SAP to Odoo Migration Guide — Step-by-Step ERP Transition [2026]
SAP is a powerful ERP, but its licensing costs, rigid customization model, and complex upgrade paths push many mid-market companies toward more agile alternatives. Odoo offers comparable functionality across accounting, manufacturing, CRM, and supply chain at a fraction of the total cost of ownership. Organizations that switch typically reduce annual ERP spend by 60-80% while gaining a modular system they can extend without expensive consultants. The open-source foundation also eliminates vendor lock-in, giving your team full control over the codebase.
What Gets Migrated
General ledger accounts, journal entries, and opening balances
Customer master data with credit limits and payment terms
Vendor records with bank details and purchasing conditions
Product master with BOMs, routings, and cost structures
Open sales orders and purchase orders
Inventory quantities by warehouse and storage location
Employee records, organizational structure, and leave balances
Historical financial reports for audit compliance
Step-by-Step Migration Process
Scope Assessment and Gap Analysis
Audit every SAP module in active use, catalog custom ABAP programs, and document integration touchpoints with third-party systems. Map each SAP transaction code to its Odoo equivalent and flag functional gaps that require custom development.
Data Extraction and Cleansing
Export master data and transactional history from SAP using IDocs, RFC function modules, or direct database extracts. Standardize field formats, merge duplicate records, and remove obsolete data to ensure only clean, validated records enter the new system.
Odoo Configuration and Customization
Install and configure required Odoo modules — Accounting, Inventory, Manufacturing, CRM, HR. Recreate fiscal year structures, tax configurations, approval workflows, and user roles to mirror your existing business processes.
Data Migration and Field Mapping
Build ETL pipelines to transform SAP data structures into Odoo-compatible formats. Map SAP material numbers to Odoo product templates, convert SAP partner functions to Odoo contact types, and align unit-of-measure conversions across both systems.
Integration Reconfiguration
Reconnect third-party systems — EDI partners, e-commerce platforms, banking interfaces, shipping carriers — to Odoo API endpoints. Replace SAP-specific middleware (PI/PO, CPI) with Odoo webhook listeners or REST API integrations.
User Acceptance Testing
Run end-to-end test cycles covering order-to-cash, procure-to-pay, and plan-to-produce processes. Validate financial reports against SAP baselines, confirm inventory accuracy, and ensure all custom workflows trigger correctly.
Training and Change Management
Conduct role-based training sessions for finance, operations, sales, and warehouse teams. Provide quick-reference guides mapping SAP transaction codes to Odoo menu paths so users can adapt quickly.
Go-Live and Hypercare
Execute the cutover plan during a low-activity period. Freeze SAP transactions, run the final data migration delta, validate opening balances, and switch production traffic to Odoo. Maintain a dedicated support team for 2-4 weeks of hypercare.
Data Categories
Risks & Mitigation
Data loss during extraction from complex SAP table structures
Mitigation: Run parallel data validation checkpoints at each extraction stage and maintain SAP in read-only mode as a fallback for 90 days post-migration.
Custom ABAP programs with no direct Odoo equivalent
Mitigation: Identify all Z-programs early in the gap analysis, prioritize by business criticality, and develop Odoo custom modules or OWL components as replacements before UAT begins.
User resistance due to unfamiliar interface
Mitigation: Start change management 8 weeks before go-live with SAP-to-Odoo navigation maps, hands-on workshops, and department champions who receive advanced training.
Integration downtime with EDI and banking partners
Mitigation: Stage integration cutovers individually with rollback plans, and maintain SAP interfaces in standby until each Odoo connection is verified in production.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a typical SAP to Odoo migration take?
Most mid-market migrations complete in 12-24 weeks depending on the number of SAP modules in use and the volume of historical data. Companies with heavy custom ABAP code or complex manufacturing processes should plan for the longer end of this range.
Will we lose historical transaction data?
No. Historical data is migrated into Odoo or archived in a queryable format so your team retains access for audits and reporting. We typically migrate 3-5 years of transactional history and provide read-only access to older records.
Can Odoo handle the same transaction volume as SAP?
Yes. Odoo 18 with proper infrastructure handles millions of transactions per year. For high-volume manufacturing or distribution, we tune PostgreSQL, implement connection pooling, and configure Odoo workers to match your throughput requirements.
Do we need to migrate all modules at once?
No. A phased approach is recommended. Most organizations start with Finance and Inventory, then add Manufacturing, CRM, and HR in subsequent phases. This reduces risk and allows teams to adapt incrementally.
What happens to our SAP licenses during migration?
We recommend maintaining SAP licenses in a reduced capacity during the transition period for parallel running and data validation. Once the migration is verified, you can begin the SAP decommission process and stop renewals at your next contract cycle.
Ready to Migrate?
ECOSIRE handles the entire migration — from planning and data mapping to testing and go-live support. Zero data loss guaranteed.