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ERP · head to head

Fishbowl vs Striven

Fishbowl logo

Fishbowl

ERP

Manufacturing and warehouse management for QuickBooks

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

Striven

ERP

All-in-one business management for growing companies

From
$35/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; Striven occasional performance issues with slow load times in some modules
  • They diverge on capability: Fishbowl covers Inventory management, Striven covers CRM.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fishbowl and Striven actually diverge.

Attributes where Fishbowl and Striven differ
AttributeFishbowlStriven
Starting price$4395/one-time$35/month
Pricing modelone-timeUnknown
PlatformsWindows, CloudWeb, Mobile, API
Founded20012008

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (ERP).

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 Striven

  • CRM
  • Project management
  • Accounting
  • HR management
  • Inventory
  • QuickBooks
  • Outlook
  • Google Workspace

Both cover

  • Data backup
  • Cloud support

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

Striven

  • Software consolidationnot Fishbowl
  • Business operationsnot Fishbowl
  • Project-based businessesnot 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

Striven

  • Occasional performance issues with slow load times in some modules
  • Dated UI in places with clunky mobile app experience
  • Very limited customization options compared to enterprise ERP solutions
  • No Zapier or third-party app marketplace integration

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

Striven

$35/month
  • Standard$35/month
    • Accounting
    • CRM and sales
    • Project management
  • Enterprise$70/month
    • All Standard features
    • Advanced customization
    • Priority support

Which should you pick?

Choose Fishbowl if

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

Choose Striven if

  • You need crm.
  • You work on Web, Mobile, API.
  • You also want project management.
Striven review

Questions people ask

Is Fishbowl or Striven better?
Neither clearly leads. Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time and Striven at $35/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fishbowl or Striven?
Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time and Striven at $35/month.
Does Fishbowl or Striven run on more platforms?
Fishbowl runs on Windows, Cloud. Striven runs on Web, Mobile, API.
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 Striven is typically brought in for.
What can Fishbowl do that Striven cannot?
Fishbowl covers Inventory management, Manufacturing, Work orders, Barcode scanning. Striven covers CRM, Project management, Accounting, HR management. Both handle Data backup, Cloud support.

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
Striven: What is Striven's pricing model?

Striven uses user-based pricing: Standard plan at $35/user/month and Enterprise plan at $70/user/month. For accounts with fewer than 5 users, an additional $25 per user applies.

Source
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
Striven: Does Striven offer a free trial or free tier?

Yes, Striven offers a 7-day free test drive with no credit card required. However, there is no permanent free version or free tier for production use.

Source
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
Striven: What modules does Striven include?

Striven includes accounting, CRM and sales management, project management, task management, inventory, HR, OKRs, and workflow automation across all plans.

Source
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
Striven: Does Striven offer optional add-ons like customer portals?

Yes, Striven offers optional monthly portal plans: free tier for up to 100 customers/vendors/applications per month, $99/month for 500, and $499/month for unlimited access.

Source
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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