Digitization of the transport sector is no longer an option, but an inescapable reality. Faced with increasing volumes of goods to be handled, more complex flows and increasingly demanding customers, companies need to optimize their transport management, gaining in agility, visibility - thanks to real-time tracking - and decision-making capacity. This is where TMS software comes in, as a real strategic lever.
But one central question always comes up: should we opt for a SaaS-based TMS or an on-premise solution?
In 2025, the two models still coexist, but meet very different expectations-both in terms of operation and business experience. It's a structuring choice, which will have a direct impact on your transport costs, your customer satisfaction, and your ability to ensure continuous improvement of your logistics processes. Why not rely on the opinions of industry experts or real-life feedback to make the right choice?
👉 In this article, find out how to identify the best solution according to your selection criteria, internal constraints, efficiency objectives and desire to create added value.
Before comparing models on their concrete advantages, it's essential to understand what is meant by the terms SaaS, Cloud-hosted and On-Premise. These technological differences directly influence the cost, flexibility, level of customization and security of your future TMS.
An On-Premise TMS is software installed and hosted on the company's own servers, in its own premises or datacenters. The company owns it, buys a license and generally manages, maintains, updates and secures it with its IT teams.
✅ This model still appeals to some transport companies, particularly those with :
But it also implies a high initial investment (CAPEX), dependence on a strong IT team, and sometimes long deployment times.
A cloud-hosted TMS is a solution hosted remotely in a data center (often that of the publisher or a third party), but which can remain proprietary or customized. This model can be compared to a traditional license, but with outsourcing of the infrastructure.
It often represents an intermediate step between pure On-Premise and SaaS. Costs are more flexible, but the management logic remains close to the classic model: scheduled updates, shared maintenance, sometimes limited scalability.
🧩 This model may suit companies that already have a TMS in place, but wish to free themselves from hosting constraints without changing their solution.
The SaaS(Software as a Service) model is based on subscription-based access to the TMS via an intuitive interface, with no local installation or infrastructure management by the user company. The software is shared (often multi-tenant) with automatic updates and dashboards accessible from anywhere, hosted and maintained by the publisher, and accessible online via the web, 24 hours a day from any connected terminal.
This means :
Beyond architecture, the choice between SaaS and On-Premise is also based on a different budgetary logic, impacting price, pricing and budget:
🎯 This distinction is strategic for companies seeking to preserve cash flow, smooth out expenses or adapt costs to business fluctuations.
Choosing a TMS isn't simply a matter of deciding between two technical architectures: it's weighing up the benefits and constraints against your business priorities. Here's an objective overview of the strengths and limitations of the two main models.
👉 For whom: growing companies, multi-site organizations, logistics service providers, structures with few in-house IT resources.
✅ Key benefits
❌ Limits to consider
👉 For whom: companies with very specific needs, strong regulatory requirements or a desire for sovereignty (even if many large groups are now adopting SaaS).
✅ Key benefits
❌ Limits to consider
For comparable functionalities, the choice between a SaaS TMS and an On-Premise TMS depends above all on your operating context, your internal resources and your growth objectives. Here are the main factors to consider.
👉 The more complex or international your flows, the greater the need for integration management or technical governance.
💬 SaaS mode does not rule out customization, but it is generally framed to guarantee the stability of the tool. To find out more about the key points to analyze, you can read our article Choosing a TMS software: everything you need to know.
💡 More and more SaaS providers are offering hybrid packages to reconcile flexibility and compliance.
Choosing a TMS is about more than technical architecture. It has a direct impact on the way you manage your business on a day-to-day basis, on your human resources, your implementation times and your ability to collaborate effectively with your partners.
Here's a concrete overview of the operational impacts you need to anticipate.
📝 Example: a multi-tenant SaaS TMS can be operational in 6 to 10 weeks, compared with 6 to 12 months for an On-Premise in a large organization.
💬 Modern SaaS TMS guarantee accelerated ROI, as the absence of manual maintenance frees up internal resources for higher-value tasks.
🎯 In the age of telecommuting and mobility, the ability to manage operations remotely is becoming a strategic lever for multi-site carriers, shippers or logisticians.
🔎 This is where supplier support and transparency make all the difference, whether in SaaS or license + hosting.
The evolution of transport management tools follows a fundamental trend: the rise of the SaaS model, particularly among SMEs, ETIs and fast-growing logistics service providers. The historically dominant on-premise model continues to exist, but is now confined to very specific needs.
The market of 2025 confirms that the best TMSs will combine flexibility, innovation and controlled costs.
Most transport software publishers are observing a marked preference for SaaS solutions, with a view to simplification, rapid deployment and reduced infrastructure costs.
This trend is visible among shippers and carriers alike, with increasingly demanding use cases: multi-site management, multisystem integration, fine-grained traceability, real-time collaboration...
🔍 According to data shared by publishers, SaaS TMS would deliver ROI 2 to 3 times faster than a conventional model, thanks to the pooling of resources, continuous updates and increased automation of processes.
The multi-tenant model, used by the majority of modern SaaS TMSs, enables several companies to share the same software infrastructure, while keeping their data perfectly isolated. This favors :
It is this architecture that makes possible innovations such as :
Players who rely on SaaS solutions can thus benefit more quickly from the latest technological advances, without development costs or overloading their IT teams.
Some companies, particularly larger ones or those subject to strong regulatory constraints, are now considering hybrid models:
→ for example, a SaaS base for the majority of functionalities, coupled with private or dedicated hosting for certain sensitive data.
→ or a "license + hosting" logic, offering a compromise between SaaS flexibility and infrastructure control.
These models confirm one thing: there is no longer just one standard, but many possible combinations, to be adjusted to the specific challenges of each company.
✅ No universal model, but clear criteria
The choice between SaaS and On-Premise doesn't depend on an absolute truth, but rather on your business context, your fleet management, your ability to adapt your orders, your circuits, your teams, your vehicles, your itineraries...
What counts is making an informed choice, aligning technical aspects with your operational priorities, budget, ability to absorb a project, efficiency and medium-term ambitions.
💡 Contact our Sinari experts for a full TMS demo, from transport order planning to carrier tracking, in an efficient, fluid and easy-to-access environment.