How to Choose the Right Hosting and Optimise Performance for Odoo

When businesses invest in Odoo, they often focus heavily on functional requirements and Odoo customisation features—sales workflows, accounting logic, inventory automation, or bespoke reporting. However, one critical factor is frequently underestimated: hosting and system performance.

In reality, even the most well-designed Odoo customisation project can fail if the underlying infrastructure is not properly chosen and optimised. Slow response times, system downtime, and performance bottlenecks directly impact user adoption, productivity, and ROI.

This guide is written for decision-makers who want a clear, practical understanding of how to choose the right hosting for Odoo and optimise performance—especially for customised Odoo implementations.

Why Hosting Plays a Critical Role in Odoo Performance

Odoo is not a simple website or CMS. It is a full-scale ERP system built on Python, powered by PostgreSQL, and designed to handle concurrent users and complex business logic.

Not all hosting environments are suitable for this architecture.

Key characteristics that make Odoo demanding:

• Heavy reliance on RAM and database caching
• CPU usage driven by multi-threaded workers
• Performance-sensitive custom Odoo modules and automated workflows
• High I/O activity for reports, accounting data, and file attachments

For businesses investing in advanced Odoo customisation services, poor hosting decisions often lead to:

• Slow performance during peak usage
• Timeouts when generating reports
• System instability after adding new custom features
•  Rising infrastructure costs without clear performance gains

Choosing the right hosting from the start is therefore not a technical detail—it is a strategic business decision.

Read more: Odoo 19 Roadmap: What’s To Expect?

Common Odoo Hosting Options Explained

1. Odoo Online (SaaS)

Odoo Online is the official SaaS offering provided by Odoo.

Advantages

• No server management required
• Automatic updates and security
• Quick deployment

Limitations

• No backend code access
• Cannot install third-party or custom Odoo modules
• Limited flexibility for business-specific processes

Best suited for

• Small businesses with standard processes
• Companies that do not require deep Odoo customisation

For organisations planning long-term growth or industry-specific workflows, Odoo Online is often too restrictive.

Learn more: SaaS Development Services

2. Odoo.sh (Platform as a Service)

Odoo.sh is a managed PaaS environment optimised specifically for Odoo.

Advantages

• Designed for Odoo custom development
• Integrated Git-based deployment workflow
• Automatic backups and staging environments

Limitations

• Higher cost compared to generic VPS hosting
• Less control over infrastructure fine-tuning

Best suited for

• Businesses that require ongoing Odoo customisation and version control
• Teams with structured development and testing processes

3. Self-Hosted Odoo (VPS, Cloud, or On-Premise)

Self-hosting Odoo on platforms such as AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, or DigitalOcean offers the highest level of control.

Advantages

• Full access to server configuration
• Flexible costs based on usage
• Ideal for complex and performance-intensive Odoo customisation projects

Challenges

• Requires experienced system administration
• Performance tuning and security are your responsibility

Best suited for

• Medium to large enterprises
• Companies with in-house IT teams or trusted Odoo implementation partners
• Businesses handling sensitive data or complex custom workflows.

How to Size Your Odoo Server Correctly

Sizing an Odoo server is more of a science than a guess. Because Odoo is based on a multi-process architecture, your hardware needs are directly tied to the number of concurrent users (people clicking buttons at the same time) rather than just total registered users.

Recommended Hardware Sizing Table

This table provides a baseline for a standard Odoo implementation (Accounting, CRM, Sales, Inventory).

Critical Sizing Factors

• Always use SSD or NVMe storage: Odoo performs thousands of small database queries. Traditional HDDs will bottleneck the system instantly. Always use NVMe or high-performance SSDs.
• Prioritise RAM over CPU for PostgreSQL performance: If you use Manufacturing (MRP), eCommerce with high traffic, or Odoo Studio heavily, increase your RAM by 50% above the recommendations.
• Separate Database Server: Once you cross 100+ concurrent users, it is best practice to move PostgreSQL to its own dedicated server to prevent CPU contention between the Odoo app and the database.

Read more: Why Odoo Solutions Are Excellent Choice For SME

Best Practices to Optimise Odoo Performance

1. Configure Odoo Workers Properly

By default, Odoo runs in single-thread mode, which is insufficient for business use.

Recommended formula

Workers = (Number of CPU cores × 2) + 1

Each worker consumes memory, so RAM allocation must be calculated carefully to avoid system crashes.

Correct worker configuration is particularly important for:

• Automated actions
• Custom reports
• Complex approval workflows introduced through Odoo customisation

2. Optimise PostgreSQL for Odoo

PostgreSQL is the backbone of Odoo performance.

Key optimisation steps:

• Tune parameters such as shared_buffers, work_mem, and effective_cache_size
• Use tools like Pgtune for baseline configuration
• Run regular VACUUM and ANALYZE operations
• Monitor slow queries caused by inefficient custom modules

Poorly written Odoo customisation code often impacts the database first, making proactive tuning essential.

3. Use Nginx as a Reverse Proxy

Placing Nginx in front of Odoo significantly improves performance and security.

Benefits include:

• Reduced load on the Odoo application
• Faster static content delivery
• Improved SSL handling

Best practices:

• Enable Gzip compression
• Configure HTTPS with HTTP/2
• Set appropriate timeouts for long-running requests

4. Implement Caching and File Storage Optimisation

For business-critical systems, caching is not optional.

Recommended approach:

• Use Redis for session storage
• Store attachments in the file system or cloud storage, not directly in the database
• Use high-speed storage for filestore directories

These optimisations are especially valuable for document-heavy Odoo customisation scenarios such as accounting, HR, and project management.

Final Thoughts

Hosting and performance optimisation are not technical afterthoughts—they are foundational to the success of any Odoo project.

For businesses investing in custom Odoo development and long-term ERP scalability, the right infrastructure:

• Ensures consistent performance
• Supports future growth
• Protects the value of your Odoo customisation investment

If your organisation lacks in-house infrastructure expertise, partnering with an experienced Odoo provider like BHSOFT—with a strong understanding of both Odoo customisation and system architecture—can deliver significant time and cost savings in the long run. Contact our experts today!