# What an ERP system actually costs in the UK > The pricing models, the costs that are not on the quote, and how to build a total figure you can take to a board without embarrassment. **URL:** https://cubeerp.co.uk/guides/what-erp-costs-uk **Published:** 2026-07-02 | **Updated:** 2026-08-06 | **Reading time:** 11 min Ask what an ERP costs and you will usually get a per-user-per-month figure. It is a real number and it is rarely the number that matters, because the licence is typically a minority of what the first two years cost. This guide sets out every component, including the ones suppliers prefer to discuss late. It does not quote our own prices (those are on the pricing page) because the purpose here is to help you compare properly, including comparing us against somebody else. ## The pricing models you will encounter Four models dominate the UK mid-market, and they are not equally transparent. - Per named user per month. Simple to understand. Becomes expensive when occasional users - a warehouse operative scanning twice a day, a director looking at a dashboard - cost the same as a full-time planner. - Per concurrent user. Cheaper on paper, harder to plan around, and it produces the unpleasant experience of somebody being locked out at the busiest moment. - Tiered by module. Attractive initially because you only buy what you need. The difficulty is that the modules you need later are frequently the expensive ones, and by then you are not shopping around. - Flat platform fee with a band by size. Predictable and harder to game, but only if the bands are published rather than negotiated case by case. > Whatever the model, ask for the three-year figure with your realistic user growth included. A supplier unwilling to put that in writing is telling you something. ## The costs that are not on the first quote These are not always concealed deliberately, and some do depend on what you need, but they are consistently underestimated. - Implementation and configuration. Frequently between one and three times the first year’s licence, depending on complexity. - Data migration. Cleaning twenty years of part numbers, duplicate customers and half-finished bills of materials is real work and it is normally yours to do. - Integration connectors. Some suppliers charge per connector, annually, for the privilege of talking to your accounting package or your website. - Training, including the second round nobody budgets for six months later when people have forgotten and new staff have arrived. - Hardware: scanners, label printers, shop-floor terminals, tablets for engineers. Modest individually, meaningful in aggregate. - Internal time. The largest hidden cost by far - your people, doing the project alongside their day jobs. - Report writing, if the supplier charges for reports or restricts database access. - Annual uplifts. Ask what the contractual increase mechanism is. "Inflation-linked" is doing a lot of work in some contracts. ## Internal time is the cost that sinks projects Every failed implementation we have looked at had the same root cause: the business assumed the supplier would do the project, and the supplier assumed the business would provide the people. Both were partly right, and the gap between them became a delay. A realistic figure for a mid-sized manufacturer is one person effectively full-time for the duration, plus meaningful chunks of time from operations, finance and the shop floor. If nobody can be freed up, the right answer is to delay the project rather than start it understaffed. ## Building a total figure 1. Take the licence cost for year one at realistic user numbers, not minimum viable ones. 2. Add implementation, configuration and training as quoted, then add a contingency - 20% is not pessimistic. 3. Add your own internal time at a real cost per day, including the work that will not get done while it happens. 4. Add hardware and any per-connector charges for the integrations you actually need. 5. Project years two and three with growth and any contractual uplift applied. 6. Compare that three-year total across suppliers, not the headline monthly figure. ## What it should be measured against A cost figure means nothing without the other side of the equation, and the other side is usually easier to quantify than people assume. Stock accuracy, quote-to-actual variance on jobs, unbilled parts, missed rebates, expedited freight, credit notes from short shipments and days between completion and invoice are all measurable now, before you buy anything. Measure two or three of them properly. If the annual figure is smaller than the three-year cost of the system, that is useful information and it may mean the answer is not yet. ## Key takeaways - The licence is usually a minority of the first two years’ cost. - Ask for a three-year total with realistic user growth, in writing. - Per-connector charges and restricted database access are worth checking before you sign. - Internal time is the biggest hidden cost and the most common cause of overrun. - Measure the problem you are solving before committing, so the comparison is real. ## Frequently asked questions **What is a realistic budget for a 50-person manufacturer?** It depends far more on process complexity than headcount, and any number quoted without seeing your processes is guesswork. What we can say is to expect implementation to be a similar order of magnitude to the first year of licensing, and to budget contingency on top. **Is cloud cheaper than on-premise?** Usually in cash flow terms, because there is no server to buy and no upgrade project every few years. Over five years the totals are often closer than people expect, but the risk profile is considerably better. **Should we expect to pay per integration?** Some suppliers charge per connector annually. We do not, and we would encourage you to ask the question early because it materially changes a three-year comparison. **How long until it pays for itself?** Businesses that measure one specific problem beforehand usually see payback in that single area within a year or two. Businesses that buy on general expectation rarely find out either way, which is its own answer. **What happens to the cost if we grow?** That is precisely why you should model years two and three with growth applied. A price that is attractive at fifteen users and painful at forty is a common shape, and it is entirely avoidable if you check. ## Relevant solution pages - **ERP Software** - One system for quotes, orders, stock, production, purchasing and invoicing - built in the UK for growing businesses. https://cubeerp.co.uk/software/erp-software - **Business Management Software** - One place for customers, orders, stock, jobs, suppliers and invoices, so the business stops being run from a folder of spreadsheets. https://cubeerp.co.uk/software/business-management-software - **Job Costing Software** - Know what every job actually cost - materials, labour, sub-contract and overhead - while it is running, not six weeks later. https://cubeerp.co.uk/software/job-costing-software ## Related guides - **How to choose an ERP system: a practical checklist** - How to run a selection that produces a decision you can defend - the questions to ask, the demonstrations to insist on, and the answers that should worry you. https://cubeerp.co.uk/guides/how-to-choose-an-erp-system - **ERP implementation: how to do it without losing a year** - A realistic account of what implementation involves, where projects go wrong, and how to sequence the work so the business keeps running. https://cubeerp.co.uk/guides/erp-implementation-guide - **ERP vs accounting software: where the line actually is** - What accounting packages do well, what they were never built for, and why keeping yours is usually the right decision. https://cubeerp.co.uk/guides/erp-vs-accounting-software ## Contact - **Product:** CubeERP - **Trading name of:** Cube Systems Limited (company number 17220899, ICO registration number ZC216972) - **Email:** hello@cubeerp.co.uk - **Sales:** sales@cubeerp.co.uk - **Support:** support@cubeerp.co.uk - **Telephone:** 01234 672 617 (+441234672617) - **Address:** Unit 11, Olney Business Park, Osier Way, Olney, Buckinghamshire, MK46 5FP - **Opening hours:** Monday to Friday, 9am to 5.30pm - **Part of:** Crushed Ice Group (https://crushedicegroup.co.uk)