QuotedPartComparisons · Updated 2026-10-30
What do machine shops use when they outgrow QuickBooks?
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A shop has outgrown QuickBooks when the problem is production control rather than bookkeeping: estimators retype routings, material commitments live in email, and no one can answer which jobs are late without a spreadsheet. QuickBooks Online remains useful for accounting, and its Plus and Advanced plans add project and inventory controls, but it is not a manufacturing router. The right alternative depends on the missing record: add a focused quoting layer, or adopt an ERP such as MRPeasy, JobBOSS², ProShop or Fulcrum.
See how QuotedPart connects to your workflow with its API, MCP server, autonomous quoting and shop-specific learning.
Name the record that is failing
Write down one week of failures before taking demos. If quotes are slow but accepted jobs are controlled, keep QuickBooks and add quoting. If the shop cannot reserve material, schedule operations or trace inspection results, evaluate an ERP. If the accounting team mainly needs customer, item, invoice and payment data, a connector may be enough. This boundary prevents a $199-per-month quoting problem from becoming a six-month ERP replacement project.
QuickBooks lists Simple Start at $38 per month, Essentials at $85, Plus at $140 and Advanced at $340 on the page checked October 30, 2026. Those plans are accounting prices, not a manufacturing total. Add the cost of an estimator, inventory process, implementation and any connector before comparing them with an ERP subscription.
| Path | Published pricing shape | Where it helps | Migration question |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keep QuickBooks + QuotedPart | $199/month per shop for QuotedPart; QuickBooks plan separate. | Fast shop-rate quotes while accounting stays put. | Who creates the job and routing after acceptance? |
| 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 | Budgetable production, inventory and planning for lighter manufacturing. | Can its routing and quality records cover your real work? |
| JobBOSS² | ECI says pricing is tailored; implementation is typically about 3–6 months. | Established job-shop ERP scope. | Which customers, items and open jobs migrate? |
| ProShop | Customized per shop; ERP/MES/QMS modules. | One controlled record from estimate through quality. | What is included in implementation and export? |
| Fulcrum | Pricing depends on revenue and integration complexity; unlimited users. | Cloud ERP with implementation support. | Which QuickBooks balances and customers map? |
A migration test that exposes the cost
Give each vendor the same aluminum bracket: customer, revision, material, two operations, powder coat, quantity breaks at 1/10/100, and a customer PO. Ask for the quote, item, routing, material commitment, inspection step and invoice handoff. Count the number of times an estimator re-enters the part number and the number of places a rate can disagree. A product that looks inexpensive can be costly if the shop must maintain two versions of every routing.
Also request an export of the records you created. A migration plan is incomplete if you can import data but cannot leave with customers, items, costs and open orders in a usable format.
Choose the smallest complete boundary
Stay on QuickBooks plus a quoting tool when accounting is sound and the bottleneck is RFQ arithmetic. Choose MRPeasy when transparent per-user pricing and lighter manufacturing control fit the shop. Choose JobBOSS², Fulcrum or ProShop when routing, scheduling, inventory and quality need one owner. QuickBooks is stronger on familiar bookkeeping; each ERP is stronger on production records. The best migration is the one that removes the specific re-entry your team can no longer afford.
Do not promise a native connector when the path is CSV. Mark each field as automatic, imported or manual in the implementation plan, then price the manual steps at the shop's real hourly rate.
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.
- QuickBooks Online: List prices per month: Simple Start $38 (1 user), Essentials $85 (3 users), Plus $140 (5 users), Advanced $340 (25 users); intro offers of 50% off for 3 months or a 30-day free trial (their words: “50% off for 3 months”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- QuickBooks Online: Project profitability and inventory tracking start on Plus; Advanced adds advanced project financials (their words: “Track project profitability”) — 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)
- MRPeasy: No contracts and no module-based pricing (their words: “No contracts. No module-based pricing. No hidden fees.”) — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- ECI describes JobBOSS² as a tailored-price ERP with implementation typically around three to six months. — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- ProShop says its pricing is customized and its scope includes ERP/MES/QMS modules. — source (checked 2026-10-30)
- Fulcrum says pricing depends on shop revenue and integration complexity and does not charge per user. — source (checked 2026-10-30)
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