Here’s a situation that will sound familiar if you sell in more than one place. The product’s sitting right there on the warehouse shelf, but your website says it’s sold out. Or it goes the other way: a customer orders the last item, and then you find out it sold out hours ago.
It happens a lot to small businesses that still run on spreadsheets or handwritten stock sheets.
Inventory management software fixes most of this. It tracks what you have, handles purchase orders, keeps tabs on sales, and stops you from buying stock you don’t need. Plenty of tools also plug into accounting software, online stores, and point-of-sale (POS) systems.
But no one tool suits everyone. A small shop needs something very different from a wholesale distributor, or from an online seller with hundreds of products. So here are ten good options, what each does well, how they’re priced, and who they’re best for.
If you want something affordable that won’t take weeks to set up, Zoho Inventory is a good place to start.
Stock tracking, sales orders, purchase orders, and warehouse operations all live on one dashboard. Sell on several online stores? Connect the supported ones and manage everything in one spot, instead of updating each platform separately.
It also plays well with the rest of the Zoho family. Already on Zoho Books or Zoho CRM? Your inventory can link up with your accounts and customer info. And since it supports batch tracking, serial numbers, and barcode scanning, it works well for electronics sellers and anyone dealing with expiry dates.
Key features:
Pricing: There’s a free plan with usage limits. Paid plans bring higher order volumes and extra warehouse features.
Best for: Small retailers, online sellers, and companies already using Zoho.
inFlow is for businesses that want a tighter grip on stock movement, purchasing, and orders.
It leans hard into the daily grind of warehouse work. Your team can receive stock, process orders, print labels, and update quantities, all without a separate spreadsheet on the side. Barcode scanning works through compatible devices and mobile apps, which saves a lot of typing, especially with a big catalogue.
It also handles business-to-business sales well. Wholesalers can set customer-specific pricing and give regular buyers their own way to order.
If your stock has outgrown what your accounting software can handle, this one’s worth checking out.
Key features:
Pricing: Paid plans only. The cost depends on your number of users, order volume, and chosen features.
Best for: Wholesalers, distributors, and growing businesses with physical stock.
Not everyone needs heavy-duty warehouse software. Sometimes you just want to know what you’ve got, where it is, and when to reorder. That’s Sortly.
You make a record for each item, with a photo, quantity, description, and any custom fields you like, then sort items into folders by location, department, or category. Stock checks are easy too: scan a QR code or barcode with your phone and update the count right there.
It’s handy for things you don’t sell as well, like tools, equipment, and office supplies. The catch is that if you need advanced purchasing, accounting, or online order processing, Sortly may feel limited next to the bigger platforms.
Key features:
Pricing: There’s a limited free plan. Paid plans raise the item limits and add features.
Best for: Small offices, construction businesses, service companies, and simple stock tracking.
Cin7 Core is made for growing businesses that want inventory, purchasing, sales, and warehouse management in one system. You might remember it as DEAR Systems, its old name.
It makes the most sense for product businesses juggling several suppliers, warehouses, and sales channels. On top of tracking stock, it covers purchasing, order fulfilment, and financial workflows. There are manufacturing tools too, for raw materials, production orders, and finished goods. A small furniture maker, for example, can follow the materials it buys and see what gets used up during production.
You get a lot more depth than with basic inventory apps. The trade-off is that setup takes some planning, especially if you’re coming from spreadsheets.
Key features:
Pricing: Varies by plan and business needs.
Best for: Manufacturers, wholesalers, and growing multichannel businesses.
Fishbowl is what many businesses look at once simple stock tools stop cutting it.
It centers on warehouse management, manufacturing, and inventory control. If you’re tracking raw materials, assembled products, and stock across several locations, it does that well. Bills of materials and work orders are supported, so you can see what materials production needs and update inventory as things get built.
It also connects with accounting software. Companies on supported versions of QuickBooks can link inventory to their financial records, though that depends on which Fishbowl product and integration you choose.
A small retailer probably doesn’t need all this. A manufacturer often does.
Key features:
Pricing: Usually quoted after a sales enquiry, depending on the product and how it’s set up.
Best for: Small manufacturers, warehouses, and businesses with complicated inventory.
Manufacturing inventory isn’t like retail inventory. What you can sell depends on the finished goods you have and also on the materials it takes to make more. Katana is built around exactly that.
It ties inventory to production planning, so you can keep an eye on raw materials, schedule production, and track finished goods. Say you make handmade skincare. You can work out which ingredients your upcoming orders will need and catch any shortages before production even starts.
It connects with supported eCommerce and accounting apps as well, so customer orders and manufacturing stay in step. Where it really shines is production-focused inventory, not ordinary retail stock tracking.
Key features:
Pricing: Subscription plans, priced by features and usage.
Best for: Small manufacturers, product makers, and direct-to-consumer brands.
Square for Retail puts your POS and your inventory in the same place. For a small store, that’s often simpler than running two separate systems.
When an item sells through Square’s supported POS setup, the stock count updates on its own. You can watch quantities, manage product variations, and see how sales are going. Purchase orders and vendor management are available on eligible plans too.
It’s an especially natural fit if you already take payments with Square. Just don’t forget to count payment processing fees alongside the subscription cost.
Key features:
Pricing: Square has several retail plans, and features and processing fees differ by market.
Best for: Small retail stores, boutiques, and businesses already using Square POS.
Odoo Inventory is one piece of the bigger Odoo business suite. It handles warehouse operations, product movements, restocking, and inventory valuation.
Many people pick Odoo for its modular setup. Inventory can link with sales, purchasing, accounting, manufacturing, and other Odoo apps, so you can run different parts of the business without a stack of tools that don’t talk to each other. It also supports warehouse routes and automatic replenishment rules, which come in handy if you move stock between locations.
The thing to plan for is setup. Advanced configurations can call for some technical know-how or help from an Odoo partner.
Key features:
Pricing: Odoo has a One App Free option if you qualify, plus paid plans for more apps.
Best for: Businesses that want inventory tied into ERP, accounting, and purchasing.
Unleashed suits product businesses that need accurate stock records and detailed purchasing data. Wholesalers, manufacturers, and distributors with big catalogues tend to get the most out of it.
It covers inventory tracking, purchasing, sales, and stock reporting. You can follow product costs and inventory valuation while keeping a record of every stock movement. Batch and serial number tracking help with traceability, and its integrations with supported accounting and eCommerce systems mean you aren’t typing the same information in twice.
One downside: for a very small business with only a few products, the price and feature list may be more than you need.
Key features:
Pricing: Paid subscriptions, depending on the package and your needs.
Best for: Wholesalers, distributors, and established product businesses.
Lightspeed Retail is another way to run inventory and retail sales on one connected platform. It brings together POS, stock tracking, purchasing, and retail reporting.
Variants are easy to manage, whether that’s clothing sizes, colours, or other options, which is useful when you stock several versions of one product. You also get supplier and purchasing workflows, though exactly what’s included depends on the product and subscription. If you run more than one store, supported plans let you monitor stock and manage operations across locations.
It’s built mainly for retail. If you need manufacturing or advanced warehouse features, a dedicated inventory platform will probably serve you better.
Key features:
Pricing: Varies by region, product, and features. Payment processing charges may apply.
Best for: Clothing stores, specialty retailers, and multi-location retail businesses.
| Software | Best suited for | Free plan |
|---|---|---|
| Zoho Inventory | Small businesses and eCommerce | Yes |
| inFlow Inventory | Wholesale and warehouse operations | No permanent free plan |
| Sortly | Simple inventory and asset tracking | Yes |
| Cin7 Core | Multichannel inventory management | No |
| Fishbowl Inventory | Manufacturing and warehouses | No |
| Katana | Manufacturing and production | No |
| Square for Retail | Retail stores and POS | Market-dependent |
| Odoo Inventory | ERP-connected inventory management | Qualifying one-app option |
| Unleashed | Wholesale and distribution | No |
| Lightspeed Retail | Retail and multi-store operations | No |
It really comes down to what kind of business you run and how your stock moves. A small shop might be happy with stock alerts, barcode scanning, and sales tracking. A manufacturer needs more: raw materials, production schedules, finished goods.
Before you sign up for anything, ask yourself:
Starting with a free tool is fine. Just don’t choose software only because it’s cheap, because that can bite you later when the business gets bigger.
Final Thoughts
The right inventory software keeps your stock records accurate, cuts down on manual work, and makes purchasing less of a headache.
Zoho Inventory and Sortly are good for smaller operations, while inFlow and Cin7 Core give growing businesses more room. Katana and Fishbowl are the better fit for manufacturers, and retailers will probably like Square or Lightspeed for their POS integration.
In the end, choose based on how your business already works, which integrations you need, and what it’ll cost to keep your inventory under control as you grow.
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