Fishbowl Inventory alternatives: what to use when Fishbowl stops fitting

Why do people look for a Fishbowl Inventory alternative?

Fishbowl is a strong product for many firms. Here is what its pricing page shows, so you can judge the fit for your business.

• Price and users: Fishbowl Inventory has three plans, all billed yearly. Essentials costs $229 a month with 2 users. Growth costs $429 a month with 5 users. Scale costs $729 a month with 10 users.
• Setup: Fishbowl says an implementation package is required with any purchase. It includes a setup specialist, data migration and a 6 to 8 week training course. The page does not list the fee for it.
• Manufacturing: The Inventory plans do not include manufacturing tools such as bills of materials and work orders. Those sit in a separate product, Fishbowl Advanced. Advanced Manufacturing starts at $675 a month, and Fishbowl confirms the final price by quote.
• QuickBooks sync: Essentials lists sync with QuickBooks Online and Xero. On the Growth plan, the comparison table marks two-way QuickBooks Online sync as coming soon.

Fishbowl also has real strengths. It supports QuickBooks Desktop as well as QuickBooks Online. Its Scale plan adds lot tracking, audit trails and paperwork for GMP, FDA and ISO rules. Fishbowl Advanced also has self-managed options for firms that want full control of where the system runs. If you need those things, Fishbowl may still be the right choice.

What are the best Fishbowl Inventory alternatives?

Each tool below fits a different kind of business. The price shown is the lowest paid plan on the vendor's own page.

Blur Studio (best value)

A ready-built, well-tested core with a different pricing model: no per-seat fees, and it covers almost all the features you'd actually need, usually working out to the best value for money. On top of that, Blur Studio builds owned customizations, meaning you can ask for it to be modified to your exact specifications, and you own those modifications outright. Learn more over a quick call with me, Ranjit.

• Best for: Businesses that need software that works without barriers, no unnecessary fees and options to customize it to their needs.

Cin7 Core

Cin7 Core is inventory software for brands that sell through many channels, such as a web store, marketplaces and wholesale. Standard costs $349 a month with 5 users and 6,000 sale orders a year. Pro costs $599 a month with 10 users. Cin7 lists its prices as monthly and says they apply to new customers. Cin7 lists QuickBooks Online and Xero among its main integrations. Its pricing page also lists bills of materials for simple assembly work.

• Best for: Product brands that sell in several places and need stock to match across all of them.

Zoho Inventory

Zoho Inventory is the lowest-cost paid option here. Its free plan covers 50 orders a month, 1 user and 1 location. Standard costs $29 per organization a month, billed yearly, with 500 orders a month, 3 users and 2 locations. The top plan, Enterprise, costs $249 a month billed yearly, with 15,000 orders a month and 10 locations.

• Best for: Small sellers and distributors who want a low price and do not need manufacturing tools.

Sortly

Sortly is simple stock tracking with a phone app and barcode scanning. Its free plan covers 100 items and 1 user. Advanced shows $24 a month, billed yearly at $288. That price is part of a 50% off sale for new customers in their first year. The page gives no end date for the sale, and the regular price shown is $49 a month. After the first year, Sortly gives 20% off all yearly plans.

• Best for: Teams that track equipment, tools or supplies in a few places and want the easiest setup.

Katana

Katana is cloud manufacturing software for small makers. Its free plan has unlimited users and up to 30 SKUs, which are product codes. The paid plan, Advantage, has custom pricing on a yearly contract, with unlimited users and products. Katana lists QuickBooks Online and Xero in its integrations.

• Best for: Small manufacturers who want to try a tool for free before they talk to sales.

MRPeasy

MRPeasy is manufacturing software for businesses with up to 200 staff. Plans start from $49 a user a month. There is a free trial of 15 days, which you can extend by another 15 days, and no card is needed. Every plan lists QuickBooks Online and Xero, and every plan includes a basic accounting module.

• Best for: Small factories that need production planning and want to pay per user.

What does Fishbowl actually cost right now?

As of October 2026, Fishbowl's published plans, billed annually, are Essentials at $229 a month (2 users), Growth at $429 (5 users, adds fulfillment and shipping tools), Advanced Warehouse at $595, Advanced Manufacturing at $675, and Scale at $729 (10 users, adds forecasting and demand planning). Fishbowl offers a 14 to 30 day trial rather than a free plan, and I could not find a currently advertised, dated introductory discount beyond that trial, so treat any "limited time" offer you are quoted on a sales call as something to get in writing with its actual expiry date, not something to assume matches what you read elsewhere.

How do Fishbowl alternatives compare?

Tool	Free option	Lowest paid plan	Users on that plan	Manufacturing tools
Fishbowl Inventory	No	$229 a month, billed yearly (Essentials)	2	In Fishbowl Advanced, from $675 a month
Cin7 Core	No	$349 a month, listed monthly (Standard)	5	Bills of materials listed
Zoho Inventory	Yes, 50 orders a month	$29 a month, billed yearly (Standard)	3	Not listed
Sortly	Yes, 100 items	$24 a month, billed yearly, first-year offer (Advanced)	2	No
Katana	Yes, 30 SKUs	Custom price, yearly contract (Advantage)	Unlimited	Yes
MRPeasy	Free trial	From $49 a user a month (Starter)	Per user	Yes

What if you are leaving Cin7, Sortly or Zoho Inventory?

People search for these tools as Fishbowl alternatives, but some also leave them. The same tools work in reverse.

• Leaving Sortly: Teams often move on once they need sales orders, purchase orders and accounting sync. Zoho Inventory or Cin7 Core are common next steps.
• Leaving Zoho Inventory: If you start making products, look at Katana, MRPeasy or Fishbowl Advanced.
• Leaving Cin7: If the monthly cost is high for your order volume, Zoho Inventory costs less. If you need deep QuickBooks Desktop support, Fishbowl lists it.

How do you pick the right inventory tool?

Start with how your business makes money. Then test each tool with your own data.

• Count your users: Fishbowl and Cin7 include a set number of users. MRPeasy charges per user. Katana's plans include unlimited users.
• Check your accounting: Confirm the tool lists your exact accounting product. QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online are different products.
• Check your orders: Zoho Inventory and Cin7 cap orders on each plan. Estimate your busiest month first.
• Ask about setup: Ask each vendor what setup costs and how long training takes before you sign.
• Run a real test: Load 20 of your real products and process one week of orders in the trial.

For a wider view, my guide to inventory management systems explains what these tools do. If you also make products, see my guide to manufacturing software.

When should you build your own inventory system?

For most small businesses, one of the tools above is the right answer. Buy one, set it up well and get on with the work. A custom system makes sense in a few cases.

• Your process is unusual: You make products to order, use odd units, or track stock in ways no tool expects.
• Your seat count is growing: Plan prices climb with every new user or tier, and the next tier adds features you do not need.
• Your tools do not connect: Stock lives in one place, orders in another and accounts in a third, and staff copy data by hand.
• You need full control of your data: Clients or rules require you to know where every record lives.

A custom build costs more at the start. It has no per-user fee, and it fits the way your team already works. My guide on build vs buy software walks through that choice. If you need inventory, orders and accounts in one place, see custom ERP.

How would Blur Studio approach a Fishbowl replacement?

I start by watching how stock moves through your business, from purchase order to shipment. Then I list which steps cause the most trouble. Often the right advice is to switch to one of the tools above, and I will say so. When a custom system is the better fit, I build it on a standard database. I connect it to your accounting software and your sales channels. I can add AI to read supplier invoices or warn you before stock runs low. Your old system keeps running until the new one proves itself. The code and every account sit in your company's name. My guide to inventory management systems covers the broader category, and my guide to manufacturing software covers the production side if that's more of what you need.

Need something completely custom?

Everything above is a path to get it running quick and cheap. But sometimes the honest answer is that none of those quite fit, and what you actually need is something custom that you own, built uniquely for your business from the ground up, with AI thoughtfully designed into the parts of it that your processes actually benefit from. An asset that grows in value, not a generic, one-size-fits-all boilerplate that's an expense with a lock-in. This is a complete bespoke build, and it's something I do very well. Get in touch to know more.