Best ERP and MRP software for discrete manufacturers that build their own products, scored

For a company that designs, builds, and sells its own product line, choose by size and production mode. Below about $15M, a specialist on QuickBooks Online usually wins: Katana for brands whose stock follows Shopify and Amazon, MRPeasy for real MRP with actual cost per lot, SOS Inventory for staying inside QuickBooks. From roughly $15M to $100M, Acumatica leads at 5 of 5 here, with NetSuite, Business Central, Odoo, and Epicor at 4; above $100M, Epicor, Infor SyteLine, and Dynamics 365 F&O join the list. In every demo, test a dated engineering change and the costing method your CPA will defend once average gross receipts pass the IRS small business threshold ($32 million for 2026).

Last reviewed 2026-10-06·Scoring methodology

What changes when manufacturing narrows to discrete manufacturing

The parent manufacturing page averages each system across job shops, product companies, and process plants, and its specialist roster leans toward shops. This page takes one buyer: a company that designs its own products, builds them to stock, assembles them to order from standard modules, configures them to order, or runs them on a repetitive line, and sells them under its own name. Three questions the parent treats as footnotes decide the purchase here: who owns the BOM when engineering changes it, which costing method the books run on, and how finished goods reach Shopify, Amazon, and retail EDI. So Acumatica, NetSuite, and Business Central rate higher than on the parent page, Epicor, Infor, and F&O rate lower, and QuickBooks and Intuit Enterprise Suite each move up to 2. The job-shop sibling owns quoting, routings by work center, and per-job costing for build-to-print work, and nothing here repeats it; NetSuite, for example, rates 2 there and 4 here because estimating does not matter to this buyer. Formula and batch production belongs to the process page and food makers to their own page, while engineer-to-order machinery, aerospace and defense suppliers, medical devices, and automotive tier suppliers sit outside this page.

For the cross-industry view, ratings, and the broader specialist bench, see the Manufacturing rankings.

Who owns the BOM when engineering changes it

A product company carries two versions of the truth about every item: what engineering designed and what the plant builds. Engineering's BOM changes during development and again whenever a part goes end of life or a supplier changes; the plant's BOM has to change on a known date, after purchasing has used up or returned the old parts. That date is effectivity. NetSuite's Advanced BOM gives each revision an effective start and end date and does not let revisions on the same BOM overlap, so each date resolves to one revision; Business Central's production BOM versions become valid on a starting date and stay valid until the next version starts (vendor documentation, checked October 6, 2026).

Change control sits on top of effectivity. An engineering change order records what changed, why, who approved it, and when it takes effect. NetSuite documents ECO records with approval workflows; Odoo's PLM app uses ECOs to track, apply, and revert changes to products and BoMs; Acumatica lists engineering change control in Manufacturing Edition; SYSPRO describes ECO workflows with custom status codes and tracking at revision and release level. Among the small-maker tools, MRPeasy reserves its revision and version control system for the $99 Enterprise tier, and we found neither ECOs nor dated revisions in Katana's or SOS Inventory's published feature lists.

Then decide where the master lives. A BOM or PLM tool becomes the master when engineering revises faster than the plant can absorb, typical of electronics and hardware companies with contract-built subassemblies. OpenBOM sells revision control and ECOs on its Company plan, gives suppliers and contract manufacturers free read-only access, and lists integrations with QuickBooks Online, Xero, Katana, Odoo, NetSuite, Business Central, and Priority. Arena, owned by PTC since January 2021, adds a quality system and lists ERP connectors for Acumatica, NetSuite, Business Central, F&O, SAP Business One, Priority, Epicor Kinetic, Infor, and SYSPRO, but none for QuickBooks, Odoo, or Katana. In both patterns the PLM releases and the ERP keeps the manufacturing BOM, its sequence of assembly, and its standard cost.

The demo test: take a real product, release revision B with a substituted component effective two weeks out, and ask each vendor to show the open orders still building revision A, the MRP suggestion that stops buying the old part on the right date, the cost rollup for revision B, and the record of who approved the change. A system that can show only the current BOM suits a company that never changes its products.

Standard cost, average cost, and the inventory rules that arrive near $32 million

The costing method usually arrives with the tools rather than by decision. QuickBooks Online values inventory FIFO only (our deep profile). Katana supports only moving average cost, recalculated per location as stock comes in (Katana knowledge base). MRPeasy keeps actual cost per stock lot, meaning the purchase price plus fees or the manufacturing order's total cost, and consumes lots FIFO or FEFO. SOS Inventory offers FIFO, LIFO, or weighted average on every plan. Fulfil values finished goods at actual production cost with weighted averaging across batches and compares actual labor to standard. In a Katana and QuickBooks stack, ask early which system's cost lands in cost of goods sold, because the two use different methods.

Standard cost is where most growing makers end up, because it separates two questions: what a product should cost, and why this month's builds cost more. NetSuite posts production price and production quantity variances when an assembly build's actual cost differs from standard; Business Central maintains standard cost through a worksheet and records variance as actual cost minus standard cost; Odoo lets each product category run Standard Price, average cost, or FIFO; Acumatica's production records post material, labor, WIP, and variances (vendor documentation, checked October 6, 2026). None of the five small-maker tools named above uses standard cost as its inventory method.

Tax is where the method stops being a preference. Under section 263A a producer must capitalize direct costs and part of its indirect costs into inventory, but a small business taxpayer that meets the section 448(c) gross receipts test is exempt and may account for inventory as non-incidental materials and supplies or follow its books (IRS Publication 538). The test is average annual gross receipts over the prior three tax years: $31 million or less for tax years beginning in 2025 and $32 million or less for 2026 (Rev. Procs. 2024-40 and 2025-32). A maker growing through that line needs labor and overhead absorbed into inventory in a way its tax preparer can trace, which is far easier when production orders carry labor and overhead rates than when the system knows only purchase prices.

The demo test: build ten units of a two-level product, consume one component at a price above standard, record fifteen more minutes of labor than planned, and ship five units. Ask to see inventory value, cost of goods sold, and the price and quantity variances on the journal entries, then ask how overhead reached the finished goods. Bring your CPA's view on section 263A to the same meeting.

Make-to-stock, assemble-to-order, configure-to-order, and the channels behind them

Within discrete production, the mode changes what to demo. Make-to-stock makers live on forecasts, reorder points, and MRP suggestions, and should demo a finished-goods stockout across two warehouses. Assemble-to-order makers stock subassemblies and finish against the order: Business Central creates an assembly order linked one to one with the sales line when an assemble-to-order item is entered, and SOS Inventory can build an assembly automatically at shipment. Repetitive lines consume components at completion rather than issuing them order by order: SAP Business One backflushes natively, Acumatica supports backflush transactions, and Dynamics 365 F&O adds kanban and production flows (deep profiles).

Configure-to-order is the mode most small stacks fake. A variant matrix works while options are independent: Odoo's Apply on Variants column assigns BoM lines to specific variants, and MRPeasy's Professional tier adds a matrix BOM. When options interact (this motor needs that frame, this width needs a center support), a rules-based configurator has to write the BOM: Acumatica includes one in Manufacturing Edition, Epicor and Dynamics 365 F&O carry native configurators, NetSuite's CPQ passes configurations to BOMs and work orders, and SYSPRO's furniture page describes configuring thousands of fabric, finish, and dimension variations. For products modeled in SOLIDWORKS, DriveWorks generates order-specific drawings and BOMs, with pre-built links to QuickBooks, SYSPRO, and DELMIAWorks only.

For consumer makers the selling side decides the shortlist. A brand that ships Shopify orders, replenishes Amazon, and fills retailer EDI orders from the same finished goods needs stock allocated across all three. Fulfil builds WMS, EDI, and production orders into one system priced mainly on order volume (our Fulfil profile); Acumatica lists Shopify, BigCommerce, and Amazon connectors and connected EDI through SPS Commerce; NetSuite's Connector covers Shopify and Amazon, with EDI through a named provider. Katana bills its Core plan on delivered sales orders and SOS Inventory charges $25 a month per storefront connection, so in this niche order volume, more than user count, drives the software bill.

Industrial catalog makers invert that: they sell through distributors and OEM buyers, care little about storefronts, and weigh configurators, revisions, and standard cost instead. That is why Epicor rates 4 on this page while reading closer to a 2 for a brand that lives on Shopify, and why each verdict above says which kind of maker it was written for.

Five discrete manufacturing matchups, each with a decision rule

These are the comparisons a company building its own products keeps landing on. Each rule assumes you know your production mode, your share of sales through Shopify, Amazon, and retail EDI, and whether average gross receipts are approaching the IRS small business threshold. Carry one engineering change and one costed build through every demo.

Katana vs MRPeasy vs SOS Inventory (on QuickBooks Online)

Pick Katana when the business is a brand first: Shopify, Amazon, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce sync, outsourced purchase orders for co-manufactured items, and pricing from $299 a month driven by delivered sales orders; accept moving average as the only costing method. Pick MRPeasy when planning is the problem: MRP, scheduling, lot-level actual cost, and applied-overhead journals into QuickBooks from $49 per user a month, with revision control at $99. Pick SOS Inventory when QuickBooks Online must stay the center and the need is assemblies, lots, and work orders with a choice of FIFO, LIFO, or weighted average, from $69.95 a month; it lists no MRP planning and no Xero support.

Acumatica vs NetSuite

Choose Acumatica when production is the harder half of the business: a rules-based configurator, engineering change control, finite scheduling, and licensing that does not charge per shop-floor user come in Manufacturing Edition, with Shopify, BigCommerce, and Amazon connectors native. Choose NetSuite when channels and entities are the harder half: OneWorld consolidation (rated 5 in our profile), standard cost with production price and quantity variances, and dated BOM revisions, adding Advanced Manufacturing only if the plant needs finite scheduling. Demo an ECO and a costed build in both.

Business Central vs Acumatica

Business Central wins for Microsoft 365 shops that make to stock or assemble to order, where standard cost with variance, BOM versions by starting date, assemble-to-order sales lines, and the first-party Shopify connector cover the need and the ISV ecosystem (integrations rated 5) fills the rest. Acumatica wins when configure-to-order rules, finite scheduling, or many shop-floor users matter, because Business Central needs ISVs for the first two and licenses per named user.

Fulfil vs NetSuite for brands that make what they sell

Choose Fulfil when direct order volume, personalization, and retailer EDI dominate and production is assembly or light multi-step work: WMS, EDI, and production orders are built in, Fulfil's own team implements, and our profile recommends it from about $10M. Choose NetSuite when the group needs consolidation across currencies, standard cost with variances, or dated engineering changes; Fulfil's manufacturing page does not describe ECOs or MRP-style planning, and its consolidated P&L and cash flow work only across entities on one base currency.

Epicor Kinetic vs Acumatica for industrial catalog products

For an established industrial maker selling configured catalog products through distributors, demo both on the same configured order: Epicor brings the deeper configurator and engineering workbench (manufacturing 5 in our profile) with more complexity and separately licensed APS and MES, while Acumatica brings native commerce connectors and licensing that does not charge per shop-floor user. Below about $15M, neither: an MRP on QuickBooks Online or Odoo usually fits better.

Who this page covers

Discrete Manufacturing still is not one market. The verdicts below are written across these sub-verticals, and where a rating splits by sub-vertical the evidence says so:

Consumer and home goods made to stock (housewares, small appliances, furniture)Sporting, outdoor, and recreation goods sold direct and through retailChildren's and juvenile products (tracking marks and third-party test certificates)Industrial components and equipment built to a catalog (pumps, valves, controls)Configure-to-order lines built from standard modules and optionsElectronics box build of the company's own productsHardware companies moving from prototype to repeatable production

The niche roster: 8 specialists, verified

The specialists come first on this page because in discrete manufacturing they are usually the real decision. Each is verified for ownership, pricing posture, and current availability as of October 2026, and none is scored by our ERP methodology. Read the boundary fields: every one of these tools ends somewhere, and that boundary is where the ERP question actually starts.

cloud inventory and make-orders for product brands on QuickBooks Online or Xero

Katana Cloud Inventory

A cloud inventory and production platform from Tallinn built around the sales channel: stock by location, BOMs and manufacturing orders, purchasing, outsourced purchase orders for items a co-manufacturer builds, and order sync with Shopify, Amazon, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce, with QuickBooks Online or Xero keeping the books. Routings and production cost insights sit in the Manufacturing Management add-on and batch or serial traceability in the Traceability add-on. Inventory is costed by moving average per location; Katana's knowledge base states that FIFO and LIFO are not supported.

Best for:: Consumer product brands under roughly $15M to $20M that build some products in-house and outsource others, sell through Shopify and Amazon, and want stock and make-orders in step with channel demand without an ERP project.
Not for:: Makers that need standard cost with variances, since moving average is the only method; makers that need dated BOM revisions or engineering change orders, which we did not find in its published feature list (checked October 6, 2026); and configure-to-order lines whose options interact.
Where it ends:: No general ledger, consolidation, or EDI described as core; the cost that reaches QuickBooks or Xero is a moving average, so the CPA should agree to it as the book method before go-live. Traceability, routings, and warehouse bins are each priced add-ons, which changes the comparison against MRPeasy's flat per-user tiers.
Pricing:: Published: Free plan for up to 30 SKUs; Core plan from $299 a month with one location, billed on usage (delivered sales orders and extra locations); add-ons for Manufacturing Management (routings) at $199 a month, Traceability at $249 a month, and Warehouse Management at $149 a month; Advantage plan custom-priced (vendor pricing page, checked October 6, 2026; high confidence).
Pairs with:: QuickBooksXero

Ownership & sources

Ownership: Katana (Tallinn, Estonia), founded in 2017 and venture-backed: a EUR 14 million Series B extension led by Cogito Capital Partners in October 2025 took total funding above EUR 60 million, with Northzone, Atomico, 42Cap, and Lightrock among existing investors (TheSaaSNews, 2025; vendor about page).

self-implemented MRP with lot-level actual costing

MRPeasy

A cloud MRP that plans production rather than syncing channels first: BOMs, routings, scheduling, lot traceability, a basic WMS, CRM, and its own standard accounting on every tier. The Professional tier adds a matrix BOM for products with parameters, serial numbers, subcontracting, and quality control; Enterprise adds a revision and version control system, master production schedule, barcodes, and multiple production sites. Each stock lot carries its actual cost (purchase price plus fees, or the manufacturing order's total cost) and is consumed FIFO or FEFO, and the QuickBooks Online sync can post journal entries for materials, WIP, finished goods, and applied overhead. The vendor reports more than 2,300 manufacturers in over 60 countries.

Best for:: Makers under roughly $10M whose problem is planning: what to build this week, what to buy, and what each lot really cost. Variant-heavy lines with independent options fit the Professional tier's matrix BOM.
Not for:: Companies that want standard cost and variance reporting, multi-entity groups, and brands whose main pain is allocating stock across Shopify, Amazon, and 3PLs, where Katana or Fulfil is the closer fit.
Where it ends:: Basic accounting, so most US makers keep QuickBooks Online or Xero as the ledger; no consolidation. Revision control sits only on the $99 Enterprise tier, so a lower tier has no dated engineering changes. Configuration is self-service, with authorized consultants available but no large partner channel.
Pricing:: Published: Starter $49, Professional $69, Enterprise $99, and Unlimited $149 per user per month (Unlimited needs at least 2 users); beyond 10 users, extra seats come in 10-seat bundles at $79 a month per bundle; free trial with no card (vendor pricing page, checked October 6, 2026; high confidence).
Pairs with:: QuickBooksXero

Ownership & sources

Ownership: Privately held, with offices listed in Tallinn, Bournemouth, and Dallas. The vendor says its core team has built web software since 2000 and started MRPeasy after 2010; its site names no outside investors.

inventory and manufacturing add-on built only for QuickBooks Online

SOS Inventory

A cloud inventory, order, and manufacturing app that runs beside QuickBooks Online with transaction-level sync. Every plan includes assemblies with unlimited BOM levels, auto-build on shipment, and a choice of FIFO, LIFO, or weighted-average valuation. Plus adds lot and serial numbers, bins, barcoding, variants, and contract manufacturing; Pro adds work orders, work centers, WIP, labor tracking, overhead, landed costs, and job cost accounting. Shopify and BigCommerce connect as paid external connections.

Best for:: Small makers committed to QuickBooks Online that need assemblies, lots, and work orders without changing ledgers, including children's product makers that need lot numbers tied to each build, and makers that want a choice of costing method QuickBooks itself does not offer.
Not for:: Xero users, since its plan comparison lists QuickBooks Online Essentials, Plus, and Advanced only; makers that need MRP planning from demand, since the plans list reorder points and stock-level purchase orders rather than MRP; and multi-entity groups.
Where it ends:: QuickBooks Online is the ledger and the ceiling: no consolidation and no engineering change control in the plan comparison. Each storefront or FTP connection costs $25 a month, and we found no Amazon or EDI connector on its integration pages (checked October 6, 2026).
Pricing:: Published: Companion $69.95 a month (2 users), Plus $139.95 (3 users), Pro $194.95 (5 users), $25 a month per additional user, or $699.50, $1,399.50, and $1,949.50 a year; external connections $25 a month each; 14-day free trial (vendor pricing page, checked October 6, 2026; high confidence).
Pairs with:: QuickBooks

Ownership & sources

Ownership: SOS Inventory Software LLC (copyright line on its site), with US support hours listed in Central time. Ownership and funding are not disclosed on its site.

ecommerce ERP with production orders for brands that make what they sell

Fulfil

An ERP for brands that sell online and wholesale, with a manufacturing layer aimed at makers: nested multi-level BOMs with versioning and component substitution, make-to-stock and make-to-order production orders generated from sales orders, routing steps by work center on a mobile shop-floor app, personalization data passed from checkout to engravers and embroidery machines, and outsourced production that moves materials into a WIP account. Finished goods are valued at actual production cost with weighted averaging across batches, overhead is allocated by volume or time, and actual labor is compared with standard. WMS, native EDI, and a general ledger are built in (our Fulfil profile).

Read our full Fulfil profile

Best for:: Direct-to-consumer brands that make or personalize what they sell and also ship to marketplaces and retailers, from about $10M revenue on our profile's recommendation; Fulfil's own demo page tells brands below roughly $15M in GMV, or 150,000 annual orders, that they are probably too early.
Not for:: Pure contract manufacturers without an ecommerce business (our profile), and industrial catalog makers that sell through distributors and need configure-to-order rules, dated engineering changes, or standard cost as the book method.
Where it ends:: Its manufacturing page does not describe MRP-style material planning or engineering change orders (checked October 6, 2026), so demonstrate how purchase suggestions and revision changes work. Group reporting is limited, since a consolidated P&L and cash flow require one base currency across entities; support and implementation cover the US, Canada, and the UK, with Fulfil's in-house team doing the work.
Pricing:: Quote-based. The vendor indicates a six-figure annual subscription driven mainly by order volume, with implementation as a separate one-time fee (our Fulfil profile, reviewed September 24, 2026), and its demo page says pricing is not negotiable (checked October 6, 2026). Confidence: medium, a vendor indication rather than a price card.
Pairs with:: Carries its own general ledger. Fulfil's company story pitches starting with operations and adding finance when ready, so a maker can keep its current books for a period; agree on how long, and who reconciles production costs between the two systems in the meantime.

Ownership & sources

Ownership: Independent and private; started in 2015, led by co-founder and CEO Sharoon Thomas, and describes itself as bootstrapped and profitable on its demo page (vendor, checked October 6, 2026).

full ERP with engineering change control and a configurator (outside our 16)

SYSPRO

A manufacturing and distribution ERP founded in 1978 that lists make-to-stock, assemble-to-order, make-to-order, mixed-mode, and discrete production among its supported types. For a product company the relevant pieces are an engineering change order workflow with custom status codes and approval routing, tracking at stock code, revision, or release level with archived BOM history, and a product configurator that generates the BOM for each custom order; its furniture page describes configuring thousands of variations in colors, fabrics, finishes, and dimensions. It sits outside the 16 systems we rate, so it appears as an alternative with no erpFit score.

Best for:: Established makers that run a standard catalog alongside configured variants (furniture, industrial products) and want engineering change control and a configurator inside one ERP with its own ledger, comparing it with Acumatica or Epicor.
Not for:: Brands whose operations center on Shopify and marketplaces, where Fulfil, Acumatica, and NetSuite document native channel connectors; and makers too small to staff a full ERP project with their own ledger migration.
Where it ends:: It brings its own general ledger, so choosing it means migrating the books as well as production. Ownership changed in 2024, so ask about roadmap and renewal terms, and ask for US references that build products like yours.
Pricing:: Undisclosed. No price list on the US site; demo-led sales (vendor site, checked October 6, 2026).
Pairs with:: Nothing. It replaces the ledger rather than pairing with one.

Ownership & sources

Ownership: Advent International agreed on August 13, 2024 to acquire a majority stake; SYSPRO then employed about 400 people with headquarters in the UK and South Africa, and founder Phil Duff was to retire as chairman by the end of that September (Advent release).

cloud PLM and QMS that masters the BOM ahead of the ERP

Arena (PTC)

Cloud product lifecycle management and quality management from PTC: BOM management, change management, and document control in every plan, with the Launch plan adding supply chain intelligence, AI-assisted item redlines and file comparison, and Arena Connect workflows, and Enterprise adding requirements, quality, and supplier quality management. Arena Connect, released August 4, 2026, offers more than 200 prebuilt connectors. Its marketplace lists ERP connectors for Acumatica, NetSuite, Business Central, F&O, SAP Business One, Priority, Epicor Kinetic, Infor, SYSPRO, and Plex. The vendor cites more than 1,500 customers.

Best for:: Hardware and electronics product companies with frequent revisions, contract-built subassemblies, and a quality system to maintain, that run or are choosing one of the ERPs in its marketplace and want engineering to release BOMs to production on approval.
Not for:: Makers on QuickBooks, Odoo, or Katana, none of which appears in its marketplace's by-system list (checked October 6, 2026); companies that change products a few times a year; and anyone expecting inventory or costing.
Where it ends:: At release: no inventory, purchasing, production orders, costing, or ledger. The ERP keeps the manufacturing BOM and the standard cost, and the ERP connector is a separate purchase; the marketplace shows some sold by Arena and others by partners on their own subscriptions.
Pricing:: Undisclosed. Free trial; Launch and Enterprise plans are request-for-pricing, and several features carry additional fees (vendor pricing page, checked October 6, 2026).
Pairs with:: NetSuite Acumatica Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations SAP Business One Priority ERP Epicor Infor CloudSuite

Ownership & sources

Ownership: PTC (Nasdaq: PTC), which completed its acquisition of Arena Solutions on January 19, 2021; Arena ended 2020 with about $50 million in annualized recurring revenue (PTC release).

cloud BOM and change management for small engineering teams

OpenBOM

A cloud BOM and PLM tool from Newton, Massachusetts: part catalog, BOM management, inventory control, and RFQs and purchase orders on the Team plan; CAD file management, revision control, engineering change orders, and multi-view BOMs on the Company plan; CAD add-ins for SOLIDWORKS, Inventor, Fusion 360, and Onshape. Suppliers and contract manufacturers get free read-only access. Its integrations page lists QuickBooks Online, Xero, NetSuite, Odoo, Business Central, Priority, Katana, and Zoho Inventory, with Acumatica, Epicor, and SAP through the vdR Nexus integration platform on a separate subscription.

Best for:: Hardware and product companies moving from prototype to production that want engineering-controlled BOMs and ECOs before, or alongside, a small-business stack such as Katana on QuickBooks Online or Odoo.
Not for:: Regulated makers that need a quality management system with the BOM (Arena carries one), and teams expecting production orders or a ledger from it.
Where it ends:: It is not the system of record for sales, production execution, or accounting. ERP integrations are a custom flat rate per integration, and the CAD add-ins require a Team or Company subscription.
Pricing:: Published: Team $30 per seat per month billed yearly ($55 monthly), Company $90 per seat per month billed yearly ($165 monthly), Enterprise custom; data records free up to 2,000, then from $100 a month on yearly billing up to 5,000; CAD add-ins $25 per seat per month per CAD system on yearly billing; ERP integrations quoted as a flat rate per integration. This model applies to new customers from January 2026 (vendor pricing page, checked October 6, 2026; high confidence).
Pairs with:: QuickBooksXeroNetSuite Odoo Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Priority ERPKatana

Ownership & sources

Ownership: OpenBOM is a trademark of Newman Cloud, Inc. (Newton, Massachusetts), co-founded by CEO Oleg Shilovitsky; privately held, with funding not disclosed on its site.

SOLIDWORKS configurator and CPQ for configure-to-order product lines

DriveWorks

Design automation and configure-price-quote software built on SOLIDWORKS: DriveWorksXpress comes free inside SOLIDWORKS for entry-level part and assembly automation; DriveWorks Solo is an add-in that generates production-ready drawings, BOMs, and quote documents from product specifications; DriveWorks Pro adds a browser configurator with 3D previews, sales and manufacturing documents, and integration with PDM, CRM, and ERP systems. Its pre-built integrations list names QuickBooks, SYSPRO, DELMIAWorks, Salesforce, SOLIDWORKS, and SOLIDWORKS PDM; the QuickBooks link creates estimates, sales orders, invoices, and purchase orders.

Best for:: Configure-to-order makers whose products are modeled in SOLIDWORKS (equipment options, enclosure sizes, furniture dimensions) and who want each configured order to produce its own drawings and BOM instead of an engineer redrawing it.
Not for:: Companies that design in Onshape, Creo, or Inventor, since the automation runs on SOLIDWORKS; and product lines whose options are independent enough for a variant matrix in Odoo or MRPeasy.
Where it ends:: Not an ERP or MRP: no inventory, scheduling, costing, or ledger. Configured BOMs reach the ERP through a pre-built link only for the short list above; anything else, including Acumatica, NetSuite, or Business Central, means a custom integration to scope and price.
Pricing:: Undisclosed. DriveWorksXpress is included free with SOLIDWORKS and Solo has a 30-day trial; Solo and Pro are sold through SOLIDWORKS resellers with no public price list (vendor site, checked October 6, 2026).
Pairs with:: QuickBooksSYSPRODELMIAWorks

Ownership & sources

Ownership: DriveWorks Ltd, a UK company (copyright line on its site) with a US phone line; ownership is not described on its site.

All 16 systems, re-rated for discrete manufacturing

Ratings are 1-5 for this sub-industry specifically. Where a rating deviates from the Manufacturing page, the evidence names the niche reason. Expand any row for the evidence and caveats.

1Acumatica
●●●●●
The most complete fit among the 16 for a company that designs, builds, and sells its own products: Manufacturing Edition puts revisions and engineering change control, a rules-based product configurator, MRP with finite scheduling, and native Shopify, BigCommerce, and Amazon connectors in one database. Below about $15M few makers have the staff to run it well; above $100M it holds unless the group needs consolidation deeper than its multi-entity 4.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Rated 5 versus 4 on the parent page and on the job-shop page. The parent's 4 discounted Acumatica for process gaps and the job-shop page for quoting depth; neither weighs on a make-to-stock or configure-to-order product company. Acumatica's Manufacturing Edition page (checked October 6, 2026) lists bills of material, revisions, engineering change control, a rules-based Product Configurator, CAD and PLM integrations including an Arena connector, and native commerce connectors; its consumer packaged goods page lists make-to-stock, configure-to-order, and repetitive manufacturing, connected EDI, and Shopify, Amazon, and BigCommerce connectors. Deep profile: manufacturing 4, inventoryWarehouse 4, orderManagementCommerce 4, with licensing that lets line and warehouse staff transact without a paid seat each.
Caveats
Our deep profile names BOM accuracy and the choice of costing method as the usual causes of overruns on Acumatica manufacturing projects, and those are this page's first two deep dives. MRP and APS date logic can disagree, so schedule a real product family in the demo. EDI runs through a partner such as SPS Commerce rather than natively, and integrationsEcosystem rates 3 against Business Central's 5.
2NetSuite
●●●●●
A strong fit for product companies that sell through storefronts, marketplaces, and wholesale at once and expect to add entities: standard costing with production variances, BOM revisions with effective dates, engineering change orders, and the NetSuite Connector for Shopify and Amazon are all documented. Below about $15M the cost rarely pays back; above $100M it holds, with Advanced Manufacturing or an MES for heavier plants.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Rated 4 versus 3 on the parent page and 2 on the job-shop page. The parent's own verdict names product brands selling DTC and wholesale as NetSuite's discrete strength, and the job-shop page marked it down for missing estimating, which this buyer does not need. NetSuite's help center documents production price and quantity variances on assembly builds under standard costing, Advanced BOM revisions with effective start and end dates that may not overlap, and engineering change order records (docs.oracle.com, checked October 6, 2026). Deep profile: manufacturing 3, orderManagementCommerce 4, multiEntityConsolidation 5, and CPQ with a path to BOMs, routings, and work orders. Arena and OpenBOM both list NetSuite integrations.
Caveats
Work orders and assemblies, WIP and routings, and Advanced Manufacturing are separate scopes in the deep profile, so price the one your plant needs. EDI needs a named provider and trading-partner maps. Partners who know NetSuite manufacturing are harder to find than its distribution partners (parent page), so ask each one for a client running standard cost on assemblies.
3Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
●●●●●
Rated above the parent because what a product company needs is native in Premium: standard cost with variance, production BOM versions that take effect on a starting date, and assemble-to-order items that create a linked assembly order from the sales line. It is the Microsoft answer from roughly $10M to $100M; configure-to-order rules and shop-floor capture come from ISVs.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Rated 4 versus 3 on the parent and job-shop pages, which held it at 3 for finite scheduling, MES, and estimating gaps that matter less to a make-to-stock or assemble-to-order maker. Microsoft Learn documents standard cost updated through the Standard Cost Worksheet with variance calculated as actual cost minus standard cost, production BOM versions whose starting date defines validity, and assemble-to-order items that generate an assembly order linked one to one with the sales order line (checked October 6, 2026). Deep profile: manufacturing 3, inventoryWarehouse 4, integrationsEcosystem 5, and a first-party Shopify connector. Arena and OpenBOM both list Business Central integrations.
Caveats
No native rules-based product configurator, so configure-to-order makers price an ISV. Native planning assumes infinite capacity, and mobile barcode scanning and EDI come from ISVs (our retail page). Manufacturing needs Premium, listed at $110 per user per month in the deep profile, and licensing is per named user.
4Odoo
●●●●●
Holds the parent's 4 and is the value pick for product makers below about $50M: costing by product category (standard, average, or FIFO), engineering change orders in the PLM app, BoM lines that apply to specific variants, and a native storefront share one database. Below $15M it competes with the QuickBooks-plus-MRP stack on price; past one entity its multi-entity 2 becomes the limit.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Matches the parent's 4; the job-shop page dropped it to 3 for the missing estimating front end, which a product company does not need. Odoo 18 documentation lists Standard Price, Average Cost (AVCO), and FIFO costing methods set per product category, ECOs that track, apply, and revert changes to products and BoMs, and an Apply on Variants column that assigns BoM components to specific variants (checked October 6, 2026). Deep profile: manufacturing 4, orderManagementCommerce 4, multiEntityConsolidation 2. OpenBOM lists an Odoo integration.
Caveats
Scheduling is infinite-capacity without an add-on such as frePPLe, and costing accuracy depends on BoM discipline that self-implementers skip (deep profile). Brands built on Shopify usually keep it and sync through a third-party connector. A maker with interacting options (this frame requires that motor) outgrows variant lines and needs configuration logic Odoo does not ship.
5Epicor
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Rated below the parent's 5 for this buyer mix. For an established industrial maker of catalog products with options (pumps, valves, controls), Kinetic's configurator, engineering workbench, and repetitive support make it a front-runner; for a consumer brand selling through Shopify and Amazon it is the wrong center of gravity and closer to a 2. Below about $15M it is rarely the right step.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
The parent and job-shop pages both rate Epicor 5, anchored in make-to-order and engineer-to-order depth this page excludes. Deep profile: manufacturing 5 with native repetitive, mixed-mode, and batch modes, an engineering workbench for BOM and routing revisions with ECO control, and a configurator that generates BOMs and routings from configured orders; orderManagementCommerce 4, but ecommerce is a separate product that users report is harder to integrate than expected. Arena lists an Epicor Kinetic connector.
Caveats
Our deep profile records that makers with single-level BOMs tend to find Kinetic heavier than they need, and many consumer makers fit that description. APS, Advanced MES, and quality are licensed separately. revenueBilling rates 2, so a device sold with a software subscription needs billing elsewhere.
6SAP Business One
●●●●●
Matches the parent. Native BOMs, production orders, backflushing, and MRP cover make-to-stock assembly for a single-plant maker; routings, capacity, and costing depth need the Beas add-on, and storefront and EDI links come from connector vendors. Fits best when a corporate owner or a major OEM customer has standardized on SAP.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Rated 3 like the parent; the job-shop page's 2 reflected the missing quoting front end, which does not apply here. Deep profile: manufacturing 3 (standard BOMs, production orders, backflushing, MRP), inventoryWarehouse 4, orderManagementCommerce 3 with Shopify, Amazon, and retail EDI through connector vendors, multiEntityConsolidation 2. Arena lists an SAP Business One connector.
Caveats
Engineering change control and routings arrive with Beas, a second product lifecycle with its own upgrades. There is no native storefront or EDI, so connector licenses recur. Multi-plant growth points to a bigger product (deep profile).
7Priority ERP
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Rated below the parent's 4. Native multi-level BOMs with revision control and make-to-stock and assemble-to-order support fit this buyer, and Arena and OpenBOM both list Priority integrations, but prebuilt US storefront, marketplace, and EDI connectors are thin, which matters to any maker selling direct or into retail.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Parent 4, job-shop 3. Deep profile: manufacturing 4 (multi-level BOMs with revision control; make-to-stock, make-to-order, engineer-to-order, and assemble-to-order modes), orderManagementCommerce 3, with US connectors for Shopify, Amazon, and mainstream EDI networks described as fewer and less mature than NetSuite's or Business Central's. The channel gap carries more weight on this page than on the parent's.
Caveats
Expect EMEA case studies; ask for a US maker that sells through Shopify or retail EDI. An industrial maker selling only through distributors can read this as a 4.
8Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations
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Rated below the parent for tier, not capability. Lean and kanban production, a constraint-based product configurator, and mixed-mode depth fit a maker of configured products above $100M; below that the license and implementation weight rarely pay back, and Business Central is Microsoft's answer.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Parent 4, job-shop 3. Deep profile: manufacturing 4 with discrete, lean (kanban and production flows), and a constraint-based configurator native; orderManagementCommerce 4 with Dynamics 365 Commerce licensed separately. The parent places its practical floor near $100M revenue, above most of this page's buyers. Arena lists an F&O connector.
Caveats
Above $100M treat it as a 4 and compare it with Epicor and Infor SyteLine on a configured industrial product. EDI runs through ISVs (deep profile).
9Infor CloudSuite
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Rated below the parent's 5. SyteLine (CloudSuite Industrial) handles configure-to-order and mixed-mode production with embedded APS, but its cost floor excludes most makers below $50M and native ecommerce is thin, so here it is an upper-tier option for industrial catalog products rather than a default.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Parent 5 (credited across suites, including M3's process depth) and job-shop 4. Deep profile: manufacturing 5, with SyteLine covering mixed-mode discrete and configure-to-order order flows tied to configurators; orderManagementCommerce 3 with no widely adopted native storefront. Fixing the suite to SyteLine removes the process credit in the parent's 5. Arena lists Infor CSI, M3, and VISUAL connectors.
Caveats
Sold the wrong CloudSuite, none of this applies; for a discrete product company the product to ask for is SyteLine. Quality management draws gap complaints (deep profile).
10QuickBooks
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Rated above the parent's 1 for its role as the books behind Katana, MRPeasy, or SOS Inventory, the usual small-maker arrangement until revenue nears $10M to $15M. QuickBooks Online values inventory FIFO only and has no standard cost, BOM, or work order, so the costing questions on this page get answered in the add-on or in a spreadsheet.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Parent 1 (as a manufacturing system), job-shop 2 (as a ledger). Deep profile: manufacturing 1, inventoryWarehouse 2 with FIFO as the only costing method. SOS Inventory is built only for QuickBooks Online (Essentials, Plus, and Advanced), and Katana and MRPeasy list QuickBooks Online integrations (vendor pages, checked October 6, 2026); MRPeasy can post material, WIP, finished goods, and applied overhead journal entries into it.
Caveats
The add-on and the ledger can disagree on method: Katana supports only moving average cost, so decide which system's cost reaches cost of goods sold. Once three-year average gross receipts pass the IRS small business threshold ($31M for 2025, $32M for 2026), section 263A capitalization applies; plan the ledger move before that, not after.
11Intuit Enterprise Suite
●●●●●
Rated above the parent's 1 on new evidence: Intuit's help center now documents manufacturing orders and single-level assemblies, with labor as a BOM line, in Intuit Enterprise Suite. Multi-level BOMs with subassemblies are not supported, so it fits flat kits and simple assemble-to-stock products only.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
The parent and job-shop pages rate IES 1, and our IES deep profile (reviewed July 6, 2026) rates manufacturing 1. Intuit's article on manufacturing orders and assemblies (updated August 3, 2026) says manufacturing features are currently available in Intuit Enterprise Suite, that a bill of materials can include services such as labor, that actual cost is computed when the build is saved from the inventory valuation setting, and that multi-level bills of materials with subassemblies are not supported. We have not tested the feature.
Caveats
Single-level only rules out most products with a subassembly, and there is no engineering change control. Confirm the add-on before relying on the QuickBooks stack pattern: SOS Inventory lists QuickBooks Online plans only. Multi-entity rates 4 in the deep profile, so a two-company maker of flat kits is the realistic fit.
12Sage Intacct
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Matches the parent. Intacct offers kitting but no BOMs, production orders, or engineering change control, and inventory rates 2; a product company that builds in-house should not shortlist it. Sage's separate SDMO product is the only manufacturing path, a two-product architecture.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Parent 1, job-shop 1. Deep profile: manufacturing 1 (kitting and light assembly the ceiling, SDMO a separate young product), inventoryWarehouse 2, orderManagementCommerce 2. None of Katana, MRPeasy, SOS Inventory, or OpenBOM lists a Sage Intacct integration on the pages we checked (October 6, 2026).
Caveats
A hardware company that outsources all production to contract manufacturers sometimes runs Intacct for revenue and entities; that buyer does not build its own product and sits outside this page.
13Rillet
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Built to close the books of software businesses, with inventory rated 1; a maker would find no BOMs, production orders, or inventory costing.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Matches the parent and job-shop pages. Deep profile: manufacturing 1, inventoryWarehouse 1, orderManagementCommerce 1.
Caveats
A device maker selling a subscription alongside hardware may admire its revenue engine (revenueBilling 5), but the devices still need a production and inventory system elsewhere.
14Campfire
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No BOMs, inventory costing, or channel order handling (inventory and commerce both rate 1), so nothing for a company building its own product.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Matches the parent and job-shop pages. Deep profile: manufacturing 1, inventoryWarehouse 1.
Caveats
None that change the verdict.
15DualEntry
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Its light inventory module (rated 2) has no BOMs, assemblies, or production costing, and none of the small-maker tools on this page lists it as a ledger.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Matches the parent and job-shop pages. Deep profile: manufacturing 1 and inventoryWarehouse 2; the profile warns that its stock tracking is not a production system. Katana, MRPeasy, and SOS Inventory name QuickBooks Online (and, for Katana and MRPeasy, Xero) as their ledgers.
Caveats
QuickBooks Online remains the ledger the small-maker tools connect to.
16Light
●●●●●
Finance-only scope with manufacturing and inventory both rated 1; not a candidate for a product company.
Evidence & caveats
What supports this rating
Matches the parent and job-shop pages. Deep profile: manufacturing 1, inventoryWarehouse 1.
Caveats
None.

What actually matters in this niche

Capability priorities for discrete manufacturing buyers, from our fit model. Vendors demo everything; these are the areas where depth decides outcomes.

Critical

Manufacturing & production: For a product company the checkbox means BOM revisions with effectivity, engineering change orders, standard cost rollups, and support for its production mode: MRP against forecast for make-to-stock, assembly linked to the sales order for assemble-to-order, a configurator that writes the BOM for configure-to-order, and backflushing on repetitive lines. Routing-level labor capture matters less here than on a job-shop floor.
Inventory management: Finished goods are the asset: the same SKU sits in an owned warehouse, at a 3PL, and in Amazon's network, and components have to be on hand before the forecast turns into orders. Children's product makers also need batch or run data tied to each production date, because the tracking marks required by 15 USC 2063 point back to it.

Important

Ecommerce integrations: Critical for consumer makers that sell through their own Shopify store and Amazon, where stock and orders must sync both ways; rarely needed for industrial catalog makers that sell through distributors. Connector depth separates the shortlist: Acumatica lists native Shopify, BigCommerce, and Amazon connectors, Business Central ships a first-party Shopify connector, and SOS Inventory charges $25 a month per storefront connection.
EDI with trading partners: The first retail program brings 850 purchase orders, 856 advance ship notices, and carton labels on top of direct orders. Fulfil documents native EDI, Acumatica connects to SPS Commerce, and NetSuite needs a named provider; the small-maker tools on this page do not describe EDI as a core feature, so the retail program is often what ends that stack.
Warehouse management (bins/lots/serials): Pick, pack, and ship for single-unit direct orders and for retailer cartons from the same shelf is a finished-goods problem job shops rarely have. Fulfil builds a WMS into the ERP, Acumatica's consumer packaged goods page lists embedded WMS with pallet, case, and each picking, and Katana sells a $149 a month warehouse add-on.
Multi-currency: Components, motors, and electronics are commonly bought abroad, and since April 6, 2026 Section 232 metal duties apply to the full customs value of covered derivative goods, so landed cost by purchased item and purchasing in the supplier's currency show up before any foreign entity does.
Multi-entity & consolidation: Becomes real when a maker adds a foreign sales subsidiary, buys another product line with its own entity, or splits a second plant into its own company. The stack choice matters: QuickBooks Online cannot consolidate (multi-entity rated 1 in our profile), and Fulfil's multi-entity documentation limits its consolidated P&L and cash flow to entities on one base currency (our Fulfil profile).
High transaction volumes: Rated higher than on the parent page because a consumer maker's order count, not its user count, drives both system load and price here: Katana bills its Core plan on delivered sales orders, Fulfil prices mainly on order volume, and every Shopify order is a sales order the inventory system has to allocate. A maker of industrial catalog products shipping a few hundred orders a month will not feel it.

Rarely decisive here: Intercompany transactions, Complex revenue recognition, Subscription / recurring billing, Project / job accounting, Field service. Do not pay for depth in these unless your sub-vertical is the exception the page notes.

What sends discrete manufacturing companies shopping

1
Engineering releases a revision and the plant builds the old one. When the BOM lives in CAD exports and spreadsheets, a substituted component reaches purchasing late and finished goods get built from a superseded revision. A dated handoff fixes it: NetSuite's Advanced BOM revisions carry effective start and end dates that may not overlap, and Business Central's production BOM versions become valid on a starting date (vendor documentation, checked October 6, 2026). A spreadsheet cannot enforce either.
2
Gross receipts approach the IRS small business line. A producer whose average annual gross receipts over the prior three years exceed $31 million (tax years beginning in 2025) or $32 million (2026) loses the small business exception to the section 263A uniform capitalization rules and must capitalize part of its indirect production costs into inventory (Rev. Procs. 2024-40 and 2025-32; IRS Publication 538). A stack whose inventory app supports only moving average cost and whose ledger supports only FIFO leaves that calculation to a year-end spreadsheet.
3
A retail or distributor program lands on top of direct sales. The same finished goods now leave as single Shopify orders, Amazon replenishment shipments, and cartons against a retailer's EDI purchase orders, and the inventory app that synced one storefront cannot allocate stock across all three. Fulfil, Acumatica, and NetSuite, which document storefront, marketplace, and EDI flows in one system, enter the shortlist here.
4
Children's products meet a new import filing. A children's product maker must already place permanent marks on the product and its packaging showing location and date of production plus batch or run data, and certify each product on accredited third-party testing (15 USC 2063). Since July 8, 2026, importers must also eFile certificate data with CBP at entry for regulated consumer products (CPSC final rule revising 16 CFR part 1110). A maker that imports even one finished line from an overseas contract manufacturer now needs certificate data held per product, next to the lot and production date it describes.
5
Tariff rules start reading the item master. Since April 6, 2026, Section 232 duties of 10 to 50 percent apply to the full customs value of covered steel, aluminum, and copper articles and their derivatives, and listed derivative goods outside HTSUS chapters 72, 73, 74, and 76 whose applicable metal is under 15 percent of the article's weight owe no Section 232 duty when the entry reports that metal weight in kilograms (CBP CSMS 68253075, April 3, 2026). A maker importing motors, housings, or hardware needs metal weight on each purchased item to know which parts qualify and to price landed cost.
6
Options multiply faster than SKUs. Once a product line sells in sizes, finishes, and option packages, one BOM per combination stops scaling and order entry starts accepting combinations the plant cannot build. Configure-to-order needs either variant-level BOM lines (Odoo, MRPeasy's matrix BOM) or a rules-based configurator that writes the BOM (Acumatica, SYSPRO, or DriveWorks for products modeled in SOLIDWORKS).
7
Packaging laws ask for weights nobody stored. Oregon's packaging law exempts producers under $5 million in gross global revenue; above that, a brand selling packaged goods into the state reports the covered packaging it supplies through Circular Action Alliance and pays fees, with 2024 supply data setting the 2025 and 2026 fees (Oregon DEQ exemptions FAQ, updated April 9, 2026). In practice the report needs packaging materials and weights on every SKU, which belong on the BOM rather than in a one-off survey.

Numbers worth citing

Key takeaway · as of 2026-10-06
CPSC's final rule revising certificates of compliance (16 CFR part 1110), published January 8, 2025, requires importers to eFile certificate data with CBP at entry for regulated consumer products starting July 8, 2026, and starting January 8, 2027 for products entered from a foreign trade zone (Federal Register, 2025).

Key takeaway · as of 2026-10-06
The section 448(c) gross receipts test that exempts small producers from section 263A uniform capitalization is average annual gross receipts of $31 million or less for tax years beginning in 2025 and $32 million or less for 2026, measured over the prior three tax years (IRS Rev. Proc. 2024-40 and Rev. Proc. 2025-32).

Key takeaway · as of 2026-10-06
Since April 6, 2026, Section 232 duties of 10 to 50 percent apply to the full customs value of covered steel, aluminum, and copper articles and their derivatives; listed derivative goods outside HTSUS chapters 72, 73, 74, and 76 with under 15 percent applicable metal by weight owe no Section 232 duty when the metal weight is reported in kilograms (CBP CSMS 68253075, April 3, 2026).

Key takeaway · as of 2026-10-06
Oregon's packaging producer responsibility law exempts producers with less than $5 million in gross global revenue, and 2024 supply data sets producer fees for both 2025 and 2026 (Oregon DEQ Recycling Modernization Act exemptions FAQ, updated April 9, 2026).

Key takeaway · as of 2026-10-06
Published entry pricing for small-maker tools in October 2026: SOS Inventory from $69.95 a month, MRPeasy from $49 per user a month, Katana Core from $299 a month billed on delivered sales orders, and OpenBOM Team from $30 per seat a month on yearly billing (vendor pricing pages, checked October 6, 2026).

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Discrete Manufacturing: common questions

What is the best ERP for discrete manufacturing?

It depends on size and production mode. For a company that designs and builds its own products, Acumatica rates 5 of 5 here because revisions, engineering change control, a rules-based product configurator, and native Shopify, BigCommerce, and Amazon connectors share one database. NetSuite, Business Central, Odoo, and Epicor rate 4: NetSuite for multichannel brands adding entities, Business Central for Microsoft shops making to stock or assembling to order, Odoo as the value pick below about $50M, and Epicor for established industrial makers of configured catalog products. Below about $15M, a specialist such as Katana, MRPeasy, or SOS Inventory on QuickBooks Online usually fits better than any ERP.

What is discrete manufacturing?

Discrete manufacturing builds countable units from parts listed on a bill of materials, such as a chair, a pump, or a circuit board assembly. Process manufacturing, by contrast, blends ingredients by formula. This page covers discrete companies that design and sell their own products and build them to stock, assemble them to order from stocked subassemblies, configure them to order, or run them on a repetitive line. Build-to-print job shops, formula and batch producers, and food makers have their own pages; engineer-to-order machinery, aerospace and defense suppliers, medical devices, and automotive tier suppliers are outside this one.

What is the best MRP software for a small manufacturer?

For a maker under roughly $10M to $15M, three tools on QuickBooks Online cover most needs, and each solves a different problem. Katana (Core from $299 a month, billed on delivered sales orders) is for brands whose stock has to follow Shopify and Amazon demand. MRPeasy ($49 to $149 per user a month) is for planning: MRP, scheduling, and actual cost per stock lot, with revision control on the $99 Enterprise tier. SOS Inventory ($69.95 to $194.95 a month) keeps QuickBooks Online at the center and adds assemblies, lot numbers, and work orders. All three prices were vendor-published as of October 6, 2026.

Katana or MRPeasy: which fits a company that makes its own products?

Katana fits when sales channels drive the business: it syncs Shopify, Amazon, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce orders, handles outsourced purchase orders for co-manufactured items, and costs inventory only by moving average. MRPeasy fits when production planning is the bottleneck: it runs MRP and scheduling on every tier, costs each stock lot at actual cost, can post WIP and applied overhead journal entries to QuickBooks Online, and adds a matrix BOM on Professional and revision control on Enterprise. Neither runs standard cost with variances or consolidates entities, so both are a stage before an ERP rather than a substitute for one.

Can QuickBooks handle manufacturing?

QuickBooks Online on its own has no BOMs, work orders, or standard cost, and it values inventory FIFO only, so manufacturers add an app: SOS Inventory is built only for QuickBooks Online, and Katana and MRPeasy sync to it. Intuit's help center now documents manufacturing orders and single-level assemblies in Intuit Enterprise Suite (article updated August 3, 2026), but multi-level BOMs with subassemblies are not supported there. Plan the move off the QuickBooks stack before three-year average gross receipts pass the IRS small business threshold ($32 million for 2026), when section 263A capitalization of indirect production costs applies.

Do I need BOM software or PLM separate from my ERP?

Not at first. A maker that changes products a few times a year can keep BOMs and engineering change orders in the ERP: NetSuite, Odoo, Acumatica, and SYSPRO document ECOs, and Business Central versions BOMs by starting date. A separate BOM or PLM tool earns its place when engineering revises faster than production can absorb, common in electronics and hardware companies with contract-built subassemblies. OpenBOM (revisions and ECOs on its Company plan from $90 per seat a month, billed yearly) connects to QuickBooks Online, Xero, Katana, Odoo, NetSuite, and Business Central. Arena by PTC adds a quality system and connects to NetSuite, Acumatica, Business Central, Epicor, and others, but not to QuickBooks. Either way the ERP keeps the manufacturing BOM and the cost.

What compliance records does a product manufacturer's system need to hold in 2026?

Three rules now read the item master. Children's products need permanent tracking marks showing production location, date, and batch or run data, plus a certificate based on accredited third-party testing (15 USC 2063), and since July 8, 2026 importers must eFile certificate data with CBP at entry. Since April 6, 2026, Section 232 metal duties apply to full customs value, and listed derivative imports under 15 percent applicable metal by weight escape the duty only when the metal weight is reported. Oregon's packaging law makes producers above $5 million in gross global revenue report the packaging they supply into the state. Each needs data held per SKU or per purchased item.

Best ERP and MRP software for discrete manufacturers that build their own products, scored

What changes when manufacturing narrows to discrete manufacturing

Who owns the BOM when engineering changes it

Standard cost, average cost, and the inventory rules that arrive near $32 million

Make-to-stock, assemble-to-order, configure-to-order, and the channels behind them

Five discrete manufacturing matchups, each with a decision rule

Katana vs MRPeasy vs SOS Inventory (on QuickBooks Online)

Acumatica vs NetSuite

Business Central vs Acumatica

Fulfil vs NetSuite for brands that make what they sell

Epicor Kinetic vs Acumatica for industrial catalog products

Who this page covers

The niche roster: 8 specialists, verified

All 16 systems, re-rated for discrete manufacturing

What actually matters in this niche

What sends discrete manufacturing companies shopping

Numbers worth citing

Where does your company land?

Discrete Manufacturing: common questions

What is the best ERP for discrete manufacturing?

What is discrete manufacturing?

What is the best MRP software for a small manufacturer?

Katana or MRPeasy: which fits a company that makes its own products?

Can QuickBooks handle manufacturing?

Do I need BOM software or PLM separate from my ERP?

What compliance records does a product manufacturer's system need to hold in 2026?

Further reading from our research