation.
What are the best ERPNext alternatives?
Odoo for another ERP, Solar Ladder for a solar-specific tool, and Scoop Solar for install field work.
Is ERPNext worth it for a solar company?
It can be if you want low-cost stock, buying, projects and accounts in one place. Plan for setup and a separate design tool.
Our final verdict
ERPNext: 7.3/10 evidence score
ERPNext suits solar EPCs and installers that want a low-cost, open ERP for stock, buying, projects and accounts, and can invest in setup.
Choose ERPNext if
- You track lots of stock and serial numbers
- You run projects and want job costing
- You do not want per-user fees
- You have IT help or a partner
Look at alternatives if
- You need solar design or proposals
- You want something ready on day one
- You need security papers
- You need monitoring