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ERP · head to head

Fishbowl vs Tryton

Fishbowl logo

Fishbowl

ERP

Manufacturing and warehouse management for QuickBooks

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

Tryton

ERP

Modular open source ERP in Python with a five year support window on major releases only

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Tryton has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • 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; Tryton ordinary series are supported for only one year, so any deployment not pinned to a long term support major version needs a funded upgrade project every twelve months, which is the largest hidden cost of running Tryton.
  • They diverge on capability: Fishbowl covers Inventory management, Tryton covers Modular installation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fishbowl and Tryton actually diverge.

Attributes where Fishbowl and Tryton differ
AttributeFishbowlTryton
Starting price$4395/one-timeFree
Pricing modelone-timeOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, CloudWeb, Linux, Windows, macOS, Self-hosted
Founded2001Unknown

Identical on both: 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
  • Work orders
  • Barcode scanning
  • QuickBooks integration
  • QuickBooks Desktop
  • QuickBooks Online
  • Shopify
  • Amazon

Only in Tryton

  • Modular installation
  • Double entry accounting
  • Inventory and supply chain
  • Sales and purchasing
  • Desktop and web clients
  • Multi-company
  • Project management
  • Subscriptions

Both cover

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

Tryton

  • A small European manufacturer that wants bills of materials and routings without a per user ERP subscriptionnot Fishbowl
  • A company with in-house Python developers that intends to extend the data model rather than configure a closed productnot Fishbowl
  • An organisation that will not adopt an open core product because it expects features to migrate to a paid edition over timenot Fishbowl
  • A distributor needing multi-company books in one database with analytic accounting on topnot 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

Tryton

  • Ordinary series are supported for only one year, so any deployment not pinned to a long term support major version needs a funded upgrade project every twelve months, which is the largest hidden cost of running Tryton.
  • There is no vendor to buy support from, only a list of independent service providers, so procurement teams that require a single accountable supplier with an SLA have to construct one themselves.
  • The module ecosystem is far smaller than Odoo or ERPNext, so region-specific tax rules, payroll and industry add-ons frequently have to be written rather than installed.
  • Out of the box reporting is thin and there is no built-in business intelligence layer, so most deployments end up exporting to an external tool to get management reporting.
  • Documentation and community discussion are functional but sparse compared with commercial ERPs, which lengthens implementation for teams that have not worked with Tryton before and makes hiring experienced consultants harder.

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

Tryton

Free
  • Self-hostedFree
    • GPL-3.0-or-later licence with no per user cost
    • All official modules included
    • Series released every six months

Which should you pick?

Choose Fishbowl if

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

Choose Tryton if

  • You need modular installation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Windows, macOS, Self-hosted.
  • You also want double entry accounting.
Tryton review

Questions people ask

Is Fishbowl or Tryton better?
Neither clearly leads. Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time and Tryton at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fishbowl or Tryton?
Tryton has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $4395/one-time for Fishbowl and Free for Tryton.
Does Fishbowl or Tryton run on more platforms?
Fishbowl runs on Windows, Cloud. Tryton runs on Web, Linux, Windows, macOS, Self-hosted.
Can I use Tryton for free?
Yes. Tryton has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Fishbowl starts at $4395/one-time.
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 Tryton is typically brought in for.
What can Fishbowl do that Tryton cannot?
Fishbowl covers Inventory management, Work orders, Barcode scanning, QuickBooks integration. Tryton covers Modular installation, Double entry accounting, Inventory and supply chain, Sales and purchasing. Both handle 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
Tryton: What licence is Tryton under?

The platform and official modules are GPL-3.0-or-later. There is no paid enterprise edition.

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
Tryton: How long is a release supported?

Series are released every six months and supported for one year. Major versions get five years of long term support, so pin to an LTS release unless you can fund annual upgrades.

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
Tryton: Is there a hosted version from the project?

No. The foundation lists independent service providers who offer hosting and support commercially.

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
Tryton: How does it differ from Odoo?

Tryton has no open core split, so there is no paid edition holding back features, but the module ecosystem and partner network are much smaller.

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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