If you still pack orders yourself and your spreadsheet no longer matches what's on the shelf, you're shopping for one of three things: an inventory app, a warehouse management system, or a 3PL that already runs one. They solve different problems and cost very different amounts. Below are seven tools a small brand can buy in 2026, with prices checked on each vendor's own pricing page in October 2026, followed by the question most lists skip: when handing off the warehouse beats buying software for it.
Inventory app, WMS or a 3PL's WMS: which one you need
An inventory app keeps count. It tracks how many units you have of each SKU (stock-keeping unit: one code per product variant, such as a blue tee in medium), syncs those numbers with your store and tells you when to reorder. Zoho Inventory, inFlow and Sortly start here.
A warehouse management system, or WMS, runs the floor. On top of counts, it knows each SKU's bin location (the exact shelf or bin it sits in), directs pick and pack (pulling an order's items off the shelf, then boxing and labeling it) and usually confirms each pick with a barcode scan. That matters once someone other than you is picking, or once you carry enough SKUs that "I know where everything is" stops being true.
A 3PL (third-party logistics company) stores your stock and ships your orders from its own warehouse, on its own WMS. You don't buy or configure the software; you watch your inventory and the orders go out without you. For how that works on the 3PL side, see what a 3PL warehouse management system does. For a longer tour of WMS features, read our guide to ecommerce warehouse management systems.
If you pack your own orders, an inventory app covers the job. Full WMS software earns its cost when other people pick orders in a space you run. If you'd rather not run that space at all, a 3PL brings the WMS with it.
Which option fits your situation
Prices are as of October 2026, from each vendor's pricing page.
Your situation | What to use | Starting price | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
You pack every order yourself and sell on one channel | Your store's built-in inventory tracking, or a free plan such as Zoho Inventory Free or Sortly Free | $0 (Zoho Free: 50 orders a month, 1 user; Sortly Free: 100 items) | Counts only. No bin locations or scan-checked picking. |
You sell on two or more channels and stock counts drift apart | An inventory app that syncs channels: Zoho Inventory or inFlow | Zoho Standard $29/month billed annually; inFlow Lite $99/month billed annually | You still pick, pack and ship every order yourself. |
A helper picks orders and mistakes are creeping in | Barcode-driven stock control and picking: Fishbowl, Ordoro inventory or SkuVault Core | Fishbowl from $229/month billed annually (picking is on a higher plan); Ordoro inventory from $349/month; SkuVault Core by quote | You set up and maintain bins, labels and scanning yourself. |
You assemble kits or bundles, or do light manufacturing | Cin7 Core, Ordoro inventory (kitting and bundling) or a Fishbowl manufacturing plan | Cin7 Core $349/month; Ordoro inventory $349/month | A bigger monthly bill and more setup than a basic inventory app. |
You'd rather not run a warehouse at all | A 3PL that includes its own WMS, such as Simpl Fulfillment | Starting at $7 per order, with a $750/month pay-the-difference minimum | You hand off packing and pay per order. In a month that bills under $750, you pay the gap. |
Seven tools, with October 2026 prices
Every price below comes from the vendor's own pricing page, checked in October 2026. None of those pages shows a last-updated date and plans change often, so confirm before you buy.
1. Zoho Inventory
Zoho Inventory has a free plan capped at 50 orders a month, one user and one location. The Standard plan is $29 per organization per month, billed annually, and covers 500 orders a month, three users and two locations. Zoho lists integrations with Shopify, Etsy, Amazon and WooCommerce.
Choose it if you sell on a couple of channels and mainly need counts that stay in sync. It's an inventory app first, so check the plan table before counting on bin-level warehouse features.
2. inFlow Inventory
inFlow Lite costs $99 a month billed annually ($1,188 a year), or $129 month to month. Core is $299 a month billed annually. Add-ons are extra: another team member is $29 a month, and API access and the inFlow Stockroom add-on are priced separately. inFlow offers a free trial, and its pricing page lists monthly and annual subscriptions.
inFlow lists Shopify, Amazon, WooCommerce and Squarespace integrations, but its plan table includes them on some plans and not others. Check that the plan you're pricing covers your store before you compare it with Zoho.
3. Fishbowl Inventory
Fishbowl's inventory plans start at $229 a month billed annually for Essentials, which includes two users, QuickBooks Online and Xero sync, and barcode-driven stock control. Pick, receive and ship workflows start on the Growth plan, listed at $429 a month billed annually. Fishbowl sells manufacturing (bills of materials, work orders) as separate plans; its inventory plans don't include it.
It suits a brand that already runs its books in QuickBooks and wants scanning. For a founder packing from a spare room, it's more system than the job needs.
4. Cin7 Core (formerly DEAR Systems)
Cin7 Core's Standard plan is $349 a month, with five users, two ecommerce or app integrations and up to 6,000 sales orders a year. Pro is $599 a month and adds material requirements planning. Cin7 Omni, the larger product, is priced by quote. Cin7 lists Shopify, Amazon and WooCommerce among its top integrations.
It fits a brand that sells through several channels, including wholesale, from one pool of stock, or that needs material planning on the Pro plan. For a single-channel store, it's a lot of software for the money.
5. SkuVault Core by Linnworks
SkuVault is now sold as SkuVault Core by Linnworks. Linnworks describes it as warehouse software built around real-time inventory accuracy, pick and pack workflows and barcode-driven quality control, and says you can map each warehouse into zones and bin types. There's no public price: Linnworks says pricing depends on how many orders you fulfill each month, custom requirements and add-on modules, so expect a sales call before you see a number.
6. Ordoro
Ordoro sells shipping and inventory as separate products, so check which one a quoted price belongs to. Its $59-a-month plan is for shipping: the Advanced shipping plan, with 3,000 labels a month. Inventory plans start at $349 a month for Advanced, which covers 1,000 orders a month with unlimited warehouses, sales channels and users, plus kitting and bundling. Shipping also has a free tier with 100 labels a month.
Choose Ordoro if you want labels and inventory in one place and you sell bundles.
7. Sortly
Sortly is the simplest tool on this list. Its free plan tracks up to 100 unique items. Advanced lists at $49 a month on monthly billing; yearly billing is discounted, and that discount has varied with promotions. Sortly is built around counting and finding stock, with barcode scanning and low-stock alerts, so you'd pair it with your store's own order tools.
Older lists still recommend TradeGecko or QuickBooks Commerce. Intuit said QuickBooks Commerce would not be available after August 31, 2023, and TradeGecko had been discontinued before that, so neither is an option today.
How much does a WMS cost?
As of October 2026, the entry plans above run from $0 (Zoho Inventory Free, Sortly Free) to $349 a month (Cin7 Core Standard, Ordoro inventory Advanced), before extra users and add-ons. Fishbowl's Growth plan, which adds pick, receive and ship workflows, is listed at $429 a month billed annually. SkuVault Core and Cin7 Omni are priced by quote.
When you run the warehouse yourself, the subscription is only part of the bill. You also pay in packing hours, the shelving and space your stock takes up, packaging, and whatever shipping rates you can get on your own. A WMS makes picking more accurate, but it doesn't pack the boxes. Add those costs up before you compare software with a 3PL quote.
When a 3PL beats buying a WMS
A 3PL makes sense when packing is taking the hours you'd rather spend on product and marketing, or when you'd have to hire and train someone to run the WMS you just bought.
At Simpl Fulfillment, the warehouse runs on ShipHero, a warehouse management system, so there's no software for you to buy or configure. You get real-time inventory visibility, and orders come in from Shopify, Shopify Plus, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Squarespace and the major marketplaces, with an Open API for custom connections. See how inventory visibility works.
Pricing starts at $7 per order, with picking, packing, packaging and postage included in the per-order rate. There's a $750 monthly minimum, billed pay-the-difference: in a month when your orders bill less than $750, you pay only the gap. That's about 100 shipments a month at the lightest weight (0.5 lb or under). Heavier shipments cost more each, so fewer of them reach $750. Onboarding takes 5–7 days. Read how we work, or see our ecommerce fulfillment service.
When software is enough for now
If your orders would bill well under $750 a month, the minimum means paying for shipments you don't send. Before you switch, add up what packing in-house costs you now, including software, packaging, postage and your own hours, and compare that total with the $750. Keeping packing in-house also makes sense if hand-packing is part of what customers buy from you. These inventory management tips help keep counts straight in the meantime.
Revisit the choice when packing starts crowding out selling, or when you're about to hire someone just to pack.