Comparison · Light vs Business Central
Light vs Business Central
Compare Light and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central around your entities, accounting controls and operational requirements. Test the same workflows, integrations and migration scope before choosing a platform.
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Entity reporting
Workflow controls
Integration scope
Migration evidence
The world's most demanding finance teams run on Light.
In detail
Light and Business Central, compared
| Feature | Light | Business Central |
|---|---|---|
| 01Group accounting | A shared finance platform with entity records, intercompany eliminations and consolidated reports. | Built-in consolidation into a consolidated company, including different charts of accounts and currencies. Verify the configuration and elimination process. |
| 02Operational scope | Accounting, payables, receivables, spend and financial reporting. Scope specialist operational integrations separately. | An ERP covering finance alongside areas such as sales, inventory, projects and manufacturing. Confirm the proposed edition and scope. |
| 03AI and approvals | Evaluate a prepared transaction, its approval and its action history against the finance team's controls. | Microsoft offers Copilot and agents in Business Central. Check the specific functionality, availability and review controls in the proposed setup. |
| 04Implementation | Scope entities, history, integrations, customer effort and the first close with Light's implementation team. | Agree configuration, migration, extensions and responsibilities with the proposed delivery team. A universal implementation duration is not a useful comparison. |
| 05Total cost | Request a quote for the agreed entities, users, workflows, integrations and service scope. | Compare the same scope, including licences, delivery, extensions, support and later changes. Confirm current terms with the supplier. |
When should Business Central stay on the shortlist?
Microsoft positions Business Central as an ERP spanning finance and operations. It deserves consideration when accounting needs to connect with inventory, projects or manufacturing, or when established Microsoft processes already work for the business.
Include improving the current setup in the evaluation. Replacing the ledger should solve a demonstrated problem at an acceptable cost, including migration and the team's time.
- 01
How do the consolidation approaches differ?
Microsoft documents built-in consolidation, including account mappings and currency handling. Its documented process transfers entity figures into a consolidated company and includes elimination adjustments. Consolidation does not universally require an add-on.
Light's consolidation product keeps entity records and group reporting in the shared finance platform. Test both approaches using the same period, intercompany difference and late adjustment. Follow the consolidated result back to its source rather than judging the system from a feature tick.
- 02
What should the integration and migration plan prove?
List the systems that will stay, the records each owns and the failure each connection must recover from. Demonstrate a corrected customer record, a duplicate request and a payment received after an invoice changes.
Use the ERP migration checklist for open items, active schedules, historical currencies and reconciliation. Agree cutover and first-close acceptance with the people who will operate the system.
- 03
How should you compare cost and implementation effort?
Ask both delivery teams to price the same entity list, user roles, transaction requirements and integrations. Include internal preparation, testing, training, support and future changes. Record which work the proposal includes and which work needs a separate agreement.
The ERP selection scorecard helps compare the evidence. For a wider shortlist, see NetSuite alternatives, pricing and implementation costs.
Microsoft product sources checked on 6 October 2026. Availability and commercial terms depend on the proposed edition, country and contract; confirm the exact setup with the supplier.
What should your evaluation prove?
- 01
Define the group requirement
Bring the entity structure, currencies and a completed consolidated report to both demonstrations.
- 02
Keep the operational scope visible
Test required inventory, project or service workflows alongside the finance cases.
- 03
Require a repeatable result
A second reviewer should be able to explain the transaction, approval and report after the demonstration.
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Read customer stories-
“We evaluated several vendors. Light won because it covers our full finance stack, revenue, AR, AP, expenses, and consolidation, without stitching together a patchwork of point solutions.”
Tanja, Director of FinanceOmnea -
“Even though we’re three entities, it’s like I’m running a finance department for one entity.”
Thobias, Finance ManagerAlva Labs -
“I really like that Light’s AI already gives me suggestions, GL accounts, cost centers, tax codes. I don’t have to start from scratch.”
Cédric, Finance ManagerOper Credits -
“Nine times out of ten the AI matches everything and posts it to the right account. One click and you’re done.”
Jeppe, CFOKeyShot
Built for the daily work
Bills through to payment
Capture invoices, route approvals and pay vendors from the same system.
Room to grow
One ledger built to handle billions of transactions across your business.
Trace every number
Open a report and drill straight into the transactions behind it.
Spending, under control
Expenses, vendors and cards connected to your ledger.
Expenses
Collect receipts, approve expenses and track spend as it happens.
Vendors
Keep supplier details, bills and approvals together. Apply your purchasing rules as work moves through.
Cards
Issue cards for employees and vendors. Pay with Apple Pay or Google Pay. Send receipts through Slack, Teams or email.
Frequently asked questions
Does Business Central support consolidation?
Yes. Microsoft documents built-in consolidation across companies, including different charts of accounts and currencies. Confirm the configuration, data-transfer and elimination process for your group.
When is Light worth evaluating alongside Business Central?
Include Light when the project centres on accounting, finance workflows and group reporting in a shared platform. If the brief also includes specialist operations, demonstrate the required integrations and confirm responsibility for them.
How long does migration take?
The plan depends on entities, historical data, integrations, testing and customer availability. Ask for milestones and acceptance conditions for your scope, including the first close, rather than relying on a universal duration.
How do we compare the two proposals fairly?
Use the same requirements, transactions and period for both demonstrations. Compare the resulting accounting evidence, unresolved gaps, delivery responsibilities and total scoped cost.
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