Cin7 Core (formerly DEAR Systems) vs Katana
Comparison last checked October 10, 2026. Every figure comes from the two product records, each with its own sources and check dates.
The short answer
Pick Cin7 Core if you sell on many channels and want plan prices in writing: planning is included from Pro at $599 a month with ten users. Pick Katana if you want to start on a free plan capped at 30 SKUs with unlimited users, and can accept a quote for the paid plan.
Choose Cin7 Core if
- You sell across Shopify, Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Walmart and more, and want orders and manufacturing in one system.
- You want published plan prices: Standard is $349 a month with five users and Pro is $599 with ten.
- You only need assembly-style bills of materials, which every Cin7 Core plan includes.
Choose Katana if
- You want to try planning before paying: Katana's free plan includes it, up to 30 SKUs.
- You have many people who need a login: Katana does not charge per user, while Cin7 Core's plans include five to fifteen.
- You are a team of two to five; Cin7 Core's record starts its fit at six people.
Key differences
The rows that separate these two. Unknown means we have not found evidence; it is not the same as No.
| Attribute | Cin7 Core | Katana |
|---|---|---|
| Useful entry priceWhat you pay to get the manufacturing capability, not the cheapest nominal tier. | $599 a monthSource: cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab)Checked October 10, 2026 | No paid price publishedSource: katanamrp.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab)Checked October 9, 2026 |
| Billing basis | Per module | Quote only |
| Free plan or trial | Free plan: NoFree trial: 14 days | Free plan: YesUp to 30 SKUs, with unlimited users, integrations and inventory locations, all Katana features and API access.Free trial: 15 days |
| Produces dated buy/make suggestionsThe output is an actionable list with dates, order this much by this date, start this batch on this date. | YesCin7 says: "This will generate a list of suggested transfer, purchase, assembly, and purchase orders to meet the demand in each location by the required by dates.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Material Requirements Planning MRP(opens in a new tab) | YesThe Replenishment tab lists a "Suggested order by" date, "Latest date to place an order based on the item's lead time to avoid a stockout", with Buy and Make buttons that create a pre-filled purchase or manufacturing order.Source: support.katanamrp.com › Understanding replenishment and order suggestions(opens in a new tab) |
| Lot and batch traceabilityWhich incoming material lots went into which finished batch, and where those finished goods went. | YesBatch and serial number tracking is listed inside Standard Assembly Manufacturing, included on all Core tiers.Source: cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) | YesIncluded from the Free plan"End-to-end traceability for materials and products with batch tracking", with auto-generated batch and internal barcodes.Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) |
| Ecommerce connectionPulls orders and pushes stock levels to a storefront or marketplace. | YesCin7 says: "Sell to your customers with Shopify and download orders to Cin7 Core.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Introduction to Shopify(opens in a new tab) | YesShopify is shown in a 2026 vendor walkthrough, and the help center has overviews for WooCommerce ("Once connected, products, customers, and sales orders are automatically pulled into Katana."), BigCommerce and Amazon FBA and FBM.Source: support.katanamrp.com › Woocommerce integration overview(opens in a new tab) |
| Capacity planningChecks whether your people and machines can do the work in the time available. | PartialThe vendor states: "The Capacity Planner shows the capacity for a selected planning period, which resources are overallocated, and allows re-planning of capacity.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Capacity Planner(opens in a new tab) | Yes"Plan capacity, allocate resources, and ensure materials are ready when needed", with schedules adjustable on the fly.Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) |
| Best-fit team sizes | 6–20 people, 21–50 people, 51+ people | 2–5 people, 6–20 people, 21–50 people |
What it costs at your size
Entry prices leave out users, add-ons, order limits and extra locations. Put in your own numbers and both products are worked out the same way, from each vendor's published prices.
Full comparison
Every sourced field, side by side. It opens on the rows where the two differ.
Unknown means we have not found evidence. It is not the same as No.
| Attribute | Cin7 CoreCin7 · record checked October 9, 2026 | KatanaKatana · record checked October 9, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | ||
| Product classWhat kind of system it is. | Manufacturing ERP | Full MRP |
| One-line fit | Capable manufacturing, but only if you buy the module that has it. | Strong production control with documented MRP planning; paid pricing is quote-only since 2026-10, last published at $299 plus $199 for manufacturing. |
| Real cost | ||
| Pricing | From $349/mo · $599/mo usefulSource: cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab)Checked October 10, 2026 | Free plan availableSource: katanamrp.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab)Checked October 9, 2026 |
| Useful entry priceWhat you pay to get the manufacturing capability, not the cheapest nominal tier. | $599/mo | $0/mo |
| Billing basis | module | quote |
| Free plan | No | YesUp to 30 SKUs, with unlimited users, integrations and inventory locations, all Katana features and API access. "For your first 15 days you can work with unlimited SKUs." "For e-commerce, only Shopify currently integrates with Free." |
| Required add-ons | Material requirements planning, on the Standard tier only (price not published), Advanced Production Manufacturing, for heavier production than the included MRP (price not published) | None recorded |
| Planning | ||
| Accepts dated demandYou can tell it what is due and when, sales orders with dates, a forecast, or a production schedule. | YesCin7 says of the MRP run: "Required by date of the demand should be within planning period" Sales, production, assembly and transfer orders all count as demand when their required-by date falls in the planning period. MRP is an add-on on Standard and included on Pro and Advanced, going by the pricing matrix; the help article's "MRP requires an add-on to your base subscription" names no tier and reads as a general note. That is our reading of the two pages, not a statement from Cin7.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Material Requirements Planning MRP(opens in a new tab); help.core.cin7.com › Capacity Planner(opens in a new tab); cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) | YesThe Planning tab monitors expected stock from "Sales orders (SOs)", "Purchase orders (POs)", "Manufacturing orders (MOs)" and "Outsourced purchase orders (OPOs)", and "Katana projects anticipated stock levels by week or month"; forecast demand can be calculated from sales history or entered by hand. Requires the Planning and forecasting add-on. Suggested manufacturing orders that have not been created yet do not appear to be exploded into material demand. For a subassembly with no history the help center suggests a workaround: "Example: Increase the manual forecast for a subassembly without historical data to align stock levels with expected requirements." That is our inference from the workaround, not a direct statement.Source: support.katanamrp.com › Planning and anticipating stock levels(opens in a new tab); support.katanamrp.com › How to use forecast demand(opens in a new tab); katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) |
| Nets against stock on handIt subtracts what you already have before telling you to buy more. | YesCin7 says: "The suggested supply orders tab displays the results of the MRP run calculation, based on demand quantity and required by dates, supply rules, planned transfer days, stock on hand, stock on order, and MRP run parameters." Its worked example counts stock on hand and stock on order before suggesting anything. MRP is an add-on on Standard and included on Pro and Advanced, going by the pricing matrix; the help article's "MRP requires an add-on to your base subscription" names no tier and reads as a general note. That is our reading of the two pages, not a statement from Cin7.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Material Requirements Planning MRP(opens in a new tab); cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) | YesThe projected stockout date is "Based on your current stock levels and open demand (sales + manufacturing orders)", and the suggested quantity "Considers your demand forecasts, MOQ, and any open supplier orders." Requires the Planning and forecasting add-on.Source: support.katanamrp.com › Understanding replenishment and order suggestions(opens in a new tab); support.katanamrp.com › Planning and anticipating stock levels(opens in a new tab) |
| Counts incoming ordersIt knows about purchase orders and production orders already placed, so it does not tell you to order twice. | YesCin7 says: "This adds up all the sources of actual, draft (if requested), compares it to actual and draft (if requested) supply orders, and supply order required by dates." Open purchase, production, transfer and assembly orders count as supply, and drafts can be included. MRP is an add-on on Standard and included on Pro and Advanced, going by the pricing matrix; the help article's "MRP requires an add-on to your base subscription" names no tier and reads as a general note. That is our reading of the two pages, not a statement from Cin7.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Material Requirements Planning MRP(opens in a new tab); cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) | YesOpen purchase orders, manufacturing orders and outsourced purchase orders are all inputs to the projected stock level, and the suggested quantity accounts for "any open supplier orders". Requires the Planning and forecasting add-on.Source: support.katanamrp.com › Basics of the planning and forecasting add on(opens in a new tab); support.katanamrp.com › Understanding replenishment and order suggestions(opens in a new tab) |
| Uses lead timesIt works backwards from when you need something to when you must order or start it, using supplier and production lead times. | YesThe production order help says its release date is worked out as: "From Planned date forward: Planned Date + the critical path among lead times of components" This is for production orders and needs the Advanced Manufacturing add-on. MRP suggestions are dated differently: "Purchase orders from the same supplier to the same location will be consolidated, using the earliest required by date as the date of the purchase order." Supplier lead time is a required MRP input, but no help article says the purchase date is set back by it.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Managing Production Orders(opens in a new tab); help.core.cin7.com › Material Requirements Planning MRP(opens in a new tab) | YesEach SKU carries a lead time, "the number of days it takes to replenish stock (either from a supplier or internal production)". The order-by date is the projected stockout date offset backwards by that lead time: "If a product has a lead time of 7 days and is forecasted to run out on July 21, Katana will suggest placing an order by July 14." Requires the Planning and forecasting add-on.Source: support.katanamrp.com › Sku lead time and minimum order quantity moq(opens in a new tab); support.katanamrp.com › Understanding replenishment and order suggestions(opens in a new tab) |
| Produces dated buy/make suggestionsThe output is an actionable list with dates, order this much by this date, start this batch on this date. | YesCin7 says: "This will generate a list of suggested transfer, purchase, assembly, and purchase orders to meet the demand in each location by the required by dates." Each suggested order carries a required-by date. MRP is an add-on on Standard and included on Pro and Advanced, going by the pricing matrix; the help article's "MRP requires an add-on to your base subscription" names no tier and reads as a general note. That is our reading of the two pages, not a statement from Cin7.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Material Requirements Planning MRP(opens in a new tab); cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) | YesThe Replenishment tab lists a "Suggested order by" date, "Latest date to place an order based on the item's lead time to avoid a stockout", with Buy and Make buttons that create a pre-filled purchase or manufacturing order. Requires the Planning and forecasting add-on.Source: support.katanamrp.com › Understanding replenishment and order suggestions(opens in a new tab); support.katanamrp.com › Sku lead time and minimum order quantity moq(opens in a new tab) |
| Capacity planningChecks whether your people and machines can do the work in the time available. | PartialThe vendor states: "The Capacity Planner shows the capacity for a selected planning period, which resources are overallocated, and allows re-planning of capacity." Needs the Advanced Manufacturing module added to a Cin7 Core subscription, which is why this is partial. The Production Scheduler helps "plan in which sequence the operations should be completed": it lists a run's operations in their BOM order with dependencies, places released orders backward from the required-by date, and lets planners reschedule by drag and drop. The calendar view ignores resource capacity; the Production view and the Capacity Planner respect it. Production BOMs, the Scheduler, work centers, resources and MES all come with the Advanced Manufacturing add-on.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Capacity Planner(opens in a new tab); help.core.cin7.com › Production Scheduler(opens in a new tab) | Yes"Plan capacity, allocate resources, and ensure materials are ready when needed", with schedules adjustable on the fly.Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) |
| Production | ||
| Bill of materialsA list of the parts and quantities needed to make one of something. | YesBills of materials are included in Standard Assembly Manufacturing on every Core tier.Source: cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) | Yes"Create and manage bills of materials, including subassemblies, to ensure accuracy in production."Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) |
| Multi-level BOMSub-assemblies inside assemblies, a part that is itself made from other parts, nested as deep as you need. | YesCin7 says: "Production BOMs can contain finished products (products with their own production BOM) or assembled components (products with their own assembly BOM)." Nested production orders are created automatically, and MRP only explodes nested BOMs when "BOM explosion" is ticked. Needs the Advanced Manufacturing add-on.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Nested production orders production BOM explosion(opens in a new tab) | YesSub-assemblies are explicitly included in bills of materials.Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) |
| Recipes & formulasBatch-style production by weight, volume, or percentage, including scaling a batch up or down. | Unknown | PartialKatana calls its BOM the "product recipe". In a 2026 vendor live training, size variants of one formula (an 8, 12 and 16 oz candle) share one product card: "So recipes that are identical or proportionally scaled are a perfect fit." No demo shows a formula scaled to a batch size.Source: Vendor video, 2026, at 8:51(opens in a new tab) |
| Work / manufacturing ordersA record authorising and tracking the making of a specific quantity. | PartialAssembly and disassembly are on every tier. Production orders belong to the Advanced Production Manufacturing add-on, which is not on the Standard plan.Source: cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) | YesProduction orders are tracked with serial numbers, stock status and dates, with tasks tracked in real time.Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) |
| Routings & operationsThe ordered steps a product goes through, and which machine or station does each one. | YesOperations with cycle times and resources sit on the production BOM. From Cin7's worked example: "Now that the preliminary steps are complete, we can set up the Production BOM for the packaged coffee. We want to include a setup operation and quality control operation." Needs the Advanced Manufacturing add-on.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Example production BOM(opens in a new tab) | YesIn a 2026 vendor live training, the product recipe carries production operations in sequence: "Each one has a resource assigned whether that's ... a person, a station, a work area, a cost per hour, and an estimated time." Operations flow into every manufacturing order and the Shop Floor app. Until 2026-10 the pricing page put this behind the Manufacturing Management add-on ($199/mo on Core): "Access manufacturing routings, and manufacturing insights".Source: Vendor video, 2026, at 12:24(opens in a new tab); katanamrp.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) |
| Shop-floor trackingOperators report progress, time, and completions as the work happens. | YesCin7 says: "Use MES to carry out production operations. Consume components for production, record wastage, record production time, add notes, edit resources, and more." This is its MES operator screen, and it needs the Advanced Manufacturing add-on.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Carry out a production operation(opens in a new tab) | Yes"Give your production team clear task lists, priorities, and instructions directly on the shop floor with no limits on the number of users." Note the pricing page also lists a separate Shop Floor app.Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab); katanamrp.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) |
| Quality controlsChecks, tests, holds, and non-conformance records tied to production or receiving. | PartialA production BOM can include an inspection step: "Select Quality control as the operation Type." We found nothing on recording pass or fail results or handling non-conformance, which is why this is partial. Needs the Advanced Manufacturing add-on.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Example production BOM(opens in a new tab) | Unknown |
| Inventory & traceability | ||
| Batch & lot traceabilityWhich incoming material lots went into which finished batch, and where those finished goods went. | YesBatch and serial number tracking is listed inside Standard Assembly Manufacturing, included on all Core tiers.Source: cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) | Yes"End-to-end traceability for materials and products with batch tracking", with auto-generated batch and internal barcodes. Until 2026-10 this was sold as a $249/month Traceability add-on; the pricing page read on 2026-10-09 lists traceability inside the Advantage contract and "All Katana features" on the Free plan.Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab); katanamrp.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) |
| Commerce & accounting | ||
| PurchasingRaising and tracking purchase orders to suppliers from inside the system. | YesCin7 says: "The Cin7 Core purchase module covers all processes involving buying stock from your suppliers." The same article covers purchase orders and a stock-received step.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Introduction to the Purchase Module(opens in a new tab) | YesPurchase orders can be created pre-filled from a replenishment suggestion with the Buy button, and received in parts. The help center: "Keep your inventory accurate by receiving items from a purchase order in multiple shipments," after which "The PO is updated to Partially received". No plan restriction is stated on the receiving article. Checked 2026-09-19.Source: support.katanamrp.com › How to partially receive a purchase order po(opens in a new tab); support.katanamrp.com › Understanding replenishment and order suggestions(opens in a new tab) |
| Ecommerce connectionPulls orders and pushes stock levels to a storefront or marketplace. | YesCin7 says: "Sell to your customers with Shopify and download orders to Cin7 Core. Sync inventory, pull sales information, and sync products to and from Shopify." There are also connections for WooCommerce, Amazon, BigCommerce, Magento, Etsy, eBay and Walmart.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Introduction to Shopify(opens in a new tab) | YesShopify is shown in a 2026 vendor walkthrough, and the help center has overviews for WooCommerce ("Once connected, products, customers, and sales orders are automatically pulled into Katana."), BigCommerce and Amazon FBA and FBM. The pricing page FAQ says only Shopify is available on the Free plan.Source: support.katanamrp.com › Woocommerce integration overview(opens in a new tab); support.katanamrp.com › Bigcommerce integration overview(opens in a new tab); support.katanamrp.com › Amazon fba integration overview(opens in a new tab); Vendor video, 2026, at 0:09(opens in a new tab) |
| Openness & your data | ||
| APIA documented programming interface so other software can read and write your data. | YesCin7 Core's help center points to its API reference at the old DEAR address: "Sale (see https://dearinventory.docs.apiary.io/#reference/sale)" The pricing matrix lists API access as an add-on on every plan, with no price shown.Source: help.core.cin7.com › User Questions Cin7 Core API(opens in a new tab); cin7.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) | YesThe pricing page read on 2026-10-09 lists "API access" on the Free plan. Before 2026-10 it was listed as included with the Core plan.Source: katanamrp.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab) |
| WebhooksThe system can notify other software the moment something changes. | YesCin7 says: "Once an order reaches a specified event type you have subscribed to, a JSON payload will be sent to the endpoint you specified during the webhook subscription." The same page says webhooks work through the Automation module, which is a separate subscription.Source: help.core.cin7.com › User Questions Cin7 Core API(opens in a new tab) | YesThe vendor states: "Webhooks offer an easy way to receive programmatic notifications from Katana regarding changes to your data as they occur." From Katana's developer documentation. Checked 2026-09-14.Source: developer.katanamrp.com › Getting started with katana webhooks(opens in a new tab) |
| MCP supportA Model Context Protocol server, letting an AI assistant read or act on this data. Useful, but it has nothing to do with whether the product plans materials. | Unknown | YesIn a 2026 vendor live training, Katana staff connect the first-party Katana MCP server to Claude and ChatGPT: "you can using the MCP read create update any data that you have in Gatana. We have ... not allowed deleting your data this time." The trainer says it is free to connect, and non-owner users need an MCP permission.Source: Vendor video, 2026, at 10:03(opens in a new tab) |
| Full data exportYou can take everything, including history and relationships, not just a few screens' worth of rows. | YesCin7 says: "Backups can be scheduled automatically from the Scheduled Reports module. Select which areas of data you wish to back up, the backup frequency, and a recipient to receive Cin7 Core backup files via email." This needs the Purchase Automation module, only the Master User can schedule a full backup. "When backup is generated, an email is sent to the mailing list recipients with a link for downloading a zip archive with backup data." The format of the files inside the zip is not stated.Source: help.core.cin7.com › Data backup(opens in a new tab) | Unknown |
Common questions
- Is Cin7 Core cheaper than Katana?
- Cin7 Core starts at $599 a month for the plan that covers manufacturing (per module billing). Katana publishes no paid price beyond its free plan, so you have to ask for a quote. Put your own users, orders and locations into the cost calculator to see what each comes to.
- Does Cin7 Core or Katana have a free plan or a free trial?
- Cin7 Core has no free plan and a 14-day free trial. Katana has a free plan and a 15-day free trial.
- Which has lot traceability, Cin7 Core or Katana?
- Cin7 Core has batch and lot tracking. Katana has batch and lot tracking, from the Free plan.
- Does Cin7 Core or Katana tell you what to order and when?
- That is the test for material requirements planning: a dated recommendation to buy or make. Cin7 Core does. Katana does.
- Do Cin7 Core and Katana work with QuickBooks, Xero or Shopify?
- Cin7 Core: an accounting integration and an e-commerce integration. Named integrations: Xero, QuickBooks Online, Shopify, WooCommerce, Amazon, BigCommerce, Magento, Etsy, eBay and Walmart. Katana: an accounting integration and an e-commerce integration. Named integrations: QuickBooks Online, Shopify, Xero, WooCommerce, BigCommerce and Amazon.
Related
How this comparison was made
The short answer and the two lists were written by an editor for this pair. Every other row and answer is read from the two product records, which cite the vendor pages behind each claim. Nobody paid to appear here or to be placed first; the order is alphabetical. How we classify and verify.
Report a correction to Cin7 CoreReport a correction to Katana