QuotedPartComparisons · Updated 2026-10-30
What are the best Fulcrum alternatives for a small job shop?
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The right alternative depends on why Fulcrum isn't fitting. For heavy compliance work (AS9100, ITAR, CMMC), look at ProShop. For a big user community and built-in accounting, JobBOSS² is the usual choice. For a published per-user price and a self-serve trial, try MRPeasy or Cetec. To own the software instead of renting it, Realtrac sells a one-time license. If what you need is faster quotes and you already have accounting, you may not need an ERP yet. A quoting tool plus QuickBooks covers that for much less. Each choice is laid out below from the vendors' own pages, checked October 30, 2026.
See how QuotedPart connects to your workflow with its API, MCP server, autonomous quoting and shop-specific learning.
The alternatives side by side
"Published" means the price is on the vendor's own site. Everything else is a quote from sales.
| System | How it prices | Quoting | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fulcrum (for reference) | By shop revenue and integrations; no per-user fee; fixed launch fee | BOM/routing costing, DXF nesting on the quote, Autoschedule lead times | Fab and machine shops that want a modern cloud ERP with scheduling |
| JobBOSS² | Not published; tailored to scale and modules | Rate-based estimates with quantity breaks, setup/run, outside services; capacity-aware lead times | Job shops that want built-in accounting or QuickBooks sync and a large user base |
| ProShop ERP | Not published; standard or government options | Template quotes with margin guards; quote converts to PO and work order | Regulated shops: AS9100, ITAR workflows, CMMC Level 2 path |
| MIE Trak Pro | Not published | Quote carries material, labor, routing and outside services into the job | Job-first shops that want estimate-vs-actual costing |
| Realtrac | Not published; monthly SaaS, annual SaaS or one-time purchase | Quoting, routing and job costing modules | Shops that want to own the software or avoid a contract |
| MRPeasy | Published: $49–$149 per user/month; 15 + 15 day trial | Not compared here; check its quoting against your RFQs in the trial | Small producers who want a price on the page and a no-card trial |
| Cetec ERP | Published: $50 per user/month, 5-user minimum; free trial | Not compared here; every module is included in the price | Shops that want per-user pricing with every module |
| Fishbowl Advanced Manufacturing | Published: from $675/month | Not compared here; built around BOMs, MRP and work orders | Inventory-heavy shops |
Which piece is actually the problem?
Shops leave an ERP for one of four reasons: price, scheduling, compliance or quoting. Each points to a different answer. If scheduling is the pain, Fulcrum's Autoschedule is one of its strengths, and moving may not help. If compliance is the pain, ProShop is built around it. If price is the pain, compare 36-month totals including your staff time, not monthly fees. If quoting is the pain, you can usually fix it without replacing the ERP at all.
A quoting tool reads the RFQ, works out the routing and minutes, and sends the quote. It doesn't schedule, buy material or track jobs. QuotedPart is one: $199/month per shop, billed monthly, unlimited users, quotes and parts. It doesn't send quotes into Fulcrum today: won quotes go out as CSV or Excel. That suits a shop that quotes many new parts and enters a few won orders a week.
What it costs to leave Fulcrum
The license is the small part of switching. The large part is re-creating items, BOMs, routings and open orders in the new system, and retraining the floor. Fulcrum's BOM and routing export now includes items with no BOM or routing yet, which makes the item master easier to move. Before you sign elsewhere, do three things.
- Export a full BOM and routing file and your open sales orders, and check the new vendor can import them.
- Ask the new vendor who does the migration, at what price, and how many of your routings they will rebuild.
- Plan the cutover between job releases. Run both systems for one billing cycle so invoices don't fall through.
Sources and limits
Claims are dated where they can change. Product calculations are examples from the stated inputs, not a promise about a customer's quote. Competitor wording is attributed to the source shown.
- Fulcrum: Not priced per user; price depends on the shop's gross revenue and the number and complexity of integrations; ask sales (their words: “Our pricing is based on factors like the gross revenue of your shop, how many other systems you want to integrate with Fulcrum, and the complexity of those integrations.”) — source (checked 2026-11-04)
- Fulcrum: Unlimited users rather than per-user pricing (their words: “We don’t charge per user the way a lot of other ERP systems do”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- Fulcrum: Fixed, one-time launch fee; in-house launch team migrates data and trains, no billable hours (their words: “No billable hours. Fixed, one-time launch fee.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- Fulcrum: Upload a DXF on a quote to generate a nest and update material and machine time (their words: “Upload a DXF file directly on a quote to generate a nest and automatically update material and machine time cost estimates without leaving Fulcrum.”) — source (checked 2026-11-04)
- Fulcrum: Lead times on quotes come from Autoschedule's estimated completion dates (their words: “automatically calculating estimated production completion dates — all made possible by the autoschedule”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- Fulcrum: BOM and routing import/export, with a CopyFrom column on the routing tab that copies operations from another item (January 2025 update) (their words: “you can do this via import by adding a NumberAndRevision in the “CopyFrom” column on the routing tab”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- JobBOSS²: No list price; pricing is tailored to the shop's scale and the functionality it needs (their words: “Our pricing is tailored to the specific scale of your manufacturing operations and the depth of functionality required.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- JobBOSS²: Rate-based estimating: pre-set burden and labor rates, quantity breaks, setup and run time, outside services and commission; quotes created from estimates in one click and converted to orders (their words: “Burden Rate, Labor Rate, Quantity Breaks, Set-up Time, Run/Cycle Time, Outside Services, Sales Commission can all be pre-set.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- JobBOSS²: Quoting with visibility into the shop's capacity for realistic lead times (their words: “Quote with visibility into your shop’s capacity, so you can have realistic lead times”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- JobBOSS²: Integrates with QuickBooks Desktop and Online for invoices, payroll and AP/AR (their words: “JobBOSS² features a seamless integration with QuickBooks (both Desktop and Online versions).”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- ProShop ERP: Pricing customized per shop; standard and government options; request a proposal by form (their words: “ProShop’s manufacturing software pricing is customized to match the unique needs of your shop.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- ProShop ERP: Template-driven quotes with the shop's labor, material and vendor costs, margin guards and quantity breaks; awarded quotes convert to customer POs and work orders (their words: “Set profit guards and quantity breaks based on actual job costs.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- ProShop ERP: AS9100, ITAR-controlled workflows and a path for shops pursuing CMMC Level 2 (their words: “For shops pursuing CMMC Level 2, ProShop has a dedicated path built to get you audit-ready.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- MIE Trak Pro: ERP for job-first manufacturers whose quotes carry material, labor, routing and outside services into the job, with estimate-vs-actual job costing (their words: “MIE Trak Pro helps manufacturers build quotes that carry material, labor, routing, outside services, and cost assumptions into the job itself.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- Realtrac: Module- and user-based packages, sold as monthly SaaS with no contract, annual SaaS, or a one-time software purchase with payment plans up to 12 months; no prices published (their words: “For those looking for SaaS plans, you can begin with the flexibility of a “No Contract” monthly SaaS plans, or choose an easy to manage annual SaaS plan.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- Realtrac: Shop management system with quoting, routing, job costing, MRP, purchasing and inventory modules and accounting integration (their words: “Realtrac’s Shop Management System is easy to learn and use”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- MRPeasy: Starter $49, Professional $69, Enterprise $99, Unlimited $149 per user a month (Unlimited minimum 2 users); from the 11th user $79 per 10 users; annual billing gives 1 month free (their words: “From the 11th user $79 per 10 users”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- MRPeasy: 15 + 15 day free trial, no credit card (their words: “Try MRPeasy free for 15 + 15 days.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- Cetec ERP: $50 per standard user a month with a 5-user minimum; shop-floor and portal users at a discount; support plans $0, $650 or $3,200 a month (their words: “Standard users are priced at a flat monthly rate, while users with smaller system footprints, like shop floor and portal access, are priced at a discounted rate.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- Cetec ERP: Every instance starts with a free trial; cloud hosting and setup included (their words: “Every Cetec ERP instance starts with a free trial”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- Fishbowl: Fishbowl Advanced Manufacturing from $675 a month (BOMs, MRP, work orders, make-to-order) (their words: “Advanced Manufacturing from $675USD/mo.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- QuotedPart: $199/month per shop, billed monthly; Send to JobBOSS² (estimates, routing and quote via ECI's API); Export for JobBOSS (on-premise); CSV and Excel export for any other system. — source (checked 2026-10-30)
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