Odoo licences are the code licences that apply to the Odoo software distributed by Odoo S.A., as distinct from the subscription contract. Odoo’s Licenses page sets out four: LGPL version 3 for the Community Edition, the Odoo Enterprise Edition License v1.0, the Odoo Proprietary License v1.0 for Odoo Apps, and AGPL version 3 for Odoo 8.[1] Odoo describes the Community Edition as open source and the Enterprise Edition as licensed, with Community as the core on which Enterprise is built.[2] Catalog proof: Community Edition is licensed under LGPL v3.
Editions
Community Edition
Odoo Community Edition is licensed under LGPL version 3, also known as LGPLv3, and the page refers readers to the GPL FAQ and compatibility matrix.[1] The documents reviewed attach no subscription to the Community Edition. A Community database can be converted to Enterprise by installing the web_enterprise module, restarting, and entering the Enterprise subscription code; the documentation gives separate steps for Linux installers, source installs and Windows.[3] Catalog proof: Odoo Community.
Enterprise Edition
Odoo 19 Enterprise Edition is licensed under the Odoo Enterprise Edition License v1.0. Its grant is that the Software and associated files can only be used (executed, modified, executed after modifications) with a valid Odoo Enterprise Subscription for the correct number of users.[1] The same page says that, with a valid Partnership Agreement with Odoo S.A., these permissions are also granted as long as usage is limited to a testing or development environment.[1] Catalog proof: Enterprise Edition needs a valid subscription for the correct number of users; Partners may use Enterprise Edition for testing and development.
The licence allows a developer to write Odoo modules based on the Software and distribute them under a licence of the developer’s choice, provided it is compatible with the Enterprise licence (for example LGPL, MIT, or proprietary licences similar to the Enterprise licence). Modules published under any compatible licence may be used with the Software, including modules on the Odoo Apps Store. It is forbidden to publish, distribute, sublicense or sell copies of the Software or modified copies, and the copyright and permission notice must be included in all copies.[1] Catalog proof: Modules built on Enterprise may use a compatible licence; Copies of Enterprise Edition may not be published or sold.
Odoo Apps
Unless otherwise stated, Odoo Apps published by Odoo S.A., including the website themes, are under the Odoo Proprietary License v1.0. Under it the Software may be used only if the user has purchased a valid licence from the authors, typically via Odoo Apps, or has received a written agreement from the authors. A developer may write modules that use the Software as a library without copying source code or material from it, and may distribute those modules under a compatible licence; selling or publishing copies is forbidden.[1] Catalog proof: Odoo Apps by Odoo SA are under the Odoo Proprietary License.
Older versions
The licences for Community and Enterprise Edition of every Odoo version since Odoo 9 are the same as for Odoo 19. Odoo 8 is licensed under AGPL version 3.[1] Catalog proof: Odoo 9 to 18 use the same two licences and Odoo 8 uses AGPL.
Metrics
The Enterprise licence refers to “the correct number of users” without defining it. The definition comes from the Subscription Agreement: a User is an active account that is not a Light User, and a Light User is a designated account or an active employee record in the Human Resources app not linked to an active non-portal user account.[4] Portal accounts and deactivated accounts are not counted.[4] The licence text therefore has to be read with the Agreement to count compliantly. Catalog proof: User; Light User.
Counting and floors
The licence states no minimum number of users. The count that must be “correct” is the subscription’s written number of Users and Light Users, and use above it is charged at the list price at the time of the deviation under the Agreement.[4] The Community to Enterprise procedure ends with linking the converted database to the subscription by entering its code, and on-premise only one database can be linked per subscription.[3][5]
Virtualization and partitioning
The licences refer to execution of the Software and do not mention virtual machines, servers or processors. Test and development environments of a customer are handled as duplicated databases, not as extra licences: a duplicated database can be neutralized, with automated actions, outgoing emails, payment providers and IAP tokens deactivated, and only one database can be linked per subscription.[6][5] Partners have a separate right: with a Partnership Agreement the Enterprise permissions extend to testing or development environments.[1]
Cloud and BYOL
The Agreement licenses Enterprise Edition for the duration of the Agreement and revokes the licence on expiry or termination, whether the customer is on the cloud platform or self-hosting.[4] There is no perpetual Enterprise licence in the documents reviewed. A Community database that later moves to Enterprise or Odoo Online has to pass through the hosting rules: Odoo Online is incompatible with non-standard apps, so a database moving there must first uninstall them.[7][8] Catalog proof: Odoo Online does not support custom or Apps Store modules.
Programs
The partner programme is the only licence-related programme in the licence texts. The Partnership Agreement (Version 11, 2023-05-19) grants a partner access to the Enterprise code repository under the Enterprise licence, free access to Odoo.sh for testing and development, and requires the partner not to offer services on Enterprise Edition to customers without an Enterprise subscription, even during implementation, and not to alter the code that verifies usage.[9] Partnership levels (Learning Partners and Official Partners at Ready, Silver and Gold levels) depend on net new Enterprise users sold, certified resources and retention rate.[9] Catalog proof: Partners may not serve customers without an Enterprise subscription.
Compliance considerations
The Enterprise licence couples use to a subscription and forbids publishing, distributing, sublicensing or selling copies, so the subscription and the count of users are the two points to evidence.[1] The Agreement also warrants that Odoo S.A. owns the copyright, or an equivalent right, on 100 per cent of the code of the Software, with external contributions covered by a Copyright License Agreement.[4] Verification of usage runs through code in the Software, which the customer must leave unmodified.[4]
Out of scope
This article does not cover the licences of third-party modules published on the Odoo Apps Store, which are set by their authors, or the Contributor License Agreement beyond the Agreement’s mention of it.[1][4]