SAP S/4HANA Modules: The Complete List

Modules are functional software for different business processes and technical tools integrated as software add-ons from the ERP system developer. Users select optional modules as additions to the core system for an additional cost.

The SAP ERP, S/4HANA, bundles industry editions with SAP S/4HANA modules relevant to your company’s industry (and other industries).

This article lists and describes SAP S/4HANA modules and third-party integrations that should be considered part of the SAP Intelligent Enterprise for mid-size and large multi-entity corporations.

What is SAP S/4HANA?

SAP S/4HANA is the latest version of SAP’s modular enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. The SAP S/4HANA ERP with cloud, on-premises, or hybrid deployment is built on a fast, real-time HANA in-memory database. It uses AI (artificial intelligence)/ML (machine learning) and advanced real-time analytics. 

The SAP S/4HANA data model, built on the SAP HANA database, has simpler data structures than SAP ECC, which enables real-time analytics and provides other capabilities. SAP S/4HANA uses Core Data Services (CDS) views that enable improved data access. It also provides a Universal Journal for recording financial accounting and management accounting data in a single chart of accounts. 

SAP S/4HANA offers Cloud Public Edition, Cloud Private Edition, and on-premises versions. The Cloud Private Edition lets a company move to the cloud at its own pace, from an on-premises conversion or as a new implementation. SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition may be deployed in a combined two-tier ERP structure with SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition.

SAP ECC End-of-Life Requiring System Migration

The older SAP ECC product (which is part of the SAP Business Suite) is being discontinued. SAP customers using SAP ECC (ERP Central Component) are encouraged to use a planned new SAP transition to a cloud product offering centred around ECC beginning in the second quarter of 2025. 

Standard maintenance ends on December 31, 2027, for ECC 6.0 EHP6 versions and above. For earlier versions of SAP ECC, standard maintenance ends on December 31, 2025. For SAP ECC end-of-life, extended maintenance for on-premises SAP ERP systems will expire on December 31, 2030. 

The new ECC-related offerings will be SAP ERP, Private Edition, and Transition Option. According to this linked CIO article (targeted at IT, system administrators, and finance professionals), “Systems that are ‘relevant’ for the SAP ERP, private edition, transition option, need to be moved to SAP ERP, private edition prior to the end of 2030.”

What are the Modules in SAP S/4HANA?

SAP S4 HANA modules include functional and advanced modules, technical modules, and industry-specific core system and module bundles :

Core Functional Modules in SAP S/4HANA

SAP S/4HANA core functional modules are grouped into lines of business by SAP. A description of some core modules follows. 

SAP Lines of Business (LOBs)

SAP S/4HANA core modules are organized into SAP Lines of Business (LOBs):

• Finance
• Logistics
• Asset management
• Sales 
• R&D
• Human resources
• Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS)

The SAP S/4HANA logistics LOBs for supplier relationship management (SRM) and supply chain management (SCM) include:

• Sourcing and procurement
• Manufacturing
• Supply chain

Core Functional Modules 

Core functional modules in SAP S/4HANA include:

• Finance (FI) and Controlling (CO)
• Business Planning and Consolidation (BPC) for SAP S/4HANA
• Treasury & Risk Management
• Sales and Distribution (SD)
• Materials Management (MM)
• Production Planning (PP)
• Quality Management (QM)
• Plant Maintenance (PM)
• Project Systems (PS) 
• Human Capital Management (HCM) 

Finance (FI) and Controlling (CO):  SAP S4 HANA finance modules are used for financial accounting and controlling. These FI and CO SAP HANA S4 modules handle:

• Transaction recording 
• Accounts receivable and accounts payable with sub-ledgers 
• General ledger accounting and financial close
• Management accounting (CO) 
• Financial reporting and financial statements 

Business Planning and Consolidation (BPC): Another SAP S4 HANA finance module is Business Planning and Consolidation for SAP S/4HANA. The module handles business applications for planning, budgeting, forecasting, and financial statement consolidation activities. It uses a Microsoft Excel front-end for all planning uses instead of having siloed systems. 

Treasury and Risk Management: SAP offers modular solutions for SAP S/4HANA, covering areas of treasury and risk management and integrating them with cash forecasts, payments, market data, and financial accounting. 

The SAP S/4HANA treasury and risk management solutions are used for process automation, FX exposures and hedging, debt and investment management, and SAP trading platform integration. SAP S/4HANA Cloud for Treasury and Risk Management, Public Edition requires an edition of Grow with SAP; the SAP S/4HANA Private Edition requires an edition of RISE with SAP.  

Sales and Distribution (SD): The SAP S/4HANA module for Sales and Distribution is an end-to-end customer inquiry through invoicing solution that includes order management with sales quotes, sales orders, delivery management, and billing. Sales and Distribution has CRM (customer relationship management) integration and provides real-time data visibility and analytics. 

Materials Management (MM): Materials Management consists of multiple SAP S/4HANA modules and sub-modules for Procurement (MM-PUR), Inventory Management (MM-IM), and Master Data Management for materials and vendors. Materials Management S/4HANA modules include External Service Management (MM-SRV) to procure external services and LIV (Logistics Invoice Verification) for invoice matching and verification steps.

Production Planning (PP): The SAP S4 HANA module for production planning is one modular element that makes SAP S/4HANA (one of the SAP ERPs) ideal as manufacturing ERP software.  Production planning handles manufacturing planning, capacity planning, scheduling, MRP (material requirements planning), and master data management with bills of material, routings, and work centers.  

Quality Management (QM): The SAP S/4HANA module for Quality Management handles quality planning, inspection, quality control, and industry-standard quality compliance. 

Plant Maintenance (PM): The SAP S/4HANA Plant Maintenance module plans, completes, and monitors maintenance required on business assets. It handles preventative maintenance, repairs, and refurbishing. SAP S/4HANA offers a solution for plant maintenance predictive analytics for manufacturing enterprises. 

Project Systems (PS): The comprehensive SAP S/4HANA Project Systems module falls within the scope of Enterprise Portfolio and Project Management (EPPM) in SAP S/4HANA (consisting of several SAP solutions relating to projects.) With Project Systems, businesses can conduct project planning, resource allocation, time management, cost accounting, financial analysis, project status and results reporting, and use collaboration tools for sharing documents, tracking issues, and managing change orders.  

Human Capital Management (HCM): The SAP S/4HANA Human Capital Management module can be integrated with SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central (employee master data) for human experience management via integration of SuccessFactors Employee Central master data. Many HCM functions are transitioning to SAP SuccessFactors. 

Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS): The SAP S4 HANA module for EHS is a SAP/S4HANA Cloud module that helps businesses mitigate environmental impacts, track their compliance with sustainability, measure greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and monitor safety compliance that includes maintaining an ergonomic workplace. 

Industry-specific and Advanced Modules

Industry-specific and advanced modules in SAP S/4HANA include:

• SAP S/4HANA for Consumer Products
• SAP S/4HANA for Fashion
• SAP S/4HANA for Financial Services
• SAP S/4HANA for Public Services
• SAP S/4HANA for Energy & Natural Resources
• SAP S/4HANA for Oil & Gas
• SAP S/4HANA for Discrete Industries
• SAP S/4HANA for Aerospace & Defense
• SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM)
• SAP Transportation Management (TM)
• SAP Product Lifecycle Management (PLM)

Industry Editions of S/4HANA

SAP S/4HANA for Consumer Products and SAP S/4HANA for Fashion support retail, wholesale, and manufacturing in these industries. SAP S/4HANA for Financial Services is used in the banking and insurance industries. SAP S/4HANA for Public Services is used in public administration, healthcare, defense, and security. 

SAP S/4HANA offers solutions for upstream, midstream, and downstream oil & gas operations. SAP S/4HANA also provides industry solutions for other natural resources and utilities in Energy & Natural Resources.

SAP S/4HANA for Discrete Industries is intended for use in aerospace and defense, automotive, and high-tech manufacturing. It offers specialized solutions for each industry type within the Discrete Industries category.  

Advanced Modules for SAP S/4HANA

Extended Warehouse Management (EWM): The SAP S/4HANA module for warehousing management is Extended Warehouse Management. EWM is available in two versions: (1) Basic EWM for simple warehouses and (2) Advanced EWM for more complex warehouses. Extended Warehouse Management is used to track goods movements and manage stocks in your warehouses. 

Transportation Management (TM): Transportation Management is an advanced SAP module for businesses that enables you to manage global transportation, shipping, and logistics needs. It includes planning, freight booking, execution, carrier communications, and settlement for costs incurred. 

Product Lifecycle Management (PLM): The SAP S/4HANA Product Lifecycle Management lets your business control its products throughout the lifecycle from project and portfolio planning to R&D, change management, regulatory and sustainability requirements, product classification, and hazardous waste labeling and tracking.

Technical and Cross-Functional Modules

Technical and cross-functional modules for SAP S/4HANA include:

• SAP BASIS and ABAP
• SAP Fiori (UI/UX Layer)
• SAP Analytics Cloud (SAC) Integration
• SAP S/4HANA Embedded Analytics

SAP BASIS and ABAP: SAP BASIS (Business Application Software Integrated Solution) and ABAP (Advanced Business Application Programming) are different products that work together. SAP BASIS is the middleware for system administration, including system configuration and performance management.  Unlike SAP BASIS, ABAP is the programming language to customize and develop SAP applications. 

SAP Fiori: SAP Fiori is a design language for creating modern and easy-to-use user interfaces in SAP S/4HANA web and mobile applications that improve the user experience. 

SAP Analytics Cloud:  SAP Analytics Cloud connects data from SAP and third-party sources for real-time analytics and planning. It uses live data and data imports from S/4HANA for more thorough business intelligence and informed decision-making. 

SAP S/4HANA Embedded Analytics: Embedded Analytics in S/4HANA is a set of Fiori tiles used for real-time operational reporting. It consists of Fiori analytical apps for different functional areas in your business. 

How to Choose the Right Modules for Your Business

To optimize SAP S/4HANA, align SAP modules selection and third-party software add-ons with your business goals and needs. Consider functional and technical needs, scalability, and integration with SAP S/4HANA. 

Consult experts for the right decisions on which modules and third-party add-ons your business needs. These experts include a SAP reseller or value-added reseller (VAR) in the SAP Partner Edge (Sell) program and third-party software developers like Tipalti, which offers AP automation, mass payments, advanced FX products, and other finance automation software integrating with SAP S/4HANA. 

For a list and descriptions of recommended modules for your business, ask an SAP Partner for a SAP S4 HANA modules PDF. The SAP S/4HANA | SAP Help Portal allows you to search topics for online documents that can be downloaded as PDF files. 

Conclusion

SAP offers a wide range of optional modules that your business can integrate with the primary ERP system for added functionality and tools. This article covers the range of modules available in SAP systems for S/4HANA. However, S/4 HANA SAP ERP modules alone aren’t enough to optimize its functionality. 

Third-party software developers (like Tipalti) offer automation solutions with SAP S/4HANA integration that you should add to SAP S/4HANA. Tipalti’s unified platform of finance automation software for multi-entity companies digitally transforms to provide:

• Self-service supplier onboarding with upfront tax form data collection
• Increased efficiency that streamlines workflows, reduces bottlenecks and hiring needs, and speeds invoice approvals
• Better financial controls and compliance to derisk and reduce payment errors
• The ability to take timely early payment discounts 
• Data syncing with SAP S/4HANA
• Instant payment reconciliation to reduce monthly close time
• Real-time cost control visibility for informed decisions on achieving cost reductions

Explore Tipalti global AP automation and payments integration with SAP S/4HANA and request a demo.