Odoo 19 has arrived, bringing a wave of innovation and refinement across the entire platform. From groundbreaking AI capabilities to extensive localisation updates and industry-specific enhancements, this release represents one of the most comprehensive updates in Odoo's history. Let's dive into the key improvements that will transform how businesses operate.
AI-Powered Innovation Takes Centre Stage
The introduction of conversational AI agents that can learn from documents and perform actions marks a significant leap forward. ChatGPT 5.0 integration and the ability to use your own Gemini account provide flexibility in choosing your AI provider.
Key AI features include:
- Internal users can chat with AI agents to query database records
- AI-powered field completion and natural language search that transforms queries into Odoo domains
- Voice transcription for meetings with automatic summaries
- Web page generation from prompts and document management based on AI prompts
Enhanced User Experience Across the Platform
Activities and Task Management
Activities received significant improvements, including simplified modal creation, new filtering options by due date, and the ability to create activities without requiring an object. Activities are no longer deleted when marked as done, providing better tracking and audit trails.
Modern Interface Refinements
The interface continues to evolve with more compact stage addition buttons in Kanban view, improved button layouts on mobile devices, with the first button fully displayed and others stacked under an ellipsis icon. Custom filters now display users' avatars, and favourite filters can be easily edited from the search panel.
Document Management Revolution
Customer documents like quotations and invoices now support new sections and sub-sections that can be easily reorganised, deleted, or duplicated. You can hide prices and taxes within sections or completely hide section content from produced documents.
Industry-Specific Solutions Multiply
Odoo 19 dramatically expands industry coverage with dozens of new vertical packages. Notable additions include:
Service Industries: Accounting firms, catering services, cleaning services, electricians, HVAC services, handymen, personal trainers, and wedding planners now have dedicated industry packages.
Hospitality & Entertainment: New packages for bowling alleys, climbing gyms, concert halls, escape rooms, nightclubs, spa resorts, theatres, and yoga studios.
Retail & Speciality: Bakeries, candy shops, cosmetics stores, eyewear stores (with enhanced medical data tracking), florists, thrift stores, and wine shops.
Manufacturing & Construction: Carpenters, metal fabricators, shoemakers, and textile manufacturing businesses benefit from tailored solutions.
Accounting & Finance Transformation
Streamlined Bank Reconciliation
The bank reconciliation interface has been simplified with improved automated reconciliation models and keyboard shortcuts. Draft entries can now be reconciled, with automatic moves created simultaneously and confirmed when the original entry is posted.
Enhanced Reporting
A default Annual Statements composite report combines balance sheet, profit and loss, and trial balances for one-click year-end reporting. The new follow-up report clearly separates overdue from due invoices, accessible from the reporting section.
Tax Management Innovation
A new tax return feature supports fiscal return obligations and deadlines with automated validation checks to ensure accurate filings. The feature is customizable to meet localisation needs across different regions.
eCommerce & Sales Excellence
Modern Shopping Experience
New layouts and options for the shop page include improved attribute displays with "View more" options for over 12 values and search for over 20 values. The mobile checkout experience features an off-canvas cart summary, and comparison tools are now fully usable on mobile devices.
Enhanced Product Configuration
Image attribute display types allow product attributes to be shown as larger images, while variant previews can be displayed on product cards on the shop page. Combo configurators and product configurators have received UI improvements.
Google Merchant Centre Integration
Products can now be synchronised with Google Merchant Centre, with management of various feeds and improved performance.
Inventory & Manufacturing Modernisation
Smart Inventory Management
Reordering rules now include horizon settings (default 365 days), deadline fields showing when to reorder before hitting minimum stock, and data previews based on past demand. Product routes are set automatically when possible, such as Buy routes for purchase products and Manufacture routes for products with bills of materials.
Manufacturing Excellence
A new Gantt view for manufacturing orders makes it easier to visualise ongoing and upcoming production. Multiple serial or lot numbers can be generated from a single manufacturing order, and work centre employee costs directly impact AVCO and FIFO valuations.
Package Management
The merger of product units and packagings into one simplified model removes UoM categories, while supporting packages within packages for complex shipping scenarios.
HR & Payroll Enhancements
Streamlined Employee Management
Employees and contracts have been merged, with a versioning mechanism introduced. Learning management system basics now gather eLearning, events, and external training in one place with internal resume updates and certifications.
Payroll Modernization
Batches have been renamed to Pay Runs with a new UI/UX featuring guided steps. Multiple bank accounts are supported per employee, allowing salary splits across accounts, and full analytic distributions enable cost splitting across multiple analytic accounts.
Advanced Features
Work entries now use duration and date instead of start/end datetime, and overtime rulesets allow creation of custom rules for extra hours and compensation.
Communication & Collaboration
Enhanced Discuss Features
Video calls now support audio and video device selection, background blur, and picture-in-picture mode. Chat status options include Online, Away, Do Not Disturb, and Offline, with notifications and alerts controlled accordingly.
Multi-Channel Reach
WhatsApp integration extends to follow-up messages, calendar event reminders, shipping notifications, and sign requests. Gmail and Outlook accounts can be connected to send emails via personal accounts.
Project Management & Services
Flexible Scheduling
Tasks and shifts can be auto-planned for employees on flexible schedules. The Gantt view now displays the critical path for projects, while drag-and-drop functionality in calendar view simplifies scheduling.
Template Power
Project templates allow creating projects with pre-filled details and role assignments that can be populated when creating new projects. Task templates speed up setup and standardise workflows with reusable configurations.
Point of Sale & Retail
Streamlined Operations
One-click payment validation, global invoicing for customers, and product grouping by parent and child categories improve efficiency. Long-press or click actions display product information, while minimal rights profiles accommodate employees needing only basic checkout capabilities.
Restaurant-Specific Features
Allergen management for self-orders, organising orders into courses for proper sequence delivery, and preparation time reporting enhance restaurant operations.
Website Builder Evolution
Design Flexibility
New modern building block templates and the ability to drop inner content blocks anywhere within grid layouts provide unprecedented design control. Headers and footers can be hidden on specific pages, and navbar alignments can differ between desktop and mobile.
SEO & Performance
SEO improvements include keyword addition, schema markup preparation, and content checks to optimise search rankings. Field validation criteria for website forms ensure visitors input the correct information.
Looking Forward
Odoo 19 represents a massive step forward in enterprise resource planning, combining cutting-edge AI capabilities with practical business tools and extensive global coverage. Whether you're running a boutique service business or a multinational manufacturing operation, this release offers tools to streamline operations, enhance customer experiences, and drive growth.
The breadth of industry packages, depth of localisation support, and continuous refinement of core features demonstrate Odoo's commitment to being a truly universal business platform. With improvements that touch every module and new capabilities previously unimaginable, Odoo 19 sets a new standard for integrated business software.