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Katana vs Zoho Inventory

Katana and Zoho Inventory are both inventory & shipping tools. Katana is aimed at small businesses, while Zoho Inventory is aimed at small businesses and E-commerce. Both have a free plan.

Katana

Cloud inventory for small manufacturers

Zoho Inventory

Multichannel inventory and order management for small businesses

PricingFreemiumFreemium · $39
Starting priceNot published$39/mo
Free planYesYes
Free trial—14 days
Built forSmall businessesSmall businesses, E-commerce
Platformswebweb, ios, android, windows
CountryEE · 2017IN
Rating——

Choose Katana if

Small manufacturers selling online.

  • Built for small manufacturers
  • Visual production planning
  • Good integrations

Look elsewhere if: Pure resellers (Cin7, inFlow).

Choose Zoho Inventory if

Small ecommerce sellers and wholesalers on up to a few thousand orders a month who want stock synced across marketplaces, ideally alongside Zoho Books.

  • Free plan is usable for very small sellers
  • Per-organization pricing instead of per-seat billing
  • Wide marketplace and carrier integrations out of the box

Look elsewhere if: Manufacturers needing bills of materials and production planning, or larger multi-brand retailers (Katana or Cin7).

Katana vs Zoho Inventory pricing

Katana

  • Free$0Up to 30 SKUs, unlimited users, API access
  • AdvantageCustomAnnual contract, unlimited SKUs, custom integrations

Zoho Inventory

  • Free$050 orders/mo, 1 user, 1 location
  • Standard$39/mo$29 billed annually; 500 orders/mo, 3 users, 2 locations
  • Premium$99/mo$79 billed annually; 3,000 orders/mo, 5 users, 4 locations
  • Plus$159/mo$129 billed annually; 7,500 orders/mo, 10 users, 6 locations
  • Enterprise$299/mo$249 billed annually; 15,000 orders/mo, 10 locations

Katana · Key features

  • Raw material and finished goods inventory
  • Production scheduling
  • BOM and recipes
  • Purchasing
  • Batch and serial tracking
  • E-commerce and accounting sync

Cons

  • Free plan capped at 30 SKUs
  • Paid Advantage plan is custom-quoted on an annual contract
  • Not full ERP for large firms

Zoho Inventory · Key features

  • Stock tracking across multiple warehouses with transfer orders
  • Serial number and batch tracking with expiry dates
  • Sync with Shopify, Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Walmart and WooCommerce
  • Shipping labels and rates via UPS, USPS, FedEx, DHL and Easyship
  • Composite items and assemblies for kits and bundles
  • Reorder points, low-stock alerts and purchase orders to vendors

Cons

  • Monthly order caps force upgrades for growing stores
  • No real manufacturing features like MRP or production scheduling
  • Advanced warehousing is a paid add-on at higher cost

Katana vs Zoho Inventory: FAQ

Do Katana and Zoho Inventory have a free plan?

Yes, both Katana and Zoho Inventory have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.

Not sure yet?