About 18; min
Inventory management software keeps e-commerce businesses from overselling, understocking, and losing track of products across multiple sales channels. Cin7 and TradeGecko (now QuickBooks Commerce) both aimed to solve inventory chaos for growing product businesses, but they’ve taken very different paths. Cin7 evolved into a full-featured inventory and order management platform for mid-market wholesalers and manufacturers. QuickBooks Commerce (formerly TradeGecko) integrated into the Intuit family, focusing on smaller businesses already using QuickBooks for accounting.
Quick Pricing Overview
| Plan | Cin7 Core | QuickBooks Commerce |
|---|---|---|
| Free | No free tier (14-day trial) | No free tier (included with QBO Advanced) |
| Starter | $349/mo (Cin7 Core Starter) | Included with QBO Advanced ($235/mo) |
| Standard | $599/mo | N/A (single tier) |
| Advanced | $999/mo | N/A |
| Enterprise | Custom (Cin7 Omni) | Custom (Intuit Enterprise) |
Cin7 Core Pricing Breakdown
Cin7 Core Starter at $349 per month includes 2 users, inventory management, order management, basic reporting, and integrations with major e-commerce platforms and accounting tools. The Standard plan at $599 per month adds 3 users, B2B portal, production/manufacturing module, and advanced reporting. The Advanced plan at $999 per month includes 5 users, warehouse management (WMS), automated purchasing, and EDI support. Additional users cost $50-75 per month each. Cin7 also offers Cin7 Omni (formerly DEAR Inventory) as a separate product for complex multi-warehouse operations — pricing starts around $499 per month. All Cin7 Core plans include multi-channel inventory sync, batch/lot tracking, and real-time stock visibility across warehouses and sales channels.
QuickBooks Commerce Pricing Breakdown
QuickBooks Commerce is bundled with QuickBooks Online Advanced at $235 per month, which includes 25 users, advanced reporting, batch invoicing, workflow automation, and the inventory management module. The commerce features include multi-channel inventory sync (Shopify, Amazon, eBay), order management, purchase orders, and basic warehouse management. Unlike standalone inventory platforms, QuickBooks Commerce is deeply integrated with QuickBooks accounting — inventory costs, COGS, and purchase orders flow directly into your financial reports without export/import steps. For businesses already paying for QuickBooks Online Advanced, the inventory features come at no additional cost. Custom enterprise pricing is available through Intuit Enterprise Suite for larger operations.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Cin7 Core | QuickBooks Commerce |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-Channel Sync | Shopify, Amazon, eBay, WooCommerce, 30+ | Shopify, Amazon, eBay, WooCommerce |
| Accounting Integration | QuickBooks, Xero, MYOB | QuickBooks (native, built-in) |
| Warehouse Management | Advanced (WMS module) | Basic (bin locations) |
| Manufacturing / BOM | Standard plan and above | Basic bill of materials |
| B2B Portal | Standard plan and above | Not available |
| EDI Support | Advanced plan | Not available |
| Batch/Lot Tracking | All plans | Limited |
| Purchase Orders | All plans | Yes |
| Multi-Currency | All plans | Yes (via QuickBooks) |
| Barcode Scanning | All plans | Available |
| Demand Forecasting | Advanced plan | Not available |
| Reporting | Standard to advanced (by plan) | Advanced (shared with QuickBooks) |
| API Access | All plans | QuickBooks API |
| User Limits | 2-5 (by plan, extras $50-75) | 25 users included |
Cost Scenarios
Small e-commerce brand (1 warehouse, 3 channels)
QuickBooks Commerce at $235 per month covers inventory management, accounting, and 25 users in one subscription. Cin7 Core Starter at $349 per month covers inventory and order management but requires a separate accounting subscription (QuickBooks: $35-99/mo). Total with Cin7: $384-448 per month. QuickBooks Commerce: $235/mo (all-in-one). Cin7: $384-448/mo.
Growing wholesaler (B2B sales, manufacturing)
Cin7 Core Standard at $599 per month includes the B2B portal and manufacturing module — essential for wholesalers who need to manage production and serve retail buyers through a branded ordering portal. QuickBooks Commerce doesn’t offer a B2B portal or production management. You’d need to add third-party tools for these workflows. Cin7: $599/mo (complete). QuickBooks Commerce: $235/mo + additional tools.
Mid-market operation (5 warehouses, EDI compliance)
Cin7 Core Advanced at $999 per month includes warehouse management across multiple locations, EDI for retail partnerships (Walmart, Target, Costco), and demand forecasting. QuickBooks Commerce handles basic multi-location inventory but lacks EDI and advanced WMS. At this scale, Cin7 is the only viable option between the two. Cin7: $999/mo. QuickBooks Commerce: insufficient for this use case.
Accounting Integration Depth
QuickBooks Commerce’s biggest advantage is its native QuickBooks integration. Inventory adjustments, purchase orders, sales orders, and cost of goods sold all sync automatically with your accounting books. There’s no mapping, no export/import, and no reconciliation headaches. For businesses where the accountant or bookkeeper is also managing inventory, this single-platform approach eliminates the most common source of inventory accounting errors.
Cin7 integrates with QuickBooks (and Xero, MYOB) through a connector that syncs transactions, but it’s not as tightly woven as QuickBooks Commerce’s native connection. Sync schedules, field mapping, and occasional reconciliation checks are part of the workflow. The tradeoff is that Cin7’s inventory features go much deeper — advanced warehouse management, manufacturing, B2B portals, and EDI compliance that QuickBooks Commerce doesn’t attempt. For operations where inventory complexity exceeds basic stock tracking, Cin7’s depth justifies the integration overhead.
Who Should Pick What
Pick Cin7 if:
- You need warehouse management with pick, pack, and ship workflows
- Manufacturing or production tracking (BOM, work orders) is part of your business
- B2B sales through a branded wholesale portal serve your retail customers
- EDI compliance is required for partnerships with major retailers
Pick QuickBooks Commerce if:
- You already use QuickBooks Online and want inventory built into your accounting
- Your inventory needs are straightforward — stock tracking across a few channels
- 25 user seats at no extra cost serves your team size
- A single subscription for accounting + inventory + commerce simplifies your software stack
Cin7 wins for product businesses that have outgrown basic inventory tracking. Its warehouse management, manufacturing, B2B portal, and EDI features serve the full operational needs of growing wholesale and manufacturing businesses. QuickBooks Commerce wins for smaller e-commerce brands that want inventory management integrated directly with their accounting — the single-platform convenience and lower price point are hard to beat for straightforward inventory needs. Choose based on complexity: simple stock tracking points to QuickBooks Commerce, complex operations point to Cin7.
FAQ
Is TradeGecko still available?
No. TradeGecko was acquired by Intuit in 2020 and integrated into QuickBooks Commerce. Existing TradeGecko accounts were migrated to QuickBooks Commerce. The TradeGecko brand has been retired.
Can Cin7 work with QuickBooks?
Yes. Cin7 Core integrates with QuickBooks Online through a built-in connector that syncs invoices, bills, payments, and journal entries. The integration requires initial mapping but runs automatically once configured.
Does QuickBooks Commerce support dropshipping?
QuickBooks Commerce handles basic dropshipping through purchase orders sent to suppliers when customer orders arrive. Cin7 offers more advanced dropshipping automation with supplier routing rules and split fulfillment across warehouses and dropship vendors.
Which handles more SKUs better?
Cin7 is designed for businesses with thousands to hundreds of thousands of SKUs across multiple locations. QuickBooks Commerce handles a few hundred to a few thousand SKUs comfortably. Beyond that, performance and workflow limitations may surface.
