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Manufacturing · head to head

LabVIEW vs ProShop ERP

LabVIEW logo

LabVIEW

Manufacturing

Graphical dataflow programming for automated test, measurement and instrument control

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
ProShop ERP logo

ProShop ERP

Manufacturing

Web based ERP, MES and quality system written inside a working CNC machine shop

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: LabVIEW nI is now part of Emerson, completing in 2023, so LabVIEW sits inside an industrial automation conglomerate rather than being the flagship of a dedicated test company; roadmap priorities and support pricing follow the parent, not the user base.; ProShop ERP it runs on a Microsoft stack with Internet Information Services and SQL Server, so a shop choosing on premises deployment needs a Windows server and someone to maintain it, which is not what buyers expect when they hear browser based.
  • They diverge on capability: LabVIEW covers Graphical dataflow programming, ProShop ERP covers Integrated quality management.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which LabVIEW and ProShop ERP actually diverge.

Attributes where LabVIEW and ProShop ERP differ
AttributeLabVIEWProShop ERP
PlatformsWindows, Linux, macOSWeb, Windows

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), 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 LabVIEW

  • Graphical dataflow programming
  • Front panels
  • Instrument driver library
  • Hardware integration
  • Real-time and FPGA targets
  • Analysis and signal processing
  • Application builder
  • Nigel AI assistant

Only in ProShop ERP

  • Integrated quality management
  • Digital travellers
  • Job costing
  • Capacity scheduling
  • Tool crib and gauge control
  • Purchasing and inventory

What people use each for

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

LabVIEW

  • An automotive supplier building an end-of-line test rig that must drive a power supply, read a scope and log pass/fail against a serial numbernot ProShop ERP
  • A semiconductor lab characterising devices across a PXI chassis where deterministic timing between instruments mattersnot ProShop ERP
  • A medical device manufacturer needing a validated, documented test system with an operator front panel a technician can run unsupervisednot ProShop ERP
  • A research group prototyping a control loop on CompactRIO where part of the logic must compile down to an FPGAnot ProShop ERP

ProShop ERP

  • A machine shop pursuing or holding AS9100 registration that currently maintains quality records separately from its ERPnot LabVIEW
  • A high mix low volume shop where every job has different routings and paper travellers keep going missingnot LabVIEW
  • A contract manufacturer needing material certification and lot traceability from receipt through to shipped partnot LabVIEW
  • A shop with 1990s machines that wants shop floor data capture through operator kiosks because the controllers cannot be readnot LabVIEW

Where each one falls short

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

LabVIEW

  • NI is now part of Emerson, completing in 2023, so LabVIEW sits inside an industrial automation conglomerate rather than being the flagship of a dedicated test company; roadmap priorities and support pricing follow the parent, not the user base.
  • No prices appear anywhere on the NI site for commercial editions; Base, Full, Professional and the LabVIEW+ suite are all quoted through NI or a reseller, so a buyer cannot compare cost against a Python-plus-PyVISA alternative without opening a sales conversation.
  • Graphical source code diffs badly. Merging two engineers’ changes to the same virtual instrument in git is impractical without NI’s own comparison tools, so team development on LabVIEW is slower and more serialised than on text-based languages.
  • The pool of engineers who write LabVIEW is small and ageing relative to the pool who write Python, so hiring a replacement for the person who built your test rig is materially harder and more expensive than replacing a general software engineer.
  • The environment pulls you toward NI hardware and NI add-on toolkits, and licences for real-time, FPGA and vision modules are sold separately on top of the base edition, so the quoted LabVIEW price is rarely the delivered cost of a working test system.

ProShop ERP

  • It runs on a Microsoft stack with Internet Information Services and SQL Server, so a shop choosing on premises deployment needs a Windows server and someone to maintain it, which is not what buyers expect when they hear browser based.
  • The software is opinionated and expects the shop to adopt its processes, so a shop determined to keep its existing habits gets a poor result and blames the tool.
  • Everything depends on operators entering time and status at each operation, and a shop that cannot enforce that discipline ends up with costing and scheduling data that nobody trusts.
  • It is not a machine monitoring product and does not read controllers, so spindle utilisation and automatic cycle counting require a separate product such as a monitoring platform.
  • The partner ecosystem is very small, so implementation, training and any customisation come from the vendor, and there is no market of independent consultants to fall back on or to price against.

Pricing, plan by plan

LabVIEW

On request
  • LabVIEW Community EditionFree
    • Free for personal, non-commercial use only
    • Full LabVIEW feature set for hobbyists
    • No commercial deployment rights
  • LabVIEW Base$undefined/year
    • Core acquisition, control and user interface capability
    • Suited to simple test and measurement applications
    • Available as subscription or perpetual licence
  • LabVIEW Full$undefined/year
    • Adds advanced analysis and signal processing
    • Recommended where mathematics and filtering are required
    • Available as subscription or perpetual licence
  • LabVIEW Professional$undefined/year
    • Adds application builder, source control and deployment tooling
    • Includes the Nigel AI assistant
    • Available as subscription or perpetual licence

ProShop ERP

On request
  • ProShop ERP$undefined/year
    • ERP, MES and quality management
    • On premises or vendor hosted deployment
    • Implementation and training services

Which should you pick?

Choose LabVIEW if

  • You need graphical dataflow programming.
  • You work on Windows, Linux, macOS.
  • You also want front panels.
LabVIEW review

Choose ProShop ERP if

  • You need integrated quality management.
  • You work on Web, Windows.
  • You also want digital travellers.
ProShop ERP review

Questions people ask

Is LabVIEW or ProShop ERP better?
Neither clearly leads. LabVIEW starts at On request and ProShop ERP at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, LabVIEW or ProShop ERP?
LabVIEW starts at On request and ProShop ERP at On request.
Does LabVIEW or ProShop ERP run on more platforms?
LabVIEW runs on Windows, Linux, macOS. ProShop ERP runs on Web, Windows.
What is LabVIEW best used for?
LabVIEW is most often used for an automotive supplier building an end-of-line test rig that must drive a power supply, read a scope and log pass/fail against a serial number, a semiconductor lab characterising devices across a pxi chassis where deterministic timing between instruments matters, a medical device manufacturer needing a validated, documented test system with an operator front panel a technician can run unsupervised, a research group prototyping a control loop on compactrio where part of the logic must compile down to an fpga. Of those, an automotive supplier building an end-of-line test rig that must drive a power supply, read a scope and log pass/fail against a serial number and a semiconductor lab characterising devices across a pxi chassis where deterministic timing between instruments matters are not what ProShop ERP is typically brought in for.
What can LabVIEW do that ProShop ERP cannot?
LabVIEW covers Graphical dataflow programming, Front panels, Instrument driver library, Hardware integration. ProShop ERP covers Integrated quality management, Digital travellers, Job costing, Capacity scheduling.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

LabVIEW: Who owns LabVIEW now?

NI, formerly National Instruments, was acquired by Emerson in an acquisition that completed in 2023. LabVIEW is now an Emerson product.

ProShop ERP: Is it cloud software?

It is browser based and can be vendor hosted, but many customers run it on their own Windows server, which carries the usual infrastructure obligations.

LabVIEW: Can I still buy a perpetual licence?

Yes. NI offers both subscription and perpetual licences and states there are no functional or feature-level differences between them.

ProShop ERP: Does it replace my accounting system?

No. It handles costing and purchasing and integrates with QuickBooks or similar for the general ledger.

LabVIEW: Is there a free version?

LabVIEW Community Edition is free for personal, non-commercial use. It carries no commercial deployment rights.

ProShop ERP: Will it work with old CNC machines?

Yes, because it takes operator input at kiosks rather than reading machine controllers. That is a strength for shops with older equipment.

LabVIEW: How much does it cost?

NI does not publish commercial edition prices. Base, Full, Professional and LabVIEW+ are all quoted through NI or a reseller.

ProShop ERP: Is it suitable for process or batch manufacturing?

No. It is built for discrete machining and fabrication with routings and travellers.

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