Best Online Inventory Management Software Options for 2023

Local software can work well for inventory, but business owners with multiple locations and inventory managers need inventory management software that stores all of your data online. For that, we recommend inFlow Inventory, Upserve, EZOfficeInventory, Ordoro, and Cin7.

Having your inventory software based in the cloud makes it easier to sync your inventory system with your other business solutions—whether it’s QuickBooks Online, Square Point-of-Sale, or your Shopify store. Plus, you can access your inventory from virtually anywhere, even if you don’t have your office computer on hand.

inFlow is a great pick for businesses on a budget, but it does not include all the same features as our choices, which is why it has a slightly lower ranking. All of these choices work well for different businesses, so be sure to read our reviews to see which one is best for you!

Read our complete breakdown to learn more about why we chose these brands and what they have to offer.

inFlow Inventory offers a lot of great features, including comprehensive order management and compatibility with multiple sales platforms. But even compared to other cloud-based inventory management systems, inFlow stands out for its accessibility—particularly in its mobile app.

inFlow’s mobile app delivers a lot of features that most platforms don’t offer on the go. For starters, you can use your phone camera as a barcode scanner, so you can update your inventory stock counts as you’re walking through the warehouse.

inFlow also lets you check inventory levels and create new orders from the app—perfect for when you’re on a hot streak during your sales meeting. You can even assign orders to specific employees, create invoices, and email those invoices to your client, helping you get the ball rolling on those orders ASAP.

inFlow does have its drawbacks, though. Even with the most expensive plan, you’re still limited to no more than 5,000 orders per month. You also can’t manage multiple warehouses unless you get a Standard plan or higher. But given that inFlow plans start at just $71 per month, we still think it’s a great option for many small businesses.

Having an inventory management software that syncs perfectly with your accounting, POS, supply chain, and ecommerce tools is the dream, right? Cin7 makes it possible, which is why it’s one of our favorite inventory options.

In addition to standard inventory features like barcode scanning, order fulfillment, and inventory tracking, Cin7 offers a built-in POS system. This ensures that every sale gets logged in your inventory and your stock levels get adjusted accordingly. Cin7 also offers B2B ecommerce features so your wholesale clients can view your current products and their own custom negotiated pricing. And once they’re ready to buy, Cin7 offers payment portal options right in your customer’s invoice.

That being said, Cin7 isn’t right for everyone. The platform is one of the more expensive options on our list, so startups and businesses on a shoestring budget may want to steer clear. We should also point out that Cin7 doesn’t offer a mobile inventory management app. That makes it a little more difficult to use on the go in your warehouse or on the trade show floor.

Ordoro is one of our favorite inventory management software platforms, especially if you’re running an online store.

Ordoro was practically made for ecommerce. For starters, the platform can sync across tons of different sales channels. So if a customer buys your product on Shopify, that product’s inventory quantity will automatically update on your Amazon, eBay, and Etsy stores.

Online retailers can also strategically oversell their goods, so you’re not restricted to selling only what’s in your warehouse. Between that and Ordoro’s dropshipping features, online retailers are free to enhance their supply chain efficiency most effectively so they can maximize their profits.

While Ordoro is among our top picks for inventory management, it doesn’t quite get our top spot when it comes to cloud-based inventory software. That’s because Ordoro (like Cin7) doesn’t currently offer a mobile app. That makes it a lot harder to conduct physical inventory counts, scan incoming and outgoing orders, and generate sales invoices on the go.

If you’re running a restaurant, your inventory needs are distinctly different from a regular retail store. Fortunately, restaurant inventory management software like Upserve offers exactly the cloud-based features you need to run your business from anywhere.

In addition to helping you manage your purchase orders and stock levels, Upserve offers niche supply chain management features (like specialty shipping for refrigerated items). The platform also lets you create recipes within your system so every time a certain dish is ordered, its ingredients get deducted from your inventory levels. Upserve can even help with calculating the inventory cost for each of your recipes, so you know how much to charge.

We also like Upserve’s mobile app. It helps you monitor multiple restaurants, including sales, labor costs, discounts, guest behavior, and more. That way, you can check in on the cash flow for each of your locations, make decisions about whether to bring in more help, and more—all without having to drive in to each location and check in with your staff.

If you’re looking for an inventory management software that lets you manage unsellable assets (like employee computers, office furniture, and more), EZOfficeInventory is our top-recommended platform for asset management. It allows you to schedule maintenance tasks for inventory items, track inventory counts, assign work orders, and even track wear and tear on your assets over time.

Because EZOfficeInventory is cloud-based, it also comes fully loaded with a robust mobile app that basically operates like a mobile workspace. Within the app, your maintenance employees can easily view all their action items for the day, including check-ins, reservations, and scheduled maintenance tasks.

The app also lets your employees log services and reservations, check items in and out, scan items, download and upload documents, create work orders, check stock levels—virtually everything you might need to do as you move around your business throughout the day. This impressive mobility of your entire inventory management system makes it a top pick for businesses that need a cloud-based inventory platform for on-the-go maintenance use.

For many businesses, proper inventory management means being able to view inventory and generate tasks from any device. If you’re running a multi-warehouse operation or need greater on-the-go access to your inventory, inFlow Inventory is our favorite inventory software option. But depending on your business needs, Upserve, EZOfficeInventory, Ordoro, and Cin7 could also be the best choice.

Not sure you need a cloud-based inventory solution? Our guide to the best inventory management software can give you a more comprehensive overview of your options.

An online inventory management system is pretty much what it sounds like: an inventory management system that’s based online. In other words, it’s a cloud-based platform where inventory data can be accessed and updated from any device—not just the single office computer that has the software downloaded.

Creating an online inventory is actually pretty simple. First, you select an inventory management solution—like any of the five options we’ve listed above. Next, you enter your products in the system, including data like UPC number, size, and color. You can also list the physical location of each product, sometimes down to the specific shelf within a specific warehouse.

Once you’ve entered your products into the system, you can start actually tracking your inventory. You can enter sales orders as they come in, and track when you fulfill those orders. Your inventory system should be able to automatically calculate your current stock and notify you when it’s time to reorder.

Finally, we recommend syncing your inventory system with your other business solution platforms. For instance, if you use QuickBooks Online for your accounting software, you can sync the two systems—that way, you don’t have to enter your sales and purchasing information on both systems separately. This saves you time and helps keep your books accurate and up to date.

The best inventory management software depends a lot on the type of business you run and your own needs—but we can offer some suggestions. For instance, if you’re running an ecommerce store, you may enjoy the advanced multichannel selling options available on Ordoro. Or if you’re running a restaurant, you may prefer Upserve for its menu costing and specialty supply chain features. For online inventory management, though, we think inFlow Inventory is the way to go.

We researched dozens of cloud-based inventory control software brands to find the ones that worked best for a variety of businesses. After grading them based on price, features, and accessibility, we ranked our top choices here.

Disclaimer

At Business.org, our research is meant to offer general product and service recommendations. We don't guarantee that our suggestions will work best for each individual or business, so consider your unique needs when choosing products and services.