Softwr

Manufacturing · head to head

AMFG vs Flow Software

AMFG logo

AMFG

Manufacturing

Automated quoting and production workflow software for machine shops and additive bureaus

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Flow Software logo

Flow Software

Manufacturing

Manufacturing KPI and OEE calculation engine with published list prices, licensed by measure count

From
$11390/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: AMFG no pricing is published in any form, and the product is sold by module and site, so total cost is invisible until you are several sales calls in.; Flow Software the 11,390 dollar Starter licence caps at 250 measures and events, which a multi-line plant exhausts quickly once each line contributes a dozen calculations, forcing a jump to the 62,230 dollar tier.
  • They diverge on capability: AMFG covers Geometric auto-quoting, Flow Software covers Calculation engine.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which AMFG and Flow Software actually diverge.

Attributes where AMFG and Flow Software differ
AttributeAMFGFlow Software
Starting priceOn request$11390/one-time
Pricing modelquoteOne-time purchase
PlatformsWeb, CloudWindows, Web

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Manufacturing).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in AMFG

  • Geometric auto-quoting
  • 2D drawing analysis
  • Production planning and scheduling
  • Shop-floor control
  • Quality tracking
  • Customer portal
  • CAD and CAM plugins

Only in Flow Software

  • Calculation engine
  • Measure model
  • Historian connectors
  • Manual data entry
  • Event framing
  • Excel and Power BI output
  • Flow dashboards
  • AI Gateway

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

AMFG

  • A machine shop losing work because quoting takes three days and competitors answer in three hoursnot Flow Software
  • An additive bureau that needs one system for order intake, build scheduling and traceability across several machinesnot Flow Software
  • A manufacturer running AM and CNC in the same facility and wanting one production record across bothnot Flow Software
  • Replacing an email and spreadsheet ordering process with a customer portal that produces priced quotes automaticallynot Flow Software

Flow Software

  • A brewery replacing a fragile network of OEE spreadsheets with governed calculations from the same historian datanot AMFG
  • Reporting specific energy consumption per tonne against an ISO 50001 audit where the calculation method must be documentednot AMFG
  • Feeding Power BI plant dashboards from a historian without giving analysts direct tag-level accessnot AMFG
  • A site that needs lab results typed in and combined with automated tag data in the same yield calculationnot AMFG

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

AMFG

  • No pricing is published in any form, and the product is sold by module and site, so total cost is invisible until you are several sales calls in.
  • Automated quoting only becomes accurate once your cost model, machine rates and material data are properly loaded, so the value arrives months after go-live and early quotes need human checking.
  • The product started in additive manufacturing and has pivoted its marketing towards CNC machine shops, which means some CNC-specific depth is newer than the additive lineage and worth testing against your actual process mix.
  • It overlaps heavily with ERP and MES scope, so shops with an existing ERP face an ownership decision over scheduling and customer records that is a political problem, not a technical one.
  • It is a comparatively small vendor against established shop-floor systems, so integration work into an incumbent ERP will fall largely on you or a partner rather than on a pre-built certified connector.

Flow Software

  • The 11,390 dollar Starter licence caps at 250 measures and events, which a multi-line plant exhausts quickly once each line contributes a dozen calculations, forcing a jump to the 62,230 dollar tier.
  • The Unlimited licence requires every engine on a single server or VM, so any multi-server or multi-site topology goes straight to Distributed at roughly double the price with no intermediate option.
  • Maintenance renews at about fifteen percent of the installed base annually, so a large perpetual estate carries a five-figure recurring cost that the headline perpetual price hides.
  • It is a Windows product with a Microsoft data stack, so Linux or container-native deployment strategies do not apply and the server has to be managed on the plant Windows estate.
  • It calculates and reports but does not collect from equipment itself, so an existing historian or OPC layer is a prerequisite and Flow adds cost on top of that rather than replacing it.

Pricing, plan by plan

AMFG

On request
  • AMFG$undefined/year
    • Automated quoting and estimating
    • Production planning and scheduling
    • Shop-floor control and quality tracking

Flow Software

$11390/one-time
  • Starter$11390/one-time
    • 250 KPI measures and events
    • Single server deployment
    • First year of software maintenance included
  • Unlimited$62230/one-time
    • Unlimited KPI measures and events
    • All engines must run on one server or dedicated VM
    • First year of maintenance included
  • Distributed$128450/one-time
    • Unlimited measures with engines distributed across multiple servers
    • Required for multi-server and multi-site deployments
    • Available as an annual subscription at 34,250 USD instead

Which should you pick?

Choose AMFG if

  • You need geometric auto-quoting.
  • You work on Web, Cloud.
  • You also want 2d drawing analysis.
AMFG review

Choose Flow Software if

  • You need calculation engine.
  • You work on Windows, Web.
  • You also want measure model.
Flow Software review

Questions people ask

Is AMFG or Flow Software better?
Neither clearly leads. AMFG starts at On request and Flow Software at $11390/one-time, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, AMFG or Flow Software?
AMFG starts at On request and Flow Software at $11390/one-time.
Does AMFG or Flow Software run on more platforms?
AMFG runs on Web, Cloud. Flow Software runs on Windows, Web.
What is AMFG best used for?
AMFG is most often used for a machine shop losing work because quoting takes three days and competitors answer in three hours, an additive bureau that needs one system for order intake, build scheduling and traceability across several machines, a manufacturer running am and cnc in the same facility and wanting one production record across both, replacing an email and spreadsheet ordering process with a customer portal that produces priced quotes automatically. Of those, a machine shop losing work because quoting takes three days and competitors answer in three hours and an additive bureau that needs one system for order intake, build scheduling and traceability across several machines are not what Flow Software is typically brought in for.
What can AMFG do that Flow Software cannot?
AMFG covers Geometric auto-quoting, 2D drawing analysis, Production planning and scheduling, Shop-floor control. Flow Software covers Calculation engine, Measure model, Historian connectors, Manual data entry.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

AMFG: Does AMFG replace my ERP?

No. It covers quoting through shop-floor execution and quality. Finance, purchasing and inventory usually stay in the ERP, and you must decide which system owns scheduling.

Flow Software: Does Flow publish real prices?

Yes. Starter is 11,390 USD perpetual for 250 measures, Unlimited is 62,230 USD perpetual or 16,595 USD a year, and Distributed is 128,450 USD perpetual or 34,250 USD a year.

AMFG: Is it only for 3D printing?

No, though that is where it started. It now targets CNC machine shops as well and markets quoting for machining, sheet metal and additive.

Flow Software: Is perpetual licensing still offered?

Yes, at every tier, with the first year of maintenance included and renewal at roughly fifteen percent per year. Subscription is available on Unlimited and Distributed only.

AMFG: How accurate is automated quoting out of the box?

Not accurate until your machine rates, materials and cost model are configured. Treat the first months of quotes as assisted rather than automatic.

Flow Software: Do I need a historian as well?

Effectively yes. Flow reads from historians, databases and OPC sources; it is a calculation layer, not a data collector.

AMFG: Is pricing published?

No. It is quoted by number of users, sites and selected modules.

Flow Software: What counts as a measure?

Each configured KPI or event definition. A single line typically consumes ten to thirty, which is what makes the 250 Starter cap tighter than it looks.

Share

Related pages

More on AMFG

More on Flow Software

Keep looking

Other head to heads