Softwr

Inventory · head to head

Katana vs Rootstock

Katana logo

Katana

Inventory

Smart manufacturing ERP for scaling businesses

From
$99/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Rootstock logo

Rootstock

ERP

Manufacturing ERP built natively on the Salesforce platform

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Katana limited BOM explosion and lead-time offset planning requiring manual work that should be automated; Rootstock every Rootstock user also needs a paid Salesforce platform licence, so the true cost is two subscriptions stacked; third-party estimates put a fully loaded seat around 200 to 500 US dollars per user per month, which is far above the Rootstock line item alone.
  • They diverge on capability: Katana covers Production planning, Rootstock covers Native Salesforce architecture.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Katana and Rootstock actually diverge.

Attributes where Katana and Rootstock differ
AttributeKatanaRootstock
Starting price$99/monthOn request
Pricing modelUnknownquote
PlatformsWebWeb, Salesforce Platform, iOS, Android
CategoryInventoryERP
Founded2015Unknown

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 Katana

  • Production planning
  • Real-time inventory
  • BOM management
  • Shop floor control
  • Shopify
  • WooCommerce
  • QuickBooks
  • Xero

Only in Rootstock

  • Native Salesforce architecture
  • Production and work orders
  • Materials and MRP
  • Inventory management
  • Order to cash
  • Project accounting
  • Financials
  • Quality and compliance

What people use each for

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

Katana

  • Production schedulingnot Rootstock
  • Material planningnot Rootstock
  • Work order managementnot Rootstock
  • Inventory optimizationnot Rootstock

Rootstock

  • A discrete manufacturer already running Salesforce Sales Cloud that wants configured quotes to become works orders without an integration layer between two systemsnot Katana
  • An engineer-to-order equipment maker that needs project cost tracking and CRM opportunity data in one database for margin reportingnot Katana
  • A medical device supplier that needs lot and serial traceability under the same security and audit model as its customer recordsnot Katana
  • A manufacturer replacing an on-premise ERP whose IT team wants to stop maintaining servers and standardise administration on a platform it already supportsnot Katana

Where each one falls short

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

Katana

  • Limited BOM explosion and lead-time offset planning requiring manual work that should be automated
  • No native invoicing capability, making it standalone without accounting system integration
  • Limited native integrations, with heavy reliance on Zapier for non-core tools
  • Slow performance with large datasets and high SKU counts

Rootstock

  • Every Rootstock user also needs a paid Salesforce platform licence, so the true cost is two subscriptions stacked; third-party estimates put a fully loaded seat around 200 to 500 US dollars per user per month, which is far above the Rootstock line item alone.
  • Rootstock publishes no pricing whatsoever, so budget-setting depends on reseller and analyst figures rather than vendor rates, and there is no public benchmark to test a quote against.
  • Building on Salesforce means inheriting Salesforce governor limits and API constraints, which surface as batch size and data volume ceilings in high-transaction manufacturing that a purpose-built ERP would not hit.
  • Your ERP is now hostage to another vendors commercial decisions: Salesforce list price rises, edition changes or licence policy shifts flow straight into your ERP running cost with no alternative supplier.
  • Implementation is a serious project, commonly quoted in the tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars and measured in months, and the partner pool that genuinely knows both manufacturing and Salesforce-native ERP is small, which lengthens timelines and raises day rates.

Pricing, plan by plan

Katana

$99/month
  • Essential$99/month
    • Core inventory management
    • Production scheduling
    • Stock tracking
  • Pro$299/month
    • Shop floor control
    • API access
    • Advanced reporting

Rootstock

On request
  • Rootstock Cloud ERP$undefined/year
    • Manufacturing, inventory and supply chain modules
    • Runs as a managed package on the Salesforce Platform
    • Salesforce platform licences purchased separately for every user

Which should you pick?

Choose Katana if

  • You need production planning.
  • You also want real-time inventory.
Katana review

Choose Rootstock if

  • You need native salesforce architecture.
  • You work on Web, Salesforce Platform, iOS, Android.
  • You also want production and work orders.
Rootstock review

Questions people ask

Is Katana or Rootstock better?
Neither clearly leads. Katana starts at $99/month and Rootstock at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Katana or Rootstock?
Katana starts at $99/month and Rootstock at On request.
Does Katana or Rootstock run on more platforms?
Katana runs on Web. Rootstock runs on Web, Salesforce Platform, iOS, Android.
What is Katana best used for?
Katana is most often used for production scheduling, material planning, work order management, inventory optimization. Of those, production scheduling and material planning are not what Rootstock is typically brought in for.
What can Katana do that Rootstock cannot?
Katana covers Production planning, Real-time inventory, BOM management, Shop floor control. Rootstock covers Native Salesforce architecture, Production and work orders, Materials and MRP, Inventory management.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Katana: What is Katana's pricing structure?

Katana starts at $99/month for the Essential plan with core MRP features. The Pro plan costs $299/month and adds shop floor control and API access. Add-ons for traceability, manufacturing, and warehouse management cost extra and can reach $747-$1,095 total.

Source
Rootstock: Do I need Salesforce to run Rootstock?

Yes, and it is not optional. Rootstock is a managed package on the Salesforce Platform and every user requires a Salesforce licence in addition to the Rootstock subscription.

Katana: Does Katana support multi-level bills of materials?

Katana has limited BOM explosion and lead-time offset planning capabilities. Complex multi-level BOMs with sub-assemblies require manual workarounds, which becomes increasingly problematic as SKU count grows.

Source
Rootstock: What does Rootstock actually cost?

Rootstock does not publish rates. Third-party estimates put the ERP subscription at roughly 150 to 300 US dollars per user per month before Salesforce licences, with implementation quoted separately.

Katana: Can Katana integrate with my accounting software?

Katana has no native invoicing capability and limited integrations with accounting systems. It is essentially standalone and requires manual data export or Zapier integration for most accounting workflows.

Source
Rootstock: Is it suitable for process manufacturing?

It is built for discrete manufacturing. Recipe and batch-driven process manufacturers are a poor fit and should look elsewhere.

Katana: Does Katana have an offline mode?

No, Katana is a cloud-only solution requiring internet connectivity. There is no built-in offline mode for production floor access without internet.

Source
Rootstock: Has Rootstock been acquired?

No. Rootstock remains independent and was itself the acquirer, buying Salesforce-native applications firm Ascent Solutions in March 2026.

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