How we make this list: we compare pricing pages, product documentation and public user reviews. Rankite is independent; if a vendor ever pays for a featured spot, that listing is clearly labeled Partner.
Here is the blunt version: most businesses buy inventory software hoping it will end stockouts and overstock, but the software only reflects the discipline you put in. What the best cloud based inventory software does well is give every location, every channel, and every employee the same live numbers, so that discipline actually works. Counts update in real time, orders sync across marketplaces, and nobody manages stock from a private spreadsheet.
The nine tools below differ in which businesses they serve: marketplace sellers, manufacturers, distributors, and teams that count stock with a phone. Match the tool to how you sell, not to the longest feature list.
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Free plan |
|---|---|---|---|
 inFlow | Small product businesses that want barcode scanning without enterprise complexity | See website (pricing on request) | Free trial (14 days) |
 Cin7 | Omnichannel retailers and wholesalers that need deep B2B, 3PL, and EDI features | From $349/month | Free trial (14 days) |
 Zoho Inventory | Small sellers and Zoho users that want a capable free tier | $29/month (Standard, billed annually) | Yes (free tier available) |
 Fishbowl | QuickBooks users that need serious warehouse and manufacturing control | See website (quote-based on warehouse count and users) | No |
 Katana | Makers and light manufacturers that need MRP without an ERP project | See website (custom plans) | Yes (free self-serve tier) |
 Sortly | Teams that track equipment, supplies, and materials with phones | See website (pricing on request) | Free trial (14 days) |
 Ordoro | Ecommerce merchants that want inventory and shipping in one workflow | See website (pricing on request) | Free trial (15 days) |
 Unleashed | Distributors and wholesalers that need lot and serial traceability | See website (pricing on request) | Free trial (14 days) |
 Linnworks | Multichannel sellers syncing stock across 100+ marketplaces | See website (quote-based on order volume) | No |
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
website: https://inflowinventory.com/ best_for: Small product businesses that want barcode scanning without enterprise complexity starting_price: See website (pricing on request) free_plan: Free trial (14 days) pros: Barcode scanning and label printing built in; handles light manufacturing and kitting; integrates with ecommerce and accounting tools cons: Pricing not published on the homepage; very large warehouses may outgrow it
inFlow targets the small product business that has outgrown spreadsheets but is not ready for an ERP. You scan items in and out with a phone or scanner, print barcode labels, and track stock across locations. Light manufacturing features cover bills of materials and work orders, and integrations connect to Shopify, Amazon, and QuickBooks.
The vendor does not publish pricing on its homepage, so expect to start a conversation or a trial; a 14-day free trial is standard. The interface is approachable, though very large warehouses may outgrow it. It fits businesses with hundreds or low thousands of SKUs that need real barcode discipline fast.
website: https://cin7.com/ best_for: Omnichannel retailers and wholesalers that need deep B2B, 3PL, and EDI features starting_price: From $349/month free_plan: Free trial (14 days) pros: Connects POS, ecommerce, 3PL, and EDI in one system; strong B2B ordering and warehouse features; published starting price with a real trial cons: Costs more than SMB-first tools; implementation effort grows with channel count
Cin7 is built for product businesses selling everywhere at once: online stores, physical retail, wholesale, and marketplaces. Orders, inventory, and fulfillment sync across channels, and the system handles the unglamorous work like EDI compliance for big-box retail and 3PL coordination. B2B portals let wholesale customers order on their own.
Cin7 states pricing starts at $349 a month, and a 14-day free trial is available. That puts it a tier above the budget tools but below full ERP. Implementation takes real effort as channel count grows. Choose it when omnichannel complexity is the problem; simpler sellers can save money elsewhere.
website: https://www.zoho.com/us/inventory/ best_for: Small sellers and Zoho users that want a capable free tier starting_price: $29/month (Standard, billed annually) free_plan: Yes (free tier available) pros: Free tier for small order volumes; order, warehouse, and shipping management in one; tight integration with the Zoho ecosystem cons: Higher tiers get pricey for the feature set; advanced manufacturing is limited
Zoho Inventory gives small sellers a real inventory system at a low entry price, and the free tier lets very small businesses start at zero. You manage sales orders, purchase orders, and warehouses, print shipping labels, and sync stock with Shopify, Amazon, and Etsy. Inside the Zoho ecosystem, it shares data with Books, CRM, and Commerce.
Standard costs $29 a month on annual billing, scaling to $79, $129, and $249 for higher tiers, with a 14-day trial on paid plans. The feature set is broad rather than deep: light manufacturers will hit limits. For small ecommerce sellers, especially those already paying for Zoho apps, it is one of the best values on this list.
website: https://www.fishbowlinventory.com best_for: QuickBooks users that need serious warehouse and manufacturing control starting_price: See website (quote-based on warehouse count and users) free_plan: No pros: Deep QuickBooks integration; advanced warehouse, manufacturing, and asset tracking; barcode and mobile picking cons: Quote-only pricing; implementation is a project, not a signup
Fishbowl is the classic answer for QuickBooks users who need more warehouse than QuickBooks offers. It adds multi-location inventory, manufacturing work orders, asset tracking, and barcode-driven picking, then syncs the financials back to QuickBooks. Warehouses that run on paper or spreadsheets get a real system of record.
Pricing is custom, based on warehouse count and users, so the site asks for a demo request. There is no free plan. Implementation takes planning, especially for manufacturers. It fits established small manufacturers and distributors already committed to QuickBooks; everyone else should compare the cloud-native options above.
website: https://katanamrp.com/ best_for: Makers and light manufacturers that need MRP without an ERP project starting_price: See website (custom plans) free_plan: Yes (free self-serve tier) pros: Manufacturing resource planning built for small producers; real-time stock across locations and channels; free tier to explore before buying cons: Custom pricing on paid plans; less depth for pure distribution
Katana is inventory software designed around making things: raw materials, production runs, and finished goods stay linked, so you always know what you can actually build. Stock syncs across Shopify, Amazon, and WooCommerce, and every location sees the same live numbers. The interface is built for product teams, not IT departments.
You can explore Katana at no cost on its self-serve tier, and paid plans are custom-scoped, so pricing requires a conversation. That opacity is the main drawback. For small manufacturers that need MRP logic without hiring a consultant, it is one of the most approachable options available.
website: https://sortly.com/ best_for: Teams that track equipment, supplies, and materials with phones starting_price: See website (pricing on request) free_plan: Free trial (14 days) pros: Photo-based item records with QR and barcode scanning; works on mobile, desktop, and tablet; low learning curve for non-warehouse staff cons: Not built for high-volume ecommerce order flows; pricing not published
Sortly is the simplest tool on this list, and that is the point. You photograph items, organize them into folders by location or type, and scan barcodes or QR codes with a phone to check things in and out. Low-stock alerts and custom reports keep audits painless. It is popular with contractors, clinics, schools, and anyone tracking physical stuff rather than running a warehouse.
The vendor offers a 14-day free trial, but pricing is not published on the homepage. Sortly is not an order management system: if you sell hundreds of orders a day across marketplaces, look at Cin7 or Linnworks. For visual, phone-first tracking of equipment and supplies, few tools are easier to adopt.
website: https://ordoro.com/ best_for: Ecommerce merchants that want inventory and shipping in one workflow starting_price: See website (pricing on request) free_plan: Free trial (15 days) pros: Shipping, inventory, purchase orders, and dropshipping in one platform; deep carrier and marketplace integrations; US-based support team cons: Pricing not published; strongest for ecommerce, less so for manufacturing
Ordoro grew up serving online merchants, and its pitch is operational: shipping, inventory, purchase orders, kitting, and dropshipping in one connected workflow. Orders flow in from Shopify, Amazon, Walmart, and Etsy, stock stays synced across channels, and automation routes orders to suppliers or warehouses. It is built to replace the spreadsheet-and-printer chaos of a growing store.
A 15-day free trial with no credit card is available, but pricing is not published, so the site asks for a sales conversation. The feature set is ecommerce-first: manufacturers will find it thin. For merchants whose pain is fulfillment rather than production, Ordoro covers the whole day-to-day in one place.
website: https://unleashedsoftware.com/ best_for: Distributors and wholesalers that need lot and serial traceability starting_price: See website (pricing on request) free_plan: Free trial (14 days) pros: Batch and serial tracking for full traceability; B2B sales portal and demand forecasting; integrations with Xero, QuickBooks, and major ecommerce platforms cons: Pricing not published; best fit is wholesale and distribution rather than retail
Unleashed is built for businesses where traceability matters: food, supplements, and other batch-driven products. Lot and serial tracking follows raw materials through production to the customer, and the system handles purchasing, warehousing across unlimited locations, and a B2B ecommerce portal for wholesale buyers. Integrations cover Xero, QuickBooks, Shopify, and Amazon.
The vendor offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card required, but pricing lives on a quote basis. Unleashed sits between SMB tools and full ERP in both power and process. Distributors and wholesalers that need audit-ready batch records will find it a natural fit; simple retailers can get by with less.
website: https://www.linnworks.com best_for: Multichannel sellers syncing stock across 100+ marketplaces starting_price: See website (quote-based on order volume) free_plan: No pros: More than 100 marketplace and channel integrations; rules-based automation for routing and shipping; one source of truth for stock across channels cons: Quote-based pricing; setup takes weeks, not days
Linnworks exists for one job: keeping stock accurate across every marketplace you sell on. Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Shopify, TikTok Shop, and a hundred more channels feed into one inventory, and rules automate carrier selection, label printing, and order routing. For sellers whose nightmare is overselling, it is the central control panel.
Pricing depends on order volume and features, so the site asks for a quote; there is no free plan. Customers typically go live in 30 to 40 days, so this is a project, not a signup. Multichannel sellers with real volume will get the most from it; small single-channel stores should start simpler.
Cycle counts beat annual counts. Counting a small slice of stock every week catches errors while they are small and keeps the system honest. Businesses that count once a year spend January reconciling twelve months of drift. Pick a tool with mobile barcode scanning and the counts take minutes.
SKU discipline matters just as much. One product, one SKU, one naming rule, enforced from day one. Duplicates and variant sprawl are the top reason inventory systems stop matching the shelves. Set reorder points on your best sellers before you need them. The software will warn you; only if the data is clean.
Single-channel sellers should keep it simple. If you sell on Shopify and ship from one location, Zoho Inventory or inFlow will cover you for years. The multichannel tools charge for complexity you do not have yet, and that money is better spent on stock.
Multichannel sellers need sync first. When Amazon, Walmart, and your own store share one pool of stock, oversells become a math problem the software must solve in real time. That is the job Cin7, Linnworks, and Ordoro are built for. Makers should weight production: Katana and Unleashed link raw materials to finished goods, which pure retail tools do not. And if you run multiple warehouses with real pick-and-pack volume, Fishbowl's warehouse depth earns its implementation cost.
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
Shihab has spent more than a decade helping SaaS and e-commerce brands grow through search. He writes Rankite's software buying guides from pricing pages, documentation and public user reviews. More about Shihab.