What Is Odoo ERP? The World’s Most Popular Open-Source System

Short answer: Odoo ERP is an open-source business management system developed in Belgium. It connects apps for sales, CRM, inventory, purchasing, accounting, manufacturing, HR and your website in one database, so data entered by one department is never retyped by another. It comes as a free Community edition and a paid Enterprise edition, and runs in the cloud or on your own server. According to Odoo's website, more than 12 million people use it worldwide.

You probably first heard about Odoo from a competitor, a consultant or a Telegram group of business owners. Then the questions start. What exactly is Odoo? Is it free? Does it really have 40,000 modules? Is it only for big companies, or will it work for our shop, warehouse or workshop? Can it handle Uzbek taxes and e-invoices? Choosing blind is expensive: the wrong edition, hosting or expectations can stretch a project by months.

This guide covers Odoo's origins, open-source model, editions, architecture, pros and cons, and what matters in Uzbekistan.

What is Odoo ERP?

Odoo ERP is a suite of connected business apps that run a company's core processes (sales, inventory, purchasing, finance, manufacturing, HR) in a single database.

ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) links every department into one shared system. For the general picture, read What is an ERP system?

Odoo is not one monolithic program but a set of separate apps (modules). You install what you need today, add more as you grow, and the apps share data automatically. For example:

• a salesperson confirms an order in Sales;
• Inventory immediately creates a delivery order and reduces stock;
• Accounting generates the invoice and matches the payment against the bank statement;
• the owner sees sales, stock and receivables in one report.

Nobody enters the same data twice, and the numbers match.

Where did Odoo come from? A short history

Odoo was started in Belgium in 2005 by Fabien Pinckaers under the name TinyERP, renamed OpenERP in 2008 and Odoo in 2014.

1. TinyERP (2005). The goal was an affordable, open-source ERP for small companies, at a time when ERP meant expensive software for corporations.
2. OpenERP (2008). The partner network and community grew, and the system expanded beyond accounting, inventory and sales.
3. Odoo (2014). The new name came with a wider scope: website, eCommerce, marketing and project apps joined the ERP core, and the split into free Community and paid Enterprise editions took its current shape.
4. Today. A new major version ships roughly once a year (Odoo 17 in 2023, Odoo 18 in 2024, Odoo 19 in 2025). Odoo SA is an international company headquartered in Belgium with thousands of employees. With more than 12 million users, Odoo is one of the most widely used open-source business systems in the world.

What does "open source" mean, and how does Odoo make money?

Open-source software has published source code that you can study, modify and use free of charge under the terms of its licence.

Odoo follows an "open core" model:

• Odoo Community is the open-source edition under the LGPLv3 licence. You can install it on your own server and modify it at no licence cost.
• Odoo Enterprise is a paid edition built on top of Community, adding extra apps and features, official support and an upgrade service.
• The partner network does most implementation, configuration and training. Deep Vision is one of these official partners.

What this means for a business:

1. No hard vendor lock-in. The code is open, so if you change partners, your system and data stay with you.
2. The system can be adapted. Changes are added as separate modules rather than by editing the core.
3. A free licence is not a free project. Community has no licence fee, but servers, configuration, data migration, training and support still cost money. We break down the three-year cost in How much does Odoo ERP cost in Uzbekistan?

Odoo Community vs Enterprise: which differences matter?

Community is the free edition with the core apps; Enterprise is a paid subscription that adds full accounting, the Studio builder, extra apps, the official mobile app and an upgrade service.

• Features. Community includes Sales, CRM, Inventory, Purchase, basic Manufacturing, Employees, Project and more. Full Accounting, Studio (add fields and screens without code), Quality, Sign and Documents are Enterprise apps.
• Hosting. Community is installed on your or your partner's server. Enterprise can run in Odoo's cloud, on Odoo.sh or on your own server.
• Upgrades. Enterprise includes the upgrade service; with Community, you or your partner handle upgrades.
• Price. The Community licence is free; Enterprise is usually priced per user. Check current plans on odoo.com/pricing.

For a full comparison and advice on which edition fits you, see Odoo Community vs Enterprise.

What apps does Odoo include?

Odoo develops several dozen official apps, and the Odoo Apps store lists more than 40,000 additional apps and modules built by the community and partners.

The claim that "Odoo has 40,000 modules" needs context: that figure refers to third-party apps in the Odoo Apps store, written for different versions and varying widely in quality and maintenance. Odoo's own official apps fall into these areas:

• Finance: accounting, invoicing, expenses, documents.
• Sales: CRM, sales, point of sale (POS), subscriptions, rental.
• Websites: website builder, eCommerce, blog, eLearning.
• Supply chain: inventory, purchase, manufacturing, quality, maintenance.
• Human resources: employees, recruitment, time off, attendance, appraisals.
• Marketing: email and SMS marketing, events, surveys.
• Services: project, timesheets, helpdesk, field service.
• Productivity: Discuss (chat), knowledge base, calendar.

What each module does and where to start: Odoo ERP modules: the complete list.

How does Odoo work? The architecture in plain terms

Odoo is a web application that runs in the browser: data lives in one PostgreSQL database, business logic is written in Python, and the interface is built in JavaScript.

1. One database. Every app writes to the same PostgreSQL database, so there is no syncing or copying between sales, inventory and accounting.
2. Modules. Each app is a module, and new modules extend existing ones through inheritance. A marking module, for instance, adds a step to a warehouse operation without changing standard code. Clean customizations make upgrading much easier.
3. Web and mobile interface. Nothing to install on each computer. The interface adapts to phone screens, and Enterprise also has iOS and Android apps.
4. API and integrations. Odoo exchanges data with other systems through its API (XML-RPC/JSON-RPC). That is how it connects to Didox, payment services, Telegram bots, telephony or marketplaces.

Where you can run it:

• Odoo Online (cloud SaaS). The fastest start, hosted by Odoo, but no custom Python modules: standard apps and Studio only.
• Odoo.sh. Odoo's cloud platform with custom modules, staging environments and backups.
• Your own server or a local data centre. Full control over data, with responsibility for servers and security on you or your partner.

Who uses Odoo?

Odoo was built mainly for small and mid-sized businesses, but today it runs everything from sole traders to multi-branch manufacturers.

• Wholesale and distribution: pricelists, sales agents, credit limits, receivables.
• Retail: point of sale, multiple stores, stock levels, loyalty programmes.
• Manufacturing: bills of materials, raw materials, manufacturing orders, product costing.
• Services and projects: timesheets and contract-based invoicing.
• eCommerce: website, online store and warehouse in one system.

Odoo works with 5–10 users or several hundred. Headcount matters less than your readiness to put processes in order.

What are the advantages of Odoo?

Odoo's strength is the combination of modularity, one database, a modern interface, an open architecture and continuous development.

1. Modular structure. Start with Sales and Inventory, then add Accounting or Manufacturing without starting over.
2. Modern, user-friendly interface. Every screen follows the same logic, so once staff learn one app, the others feel familiar.
3. Open architecture. The API and module system let Odoo integrate with other software and adapt to your processes.
4. Continuous development and an active community. A new version every year, and partners worldwide building modules and catching bugs.
5. Web and mobile access. Work from the office, home or the road; owners see reports from anywhere.
6. A single source of truth. Sales, stock and finance share one database, so reports are real-time and consistent.
7. Affordable compared with large ERPs. Roll out in phases, without a large upfront licence payment.

What are the disadvantages and limitations of Odoo?

Odoo is not plug-and-play: it needs proper configuration, localization and training, or the company ends up using a small fraction of it.

• Implementation takes expertise. Without process analysis, Odoo becomes "just another spreadsheet".
• Out-of-the-box localization for Uzbekistan is incomplete. The national chart of accounts, VAT, MXIK (IKPU) codes, e-invoicing and marking need configuration or extra modules.
• Yearly versions. Upgrading a heavily customized system takes time and budget, so avoid unnecessary customization.
• Community lacks some key features. Full accounting, for example, is Enterprise-only, so check the free edition covers your needs.
• Third-party module quality varies. Check the author, version and maintenance before installing.
• The Uzbek translation is incomplete. Russian and English are fully translated; Uzbek is available, but some screens may lack translations.
• It can be too much for a micro business. One shop with two employees may be fine with a simple POS app.

How is Odoo different from 1C and SAP?

Compared with 1C, Odoo offers a modern web interface and a broader set of apps; compared with SAP, lower cost and faster implementation.

• Odoo vs 1C. Many Uzbek companies traditionally keep their books in 1C, and accountants know it well. Odoo brings sales, CRM, inventory, website and accounting into one browser-based system. More: Odoo vs 1C compared.
• Odoo vs SAP. SAP is powerful for large corporations but expensive and slow to implement. Odoo fits small and mid-sized businesses and fast-growing companies better.

Odoo in Uzbekistan: what should you know?

To work well in Uzbekistan, Odoo is configured for the national chart of accounts, 12% VAT, the sum and exchange rates, MXIK codes, electronic invoices and Asl Belgisi product marking.

• Tax and accounting. National chart of accounts, VAT rates and tax reporting data. Details: Odoo and Uzbek tax: VAT.
• Electronic invoices. Invoices go through operators such as Didox. Deep Vision has a ready-made Didox module for Odoo, so documents are sent straight from Odoo without retyping.
• Asl Belgisi marking. Sellers of marked goods must track codes at receipt, shipment and sale; Deep Vision has a ready-made Odoo module for this too.
• Sum and foreign currency. Importers need multi-currency accounting and exchange differences, which Odoo supports as standard.
• Payments and channels. Payme, Click, bank statements, Telegram bots and IP telephony are usually connected during the project.
• Moving from 1C. Migrating balances, counterparties and product cards from 1C is a separate, carefully planned stage.
• Where your data lives. Uzbekistan regulates the storage of citizens' personal data; check the current rules before choosing a server.
• Language. Teams usually work in Russian or Uzbek; the interface language is set per user.

Is Odoo right for you? A checklist

If at least half of these sound familiar, it is time to take Odoo seriously.

• Sales, inventory and accounting live in different programs or in Excel.
• The owner waits days for reports, and numbers in different files do not match.
• You lack reliable figures for stock, product cost or customer debts.
• The company is growing: a new branch, warehouse or production line is planned.
• Didox, marking or payment systems involve a lot of manual work.
• The team is ready to work in a browser and on phones.
• You can assign an internal owner to put processes in order.

Next steps: process analysis, choosing the first apps, edition and hosting, a demo, then a phased rollout. For your first operations in the system, see How to use Odoo: a beginner's guide.

How does Deep Vision help with Odoo?

Deep Vision is an official Odoo Gold Partner in Tashkent: we implement Odoo for Uzbek requirements, build integrations and support the system after go-live.

• Experience. 7 certified Odoo specialists, and 26 client projects listed in the odoo.com partner directory (official partner page).
• Clients. Optika.uz, Timsoll (7,000+ SKUs in Odoo) and RockBeton. More in our portfolio.
• Ready local modules. Odoo modules for e-invoicing through Didox and for Asl Belgisi marking.
• Our own products. dooCall turns an ordinary phone into a sales call-center tool; MemorCRM is our customer relationship tool.
• Timelines. A typical project takes 2–6 months; standard Sales and Inventory often go live in 6–8 weeks.

See our Odoo implementation service. Not sure Odoo fits? Fill in a short brief and we will suggest where to start.

Frequently asked questions

Is Odoo free?

Odoo Community is free and open source, but servers, configuration, data migration and training still cost money. Odoo Enterprise is a paid subscription, usually priced per user. Check current plans on odoo.com/pricing.

Which country is Odoo from?

Belgium. Fabien Pinckaers started it in 2005 as TinyERP; it became OpenERP in 2008 and Odoo in 2014. Today Odoo SA works with official partners around the world.

How many modules does Odoo have?

Odoo builds several dozen official apps. The Odoo Apps store lists 40,000+ additional community and partner apps of varying quality.

Does Odoo meet Uzbekistan's tax requirements?

Yes, with configuration. The national chart of accounts, 12% VAT, MXIK codes and reporting are set up during implementation. Deep Vision has ready-made modules for Didox e-invoicing and Asl Belgisi marking.

Is Odoo available in Uzbek and Russian?

Russian is fully translated. Uzbek is in Odoo's language list, but the standard translation may not cover every screen. Each user chooses their own language.

Is Odoo suitable for a small business?

Yes. You can start with a few users and one or two apps. A business with very simple processes may only need a basic POS or stock app.

What is the main difference between Odoo and 1C?

1C is the traditional accounting choice in Uzbekistan. Odoo combines sales, CRM, inventory, website and accounting in one web-based system.

How long does an Odoo implementation take?

Typically 2–6 months, depending on scope. Standard Sales and Inventory often go live in 6–8 weeks; manufacturing and complex integrations take longer.

Conclusion

Odoo ERP is a modular, open-source business system from Belgium that runs on one database. It is flexible, modern and lets you grow in phases, but it needs a proper implementation, adaptation to Uzbek requirements and a trained team.

Let's find out together whether Odoo is right for your company: fill in a brief for a free consultation or call +998 77 093 00 07.