ARCGIS · ESRI · QGIS · POSTGIS · COLOMBIA
Reduce GIS cost without compromising critical workflows
We inventory every license, dataset, service, automation and application. We test equivalence with your data, migrate what makes sense and keep a hybrid architecture where it still delivers more value.
30
years in geotechnology
61
GIS projects
24
software projects
1 by 1
workflow validation
Migration is not replacing one icon with another
GIS platform cost goes beyond licensing. It also includes credits, extensions, databases, infrastructure, support, training and renewal risk. Open software has no license fee, but still needs architecture, security, maintenance and support. We therefore compare total cost of ownership and real functionality, not slogans.
PRELIMINARY CALCULATOR · COP
One figure to compare five years
Enter what you currently pay Esri per year. The result compares staying as-is for five years with an estimated range for migration and operations.
Use the annual total from your invoice or renewal: user types, extensions, credits, Enterprise, maintenance and support.
The calculation runs in this browser. The figure is not sent to GeoSAT.
Preliminary result
Enter your annual Esri spend
From that single figure, you will see five-year costs for staying with Esri, migrating and operating, and the difference between them.
The estimate uses constant costs for five years and excludes inflation, taxes and financing. It helps decide whether an assessment is worthwhile; it is not a quote and does not guarantee savings or functional equivalence.
Validate with a real inventory →AFTER THE ESTIMATE · REAL EVIDENCE
Compare your estimate with documented migrations
The calculator provides a planning scenario, not a promise. These external cases show different outcomes: reported savings, operating investment and migrations with no public savings figure.
Reported migration, savings not quantified
ArcGIS → QGIS + PostgreSQL
Cornare: ArcGIS to QGIS and PostgreSQL migration
Cornare documented database migration to PostgreSQL and the move from ArcGIS to QGIS. Expected savings were not quantified and the contract was broad.
Read analysis and source · 2024 management report →Reported annual licensing savings
USD 7,500–10,000/year
St. Joseph County: ArcGIS to QGIS annual savings
The 2021 GIS report cited USD 7,500–10,000 in annual licensing savings after adopting QGIS. See what the figure includes and omits.
Read analysis and source · 2021 report, issued January 7, 2022 →Reported annual open-source investment
≈ $30,000/year invested
Solothurn: QGIS, PostGIS and open-source investment
Solothurn replaced ArcInfo and ArcView3 with QGIS, GRASS and PostGIS, and reported investing approximately $30,000 per year in QGIS.
Read analysis and source · Case contributed in May 2009 →COST RESEARCH · JULY 2026
What public purchases and published rates actually show
We reviewed Colombia Compra Eficiente orders, official open-source licenses, published infrastructure and support rates, and identifiable institutional cases. Every figure retains its source, date, currency and limitation.
Observed ArcGIS references in Colombia
Unit values from 2025 public orders; monthly lines are annualized where applicable. They are not an official Esri Colombia price list or current quote: actual prices vary by volume, discounts, exchange rates, taxes, term, contract model and configuration.
Swipe horizontally to view the full table.
| Component | COP reference | Order and date |
|---|---|---|
| Creator · user/year | $3,707,364 | Order 148930 · 2025-07-14 ↗ |
| Professional · user/year | $11,651,640 | Order 148930 · 2025-07-14 ↗ |
| Professional Plus · user/year | $23,804,544 | Order 158535 · 2025-12-22 ↗ |
| Spatial Analyst add-on · Creator/Professional only; included with Professional Plus | $3,442,380 | Order 148930 · 2025-07-14 ↗ |
| 1,000 additional credits · block | $651,842 | Order 148930 · 2025-07-14 ↗ |
| Perpetual Enterprise Standard · 4-core update/maintenance per year | $35,527,072 | Order 158535 · 2025-12-22 ↗ |
What three organizations purchased
Totals illustrate the scale of real contracts; they are not comparable without reviewing quantities, services and contract model.
Order 148930 · 2025-07-14
$81,602,204
Cormacarena
10 Creator, 2 Professional, 2 Spatial Analyst and 22 blocks of 1,000 credits.
Order 158535 · 2025-12-22
$59,331,616
IDPC
Professional Plus and update/maintenance for an existing perpetual ArcGIS Enterprise Standard entitlement up to 4 cores.
Order 150119 · 2025-08-12
$204,135,678
DADEP · Bogotá
Enterprise Standard, Professional and Professional Plus for license renewal and support.
Open licensing does not mean free operation
QGIS, PostgreSQL, PostGIS, GeoServer and MapLibre can be used without license fees. TCO must still include infrastructure, backups, monitoring, security, basemaps, geocoding, support, upgrades and internal labor.
Published operating references
EUR 780/year
QGIS Cloud Pro
QGIS Server and up to 10 PostGIS databases; 500 MB total and up to 20 connections. Additional storage costs extra.
Rate checked July 16, 2026
USD 1,013.40/year
Illustrative modular web stack
2 GiB managed PostgreSQL + 4 GiB VM for GeoServer + MapTiler Flex. Excludes backups, HA, support, taxes and human operations.
USD 84.45/month · rates checked July 16, 2026
EUR 2,500–14,500/year
Commercial QGIS support
Published plans from a provider recognized in the QGIS ecosystem. This is one provider reference, not a market average.
Basic through Premium support · rates checked July 16, 2026
Open-source services contracted in Colombia
These contracts size professional work, not licenses or a universal migration price.
COP 37.5M
DANE · 2023
PostgreSQL loading and a 75-day QGIS/Kart concurrent-editing proof of concept.
COP 100M
DAGMA · 2025
Technical support and migration of geodatabases and alphanumeric databases to PostgreSQL over 109 days.
COP 107.5M
Colombian Geological Service · 2025
Open-source tooling and QGIS training over nine months.
DOCUMENTED CASES
Savings, investment and migration in documented cases
We do not mix realized savings, projected savings and investment. We also do not convert old foreign currencies to COP as if they were comparable with a Colombian organization today.
Reported annual licensing savings
USD 7,500–10,000/year
St. Joseph County: ArcGIS to QGIS annual savings
The 2021 GIS report cited USD 7,500–10,000 in annual licensing savings after adopting QGIS. See what the figure includes and omits.
Read analysis and source · 2021 report, issued January 7, 2022 →Reported recurring software and licensing savings
GBP 26,000/year
Barrow: GBP 26,000 a year with GeoServer and GeoNetwork
Barrow reported GBP 26,000 in annual savings with GeoServer and GeoNetwork. We examine the architecture, conditions and limits of the case.
Read analysis and source · Issued September 2011 and updated February 2012 →Reported first-year licensing savings
GBP 13,000 in the first year
Surrey Heath: GBP 13,000 saved with XMAP Cloud GIS
Surrey Heath reported GBP 13,000 in first-year licensing savings with XMAP Cloud. This was not a self-managed open-source migration.
Read analysis and source · Case published August 19, 2020 →Calculated potential savings, not audited
RM 3.2 million projected
Malaysia: 320 QGIS users and RM 3.2 million projected
The federal department modeled RM 3.2 million from 320 QGIS installations. It was a potential saving based on assumed adoption and price.
Read analysis and source · Case contributed in January 2012 →Reported migration, savings not quantified
ArcGIS → QGIS + PostgreSQL
Cornare: ArcGIS to QGIS and PostgreSQL migration
Cornare documented database migration to PostgreSQL and the move from ArcGIS to QGIS. Expected savings were not quantified and the contract was broad.
Read analysis and source · 2024 management report →Reported annual open-source investment
≈ $30,000/year invested
Solothurn: QGIS, PostGIS and open-source investment
Solothurn replaced ArcInfo and ArcView3 with QGIS, GRASS and PostGIS, and reported investing approximately $30,000 per year in QGIS.
Read analysis and source · Case contributed in May 2009 →REPLACEMENT MATRIX
What can be replaced and what must be validated
The candidate technology is selected after workflow discovery. These routes are starting points, not automatic equivalences.
Swipe horizontally to view the full table.
| Current capability | Candidate route | Treatment |
|---|---|---|
| ArcGIS Pro / ArcMap: editing, maps, layouts and analysis | QGIS + Processing + GDAL/GRASS | Direct migration + adjustments |
| Enterprise Geodatabase, File GDB, Oracle or SQL Server | PostgreSQL + PostGIS + GeoPackage | Migrate data and rebuild rules |
| ArcGIS Server / Enterprise web services | GeoServer or QGIS Server with OGC standards | Republish and test consumers |
| Web AppBuilder, Experience Builder and dashboards | MapLibre, OpenLayers, Next.js and custom APIs | Controlled redevelopment |
| Field Maps, Survey123 and offline sync | QField, custom forms or a hybrid architecture | Mandatory pilot |
| ArcPy, ModelBuilder, extensions and add-ins | Python, PyQGIS, GDAL and specialized services | Validate workflow by workflow |
Capabilities we audit before retiring a license
Utility Network, Parcel Fabric, branch versioning, attribute rules, domains and subtypes, Arcade, Network/Spatial/Image Analyst, 3D, Living Atlas, geocoding, routing, corporate identity, field apps, printing, offline synchronization and every ERP or mission-system integration.
If a capability has no suitable replacement, we do not force migration: we design a hybrid architecture and retire only the cost that can actually be removed.
GEOSPATIAL DEVELOPMENT
We do not only migrate licenses: we build the replacement
We design PostGIS databases, geospatial APIs, data portals, web maps, field applications, automation and OGC services. The customer controls the code, infrastructure and data.
View custom geospatial software development →Geospatial APIs and microservices
Web maps and portals with MapLibre or OpenLayers
Online and offline field workflows
Automation with Python, GDAL and PyQGIS
PostGIS, GeoServer, QGIS Server and GeoNode
ERP, cadastre, asset and identity integration
GRADUAL MIGRATION
Six steps before switching off a license
Inventory
Licenses, users, data, maps, services, scripts, apps, integrations and SLA.
Functional matrix
Each workflow is classified: direct, adapt, rebuild, retain hybrid or retire.
Proof with real data
We build a pilot using the organization’s data, volume and use cases.
Migration and development
We convert prioritized data, rules, automation, services and applications.
Parallel operation
We compare outputs, performance, security and user experience before cutover.
Cutover and transfer
We retire only validated items, train the team and provide SLA-backed support.
Experience building, operating and migrating
SGVIAL · Medellín
Road-management software developed and maintained by GeoSAT since 2006.
Terraes · 9 municipalities
Cadastral platform built on open technologies and the LADM-COL standard.
ISAGEN · 15 contracts
Operation and evolution of a critical corporate GIS for more than two decades.
Frequently asked questions
How much does ArcGIS cost in Colombia?+
There is no single institutional rate. The cited 2025 public orders show, for example, Creator near COP 3.7 million per user/year, Professional near COP 11.7 million, Professional Plus near COP 23.8 million and update/maintenance for an existing perpetual 4-core Enterprise Standard entitlement at COP 35.5 million. Term subscriptions already include maintenance while active. These are historical references, not an official list; your invoice or renewal remains the best input.
Are QGIS and PostGIS really free?+
The core software has no license fee. Implementation, infrastructure, security, backups, support, training and maintenance still cost money and belong in the TCO.
Can every ArcGIS function be replaced?+
Not automatically. Many editing, analysis, database and publishing workflows have mature alternatives. Advanced proprietary capabilities, configured apps and automation require testing, redevelopment or a hybrid architecture.
What happens to .gdb, MXD, APRX, ModelBuilder and ArcPy?+
File Geodatabase data can be extracted with tools such as GDAL, but rules, symbology, layouts, models and scripts must be inventoried and validated. Geometry is only one part of the system.
Can we migrate in stages?+
Yes, and it is usually the lowest-risk path. Start with high-cost data and workflows that have strong equivalence, run both systems in parallel and temporarily retain anything that still depends on the Esri ecosystem.
Technical reference sources
The calculator asks only for annual Esri spend and applies three visible planning scenarios for migration, operations and retained licenses. External references support the context; they do not turn model percentages into market prices.
- Colombia Compra · Order 148930 ↗
- Colombia Compra · Order 158535 ↗
- Colombia Compra · Order 150119 ↗
- ArcGIS Online user types and credits ↗
- Official Esri maintenance ↗
- QGIS license ↗
- PostgreSQL license ↗
- PostGIS licensing ↗
- GeoServer license ↗
- QGIS Cloud plans ↗
- DigitalOcean · managed database ↗
- DigitalOcean · VM ↗
- MapTiler Cloud pricing ↗
- Commercial QGIS support ↗
- JNCC · QGIS TCO assessment ↗
- St. Joseph County · QGIS savings ↗
- Barrow · GeoServer and GeoNetwork ↗
- Cornare · 2024 management report ↗
Get a workflow replacement matrix, not a generic demo
We review your renewal, classify critical capabilities and design a pilot with acceptance criteria before recommending what to retire, rebuild or retain.
Request a technical assessment →