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ERP · head to head

Fishbowl vs Tractian

Fishbowl logo

Fishbowl

ERP

Manufacturing and warehouse management for QuickBooks

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

Tractian

Field Service

CMMS with published per-user pricing plus vibration sensors sold as a separate per-asset subscription

From
$60/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; Tractian sensors are excluded from both published CMMS tiers and are quoted per monitored asset, so the transparent rate card covers only the part of the deployment that costs least.
  • They diverge on capability: Fishbowl covers Inventory management, Tractian covers Published per-user pricing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fishbowl and Tractian actually diverge.

Attributes where Fishbowl and Tractian differ
AttributeFishbowlTractian
Starting price$4395/one-time$60/month
Pricing modelone-timePer user per month
PlatformsWindows, CloudWeb, iOS, Android
CategoryERPField Service
Founded2001Unknown

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 Tractian

  • Published per-user pricing
  • Unlimited requesters
  • Smart Trac sensors
  • Automatic work order creation
  • Mobile execution
  • Preventive maintenance planning
  • Power BI connector
  • ERP integration

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 Tractian
  • Manufacturing bills of materials, MRP, work orders and job costingnot Tractian
  • Warehouse fulfilment, transfer orders and automated reorderingnot Tractian
  • Multichannel selling with synchronised stock levelsnot Tractian

Tractian

  • A mid-market plant replacing spreadsheet maintenance planning where hundreds of operators must report faults but only a dozen plan worknot Fishbowl
  • Instrumenting critical motors and pumps and having detected faults become work orders without an integration projectnot Fishbowl
  • A maintenance manager who needs a defensible budget figure before an approval meeting rather than a quote in three weeksnot Fishbowl
  • A multi-site manufacturer wanting the same CMMS and sensor platform across Brazilian, Mexican and United States plantsnot 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

Tractian

  • Sensors are excluded from both published CMMS tiers and are quoted per monitored asset, so the transparent rate card covers only the part of the deployment that costs least.
  • Smart Trac hardware reports into the Tractian platform, so a plant that later changes analytics vendor writes off the installed sensor base.
  • The five-user minimum on Standard and ten-user minimum on Enterprise put a floor under the cost that small maintenance teams cannot get below.
  • ERP integration, single sign-on and the Power BI connector are Enterprise-only, so an organisation needing SAP integration pays the higher rate for every licensed user including technicians who need none of it.
  • The company is young and venture-funded with rapid product expansion, so enterprise features are newer than the core CMMS and reference sites at large industrial scale are fewer than for established EAM vendors.

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

Tractian

$60/month
  • Standard$60/month
    • From 60 USD per user per month, billed annually
    • Minimum five users
    • Unlimited assets and unlimited requester accounts
  • Enterprise$100/month
    • From 100 USD per user per month, billed annually
    • Minimum ten users
    • Single sign-on and custom entities
  • Bundle$undefined/year
    • CMMS combined with condition monitoring sensors
    • Priced per monitored asset, quoted rather than published
    • Includes failure detection, root cause analysis and reliability support

Which should you pick?

Choose Fishbowl if

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

Choose Tractian if

  • You need published per-user pricing.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want unlimited requesters.
Tractian review

Questions people ask

Is Fishbowl or Tractian better?
Neither clearly leads. Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time and Tractian at $60/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fishbowl or Tractian?
Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time and Tractian at $60/month.
Does Fishbowl or Tractian run on more platforms?
Fishbowl runs on Windows, Cloud. Tractian runs on Web, iOS, Android.
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 Tractian is typically brought in for.
What can Fishbowl do that Tractian cannot?
Fishbowl covers Inventory management, Manufacturing, Work orders, Barcode scanning. Tractian covers Published per-user pricing, Unlimited requesters, Smart Trac sensors, Automatic work order creation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Fishbowl: How much does Fishbowl Inventory cost per month?

Fishbowl Inventory pricing starts at $229/month (billed annually) for the Essentials tier, $429/month for Growth, and $729/month for Scale. The Advanced Manufacturing tier starts at $675/month and Advanced Warehouse starts at $595/month, though both are quote-based and vary by user count.

Source
Tractian: What does the CMMS actually cost?

Standard is from 60 USD per user per month with five users minimum, Enterprise from 100 USD with ten minimum, both billed annually.

Fishbowl: How many users are included in each tier?

Essentials includes 2 users, Growth includes 5 users, and Scale includes 10 users. Advanced Manufacturing and Advanced Warehouse support teams of 2 to 200+ users with pricing confirmed by quote based on your specific deployment.

Source
Tractian: Are the sensors included?

No. Both CMMS tiers explicitly exclude sensors, which are priced per monitored asset under a separate bundle that is not published.

Fishbowl: Is Fishbowl billed monthly or annually?

Fishbowl Inventory plans require annual billing. The Advanced Manufacturing and Advanced Warehouse plans have variable pricing confirmed by quote and may have different billing arrangements.

Source
Tractian: Do fault reporters need licences?

No. Requester accounts are unlimited on both tiers, which is the main reason the per-user price is workable for large plants.

Fishbowl: What's included when I sign up for Fishbowl?

All Fishbowl plans include an implementation package with specialist support, data migration services, and 6 to 8 weeks of certification training. Cloud hosting is included with Advanced Manufacturing plans.

Source
Tractian: Can I use the sensors with another platform?

No. Smart Trac hardware reports to the Tractian platform.

Fishbowl: Can I add more users if I exceed my tier's user limit?

You can upgrade to a higher tier which includes additional users. Essentials ($229/mo with 2 users) can upgrade to Growth ($429/mo with 5 users) or Scale ($729/mo with 10 users). Custom team sizes beyond 10 users require Advanced Manufacturing or Advanced Warehouse quotes.

Source
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