Softwr

Manufacturing · head to head

OpenBOM vs Seeq

OpenBOM logo

OpenBOM

Manufacturing

Cloud bill of materials and part catalogue management priced per seat, with free read-only users

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Seeq logo

Seeq

Manufacturing

Self-service analytics for process manufacturing time-series data sitting on top of existing historians

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only OpenBOM has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: OpenBOM pricing has three axes, editing seats plus data record count plus per-seat CAD add-ins at $25 to $45 each, so the real annual cost is well above the advertised per-seat figure.; Seeq named-user pricing suits a small core team but scales badly: a site wanting a hundred engineers with occasional access pays for a hundred licences that mostly sit idle, which is why deployments often stay artificially narrow.
  • They diverge on capability: OpenBOM covers Multi-level BOMs, Seeq covers Query in place.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which OpenBOM and Seeq actually diverge.

Attributes where OpenBOM and Seeq differ
AttributeOpenBOMSeeq
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelPer user per monthquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Windows, macOS, APIWeb, Cloud, On-premise, Windows, Linux

Identical on both: 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 OpenBOM

  • Multi-level BOMs
  • Part catalogue
  • CAD add-ins
  • Change management
  • Free read-only users
  • REST API

Only in Seeq

  • Query in place
  • Capsules
  • Asset trees
  • Seeq Data Lab
  • Organizer
  • Multi-source joins

What people use each for

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

OpenBOM

  • A hardware startup replacing a shared BOM spreadsheet before its first contract manufacturing runnot Seeq
  • A contract manufacturer sharing structured BOMs with customers who should see but not edit themnot Seeq
  • An electronics team pulling BOMs straight out of Altium and mechanical CAD instead of retyping themnot Seeq
  • A small manufacturer that needs part numbering and revision discipline but cannot fund a PLM projectnot Seeq

Seeq

  • A pharmaceutical plant comparing hundreds of batches against a golden batch profile without exporting historian data into spreadsheetsnot OpenBOM
  • A reliability engineer investigating why a compressor trips, needing to overlay vibration, process and maintenance data across two years of historynot OpenBOM
  • Refinery process engineers building a recurring shift report that pulls live values rather than being rebuilt by hand each weeknot OpenBOM
  • A site whose data lake project has stalled and that needs engineers analysing plant history now, without waiting for an ingestion pipelinenot OpenBOM

Where each one falls short

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

OpenBOM

  • Pricing has three axes, editing seats plus data record count plus per-seat CAD add-ins at $25 to $45 each, so the real annual cost is well above the advertised per-seat figure.
  • Paying yearly nearly halves the seat price, from $55 to $30 and $165 to $90, so monthly billing carries an unusually heavy penalty for teams that want flexibility.
  • Change management, revision control and CAD file management are absent from the entry Team plan, so the cheapest tier is a catalogue rather than a working PLM.
  • It lacks the approval workflows, effectivity dating and audit depth that regulated medical and aerospace suppliers need, so companies pursuing ISO 13485 or AS9100 typically migrate away.
  • Record count is metered separately and a large imported part library can push a small team into a higher data tier without adding a single user.

Seeq

  • Named-user pricing suits a small core team but scales badly: a site wanting a hundred engineers with occasional access pays for a hundred licences that mostly sit idle, which is why deployments often stay artificially narrow.
  • Seeq inherits whatever quality exists in the historian, so plants with unstructured tag names and no asset model spend real effort building asset trees in Seeq that should have been fixed upstream.
  • Certain historian connectors are charged separately, so the licence quote and the actual cost of connecting your specific data sources are two different numbers.
  • It is analysis, not control or action; findings still have to be carried into a CMMS or a control change by hand, so value depends on a workflow Seeq does not provide.
  • The product assumes competent process engineers. Organisations without that skill in-house get little from it, because Seeq deliberately does not ship prebuilt failure models the way condition monitoring vendors do.

Pricing, plan by plan

OpenBOM

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 2,000 data records
    • Basic BOM and catalogue management
    • Non-commercial and educational use
  • Professional Team$55/month
    • $30 per seat per month billed yearly
    • BOM management, part catalogue, inventory
    • RFQ and purchase orders
  • Company$165/month
    • $90 per seat per month billed yearly
    • Everything in Team
    • CAD file management and revision control
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Single sign-on
    • Custom integrations
    • Private or custom hosting

Seeq

On request
  • Seeq$undefined/year
    • Licensed per named user, not per tag
    • Separate charges for certain historian connectors
    • Cloud-hosted and self-hosted deployments quoted differently

Which should you pick?

Choose OpenBOM if

  • You need multi-level boms.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, API.
  • You also want part catalogue.
OpenBOM review

Choose Seeq if

  • You need query in place.
  • You work on Web, Cloud, On-premise, Windows, Linux.
  • You also want capsules.
Seeq review

Questions people ask

Is OpenBOM or Seeq better?
Neither clearly leads. OpenBOM starts at Free and Seeq at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, OpenBOM or Seeq?
OpenBOM has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for OpenBOM and On request for Seeq.
Does OpenBOM or Seeq run on more platforms?
OpenBOM runs on Web, Windows, macOS, API. Seeq runs on Web, Cloud, On-premise, Windows, Linux.
Can I use OpenBOM for free?
Yes. OpenBOM has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Seeq starts at On request.
What is OpenBOM best used for?
OpenBOM is most often used for a hardware startup replacing a shared bom spreadsheet before its first contract manufacturing run, a contract manufacturer sharing structured boms with customers who should see but not edit them, an electronics team pulling boms straight out of altium and mechanical cad instead of retyping them, a small manufacturer that needs part numbering and revision discipline but cannot fund a plm project. Of those, a hardware startup replacing a shared bom spreadsheet before its first contract manufacturing run and a contract manufacturer sharing structured boms with customers who should see but not edit them are not what Seeq is typically brought in for.
What can OpenBOM do that Seeq cannot?
OpenBOM covers Multi-level BOMs, Part catalogue, CAD add-ins, Change management. Seeq covers Query in place, Capsules, Asset trees, Seeq Data Lab.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

OpenBOM: Is OpenBOM free?

There is a genuine free tier limited to 2,000 data records and aimed at non-commercial and educational use. Commercial teams start at $30 per seat per month billed yearly.

Seeq: Does Seeq store my data?

No. It queries connected historians and databases in place. Removing Seeq leaves your data exactly where it was.

OpenBOM: Do I pay for people who only look at BOMs?

No. Read-only users are unlimited and free on every paid plan, which is the main reason the total cost undercuts seat-for-seat PLM tools.

Seeq: Who owns Seeq?

It is an independent private company in Seattle, most recently funded by a 2024 growth round led by Sixth Street. It has not been taken over by a private equity buyer.

OpenBOM: Are the CAD add-ins included?

No. They are $25 per seat per month billed yearly, $45 monthly, and require an active Team or Company subscription.

Seeq: How is it licensed?

Per named user, with some historian connectors charged separately. Nothing is published; every number comes from a quote.

OpenBOM: Can OpenBOM replace a full PLM?

For a startup, usually yes. For regulated manufacturing needing controlled workflows and full audit trails, no.

Seeq: Do I need a data scientist?

No, and that is the point. Workbench is aimed at process engineers. Data Lab exists for the minority who want Python.

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