Cloud ERP Comparison

SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud vs Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central

Q: Is SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud too big for a Swiss SME?

Not automatically. SAP sells it to companies of any size through SAP GROW, starting with packages for finance, supply chain or HR. It is too big when your processes are simple, you run one entity and nobody wants to adapt processes to the SAP standard. Then Business Central or a Swiss ERP is the more honest choice.

Q: Does Business Central support Swiss QR-bills and VAT?

Yes. Microsoft delivers the Swiss localisation itself, including QR-bill management, the Swiss VAT statement and the Swiss chart of accounts. S/4HANA Public Cloud covers QR-bills and Swiss VAT in its Swiss country version as well. Localisation does not decide between these two.

Q: Which of the two includes Swiss payroll?

Neither. S/4HANA Public Cloud posts payroll results from SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central Payroll or an external provider into finance. Business Central imports payroll transactions from your payroll provider. Many Swiss SMEs keep a Swissdec-certified payroll, for example Abacus, next to either ERP.

Q: What does Business Central cost compared with S/4HANA Public Cloud?

Microsoft publishes list prices: in the US, Essentials costs USD 80 and Premium USD 110 per user and month, paid yearly (accessed 7 October 2026). SAP publishes no comparable per-user price for S/4HANA Public Cloud; you get it with SAP's offer. Compare total cost over three to five years, including implementation, payroll, integrations and the CRM.

Q: Which CRM fits which ERP?

Follow the ERP. Business Central connects to Dynamics 365 Sales through Dataverse. S/4HANA Public Cloud connects to SAP Sales Cloud V2 and Service Cloud V2, which we implement together with the ERP. Mixing camps works, but turns the integration into a project of its own.

Both are cloud ERPs with a Swiss localisation from the vendor itself. The real differences sit in payroll, licensing, growth path and the CRM you connect. We implement SAP, not Business Central, so on the Microsoft side we stick to what Microsoft publishes, and we say plainly where Business Central is the better fit. Last reviewed: 7 October 2026.

Last reviewed: October 2026

TL;DR: Quick Verdict

For a single Swiss company that runs on Microsoft 365, needs solid finance, trade and stock, and wants a known price per user, Business Central is often the better and cheaper fit. SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud pays off when you run several entities or countries, need deeper supply chain and manufacturing processes, belong to an SAP group, or want the ERP and SAP Sales and Service Cloud V2 from one team. Neither calculates Swiss salaries inside the ERP: plan payroll separately either way.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Dimension	SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud	Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
Who it is built for	SAP positions it for companies of any size, in particular those outgrowing entry-level systems, sold through SAP GROW	Microsoft positions it as ERP for small and midsize businesses, used by more than 55,000 companies
Swiss localisation	Swiss country version in the standard, including QR-bill in payables, receivables and sales (SAP Help)	Swiss localisation delivered by Microsoft: Swiss VAT statement, QR-bill management, Swiss chart of accounts (Microsoft Learn)
Swiss payroll	Not part of the ERP. Payroll runs in SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central Payroll or at a provider and posts into finance	Not part of the Swiss local functionality. Microsoft documents importing payroll transactions from your payroll provider
Licensing	Subscription. Start with finance, supply chain or HR packages and add modules later; the price comes from SAP's offer	✓ Per user and month, paid yearly. US list prices: Essentials USD 80, Premium USD 110, Team Members USD 8 (Microsoft, accessed 7 October 2026)
Updates	SAP ships two releases a year to every customer (currently 2602 and 2608); extensions stay outside the core	Two major updates a year (April and October) plus monthly minor updates; administrators can reschedule within the update period
Process depth	✓ Finance, procurement, sales, manufacturing, logistics, warehousing and asset management on one SAP Best Practices model	Finance, sales, purchasing and stock in Essentials; Premium adds manufacturing and service management
Several entities and countries	✓ SAP delivers tax, statutory reporting and e-government updates for 60 countries; group reporting is part of the product	Microsoft localises some countries itself; in many others the localisation comes from partner apps (Microsoft's country list)
CRM	SAP Sales Cloud V2 and Service Cloud V2 connect to S/4HANA Public Cloud for accounts, prices, stock and orders	Dynamics 365 Sales connects through Dataverse, so sales sees inventory and other Business Central data (Microsoft Learn)
Microsoft 365 fit	Runs alongside Microsoft 365, but is not part of the Microsoft product family	✓ Part of the Microsoft product family; Microsoft lists Copilot as included
Best fit	Multi-entity or international SMEs, manufacturing and supply chain, SAP groups, SAP CX	Single-entity Swiss SMEs on Microsoft 365 with standard finance, trade and stock

Who it is built for

SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud

SAP positions it for companies of any size, in particular those outgrowing entry-level systems, sold through SAP GROW