Inventory management for small businesses is very challenging. In our definitive guide we discussed the 7 steps to successful inventory management. However, implementing these steps in reality requires the assistance of a robust software. 

If you’re still tracking all your inventory, suppliers, and orders on a spreadsheet then it’s time you put an end to it.

Here are some of the best small business inventory management software:

Arka inventory

Arka inventory is a cloud-based inventory and costing management solution. It helps you get control & visibility over inventories in multiple locations, track cost of goods produced and margins for each individual product SKUs, allocate service costs like transportation, understand product costs better and efficiently manage production and take right purchase & pricing decisions.

Features

• Analytics platform with reports & dashboards

• Bill of material setup

• Cost of goods by considering moving average price

• Customized integrations with applications like Auto CAD

• Multi-location inventory tracking

• Product purchase information from books of accounts

• Production planning & management

• Service cost allocation

Pricing

Arka Inventory has three different pricing plans. The sliver plan starts at $49/month. It gives access to inventory module, unlimited warehouses, and customizable reports. The Gold plan at $75/month gives access to everything in the silver plan but also includes the production module.

Erplain

Erplain is a B2B inventory management solution created with wholesalers in mind. The application helps increase efficiency by automating the process of generating sales orders, purchase orders and invoices while updating your stock levels live. You can quickly identify products running low on supply and swiftly reorder them via email directly from the software. It works perfectly with all inventory management methods.

Features

• Automation of sales orders

• Centralized management of customers and suppliers

• Product tracing by batch, lot, variant and expiry dates

• Real-time sales and inventory reports

• Inventory valuation

• Reorder points and resupply orders

• Subscriptions and recurring invoices

• Warehouse management system

• Wholesale & retail price levels setup with advanced price rules

Pricing

Erplain has two plans: First and Premium. The First plan starts at $59/month and the Premium plan starts at $99/month. The Premium plan has all the features whereas First plan lacks features such as multiple location tracking and sales consignment.

Zap Inventory

Zap Inventory is a multi-channel inventory management software that allows you to effortlessly monitor your stock control and order fulfillment, all in one place. You can sell and distribute products with ease while keeping everything organized and synchronized across multiple channels.

Features

• Automate repetitive shipping tasks

• B2B Order Management

• Create & track purchase orders, plan reorders and manage suppliers

• Inventory lifecycle management

• KPI dashboard

• Order fulfilment across multiple warehouses and sales channels

• Pricing segmentation

• Real-time inventory control

Pricing

They have 3 plans: Lite, Accelerator, and High Growth. Lite plan starts at $25/month, Accelerator at $67/month, and High Growth at $125/month. While most features remain the same across all plans, the order and SKU capacity varies across each plan.

Lightspeed Retail

Lightspeed Retail is a retail point-of-sale (POS) and inventory management system; primarily known for its ability to conduct both in-store and ecommerce management. With Lightspeed, you can complete sales both online and in your physical store with ease while constantly monitoring all of your inventory levels across multiple locations and channels in real time. You can also access powerful reports as well as integrate seamlessly with popular ecommerce platforms.

Features

• Barcode scanning

• Click-and-collect ordering

• Custom reporting

• Ease of Use Interface

• Inventory counting

• One-on-one onboarding support

• Payroll integration

• Transfer stock between locations

• Works for Retail and ecommerce

Pricing

Lightspeed Retail has three plans: Lean, Standard, and Advanced. The Lite plan starts at $69/month, Standard plan at $119/month, and Advanced plan at $199/month.

Fishbowl inventory

Fishbowl is a popular ERP solution for small to medium size businesses in the manufacturing and warehouse management industry. It's known for real-time inventory management, material requirements planning (MRP), work order management, job shop floor control, barcoding, bills of materials, and more. Fishbowl can be used either on-premise or hosted online.

Features

• Automatic reorder points

• Barcode printing and scanning

• Custom fields

• Multi-currency conversions

• Multi-location tracking

• Multilevel work orders

• Multiple integrations

• Pricing rules and tiers

• Tracking by serial number, lot number, expiration date, and custom criteria

Pricing

Unfortunately, Fishbowl inventory does not provide pricing options. You can always try their free trial and then consult with them about the costing.

InFlow Inventory

If you are a B2B wholesaler or distributor, InFlow is an ideal choice that will create efficiency and convenience. Not only does it offer inventory control with order management to make tracking easier, but also provides a comprehensive warehouse management too. A unique feature of this software solution is its integrated B2B portal providing another layer of convenience when dealing with vendors and customers alike.

Features

• Abandoned cart reports

• Batch payments & tracking

• Fulfillment from phone

• Inventory control

• Public & private B2B portals

• Reorder by purchase order and stock transfer

• Smart scanner

• Stock tracking

Pricing

Inflow starts at $89/month for their Entrepreneur plan. It has all the basic modules needed for inventory management. The next plan is a Small Business plan starting at $219/month and then the Mid-size plan at $439.

Zoho Inventory

Zoho consistently makes best products for small businesses. And this time, Zoho Inventory snatches up the number one spot with its full set of inventory-oriented features. It can effectively handle multiple warehouses, ecommerce activities and orders all from just one platform! On top of that, it's customizable to fit different requirements and has an incredibly simple user interface. The best part is that it offers a completely free plan.

Features

• App for Android and iOS

• Composite function for kitting and batch tracking

• Ease of use with intuitive navigation

• Expiration monitoring and alerts

• Managing perishable items

• Manual or automatic purchase order creation

• Real-time shipping rates

• Tracking items and set reorder points

• Works for Retail, dropshipping, ecommerce, manufacturers, and warehouses.

Pricing

Zoho inventory offers a lifetime free plan. It has also 5 other plans: Standard ($79/month), Professional ($129/month), Premium ($199/month), Elite ($299/month), and Ultimate ($399/month).

Sortly

Sortly is one of the inventory management software for small businesses across many industries. It is budget-friendly inventory and also has easy-to-use features. The tool offers essentials such as warehouse management, barcode scanning, inventory control and reporting capabilities.

Features

• Advanced user permissions

• Asset Tracking

• Automatic sync across all devices

• Automated inventory organization

• Easy inventory import

• Full visual inventory system

• Inventory lists

• In-app scanner

• Real-time reporting

Pricing

Sortly offers a free plan with all the basic inventory management features. They also have Advanced and Ultra plans priced at $29/month and $59/month.

QuickBooks

QuickBooks is the go-to software for small business accounting and offers an exemplary inventory management system. Many of the applications mentioned in this list integrate with QuickBooks, making it an ideal solution to managing your inventories each day. SaasAnt Transactions and PayTraQer both sync effortlessly with QuickBooks to automatically update your stock reports and vendor invoices in real time. With the help of this incredible module, you can easily see how much stock is available at any given moment, accurately value your inventory, as well as manage purchase orders & vendors efficiently.

Features

• Automatic calculation of product cost using first in, first out (FIFO)

• Customizable reports and dashboards

• Over 100+ integrations with third party inventory management apps

• Product curation with images and prices

• Real-time inventory valuation

• Recording expenses

• Run reports of best-selling items, total sales, and total taxes

• Vendor management

Pricing

QuickBooks online comes in 4 different plan categories: Simple Start ($15/month), Essentials ($27/month), Plus ($42/month), and Advanced ($100/month). It also offers a 30 day free trial.

SOS Inventory

For an all-inclusive inventory, order management and manufacturing solution that makes life easier, look no further than SOS Inventory. From start to finish of the production cycle - from raw materials into finished goods including tracking serial numbers/lots/batches - they've got you covered. But what truly sets us apart is the seamless integration with QuickBooks Online.

Features

• Automated order processing

• Custom fields to track unique data

• Customer-unique pricing

• Email and text alerts

• Full support for multiple locations

• Integration with Shopify, ShipStation, UPS, PayPal, and more

• Manufacturing and order management

• Serial inventory

• Track assemblies and kits

• Vendor-specific costs

Pricing

SOS Inventory starts at $49/month for their Companion plan. Their Plus plan comes at $99/month and the Pro plan at $149/month.

Xero

Xero is the best alternative to QuickBooks but it's way less expensive than QBO. Xero is best known for fixed asset accounting, which is critical when it comes to inventory management. It also supports multiple third-party app integrations and most of the apps mentioned in this list.

Features

• Add an inventory to an invoice

• Decrease inventory for units returned to vendor

• Integrates with 50+ third party inventory management apps

• Record inventory

• Report customization

• Set up inventory Items

• Track total units & costs

• View stock on hand

Pricing

Xero has three different payment plans. The Starter plan starts at $25/month, Standard plan at $40/month, and Premium plan at $54/month.

BrightPearl

Brightpearl is a retail management platform for multi-channel retailers and wholesalers. Brightpearl is specifically built for high volume transactions. But if you own a business that processes fewer than 1500 orders each month, then you can opt for the cheaper yet still useful version of this platform without sacrificing too much!

Features

• Automated warehouse transfers

• Automatic inventory updates across all sales channels

• Data-driven demand planning

• Integrated inventory planner

• Order and warehouse management

• Product performance analysis

• Real-time insight into sales performance

• Replenishment reports

• Workflow automation

Pricing

Brightpearl does not provide pricing information. You may have to contact their sales team to get a quote.

Katana

Katana is tailor-made for manufacturers, offering not only bundling and kitting tools but also the capability to monitor products and supplies across all stages of production. And it doesn't stop there—Katana comes with automated workflows so that you can focus on producing quality goods swiftly.

Features

• Auto-generate batch and internal barcodes

• Automate customer order processes

• B2B and ecommerce sales orders

• Detailed inventory tracking

• Manage product deadlines

• Monitor on-hand stock levels

• Popular POS Integrations

• Simple user interface

• Tracking raw materials and finished products

Pricing

Katana has three plans: Essential ($129/month), Advanced ($349/month), and Professional ($999/month). So yes, it's a bit expensive.

Veeqo

Veeqo is a popular inventory-management solution specifically tailored to meet the needs of retail or wholesale businesses with multi-channel selling. With its user-friendly platform, Veeqo consolidates all sales channels into one hub where you can easily monitor and control your orders, inventories, analytics reports as well warehouse stock management. Unlock greater efficiency in managing your business today with this innovative software!

Features

• Analytics & forecasting

• Automatic inventory updates

• Barcode scanner

• Discounted shipping rates and live tracking

• Fulfillment using mobile device

• Integrations with major shipping couriers

• Inventory control

• Stock counts

Pricing

Veeqo is a completely free software solution as it benefits from referring sellers to shipping carriers.

Orderhive

If you're an ecommerce merchant or a dropshipper, then Cin7 Orderhive is the perfect choice for streamlining your inventory management. With 5000+ ecommerce companies already using it, Orderhive offers automated purchase orders based on stock thresholds, embedded manufacturing management tools like batch coordination and serial number tracking feature, stock transfers capabilities as well as kitting options.

Features

• Automated PO creation

• Cloud-based inventory management

• FIFO inventory rules

• Fraud order handling

• Free plan for Shopify users

• Low stock alerts

• Manage variants to bundles.

• Split ordering

Pricing

Orderhive has four different pricing plans: Essentials ($125/month), Pro ($225/month), Pro Plus ($325/month), and Enterprise ($500/month).

Agiliron

Agiliron stands out amongst multichannel management systems due to its comprehensive inventory features like custom orders, kitting functions, assemblies, matrixed products and product substitutions. It has both B2B and B2C ecommerce store options.

Features

• Account-based purchase orders

• Assembly & kit products

• Bulk packing slips

• Centralized inventory tracking

• Create and track matrix item products

• Customer-specific price settings

• Multiple payment solutions

• Pre-set substitution products

Pricing

Agiliron offers 3 plans: Premier ($99/month), Enterprise ($199/month), and Global Enterprise ($299/month).

Ordoro

Ordoro not only helps streamline shipping operations, but also boasts a robust inventory management platform and automated purchasing functions. This makes it an optimal choice for dropshippers and sellers in high-volume industries who are looking to simplify supply chain management.

Features

• Automated purchase tracking system

• Dropshipped product inventory

• Inventory cost analysis

• Inventory data feeds from vendors

• Kit-related products

• Low-stock alerts

• Products with varying quantities

• Shipping integration and discounted shipping rates

• Support for multiple warehouses

Pricing

Ordoro has two plans: Pro ($499/month) and Enterprise ($999/ month).

Cin7

Cin7 stands out from the rest with its combined inventory management and point-of-sale system. It helps businesses optimize their stock distribution across multiple channels to avoid running out of items for sale. This is especially useful if you have both an online store and a physical location, making it easier than ever to manage without worrying about overstocking or understocking. If your business utilizes an omnichannel distribution model, then this is the perfect choice for you.

Features

• Advanced and customized reporting

• Affordable enterprise resource planning (ERP)

• Cloud-based inventory management

• Cost accounting

• Demand planning and forecasting

• Fully-integrated point-of-sale system

• Mobile point-of-sale

• Tracking and control

Pricing

Cin7 offers 3 different pricing plans: Standard ($325/month), Business ($749/month), and Advanced ($999/month).

MarketMan

MarketMan is an exceptional cloud-based inventory and vendor management system specifically designed for restaurants. Not only can you track expiration dates, but also create recipes when it's desired. It even has the remarkable ability to process invoices automatically! Plus, MarketMan seamlessly integrates with a number of popular POS systems while boasting comprehensive scanning and invoicing capabilities--helping make restaurant operations more efficient than ever before!

Features

• App-based order management

• Automated low stock alerts

• Ingredient/recipe level tracking

• Track in custom units (lbs, oz, size)

• Manage invoices and account payable

• Connect inventory controls to the menu

Pricing

MarketMan offers: Operator ($179/month), Professional ($249/month), and Ultimate ($399/month) plans.

Odoo

Odoo Inventory is an open-source software with customizable features that can be tailored to your specific needs and requirements. It ensures accurate inventory control by monitoring stock levels in real time. With Odoo you can create a virtually unlimited number of different products alongside appropriate inventory planning tools.

Features

• Automated RFQs and POs based on minimum stock

• Fully automated replenishment

• Integrated with Odoo Accounting

• Real-time reports

• Smart double entry inventory system

• Warehouse management

Pricing

Odoo offers a free plan but to find the full pricing details, you'll have to contact their sales team directly.

FreshBooks

Freshbooks is primarily an accounting software with a few inventory tracking features. It'es best for freelancers and small businesses who are able to manage a tiny number of items. Whether you sell just several different products or plan to start selling physical products in addition to your service business, FreshBooks helps you manage upto 2+ sales channels.

Features

• Tracking inventory on Squarespace or Shopify

• Review inventory for billable items

Pricing

Freshbooks is the least expensive software of this list starting at $1.50/month. Their plus and premium plans are $3/month and $5.50/month.

EZRentOut

EZRentOut is the perfect inventory solution for all sorts of rental companies, from construction and sports equipment to audio gear or furniture. Not only does it allow you to take note of any damages caused by renters, but its helpful GPS tracking tools make it easy to locate your items. You can also use EZRentOut to track depreciation as well as services and repairs.

Features

• Availability-based ordering

• B2B and B2C customer management

• Customized pricing

• GPS tracking of items

• Handles rentals and sales

• Route management for deliveries

• Tracks repairs

Pricing

EZRentOut offers Essential ($89/month), Growth ($179/month), Plus ($134.97/month), and Premium ($349/month) plans.

Use SaasAnt PayTraQer & Transactions for Automatic Inventory Updates into QuickBooks & Xero

While all these inventory management tools help you in their own way, they do lack a robust automated updates of reports into your accounting software. At the end of the day, your inventory is an asset and therefore it requires to be properly accounted for.

You can use SaasAnt Transactions to automatically upload transactions and list entities. It also offers asynchronous processing to update your inventory transactions.

On the flip side, PayTraQer works perfectly with your ecommerce tools. It offers powerful automation to sync your sales, inventory and online payments into QuickBooks Online & Xero.

By using these two applications, you can automate all those nitty gritty details that your inventory management software does not update.

Try PayTraQer and SaasAnt Transactions today!