Softwr

Manufacturing · head to head

JobBOSS² vs Unit4

JobBOSS² logo

JobBOSS²

Manufacturing

ECI shop control system formed by merging JobBOSS and E2 Shop System into one product line

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Unit4 logo

Unit4

ERP

ERP for people-based organisations where the cost centre structure keeps changing

From
$800/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: JobBOSS² the product is a merger of two legacy systems, so existing JobBOSS and E2 customers face a migration and retraining project whose cost is negotiated case by case and is easy to underestimate.; Unit4 manufacturing, warehouse management and supply chain planning are not the point of this product, so a business with significant inventory will find capability gaps that no amount of configuration closes.
  • They diverge on capability: JobBOSS² covers Estimating and quoting, Unit4 covers Flexible organisational model.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which JobBOSS² and Unit4 actually diverge.

Attributes where JobBOSS² and Unit4 differ
AttributeJobBOSS²Unit4
Starting priceOn request$800/month
Pricing modelquotesubscription
PlatformsWindows, WebCloud, Web, Mobile
CategoryManufacturingERP
FoundedUnknown1987

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 JobBOSS²

  • Estimating and quoting
  • Order and job management
  • Shop floor data collection
  • Scheduling
  • Job costing
  • Integrated accounting

Only in Unit4

  • Flexible organisational model
  • Project and time accounting
  • Financial management
  • Procurement
  • Human resources
  • Planning and forecasting
  • Reporting
  • Grant and fund accounting

What people use each for

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

JobBOSS²

  • A job shop quoting from spreadsheets that wants estimating, routing and costing in one systemnot Unit4
  • An existing JobBOSS or E2 Shop System customer evaluating whether to migrate or replacenot Unit4
  • A make to order fabricator that needs accounting inside the manufacturing system rather than alongside itnot Unit4
  • A shop that wants operator time capture at work centres to make job costing reflect what actually happenednot Unit4

Unit4

  • A university or public body whose funding structure and reporting hierarchy change more often than its accounting system can keep up withnot JobBOSS²
  • A professional services firm that needs time, project profitability and financials in one ledger rather than in three systemsnot JobBOSS²
  • A nonprofit or NGO accounting for restricted funds and reporting to donors on how each was spentnot JobBOSS²
  • An organisation going through a merger or restructure that needs comparative reporting across both the old and new structuresnot JobBOSS²

Where each one falls short

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

JobBOSS²

  • The product is a merger of two legacy systems, so existing JobBOSS and E2 customers face a migration and retraining project whose cost is negotiated case by case and is easy to underestimate.
  • ECI is a private equity owned portfolio company with many vertical products, and buyers should read renewal, uplift and support tier terms carefully because the commercial model is built around long term contracted revenue.
  • Machine connectivity is limited, so shop floor data comes from operators clocking in and out rather than from controllers, and any automatic utilisation measurement needs a separate monitoring product.
  • Reporting is rigid compared with a modern system and most shops end up exporting to Excel for anything beyond the supplied reports, which reintroduces the spreadsheets the system was bought to eliminate.
  • The user interface carries its lineage and takes longer to learn than a current generation web application, which matters most for occasional users such as estimators and purchasing staff.

Unit4

  • Manufacturing, warehouse management and supply chain planning are not the point of this product, so a business with significant inventory will find capability gaps that no amount of configuration closes.
  • Payroll is generally handled by a separate product or a regional third party rather than being included, so multi-country organisations end up managing several payroll vendors alongside the ERP.
  • Moving from an established on premise Agresso installation to the current cloud product is closer to a re-implementation than an upgrade, with data migration, process redesign and retraining to pay for on a system that already worked.
  • The consulting and partner ecosystem is considerably smaller than for SAP, Oracle or Microsoft, so specialist skills are harder to hire, cost more, and are concentrated in a small number of firms with limited availability.
  • The flexibility that makes reorganisation cheap also makes it easy to build a model nobody understands, and an organisation that has reconfigured its hierarchy repeatedly without documentation ends up unable to explain its own reporting.

Pricing, plan by plan

JobBOSS²

On request
  • JobBOSS²$undefined/year
    • Quoting through invoicing for job shops
    • Shop floor data collection and scheduling
    • Hosted or on premises deployment

Unit4

$800/month
  • Professional Services$800/month
    • Project accounting
    • Resource management
    • Time tracking
  • Enterprise$2000/month
    • Advanced features
    • Multi-entity
    • Analytics

Which should you pick?

Choose JobBOSS² if

  • You need estimating and quoting.
  • You work on Windows, Web.
  • You also want order and job management.
JobBOSS² review

Choose Unit4 if

  • You need flexible organisational model.
  • You work on Cloud, Web, Mobile.
  • You also want project and time accounting.
Unit4 review

Questions people ask

Is JobBOSS² or Unit4 better?
Neither clearly leads. JobBOSS² starts at On request and Unit4 at $800/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, JobBOSS² or Unit4?
JobBOSS² starts at On request and Unit4 at $800/month.
Does JobBOSS² or Unit4 run on more platforms?
JobBOSS² runs on Windows, Web. Unit4 runs on Cloud, Web, Mobile.
What is JobBOSS² best used for?
JobBOSS² is most often used for a job shop quoting from spreadsheets that wants estimating, routing and costing in one system, an existing jobboss or e2 shop system customer evaluating whether to migrate or replace, a make to order fabricator that needs accounting inside the manufacturing system rather than alongside it, a shop that wants operator time capture at work centres to make job costing reflect what actually happened. Of those, a job shop quoting from spreadsheets that wants estimating, routing and costing in one system and an existing jobboss or e2 shop system customer evaluating whether to migrate or replace are not what Unit4 is typically brought in for.
What can JobBOSS² do that Unit4 cannot?
JobBOSS² covers Estimating and quoting, Order and job management, Shop floor data collection, Scheduling. Unit4 covers Flexible organisational model, Project and time accounting, Financial management, Procurement.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

JobBOSS²: What happened to E2 Shop System?

ECI acquired it and merged it with JobBOSS into the combined JobBOSS² line. Legacy customers are directed towards migration.

Unit4: Is Unit4 ERP the same thing as Agresso?

Yes, in lineage. Agresso is the earlier name for the same product line and long-standing customers still use it. Current marketing uses Unit4 ERP, and the cloud product is a substantially different deployment from the on premise Agresso installations still in service.

JobBOSS²: Is it cloud based?

It is offered hosted and on premises. Hosted is not the same as a cloud native architecture, and performance expectations should be set accordingly.

Unit4: Can it run a manufacturing business?

Not well. This product is built for organisations whose cost base is people and projects. If your planning problem is materials and production capacity, look at a manufacturing ERP instead.

JobBOSS²: Does it include accounting?

Yes, accounting is part of the product, which is one of the main reasons small shops choose it over an ERP plus separate finance package.

Unit4: What actually justifies the price against a mainstream ERP?

The cost of change. If your structure is stable, the flexibility is worth little and a mainstream product is cheaper. If you reorganise regularly and each reorganisation currently means a consultancy engagement, that recurring cost is where the business case sits.

JobBOSS²: Can it read data from my CNC machines?

Not natively in any meaningful way. Data collection is operator driven, so shops wanting spindle level data buy a monitoring platform alongside it.

Unit4: Is it sold direct or through partners?

Both. Unit4 sells and implements direct in its main markets and also works with partners. Ask which model applies to your region and country, because it determines who is accountable when the implementation slips.

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