What inventory accounting software has to do.
Inventory accounting is where quantity and money meet. Every purchase has to raise both the stock count and the stock value; every sale has to take out the right quantity at the right cost and post that cost of goods sold. The costing method decides what "the right cost" means: weighted average, FIFO or a standard cost. Freight, duty and insurance on imports have to land in the cost of the goods, not in an expense line. And a business with more than one shop or warehouse needs stock and cost per location, with transfers that leave one place and arrive at the other.
A product that does all of this inside the ledger keeps the balance sheet and the stock report in agreement every day. A product that syncs from a separate inventory app can work well too, but the books only know what the sync sends, and month-end becomes a reconciliation between two systems.
- Perpetual stock: quantity and value move on every document
- A costing method that suits you (weighted average, FIFO, standard)
- Landed cost spread into the goods
- Stock and cost per location, transfers in transit
- Stock counts and write-offs that post to the ledger
The seven options at a glance.
Prices are US list prices, or the figures shown on public software directories, in October 2026, before implementation. Inventory platforms are priced on top of the accounting system they feed.
1. QuickBooks Online: inventory from the Plus plan.
QuickBooks Online tracks quantity on hand and inventory value in its Plus and Advanced plans, costs stock on FIFO by default, and posts cost of goods sold as you sell. For one location and a straightforward catalogue, that is often enough, and most accountants know the product.
US list prices after Intuit’s August 2026 increase are $140 a month for Plus and $340 for Advanced. Best for: a single-location business with simple stock and a QuickBooks accountant. Watch out for: stock per warehouse with transfers in transit, assemblies and landed cost usually come from an add-on such as Cin7 or Fishbowl, which means a second subscription and a sync.
2. Xero: clean accounting with basic tracked inventory.
Xero’s tracked inventory keeps quantity and value for each item and posts cost of sales at average cost, which suits a business with a modest catalogue. Unlimited users on every plan, and a large marketplace of inventory add-ons (Cin7 Core, Unleashed, Katana) for anything deeper.
US plans run about $25–$90 a month. Best for: small stock-holding businesses whose accountant uses Xero. Watch out for: multiple warehouses, assemblies, landed cost and serious purchasing need one of those add-ons.
3. Zoho Inventory with Zoho Books: two apps, one family.
Zoho Inventory handles items, warehouses, sales and purchase orders, and marketplace and shop connections; Zoho Books carries the ledger, and the two sync natively. For a business already on Zoho, the pair covers a lot of ground at a modest price.
Recent listings put Zoho Inventory at about $29–$249 per organisation a month on annual billing (with a free plan for very small volumes), plus Zoho Books from about $20. Best for: online sellers and small distributors already in the Zoho ecosystem. Watch out for: plan limits on orders, users and warehouses, and two apps to keep in step.
4. Cin7 Core: an inventory platform for multichannel sellers.
Cin7 Core (formerly DEAR) is a full inventory platform: purchasing, multi-warehouse stock, assemblies, landed cost, B2B portals and many sales-channel connections. It is not a general ledger; it posts to QuickBooks Online or Xero.
Published plans run $349, $599 and $999 a month, with user and order limits per tier and implementation on top. Best for: wholesalers and brands selling across several channels and warehouses. Watch out for: the combined cost of Cin7, the accounting system and onboarding, and a month-end that reconciles two systems.
5. Odoo: inventory and accounting in one ERP.
Odoo’s Inventory and Accounting apps share one database, with warehouses, routes, valuation methods and purchasing, and the Standard plan includes every app for one per-user price.
In the US, Standard runs about $31 per user per month on annual billing. Best for: teams with an implementation partner or the in-house skill to configure it. Watch out for: configuration and support usually cost more than the licence, and per-user pricing grows with the team.
6. Oracle NetSuite: multi-warehouse ERP for the mid-market.
NetSuite handles inventory across many warehouses and subsidiaries, with demand planning, advanced costing and consolidation, all on one ledger.
Pricing is by quote, typically five figures a year before implementation. Best for: growing distributors with several entities and warehouses. Watch out for: implementation effort and cost sized for the mid-market.
7. Nonari: stock, cost and the books on one ledger. (Full disclosure: ours.)
Nonari is our product, so weigh this section accordingly. Inventory is part of the ledger: every bill, invoice, transfer and till sale moves quantity and value together, at weighted average (the default), FIFO or standard cost. Each branch keeps its own stock at its own cost; transfers leave one branch, sit in goods in transit and are accepted line by line at the other. Landed cost (freight, duty, insurance) is spread into the goods by value or quantity. Stocktakes post the difference to inventory adjustment accounts, write-offs carry a reason, and the reorder report ranks items A, B and C by consumption value with suggested order quantities. The POS sells from the same stock. More on inventory in Nonari.
It costs $29 a month for one location and $70 for up to 3, then $32 for each additional branch, with unlimited users and a 15-day free trial. Best for: shops, distributors and small groups that want stock and the books to agree every day. Watch out for: the costing method is one setting for the whole business, and stock is tracked by quantity per location, so operations that need serial numbers or bin-level picking will want a warehouse-grade tool.
How to choose.
One location and a simple catalogue: an accounting product with built-in inventory (QuickBooks Online Plus, Xero, Nonari) is enough; avoid adding a second system you do not need. Several shops or warehouses, imports with landed cost, or stock moving between sites: choose a system that keeps stock and cost per location with transfers in transit, either inside the ledger or through an inventory platform such as Cin7. Many channels, B2B portals and heavy purchasing: an inventory platform or an ERP, at their prices.
Whatever you shortlist, test it with your own numbers: receive one import with freight and duty, sell from two locations, transfer stock between them and run a count. Then check that the stock report and the balance sheet agree. The FIFO vs weighted average guide explains which costing method fits which business.