Patterns
Self-hosted (Akretion, Dolibarr) vs SaaS (Scell.io)
Trade-offs for choosing an e-invoicing solution
Self-hosted (Odoo + Akretion factur-x, Dolibarr + e-invoicing module, Mustangproject Java) brings full data control, sovereign hosting and no marginal cost per invoice. Hidden cost: maintaining ISCA compliance, managing SHA-256 hash chain, deploying RFC 3161 TSA, tracking EN 16931 schema evolution, integrating with PPF and obtaining PDP accreditation (~6-18 months, €200k+). Scell.io (SaaS) externalises these costs: self-certified compliance, guaranteed fiscal log immutability, SuperPDP integration, PHP/JS/MCP SDKs. Trade-off: vendor dependency, per-invoice cost (but < €0.10). Breakeven around 50,000 invoices/year: below, SaaS wins; above, self-hosted becomes competitive if the team has fiscal expertise.
Key facts
- Akretion factur-x: OSS Odoo module, compliance is publisher's responsibility
- Dolibarr: community e-invoicing module, no native PDP accreditation
- Self-hosted: 6-18 months to reach ISCA compliance + PDP accreditation
- SaaS Scell.io: immediate compliance, < €0.10/invoice, turnkey SDK
- Theoretical breakeven: ~50k invoices/year
Code example
// Décision : SaaS Scell.io vs self-hosted
const decision = {
invoicesPerYear: 12_000,
fiscalExpertiseInTeam: false,
needsPdpAccreditation: true,
budgetForInfra: 'low',
};
if (decision.invoicesPerYear < 50_000 || !decision.fiscalExpertiseInTeam) {
return 'Scell.io SaaS — conformité incluse, time-to-market < 1 jour';
}
return 'Self-hosted possible si équipe fiscale + 200k€ budget agrément PDP';