Eight tools let a small business track stock without a subscription — five hosted free plans and three open-source systems. Free inventory tiers are rationed by orders, SKUs or items, and the best of them, Odoo’s One App Free, is rationed by something else: the number of Odoo apps you install. The table leads with the cap. Prices are USD and were checked on 21 October 2026. How we score · All Kurums Free lists
TL;DR — the free inventory plan that fits
- Full inventory for unlimited users, hosted: Odoo Inventory on One App Free — as long as it is the only Odoo app you install.
- Full ERP, self-hosted: ERPNext (GPL-3) with the stock module, or InvenTree (MIT) for parts and BOMs.
- Retailer taking card payments: Square for Retail Free — items, SKUs and sales reporting with no monthly fee; you pay processing.
- Tiny catalogue, phone-based: Sortly — 100 items with barcode scanning; Katana for 30 SKUs with manufacturing features.
Which inventory management software tools have a free plan in 2026?
Every tool on this page tracks stock levels and movements indefinitely without a subscription. Five are hosted free plans (Odoo, Zoho Inventory, Square, Sortly, Katana) and three are open source (ERPNext, InvenTree) or free with a paid upper tier (Veeqo’s shipping plan). We excluded inFlow, which has no free tier, and could not verify Boxstorm or Stockpile, whose sites would not load; Cin7 and Lightspeed have no free plan.
Free inventory plans are capped by orders (Zoho 50), SKUs (Katana 30), items (Sortly 100), apps (Odoo one) or nothing but processing fees (Square). The open-source systems have no caps and need a server. Veeqo is a special case: its shipping features are free for everyone, while its inventory features moved to paid plans.
The table shows the one limit most likely to push you to a paid plan, whether a card is needed to start, and the Free Score. The rows below open into the full Scorecard with every limit, the upgrade trigger, the cheapest paid step and the page we checked.
| Company | Free as | Key limit | Card | Free Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| O |
Free forever | 1 app · unlimited users | No | 90 | Scorecard ↓ |
| E |
Open source | Self-hosted · cloud from $5 | No | 86 | Scorecard ↓ |
| I |
Open source | Self-hosted · parts and BOM | No | 80 | Scorecard ↓ |
| S |
Free forever | No caps · 2.6% + 15¢ | No | 78 | Scorecard ↓ |
| Z |
Free forever | 50 orders · 1 user · 1 location | No | 72 | Scorecard ↓ |
| K |
Free forever | 30 SKUs · unlimited users | No | 70 | Scorecard ↓ |
| S |
Free forever | 100 items · 1 user | No | 66 | Scorecard ↓ |
| V |
Free forever | Shipping free · inventory paid | No | 60 | Scorecard ↓ |
Free tiers verified 21 October 2026 on each vendor’s pricing page (third-party sources named in the Scorecard where the vendor page was silent). Order is by Free Score only; sponsorship never changes it.
What do the free inventory plan plans actually include?
Open any row for the eight-field Scorecard. The “Why it ranks here” note under each row explains the score in plain terms.
1O
Odoo InventoryBelgium · the full Odoo Inventory app hosted free for unlimited users, as long as it is your only Odoo appFree forever1 app · unlimited usersNo card90⌄
- What’s free
- One App Free: one app for unlimited users on Odoo Online with hosting, maintenance and backups; Inventory covers receipts, deliveries, multi-location stock, lots and serials, reordering rules, barcode
- Hard limits
- Exactly 1 app · Odoo Online hosting only
- Time limit
- Unlimited
- Card required
- Not stated.
- Upgrade trigger
- Installing a second app such as Sales or Accounting, which moves every user to paid
- Cheapest paid step
- Standard $31.10/user/month for 12 months (list $38.90); billing period not labelled
- Best free for
- A warehouse or wholesaler that needs real inventory for many users and can keep it to one app
- Verified
- Oct 2026 · odoo.com/pricing-plan
2E
ERPNextIndia · free, open-source (GPL-3) ERP with a full stock module; self-host or Frappe Cloud from $5 a siteOpen sourceSelf-hosted · cloud from $5No card86⌄
- What’s free
- Full ERP: items, warehouses, stock entries, batches and serials, reorder levels, purchase and sales integration, reports; installation scripts
- Hard limits
- None
- Time limit
- Unlimited (open-source license)
- Card required
- No. Self-hosted.
- Upgrade trigger
- Wanting managed hosting
- Cheapest paid step
- Frappe Cloud Sites from $5/month per site, not per user
- Best free for
- An SME that wants a complete open-source ERP and has someone to run it
- Verified
- Oct 2026 · frappe.io/erpnext/pricing · github.com/frappe/erpnext
Why it ranks here. Everything Odoo’s paid tiers do, free and unlimited, with a $5-a-month managed path that is the cheapest hosted ERP anywhere. Friction is scored near zero because configuring an ERP is real work.
3I
InvenTreeInvenTree · open-source (MIT) inventory with parts management and stock control, built for hardware teamsOpen sourceSelf-hosted · parts and BOMNo card80⌄
- What’s free
- Open-source inventory: parts, categories, BOMs, stock locations, suppliers, purchase orders, build orders, barcode, API
- Hard limits
- None
- Time limit
- Unlimited (MIT license)
- Card required
- No. Self-hosted.
- Upgrade trigger
- None; no vendor-hosted plan is listed
- Cheapest paid step
- Not listed
- Best free for
- A hardware or electronics team tracking parts and bills of materials
- Verified
- Oct 2026 · inventree.org · github.com/inventree
Why it ranks here. The best free tool for part-level inventory with BOMs, and the wrong tool for a retailer. No hosted option, so it is free only on your server.
4S
Square for RetailUS · items, SKUs, discounts, refunds and sales reporting at $0 a month per location; you pay card processingFree foreverNo caps · 2.6% + 15¢No card78⌄
- What’s free
- Square Free: auto-created items and SKUs, discounts, refunds, sales reporting, basic stock counts, POS
- Hard limits
- No item or location caps stated · in-person processing 2.6% + 15¢
- Time limit
- Unlimited
- Card required
- Not stated.
- Upgrade trigger
- Advanced inventory — purchase orders, vendor management, cost tracking (Plus)
- Cheapest paid step
- Square Plus $49/month per location
- Best free for
- A retailer already taking Square payments that wants stock counts beside sales
- Verified
- Oct 2026 · squareup.com/us/en/point-of-sale/retail/pricing
Why it ranks here. Free of subscription and uncapped, because Square earns on every sale. Basic counts are included; purchase orders and costing are Plus, which is why the core-job score is modest.
5Z
Zoho InventoryIndia · composite items, dropshipping and backordering free for one user, one warehouse and 50 ordersFree forever50 orders · 1 user · 1 locationNo card72⌄
- What’s free
- Free plan: 50 orders, 1 user, 1 warehouse, composite items, dropshipment, backordering, Zoho Books integration
- Hard limits
- 50 orders (reset period not stated) · 1 user · 1 location
- Time limit
- Unlimited
- Card required
- Not stated.
- Upgrade trigger
- The 51st order, a second user, or a second warehouse
- Cheapest paid step
- Standard $29/organisation/month billed annually
- Best free for
- A micro-seller with low order volume inside the Zoho suite
- Verified
- Oct 2026 · zoho.com/inventory/pricing
Why it ranks here. A real inventory product with a tiny quota, and the page does not say whether 50 orders is per month or in total — we score the conservative reading and flag it.
6K
KatanaEstonia · manufacturing-aware inventory free for 30 SKUs and unlimited users after a 15-day unlimited test, no cardFree forever30 SKUs · unlimited usersNo card70⌄
- What’s free
- Free plan: $0 with no card, up to 30 SKUs, unlimited users, production and stock features; unlimited SKUs for the first 15 days
- Hard limits
- 30 SKUs after 15 days
- Time limit
- Unlimited (SKU cap after 15 days)
- Card required
- No. The page states no card is required.
- Upgrade trigger
- The 31st SKU
- Cheapest paid step
- Advantage: custom pricing on an annual contract
- Best free for
- A tiny maker with a short product list who needs production orders
- Verified
- Oct 2026 · katanamrp.com/pricing
Why it ranks here. New as a free tier — Katana was trial-only — and unusual in capping SKUs rather than users. Thirty SKUs suits a maker, not a shop; the paid step has no public price.
7S
SortlyUS · visual, phone-first asset and inventory tracking with barcode and QR scanning, free for 100 itemsFree forever100 items · 1 userNo card66⌄
- What’s free
- Free: 100 unique items, 1 user, 1 custom field, 2 active jobs, barcode and QR scanning, photos
- Hard limits
- 100 items · 1 user · 1 custom field · 2 active jobs
- Time limit
- Unlimited
- Card required
- Not stated for Free; a card is required for paid-plan trials.
- Upgrade trigger
- The 101st item or a second user
- Cheapest paid step
- Advanced $24/month billed $288/year (a 50% first-year promotion; list $49)
- Best free for
- Visual tracking of a small set of assets or supplies from a phone
- Verified
- Oct 2026 · sortly.com/pricing
Why it ranks here. Asset tracking more than inventory management, and good at it; a hundred items is a cupboard, not a stockroom. The paid price shown is promotional.
8V
VeeqoUK · Amazon-owned: shipping label buying free for unlimited users and SKUs; inventory features now on paid plansFree foreverShipping free · inventory paidNo card60⌄
- What’s free
- Shipping plan: shipping features free for everyone, unlimited users, SKUs, locations and shipments; Veeqo earns commission on labels
- Hard limits
- Inventory features sit on the paid Inventory plan
- Time limit
- Unlimited
- Card required
- Not stated.
- Upgrade trigger
- Needing inventory features (from $19/month) or high volume ($350/month)
- Cheapest paid step
- Inventory from $19/month, order-volume based
- Best free for
- A multichannel seller who wants free label buying and will pay $19 for stock sync
- Verified
- Oct 2026 · veeqo.com/pricing
Why it ranks here. Veeqo used to be the free multichannel inventory tool; it is now a free shipping tool with paid inventory. Listed so that the change is on record; scored for what the free plan does today.
Which free inventory plan has no credit-card requirement?
Katana states that no card is needed; ERPNext and InvenTree are downloads. Odoo, Square, Zoho Inventory, Sortly and Veeqo do not state a card requirement for the free plan (Sortly requires one for paid-plan trials), which we record as “not stated”. No free plan here converts to a paid one automatically.
Sort the eight by the cap. No cap: Odoo (one app), Square (processing fees), ERPNext and InvenTree (your server). Small caps: Sortly 100 items, Zoho 50 orders, Katana 30 SKUs. Inventory not in the free plan at all: Veeqo. Multi-location on the free plan: Odoo, ERPNext, InvenTree; Zoho is one warehouse.
When does the free plan stop being enough?
Kurums Match: which free inventory plan fits your situation?
Wholesaler with a warehouse team
Odoo Inventory on One App Free. Unlimited users; never install a second app.
Want purchasing and accounting too, for free
ERPNext self-hosted, or Frappe Cloud at $5.
Electronics or hardware builder
InvenTree, for parts and BOMs.
Shop on Square
Square for Retail Free.
Maker with 20 products
Katana Free.
Office supplies and equipment
Sortly, up to 100 items.
Where can you find paid providers when a free plan is not enough?
The Kurums Solutions Directory lists more than 800 software vendors, service providers, investors and schools in 52 categories, compiled A–Z by our editors with a buyer’s guide for each — no one pays for a position.
How we score free tiers
Duration (30): free forever scores 30, a 30-day-plus trial 15, a trial of 14 days or less 8, credit-based tiers 12. Capacity (30): whether the limits carry a team of three for twelve months. Core job (25): whether the free tier does the category’s main work — here, tracking stock levels and movements across items, orders and locations. Friction (15): no card 15; card but no auto-charge 8; auto-charge 0; self-hosting deducts for setup and maintenance.
Each free tier was checked on the vendor’s pricing page on 21 October 2026; where the vendor page was silent, the Scorecard names the third-party source used. Free tiers change, so this list is re-verified every quarter and a discontinued free plan stays listed for one month with a notice. Order is by Free Score only. Kurums Free sells no placement; sponsorship, affiliate links and vendor requests never change a score, a rank or a label. Vendors can submit corrections to the Kurums editorial team.
How did we verify these free tiers?
For each product we opened the pricing page and recorded the free tier’s stated limits, the cheapest paid plan and its billing basis, and the card requirement if stated. Odoo’s main pricing page is disallowed to crawlers, so its pricing-plan page was used. Zoho Inventory’s page does not state the reset period of its order cap; Sortly’s price is a first-year promotion; Katana’s paid tier has no public price. inFlow was excluded on third-party verification that it has no free tier; Boxstorm and Stockpile could not be verified and are omitted.
Prices are USD. We did not run stock through these tools; the score measures the published free tier, not the product’s quality.
Frequently asked questions
Which free inventory software has no order or item limit?
Odoo Inventory on One App Free (unlimited users, one app), Square for Retail (processing fees instead), and the open-source ERPNext and InvenTree.
Is Zoho Inventory free?
Yes for one user, one warehouse and 50 orders; the page does not say whether the 50 resets monthly. Standard is $29 an organisation per month.
Is Veeqo still free?
Veeqo’s shipping features are free for everyone; its inventory features moved to paid plans starting at $19 a month.
Does Katana have a free plan?
Yes, newly: $0 with no card for up to 30 SKUs and unlimited users, after 15 days of unlimited SKUs.
Is inFlow free?
No. inFlow has no free tier; plans start around $129 a month after a trial.
How is this different from the Best Inventory Software comparison?
This list answers ‘where can I track stock without paying’. The Best comparison answers ‘which one should I buy’. Both use the same no-sponsorship rule.
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