---
title: "How to Choose an ERP for a Hong Kong SME:… | BudgetWorks"
description: "Choosing an ERP in Hong Kong? — Check MPF payroll, Employment Ordinance rules, Profits Tax reports, HKD and bilingual support, pricing and data location."
url: https://www.budgetapp.works/en/blog/erp-hong-kong-sme-buyers-checklist
canonical_url: https://www.budgetapp.works/en/blog/erp-hong-kong-sme-buyers-checklist
last_updated: 2026-10-12
---

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 October 1, 2026 54 views

# How to Choose an ERP for a Hong Kong SME: A 7-Point Checklist

![How to Choose an ERP for a Hong Kong SME: A 7-Point Checklist](/cdn-cgi/image/width=1536,quality=80,format=auto/https://public-api.budgetapp.works/api/public/media/5a35a570-abab-4ea5-95c4-eda9cbdaf87c)

## How to Choose an ERP for a Hong Kong SME: A 7-Point Checklist

Most ERP guides are written for companies in the US or Europe. A Hong Kong business has different day-one needs: MPF contributions, a Profits Tax return, Hong Kong dollars, bilingual staff and customers, and often a real question about where your data lives.

Use this checklist when you compare systems. It is the same list we used when building [BudgetWorks OS](/) for Hong Kong companies.

## The short version

```mermaid
flowchart TD
    A[Shortlist ERP systems] --> B{Handles MPF payroll?}
    B -->|No| X[Needs a separate payroll tool]
    B -->|Yes| C{Produces your Profits Tax figures?}
    C -->|No| Y[Accountant re-keys the numbers]
    C -->|Yes| D{Pricing fits your headcount?}
    D -->|Per-user fees add up| Z[Check unlimited-user plans]
    D -->|Yes| E{Data location acceptable?}
    E -->|Yes| F[Run a trial on your own data]

```

## 1\. MPF payroll, built in

Hong Kong payroll is not just salary minus tax. Every employee needs MPF contributions tracked by scheme, member number, start date and any voluntary top-ups from employee or employer.

**Ask:** can payslips be generated with MPF calculated correctly, or does payroll live in a separate spreadsheet?

In BudgetWorks OS the HR module stores the MPF scheme, member number, start date and voluntary contributions on each employee record, and payslips are generated from it.

## 2\. Employment Ordinance rules, not just a payroll sheet

Under Hong Kong's Employment Ordinance, many employee rights depend on a "continuous contract". The well-known "418 rule" (employed for four consecutive weeks, at least 18 hours in each week) decides who counts.

**Ask:** does the system help you check this, or will someone count weeks by hand?

BudgetWorks OS includes a 418 continuous-employment check on each employee, worked out from their attendance records over the last four weeks.

## 3\. Profits Tax figures your accountant can use

Your accountant ultimately needs numbers arranged the way the Inland Revenue Department expects. If your books are in a system that cannot present them that way, someone re-types them every year.

**Ask:** can the system produce an IRD-style income statement for a financial year, with a prior-year comparison?

BudgetWorks OS has a Hong Kong income statement report built for Profits Tax work.

## 4\. Hong Kong dollars and bilingual use

Check that HKD is the default currency, that dates and numbers display the way your team expects, and that the interface and documents work in Traditional Chinese as well as English. A system that is "multi-language" in marketing but English-only for invoices will cost you time.

## 5\. How you are charged

Many ERP products price per user, so the bill grows every time you add a salesperson or a part-time staff member. For a small team, ask for the all-in monthly figure at your real headcount.

BudgetWorks OS plans are in Hong Kong dollars and include unlimited users: Starter from HKD 699 a month, Business from HKD 1,800 (adds HR and payroll with MPF, POS and inventory, helpdesk and booking), and Enterprise from HKD 3,000\. See the [pricing page](/pricing) for what each plan includes.

## 6\. Where your data lives

Some companies, such as those handling client records or regulated data, need to control where data is stored. Ask whether the system can run on your own server, in the cloud, or in a mix of both.

BudgetWorks OS supports on-premises, cloud and hybrid deployment, so the choice follows your compliance needs and not the vendor's.

## 7\. AI that you can check

AI features are now common in ERPs, and the question to ask is what happens when the AI is wrong. In our design, AI is never the source of truth. It proposes, a person reviews a preview, and only then does the system change a record. We wrote about how we use Jev for typed judgments in [Select, Don't Generate](/blog/how-we-use-jev-select-dont-generate).

## How to run a fair trial

1. Pick one real month of data: your invoices, your payroll, your expenses.
2. Import it into each shortlisted system.
3. Check the seven points above against that data, not a demo company.
4. Ask your accountant to look at the output.

You can try this with your own spreadsheets on our [free trial page](/try), or see every module on the [platform overview](/demo).

_Have questions about fitting an ERP to your business? [Contact us](/contact)._

 #erp #hong kong #sme #mpf payroll #profits tax #buyers guide

### Want to see it in action?

Learn how BudgetWorks OS can transform your business operations.

[Try Live Demo](/en/try)

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