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Guide

The best inventory software for small food makers

What artisan food makers and farms use to track batches, lots and stock across a store, a market and wholesale, and which tool fits which size of business.

Get a plan and a priceSee the picks

Updated November 2026 by the Madeline's team, who set these tools up for makers and farms.

Inventory software compared
5In view
4On track
1Needs you
ToolBest forLots and batchesConnects to
Craftybase Small makers Yes Shopify, Etsy, Square
Katana Growing production Yes Shopify, WooCommerce
inFlow Barcoded stock Yes Shopify and others
Cin7 Many channels Yes Shopify, Amazon, wholesale
Google Sheets A few products By hand Anything, by hand
Features change; check each vendor before you buy.

The short answer

For most small food makers, Craftybase is the best fit: it was built for makers, tracks raw materials and batches, and gives you a cost per batch. Katana suits makers moving into larger production on Shopify. inFlow suits stock-heavy businesses that want barcodes. Cin7 is for brands selling across many channels and locations. A barcoded Google Sheet is still the right answer for a handful of products at one market.

The picks

  1. Craftybase

    Best for small makers

    Inventory and manufacturing software built for makers. It tracks raw materials, packaging and finished goods, records batches with lot numbers, and calculates cost of goods per batch.

    Good fit if
    • You make products from recipes in batches
    • You want cost per batch without a spreadsheet
    • You sell on Shopify, Etsy or Square
    Watch for
    • Built for making, not for large warehouse operations
    • Wholesale ordering needs a separate tool

  2. Katana

    Best for growing production

    Manufacturing software for brands moving from a kitchen to a production run. It plans production from orders, tracks batches and materials, and connects closely with Shopify.

    Good fit if
    • You plan production from incoming orders
    • You run several products through shared materials
    • You sell mostly through Shopify
    Watch for
    • More setup than a small maker needs
    • Costs more than maker-focused tools

  3. inFlow

    Best for barcoded stock

    Inventory software with strong barcode scanning, purchase orders and multi-location stock. A good fit when you hold a lot of finished stock and pick orders from shelves.

    Good fit if
    • You scan barcodes to receive and pick
    • You hold stock in more than one place
    • You buy packaging and goods on purchase orders
    Watch for
    • Recipe and batch costing is lighter than maker tools

  4. Cin7

    Best for many channels

    Inventory and order management for brands selling across a store, marketplaces, wholesale and retail locations at once.

    Good fit if
    • You sell on many channels and lose track of stock
    • You have wholesale accounts and retail locations
    Watch for
    • Priced and built for larger brands
    • Setup takes weeks, not days

  5. Google Sheets with barcodes

    Best for a few products

    A shared sheet with a product list, lot column and barcode scanning from a phone is enough for a handful of products sold in one or two places.

    Good fit if
    • You have under twenty products
    • You sell at one market and one store
    Watch for
    • Nothing syncs on its own, so overselling creeps in
    • No cost per batch unless you build it

Want one of these set up for you?

Tell us what you make. We send back a short plan and a price.

Get a plan and a price

How it works

  1. Tell us what you make

    What you make and what you use now. A spreadsheet and a Square account is a fine answer.

  2. Get a short plan

    Keep this, replace that, connect these, and the cost.

  3. We set it up

    Setup and migration done for you. You approve before anything goes live.

  4. Run it or hand it off

    Take it from there yourself or keep us on for the upkeep.

Questions

What is the best inventory software for a small food business?

For most small makers, Craftybase, because it handles recipes, batches and cost per batch. Katana and inFlow fit larger production or barcoded stock, and Cin7 fits brands on many channels.

Do I need lot tracking for food products?

Lot tracking lets you find every order a batch went into if there is a recall, and buyers and inspectors increasingly ask for it. Every tool on this list except a plain sheet supports it.

Can inventory software sync with Shopify, Square and Faire?

Most of these connect to Shopify directly; Square and Faire vary by tool. Where there is no direct connection, a connector can keep every channel on one count.

Get a plan and a price

Tell us what you make and what you use today. A spreadsheet and a Square account is a fine answer. We reply by email with what we would keep, what we would change and what it costs.

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