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ERP · head to head

Fishbowl vs SYSPRO

Fishbowl logo

Fishbowl

ERP

Manufacturing and warehouse management for QuickBooks

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

SYSPRO

ERP

Long-established mid-market manufacturing ERP, sold through a partner channel

From
$1200/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; SYSPRO sYSPRO is sold and implemented mainly through partners, so implementation quality varies more than the software does, and the reference you need is the partner's on a project like yours rather than the vendor's customer list.
  • They diverge on capability: Fishbowl covers Work orders, SYSPRO covers Requirements planning.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fishbowl and SYSPRO actually diverge.

Attributes where Fishbowl and SYSPRO differ
AttributeFishbowlSYSPRO
Starting price$4395/one-time$1200/month
Pricing modelone-timesubscription
PlatformsWindows, CloudCloud, On-premise, Web
Founded20011978

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

  • Work orders
  • Barcode scanning
  • QuickBooks integration
  • QuickBooks Desktop
  • QuickBooks Online
  • Shopify
  • Amazon
  • ShipStation

Only in SYSPRO

  • Requirements planning
  • Financials
  • Purchasing
  • Quality and traceability
  • Deployment choice
  • Partner channel

Both cover

  • Inventory management
  • Manufacturing

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

SYSPRO

  • A mid-sized manufacturer that cannot accurately state inventory value or job cost from its current systemsnot Fishbowl
  • A distributor needing lot traceability for regulated or perishable goods without a tier one budgetnot Fishbowl
  • A make to order engineering business tracking work in progress across several concurrent jobsnot Fishbowl
  • A company that wants an established ERP with a long support history rather than a recently launched productnot 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

SYSPRO

  • SYSPRO is sold and implemented mainly through partners, so implementation quality varies more than the software does, and the reference you need is the partner's on a project like yours rather than the vendor's customer list.
  • The cloud offering is hosted single-tenant infrastructure rather than multi-tenant SaaS, so you continue to own the upgrade project and the testing it requires, and buyers expecting the vendor to handle version changes for them are mistaken.
  • Payroll and human resources coverage varies substantially by region and is absent or partial in several markets, so a buyer assuming a complete back office in one licence will be adding a separate vendor and an integration.
  • Adjacent capability such as customer relationship management, advanced planning and business intelligence is thinner than in the larger suites, so most installations end up with third party products alongside and the integration cost belongs in the business case.
  • The user interface and reporting reflect a long product history rather than current design conventions, which raises training effort and makes the product a harder sell internally to staff who use consumer-grade software elsewhere.

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

SYSPRO

$1200/month
  • Standard$1200/month
    • Financial management
    • Manufacturing
    • Supply chain
  • Premium$2500/month
    • Advanced modules
    • Analytics
    • Priority support

Which should you pick?

Choose Fishbowl if

  • You need work orders.
  • You work on Windows, Cloud.
  • You also want barcode scanning.
Fishbowl review

Choose SYSPRO if

  • You need requirements planning.
  • You work on Cloud, On-premise, Web.
  • You also want financials.
SYSPRO review

Questions people ask

Is Fishbowl or SYSPRO better?
Neither clearly leads. Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time and SYSPRO at $1200/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fishbowl or SYSPRO?
Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time and SYSPRO at $1200/month.
Does Fishbowl or SYSPRO run on more platforms?
Fishbowl runs on Windows, Cloud. SYSPRO runs on Cloud, On-premise, Web.
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 SYSPRO is typically brought in for.
What can Fishbowl do that SYSPRO cannot?
Fishbowl covers Work orders, Barcode scanning, QuickBooks integration, QuickBooks Desktop. SYSPRO covers Requirements planning, Financials, Purchasing, Quality and traceability. Both handle Inventory management, Manufacturing.

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
SYSPRO: Is SYSPRO a cloud ERP?

It is available hosted on Azure, but as your own instance rather than as shared multi-tenant software. That gives you control over when you upgrade and leaves the upgrade work with you and your partner.

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
SYSPRO: Who implements it?

Regional partners in most markets, with the vendor's own offices involved to differing degrees by country. Establish which entity holds your contract and who provides first-line support before you sign.

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
SYSPRO: What size of company is it for?

Small and mid-sized manufacturers and distributors, roughly in the tens to low hundreds of millions in revenue. Below that it is more system than most businesses need. Well above it, the multi-country and consolidation demands usually push buyers to a larger suite.

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
SYSPRO: Does the licence tell me the project cost?

No. As with most mid-market ERP, the partner services and data migration bill commonly matches or exceeds the first year of software, and the subscription usually begins before go live, so plan for both from the start.

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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