Softwr

ERP & Business Operations · head to head

Fishbowl vs Gusto

Fishbowl logo

Fishbowl

ERP & Business Operations

Manufacturing and warehouse management for QuickBooks

From
$4395/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Gusto logo

Gusto

All industries

The people platform for small businesses

From
$49/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Fishbowl the $229 per month Essentials plan includes only 2 users, Growth at $429 includes 5 and Scale at $729 includes 10, all billed annually; Gusto customer service can be slow and unresponsive to issues
  • They diverge on capability: Fishbowl covers Inventory management, Gusto covers Automated payroll.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fishbowl and Gusto actually diverge.

Attributes where Fishbowl and Gusto differ
AttributeFishbowlGusto
Starting price$4395/one-time$49/month
Pricing modelone-timeUnknown
PlatformsWindows, CloudWeb
CategoryERP & Business OperationsAll industries
Founded20012011

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

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 Fishbowl

  • Inventory management
  • Manufacturing
  • Work orders
  • Barcode scanning
  • QuickBooks integration
  • QuickBooks Desktop
  • QuickBooks Online
  • Shopify

Only in Gusto

  • Automated payroll
  • Tax filing
  • Benefits administration
  • Time tracking
  • Employee onboarding
  • HR compliance
  • Workers' comp
  • 401(k) management

What people use each for

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

Fishbowl

  • Inventory and SKU tracking for wholesale and distribution businessesnot Gusto
  • Manufacturing bills of materials, MRP, work orders and job costingnot Gusto
  • Warehouse fulfilment, transfer orders and automated reorderingnot Gusto
  • Multichannel selling with synchronised stock levelsnot Gusto

Gusto

  • Payroll processingnot Fishbowl
  • Benefits administrationnot Fishbowl
  • Tax compliancenot Fishbowl
  • Employee onboardingnot Fishbowl
  • Time trackingnot Fishbowl

Where each one falls short

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

Fishbowl

  • The $229 per month Essentials plan includes only 2 users, Growth at $429 includes 5 and Scale at $729 includes 10, all billed annually
  • A paid implementation package is required as part of purchase and covers a 6 to 8 week training certification
  • Lot tracking, demand forecasting and compliance documentation require the Scale plan at $729 per month
  • Advanced Warehouse from $595 per month and Advanced Manufacturing from $675 per month are quoted on team size and deployment rather than sold at a fixed rate
  • Demand forecasting and custom reports are add ons carrying separate fees
  • All listed plan prices are billed annually rather than monthly

Gusto

  • Customer service can be slow and unresponsive to issues
  • Weak reporting capabilities, cannot export data to spreadsheets for analysis
  • Support staff lacks deep payroll expertise and knowledge
  • Rehired employees do not have settings reset, causing manual cleanup work
  • City tax handling requires additional monitoring and monitoring
  • Onboarding can have issues with bank account verification and tax registration

Pricing, plan by plan

Fishbowl

$4395/one-time
  • Fishbowl Warehouse$4395/one-time
    • Inventory tracking
    • Order management
    • QuickBooks sync
  • Fishbowl Manufacturing$5495/one-time
    • Work orders
    • Bill of materials
    • Shop floor control

Gusto

$49/month

No published plan breakdown. See the Gusto review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Fishbowl if

  • You need inventory management.
  • You work on Windows, Cloud.
  • You also want manufacturing.
Fishbowl review

Choose Gusto if

  • You need automated payroll.
  • You also want tax filing.
Gusto review

Questions people ask

Is Fishbowl or Gusto better?
Neither clearly leads. Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time and Gusto at $49/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fishbowl or Gusto?
Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time and Gusto at $49/month.
Does Fishbowl or Gusto run on more platforms?
Fishbowl runs on Windows, Cloud. Gusto runs on Web.
What is Fishbowl best used for?
Fishbowl is most often used for inventory and sku tracking for wholesale and distribution businesses, manufacturing bills of materials, mrp, work orders and job costing, warehouse fulfilment, transfer orders and automated reordering, multichannel selling with synchronised stock levels. Of those, inventory and sku tracking for wholesale and distribution businesses and manufacturing bills of materials, mrp, work orders and job costing are not what Gusto is typically brought in for.
What can Fishbowl do that Gusto cannot?
Fishbowl covers Inventory management, Manufacturing, Work orders, Barcode scanning. Gusto covers Automated payroll, Tax filing, Benefits administration, Time tracking.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Gusto: What is Gusto's starting price?

Gusto starts at $49 per month plus $6 per person. The company also offers a Contractor-only plan for $35 per month plus $6 per contractor.

Source
Gusto: Does Gusto include unlimited payroll runs?

Yes, all Gusto plans include unlimited payroll runs at no extra charge, including off-cycle payrolls.

Source
Gusto: What core features are included in Gusto?

All plans include payroll processing, tax administration, digital onboarding, benefits enrollment, time tracking, performance management, and next-day direct deposit for most plans.

Source
Gusto: Does Gusto support integrations?

Yes, Gusto integrates with accounting software, applicant tracking systems, benefits providers, time-tracking tools, and other business platforms to reduce data entry.

Source
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Related pages

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