Unanet vs NetSuite

About

Unanet is an ERP and project-based business software platform specifically designed for government contractors, architecture and engineering (A&E) firms, and other project-based professional services organizations — providing project accounting, time and expense, human capital management, CRM, and contract management tools built for the compliance requirements of government contracting (FAR, DCAA, DFARS) and professional services billing. Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Dulles, Virginia, Unanet serves thousands of government contractors and A&E firms that must manage complex cost accounting, DCAA audit compliance, and government contract billing.\n\nUnanet's platform addresses the specific complexity of government contract accounting: DCAA-compliant timekeeping (Defense Contract Audit Agency audits require specific timekeeping documentation), allowable versus unallowable cost tracking for cost-type government contracts, indirect rate calculations for billing overhead and G&A costs to government contracts, and SF330 proposal management for A&E firms responding to government RFPs. These requirements are highly specialized and cannot be met by standard commercial ERP systems like QuickBooks or even Sage.\n\nIn 2025, Unanet competes with Deltek (the dominant government contractor ERP provider, now owned by Roper Technologies), Costpoint (Deltek's flagship product), and Vision (Deltek's AEC product) for government contractor software market share. Unanet acquired CRM Accelerate in 2021 to add GovCon-specific CRM for pipeline management and has been growing through a combination of organic growth and acquisitions. The government contracting market benefits from consistent federal spending, and DCAA compliance requirements create strong switching costs once contractors adopt a compliant ERP. The 2025 strategy focuses on expanding CRM capabilities, growing in the A&E firm segment, and launching AI-powered contract intelligence features.