SelectLine
SelectLine is a Magdeburg-based German ERP and accounting product family operated by SelectLine Software, founded in 1990 and majority-owned by the Swiss BSE Software group since 2014. The product's defining commercial characteristic is its broad reseller network in Germany, Switzerland and Austria, which carries the product into the small-business and lighter Mid-Market (mid-market) segment through several hundred independent resellers and tax advisers. SelectLine is rarely the first product to come to mind in modern cloud-ERP discussions but it carries a substantial DACH SMB installed base, particularly in trade, services and light manufacturing, with the unusual strength of a relatively mature production module at SMB price points.
Modular structure
SelectLine is genuinely modular and is commonly sold as a starter package (typically accounting plus invoicing) that customers extend over time. Core modules cover financial accounting, payroll, invoicing and merchandise management. Production and the warehouse-management module are paid extensions. The financial-accounting and payroll modules are sometimes used standalone by tax advisers and small businesses that do not need a full ERP, which contributes to the broad reseller distribution. The integration between modules is tight, which makes the typical growth path (accounting first, then add merchandise management, then add production) operationally smoother than starting with separate products.
Production module
SelectLine's production module is unusually capable for its price segment. It covers BOMs, work plans, capacity-aware scheduling, work orders, basic shop-floor data capture and quality. For lighter Mid-Market manufacturers with up to roughly 50 production users, this module reaches functional depth that approaches more expensive products such as Business Central with KUMAVISION manufacturing extensions, at materially lower TCO. The trade-off is that the user experience and ecosystem are less modern than at higher price points, and partner depth in specific manufacturing sub-segments (precision engineering, automotive supply) varies meaningfully across the reseller network.
Deployment and architecture
SelectLine runs on a Windows/Microsoft SQL Server stack, traditionally customer-managed on-premises. Several SelectLine partners operate hosted-cloud editions, and SelectLine itself offers SelectLine Cloud as a partner-hosted managed-cloud delivery. There is no native multi-tenant SaaS edition; the customer base's appetite for industry customisation and the broad reseller-led commercial model are not naturally compatible with strict multi-tenancy. For new customers, the partner-hosted cloud option has become increasingly popular, particularly in the smaller end of the market where internal IT capacity is limited.
DACH localisation and DATEV
SelectLine's DACH localisation is deep and native, reflecting the product's German SMB-and-tax-adviser origins. GoBD compliance (the German principles for proper digital bookkeeping) is built in and certified. DATEV (the German payroll and accounting standard) integration is native and one of the more seamless implementations in the DACH SMB segment, partly because of the strong tax-adviser presence in the reseller network. ZUGFeRD and XRechnung e-invoicing are covered. The Austrian and Swiss localisations are mature; the Swiss localisation is supported by the parent BSE Software group's Swiss home market.
Pricing and selection considerations
SelectLine is licensed in the traditional perpetual model with annual maintenance, with subscription pricing available for the SelectLine Cloud edition. Pricing is generally lower than equivalent international SMB ERPs. For a 30-user SMB deployment with merchandise management and production, all-in TCO over five years typically lands between 80,000 and 250,000 euro, with implementation services representing 0.3 to 0.8 times the first-year licence cost. SelectLine is the natural choice for DACH SMB businesses that want a German-native product with a strong production option at low TCO, particularly those with a long-standing tax-adviser relationship that already knows the product. It is less compelling for upper-Mid-Market buyers above 100 users (where Business Central, Sage 100 or weclapp offer more), for e-commerce-first businesses (Xentral, JTL-Wawi, weclapp fit better), or for organisations explicitly seeking modern cloud SaaS.
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Vendor homepage of SelectLine
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Frequently Asked Questions
How does SelectLine compare with Sage 100?
Both are German-native Mittelstand ERPs with deep DATEV integration. SelectLine sits in the smaller SMB segment with materially lower TCO and a strong production module; Sage 100 covers a wider Mittelstand range with deeper financial-accounting features and a larger partner ecosystem. The choice typically comes down to scale: SelectLine for 10 to 80 users, Sage 100 for 30 to 300 users.
Is SelectLine suitable for cloud-only operation?
SelectLine is not multi-tenant SaaS. The SelectLine Cloud edition is partner-hosted managed cloud running the same on-premises product. Buyers explicitly seeking modern multi-tenant SaaS should look at weclapp, myfactory or Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Cloud instead.
Does SelectLine have a true production module?
Yes. The production module covers BOMs, routings, capacity-aware scheduling, work orders, basic shop-floor data capture and quality. It is unusually capable for the SMB segment and is one of SelectLine's genuine functional strengths. For lighter Mittelstand manufacturers up to roughly 50 production users, it is a serious option.
Who supports SelectLine in DACH?
SelectLine is sold and implemented through a network of several hundred independent resellers and tax advisers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The reseller's industry experience and proximity matter substantially because partner depth varies meaningfully across the network. Buyers should treat partner due diligence with as much care as product evaluation.