25 Open Source Alternatives For Costly Applications!

Over the years, it has been observed the prices of proprietary software have been rising year to year. Many software that were known to be pricey have switched to a software as a service (SaaS) pricing model. This appears less costly as it is based on a monthly subscription than a fee.

There are also some proprietary software that have seen a dip in price this year with some becoming free. Here is a list of open source software projects that can replace very expensive software. Let’s take a look at 25 under various heads below.

Accounting

1. Edoceo Imperium – This is for Quick Books Pro costing $249.95 or $12.95 per month and Sage Peachtree Complete Accounting costing $379.99 and up. It is a Web-based application that tracks quotes, work orders, invoices, contacts, customers and vendors. It also offers double-entry accounting capabilities and can be integrated with Google Calendar and other apps. It does not require an OS. You can download it from here

2. FrontAccounting – This is for QuickBooksPro costing $249.95 or $12.95 per month) and Sage Peachtree Complete Accounting costing $379.99 and up. It has both accounting and basic ERP planning that are ideal for small businesses supporting various languages and currencies and also many businesses. It is Operating System independent. You can download it from here

3. TurboCASH – This is for QuickBooksPro costing $249.95 or $12.95 per month and Sage Peachtree Complete Accounting costing $379.99 and up. This is another accounting package made for SMBs. It features stock control, general ledger, accounts receivable and payable, reporting and analysis capabilities. It works on Windows. You can download it from here

4. XIWA – This is for QuickBooksPro costing $249.95 or $12.95 per month and Sage Peachtree Complete Accounting costing $379.99 and up. It is a Linux-based accounting program that has been around since 1999. It has multi-user support, multi-company support, payroll, stock/investment tracking, reporting and more. You can download it from here

Audio Recording/Editing

5. Audacity – This is for Apple LogicPro costing $199.99 and FL Studio Producer Edition costing $199. It permits amateur musicians in recording and editing multi-track recordings. Its latest version comes with an improved reverb tool and the ability to record computer playback and many new commands, which simplify the editing process. It works on Windows, Linux, OS X.

You can download it from here

6. Frinika – This is for Apple LogicPro costing $199.99 and FL Studio Producer Edition costing $199. It is Java-based. It is not very advanced as some other options, but has a sequencer, midi support, soft synthesizers, audio recorder, piano roll/tracker/notation editing and more. It is Operating System Independent. You can download it from here

7. Linux MultiMedia Studio – This is for AppleLogicPro costing $199.99 and FL Studio Producer Edition costing $199. It makes it quite simple to compose and/or produce your own music and comes with a song editor, beat+bassline editor, piano roll, 64-channel FX mixer, standards support and more. It works on Windows and Linux. You can download it from here

Business Intelligence

8. Jaspersoft – This is for Oracle Business Intelligence Standard costing $5,000+, Microsoft Dynamics costing $27,150 or $178 per month per user) and IBM Cognos Express costing $25 per user per month and up. It is an open source and popular business intelligence software. It is Operating System Independent. You can download it from here

9. Jedox – This is for Oracle Business Intelligence Standard costing $5,000+, Microsoft Dynamics costing $27,150 or $178 per month per user) and IBM Cognos Express costing $25 per user per month and up. It offers planning and forecasting, reporting and analysis, sales management, procurement management and project management. It is Operating System independent. You can download it from here

10. Pentaho – This is for Oracle Business Intelligence Standard costing $5,000, Microsoft Dynamics costing $27,150 or $178 per month per user and IBM Cognos Express costing $25 per user per month and up. It provides a range of commercial analytics and big data products with Lufthansa, Telefonica and Marketo as its clients. It works on Windows, Linux and OS X. You can download it from here

Business Process Management

11. ProcessMaker – This is for IBM Business Process Manager Express costing $45,100 and up. It's available in paid cloud, on-premise enterprise and SugarCRM editions. It also has a free community version. It works on Windows and Linux. You can download it from here
CAD

12. BRL-CAD – This is for AutoCAD costing $4,195 and up. It is used by the U.S. military for over twenty years. It is a solid geometry modeling and editing package having over 400 tools, utilities, and applications assisting with design and analysis of vehicles, mechanical parts, and architecture. It also has radiation dose planning, medical visualization and education. It works on Windows, Linux, OS X and others. You can download it from here

13. FreeCAD – This is for AutoCAD costing $4,195 and up. It is a parametric modeling tool made with mechanical engineers and product designers in mind. It supports many industry-standard CAD file formats. It works on Windows, Linux, OS X and others. You can download it from here

14. Archimedes – This is for AutoCAD costing $4,195 and up. It is a Java-based bare-bones CAD system idea for certain architects and students. It works on Windows, Linux and OS X.
You can download it from here

Customer Relationship Management

15. Sugar Community Edition – This is for Sage ACT! costing $269.99 and up, Microsoft Dynamics CRM costing $65 per user per month and up and Oracle CRM on Demand costing $75 per user per month and up. It has millions of users that include personnel at Coca-Cola, Chevrolet, Men's Warehouse, ThyssenKrupp System Engineering and others. It is independent of Operating System. You can download it from here

16. vTiger – This is for Sage ACT! costing $269.99 and up, Microsoft Dynamics CRM costing $65 per user per month and up and Oracle CRM on Demand costing $75 per user per month and up. It has over 10,000 customers. It is aimed at assisting enterprises "get organized, grow sales, boost marketing ROI, and deliver delightful customer experiences." It works on Windows, Linux, iOS and Android. You can download it from here

17. Orange Leap – This is for Sage ACT! costing $269.99 and up. It is ideal for non-profits and aimed at creating managing contacts especially fundraising contacts simpler. It works on Windows. You can download it from here

18. SourceTap – This is for Sage ACT! costing $269.99 and up, Microsoft Dynamics CRM costing $65 per user per month and up and Oracle CRM on Demand costing $75 per user per month and up. It is created basically for sales team members offering lead, account and opportunity management tools. It works on Windows and Linux. You can download it from here

19. SplendidCRM – This is for Sage ACT! costing $269.99 and up, Microsoft Dynamics CRM costing $65 per user per month and up and Oracle CRM on Demand costing $75 per user per month and up. Its latest version of Splendid has a new survey model, 42 new standard reports, Google Apps Sync, an HTML5 calendar and more. It works on Windows. Click here

20. ConcourseSuite – This is for Sage ACT! costing $269.99 and up, Microsoft Dynamics CRM costing $65 per user per month and up and Oracle CRM on Demand costing $75 per user per month and up. It is a Java-based apps that is aimed at providing a 360° view of your customer, tracking leads, opportunities, marketing and customer support functions. It works on Windows, Linux and OS X. Click here

Database

21. MySQL – This is for Microsoft SQL Server standard costing $898 and up. It is used by organizations including Facebook, Google, Adobe, Alcatel Lucent and Zappos. It has been for a long time among the most popular databases for use with the Web offering scalability, flexibility, high performance and more. It works on Windows, Linux, Unix and OS X. Click here

22. Firebird – This is for Microsoft SQL Server standard costing $898 and up. It was launched in 1981 and is a mature SQL database boasting cross-platform support, multi-generation architecture, logging and monitoring capabilities, great security and more. It works on Windows, Linux, Unix, OS X and Solaris. Click here

23. Kexi – This is for Microsoft Office Access 2013 costing $109.99 and FileMakerPro12 costing $299. Kexi has a familiar set of desktop database features. Notable capabilities include full visual designers for tables, queries and forms; support for parameterized queries; support for object data; lookup columns; advanced import tools and more. It works on Windows, Linux and OS X. Click here

Desktop Publishing

24. Scribus – This is for InDesign CS5 costing $19.99 per user per month and up, QuarkXPress costing $849 and Microsoft Publisher costing $109.99. It is a professional-caliber page layout program performing color separations, CMYK and spot colors, ICC color management, PDF creation and more. It works on Windows, Linux and OS X. Click here

25. MiKTeX – This is for InDesign CS5 costing $19.99 per user per month and up, QuarkXPRess costing $849 and Microsoft Publisher costing $109.99. It is a publishing solution for making scientific and mathematical text look beautiful. It works on Windows and Linux. Click here