Half of SAP’s German-speaking customers will not have switched to S/4HANA by the 2027 deadline.
The 2027 deadline for migrating legacy SAP systems to S/4HANA seems unrealistic in practice. A survey of customers in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria shows that half plan to make the switch by the end of 2030. Only 27 percent indicate they will make the leap by the end of 2027.
Those who miss the initial 2027 deadline will primarily lose money. SAP itself offers extended support until 2030, but at a two percent premium. Four percent of those surveyed do not plan to switch until the end of 2033. These customers are likely counting on the SAP ERP Private Edition transition, which is part of a migration plan.
Complex migration
SAP wants to move its customers from legacy systems to S/4HANA, which is cloud-based (but can also run privately). This is a difficult task: legacy SAP systems are typically closely linked to a company’s operational processes. They have grown over the years and often contain a significant amount of customization. A migration of the ERP system therefore affects organizations at the very core of their operations.
This ensures that migrations are time-consuming and expensive. Furthermore, it is not always easy to attract the right talent to assist with the transition.
The figures come from a survey of the German-speaking SAP user group DSAG. They surveyed members between December 8, 2025, and January 21, 2026. There were 198 respondents, all responsible for SAP within their organizations.
There is little reason to assume that the figures and proportions are drastically different in the rest of Europe. After all, the challenges surrounding the complexity of the migration are the same everywhere.