What type of Business Central licensing is right for you?

Dynamics 365 Business Central is a growth-minded business management solution that helps organizations stay on top of goals with agility and is the future of Microsoft’s cloud ERP development. It’s a scalable application with a sleek user interface, plus it’s easy to customize (extensively, too) for nearly every business need imaginable.

Business Central boasts a few different license options, so organizations can fine-tune their licensing plan to just the right solution with everything they need to get the job done quickly and reliably. Business Central is most affordable and flexible when deployed as a cloud-based SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) solution, but on-premises and private hosted Azure environments are also available to satisfy every kind of deployment and infrastructure need.

Here’s what you need to know about the different Business Central license types:

Full users vs. additional users

Business Central users who will need to get the most out of the app will use a Full User license (either Premium or Essentials) – think salespeople, controllers, and supply chain managers. Those who use the app most frequently, with heavier role requirements, will most likely want full privileges and the richest functionalities.

Full User licensing also grants access to create unlimited users and companies, as well as multi-environment workspaces for business divisions, subsidiaries, and the like.

Please note that organizations can only have one type of Full User licensing – so between the two licensing options (more on these to follow), you must choose one and stick with it.

Additional Users would use Business Central to complete light work and don’t need the app’s full feature load to complete routine job requirements. These are considered “self-serve” employees, and likely only need to access and read information within the app, update existing data entries (like customer, vendor, or item records), approve or reject tasks in a workflow, enter time sheets, and update HR records.

Note that in order to implement Additional User licenses, at least one Full User license must be in place (either Business Central Premium or Essentials).

So, what are the different license types?

Business Central Essentials - $70 per user/month

Business Central Essentials is a Full User license that equips users with sophisticated processes that can be managed all in one app with an easy to navigate interface – finance, opportunity, invoicing, budgets, distribution, supply chain, project management, and more—all completely out-of-the-box without any necessary add-ons or extensions.

The Essentials license covers all your bases and is the gold-standard license type for those who need the aforementioned features, but if you need manufacturing or service order capabilities, you’ll need a license that goes a little deeper.

Business Central Premium - $100 per user/month

The other Full User license option is Business Central Premium, a complete end-to-end solution with all the features of Essentials along with added functionality for Manufacturing and Service Order Management. Premium licensing brings you this world-class ERP at its full capacity – plus, an added array of features, processes, and offerings makes it a great solution for a variety of industries (additionally, countless add-ins, extensions, and integrations push its capabilities even further so you have everything you need).

Added Service Order Management features bring you planning and dispatching, service contract management, service pricing, and service order management.

The Manufacturing module brings you essential industry features like assembly management, standard cost worksheets, production BOMs, capacity planning, production orders, machine centers, and more – with the quality-assured security, automation, and reliability that Business Central users expect.

One thing to keep in mind, however, is that customers cannot mix and match Essentials and Premium licensing within one organization – you may choose one or the other, but not both.

Team Members - $8 per user/month

Team Member licenses are designed to encourage widespread adoption of Business Central across an entire organization without overwhelming each and every user with features they may not need. Most app users fit under the umbrella that likely just need a Team Member license – they don’t really need full functionality, rather, a handful of capabilities and features that pertain to their role requirements. Team Member licenses fall under the “Additional User” category.  

Good candidates for Team Member licenses will have responsibilities that require them to consume data reports instead of needing to make them, complete light or limited tasks like time or expense entries, update records, or look up customer and purchase data.

Bonus: Business Central also provides three additional licenses at no extra charge for External Accountants that provide accounting and financial services to your organization. Minus access to user set up or admin accesses, these licenses allow customers with outside accountant assistance to access their Business Central environment routinely to complete necessary duties as they come up.

Make the switch to Business Central

Update: The Bridge to the Cloud 2 promotion mentioned in this blog has been extended through the end of 2025. (The promotion originally ran through June 2022, as reflected below.)

For a limited time, qualifying Dynamics GP or NAV clients can upgrade to Business Central at a fraction of its normal price tag, all while retaining access to your current solution with dual access rights—meaning you can keep using your current solution while building up your BC environment, for up to a total of 4 years. That way, you can jump right into a fine-tuned and highly customized workspace with hardly any downtime.

The Bridge to the Cloud promotion is the best way for those curious about an upgrade to start the process without immediately committing to a full system change. Find out if you qualify and enroll before June 20, 2022, to benefit from the full promotion offerings.