Katana vs Kerno
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 Kerno if you make products from formulas and want batch records, a QA stage and batch costing at a published price, from $59.99 a month. Pick Katana if you also need purchase orders, store connections and a date to order by: Kerno has no purchase orders or store connections today, and Katana's paid plan is priced by quote.
Choose Katana if
- You raise purchase orders and want them created from a replenishment suggestion with an order-by date.
- You sell through Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce or Amazon, or keep your books in QuickBooks Online or Xero.
- You need your data back out: Katana exports to CSV, and no list in Kerno exports yet.
Choose Kerno if
- You work from formulas and want each batch to carry its QA criteria, with QA as a stage before a batch can complete.
- You want a published price: Solo is $59.99 a month for one user and Teams is $149.99 for five.
- You want batch cost with labor in it: a completed batch shows raw material, labor and packaging cost and a cost per unit.
Key differences
The rows that separate these two. Unknown means we have not found evidence; it is not the same as No.
| Attribute | Katana | Kerno |
|---|---|---|
| Useful entry priceWhat you pay to get the manufacturing capability, not the cheapest nominal tier. | No paid price publishedSource: katanamrp.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab)Checked October 9, 2026 | $59.99 a monthSource: buildwithkerno.com(opens in a new tab)Checked October 9, 2026 |
| Billing basis | Quote only | Flat rate |
| Free plan or trial | Free plan: YesUp to 30 SKUs, with unlimited users, integrations and inventory locations, all Katana features and API access.Free trial: 15 days | Free plan: YesIncubator is free for one user, and capped tightly: up to 3 product formulas, 10 batches a month, basic batch creation with ingredients, SKUs, lots and packaging, and an essential cost breakdown.Free trial: Unknown |
| PurchasingRaising and tracking purchase orders to suppliers from inside the system. | YesPurchase orders can be created pre-filled from a replenishment suggestion with the Buy button, and received in parts.Source: support.katanamrp.com › How to partially receive a purchase order po(opens in a new tab) | PartialReceiving without ordering.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Vendors (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Quality controlsChecks, tests, holds, and non-conformance records tied to production or receiving. | Unknown | YesEach batch carries QA Requirements as criteria, standard and status, for example Cold throw, scent noticeable at 12 inches after 48 hours cure, Approved.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch view (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Lot and batch traceabilityWhich incoming material lots went into which finished batch, and where those finished goods went. | 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) | YesIncluded from the Teams planBackwards from a batch, yes.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch view (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| CSV exportYou can get your lists out as spreadsheet files. | YesA 2023 vendor tutorial exports the serial-number list from the Stock screen: "exporting that we can export as an a CSV file or an Excel file". The same list can be brought back in through Settings, Data import.Source: Vendor video, 2023, at 4:38(opens in a new tab) | NoFour lists import and none exports.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Vendors (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Ecommerce connectionPulls orders and pushes stock levels to a storefront or marketplace. | 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) | NoNo store connection exists.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Account settings (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
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 | KatanaKatana · record checked October 9, 2026 | KernoKerno · record checked September 23, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | ||
| Product classWhat kind of system it is. | Full MRP | Batch / process manufacturing |
| One-line fit | Strong production control with documented MRP planning; paid pricing is quote-only since 2026-10, last published at $299 plus $199 for manufacturing. | Built for people who make things from formulas, with batch costing, lots and QA from $59.99 a month. |
| Real cost | ||
| Pricing | Free plan availableSource: katanamrp.com › Pricing(opens in a new tab)Checked October 9, 2026 | Free plan · From $59.99/moSource: buildwithkerno.com(opens in a new tab)Checked October 9, 2026 |
| Useful entry priceWhat you pay to get the manufacturing capability, not the cheapest nominal tier. | $0/mo | $59.99/mo |
| Billing basis | quote | flat |
| Evidence | ||
| Last checked | 2026-10-09 | 2026-09-23 |
| Planning | ||
| Accepts dated demandYou can tell it what is due and when, sales orders with dates, a forecast, or a production schedule. | 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) | PartialA batch can be assigned to a customer, and the Customers module holds companies with addresses. That is the whole demand side in the account: there is no sales order, no quantity due, no due date and no forecast anywhere in the menus, so the only date a batch carries is the one you type on it. The vendor's writing about an order layer with due dates describes something the account does not yet have, and its help-center article on forecasting demand still ends "This is a sample article", so it is not counted here. A customer record was opened on 2026-09-15 to be sure: it is a company with an address and named contacts, and it carries no order, no quantity and no due date. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch creator (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Customers (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); resources.buildwithkerno.com › Multi batch food order release map(opens in a new tab) |
| Nets against stock on handIt subtracts what you already have before telling you to buy more. | 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) | YesA batch lists what it needs, and each ingredient line opens a lot picker that shows every lot on hand with its stock and lets you assign a quantity against it; the section reads Needs Attention until the lines are covered, and stock on the lot falls by what was assigned. The dashboard carries an Inventory Stockout panel. That is requirements checked against stock on hand. The prototype's finished-goods view with Total, Reserved and Available columns was not found in the account, where Finished Goods is a list of product definitions, so read the netting as material-side. The vendor's pricing page lists "Inventory reservation and reconciliation" on the Solo tier, which matches the lot assignment seen here. This is the stock-on-hand half of the netting test; the other half, orders already incoming, is the gap, recorded under incoming orders. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch editor (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Inventory (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Dashboard shop (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); buildwithkerno.com(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. | 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) | NoNothing incoming exists to count. A walk of every menu in the account found no purchase order, no expected receipt and no on-order quantity. The only inbound record is Add Inventory, which books stock that has already arrived with its vendor, lot number, purchase date, expiry date and cost. Kerno does not know what you have ordered until it is on the shelf. Kerno told us on 2026-09-15 that tracking incoming purchase orders is part of the v2 it is building now, which adds purchasing. No date was given, so this stays at no until an open order shows up in an account. Even then, tracking a purchase order is not the same as counting it in the plan: the netting test also needs an open order to reduce what a batch shows as short. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Inventory (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Account settings (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(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. | 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) | PartialDates exist without lead times. Batches carry a creation date, a packaged date and an expiration date; lots carry a purchase date and an expiration date; production steps carry a planned duration. No ingredient, vendor or lot record has a lead time field, and nothing works backwards from a date. Every field on the three forms was listed on 2026-09-15: a vendor holds name, contact person, account number, email, phone, two addresses, country, state, city, ZIP, payment terms and website; an ingredient holds name, secret name, unit, notes, CAS number, form, category and hazmat; a stock receipt holds ingredient, SKU, vendor, lot number, purchase date, expiration date, cost, unit and quantity. Not a lead time among them. The dates are recorded, not used: nothing takes a required date and works out when to buy or when to start a batch, and a required-date workflow of that kind would pass this test without a lead time field. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch view (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Inventory (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Vendors (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); resources.buildwithkerno.com › Finished goods order readiness kerno(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. | 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) | PartialIt flags, it does not schedule. The dashboard shows stockouts, batches in draft, batches pending QA, a production rate in batches per day and a Value at Risk figure; a batch section reads Needs Attention until its lines are covered. None of it says buy this much by this date or start this batch on that one, and there is no purchase order for such an instruction to raise. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Dashboard shop (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch editor (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Capacity planningChecks whether your people and machines can do the work in the time available. | 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) | PartialThe dashboard reports Production Efficiency as a percentage, a rate in batches per day and a Workload Distribution by user, and Labor Costs define an operation, a resource such as a pouring station, and an hourly rate. Nothing compares planned work against available hours or refuses a batch the resource cannot do. The vendor's capacity worksheets are spreadsheets and name no Kerno feature. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Dashboard shop (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Labor cost (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); resources.buildwithkerno.com › Candle production capacity worksheet seasonal rush(opens in a new tab) |
| Production | ||
| Multi-level BOMSub-assemblies inside assemblies, a part that is itself made from other parts, nested as deep as you need. | YesSub-assemblies are explicitly included in bills of materials.Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) | NoOne level, with no way to nest. A product formula record holds a name, a product type and a SKU; the ingredient list lives on the batch, and the Add Ingredient picker there offers raw ingredients only, the three held in the account, with no product, formula or finished good among them. A base or premix that is itself made in a batch cannot be an ingredient of the next one, so a two-stage product is two unlinked batches. Seen in an account on 2026-09-15, in a test business with two products and four batches; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch editor (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Stock base formulas (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Recipes & formulasBatch-style production by weight, volume, or percentage, including scaling a batch up or down. | 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) | PartialBy weight and volume, yes; scaled, not that we saw. Ingredient lines carry a quantity and a unit (6.00 lb, 6.00 oz) and packaging a piece count, and the Product Formula record itself holds only a name, a product type and a SKU, with the ingredient, packaging, step and QA lists living on the batch and copied into the next batch of that product. Entering a different batch size did not change the quantities, and the definition here includes scaling a batch up or down, so this stays short of yes until scaling is shown. Retested on 2026-09-15: typing 12 into Batch Size on a draft built at size 1 left the lines at 6.00 lb and 6.00 oz, so a quantity is what the last batch of that product used, not a function of the size you enter. Retested again on 2026-09-23 in a new test business: a Soy Wax line entered as 5.00 lb stayed at 5.00 lb when Batch Size went from 10 to 20. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Stock base formulas (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch editor (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); buildwithkerno.com(opens in a new tab) |
| Routings & operationsThe ordered steps a product goes through, and which machine or station does each one. | 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) | YesNumbered production steps with an operation, a planned duration, an hourly rate, a description, an operator and a status, copied from the product into each batch. The Labor Costs page defines each operation against a resource, for example Pour on the pouring station at $20 an hour, so a step does name the station that does it. No capacity or calendar sits behind the station. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch view (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Labor cost (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Quality controlsChecks, tests, holds, and non-conformance records tied to production or receiving. | Unknown | YesEach batch carries QA Requirements as criteria, standard and status, for example Cold throw, scent noticeable at 12 inches after 48 hours cure, Approved. QA sits as its own stage between In Progress and Completed, is marked Required before completion, and a failed batch goes to Denied, which the dashboard costs separately. The QA function can be switched off in Account Settings. There is no receiving inspection and no certificate of analysis. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch view (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Account settings (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); buildwithkerno.com(opens in a new tab) |
| Inventory & traceability | ||
| Batch & lot traceabilityWhich incoming material lots went into which finished batch, and where those finished goods went. | 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) | YesBackwards from a batch, yes. Stock arrives as a lot with a vendor, lot number, purchase date, expiry date and cost; an ingredient line on a batch opens View SKU, which names the vendor lot consumed and the quantity taken from it; the finished batch gets its own lot number (FG-B0001), and Batch Finder searches by lot number. What you would still do by hand is the forward direction, from one supplier lot to every batch that used it, because no screen lists that. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch view (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch lookup (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Inventory (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); buildwithkerno.com(opens in a new tab) |
| Expiry & shelf lifeBest-before dates on materials and finished goods, with warnings before they lapse. | Yes"Track the expiry date of items and stay in control of expiring stock."Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) | PartialDates are recorded and nothing acts on them. Every lot receipt takes an expiration date and every batch carries one (the completed batch shows Aug 2027), and the lot picker displays a lot's expiry beside its stock while you assign it. No warning fires before a date lapses and nothing blocks an expired lot from being assigned. The vendor's soap guide confirms the shape: Kerno keeps the dates and "the soap maker remains responsible for deciding". Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Inventory (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch editor (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); resources.buildwithkerno.com › How kerno helps soap makers formulas materials cure time …(opens in a new tab) |
| Serial numbersUnique identifiers on individual units, for warranty or field service. | Yes"Use serial numbers to identify individual products for warranty claims, maintenance, and customer support."Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) | NoNo serial number field exists on ingredients, lots, packaging, batches or finished goods, and Batch Finder offers batch number, lot number, status and customer as its only search fields. Traceability is at the lot and batch, not the unit. Kerno told us on 2026-09-15 that serial numbers are not on its current roadmap, though it has noted the request. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch lookup (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Inventory (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Commerce & accounting | ||
| Product costing & COGSWhat it costs you to make one, and the cost of the goods you sold. | Yes"Automatically calculate manufacturing costs based on your BOMs, operations, and material usage. Compare planned and actual consumption."Source: katanamrp.com › Manufacturing(opens in a new tab) | YesA completed batch shows raw material, labour and packaging cost and a total, here $21.30, $15.00 and $10.20 for $46.50, with a cost per finished unit and retail and dealer prices set as a percentage over cost. Labour comes from the step's duration times the operation's hourly rate. Account Settings choose average cost or a specific vendor's cost for ingredients, average or per-SKU cost for packaging, and whether an electricity rate enters batch cost. The vendor's guide states the method: "Recorded cost per acceptable unit = recorded batch input cost ÷ acceptable finished units". Overhead beyond electricity is not allocated and there is no cost of goods sold report. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Batch view (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Account settings (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Labor cost (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); resources.buildwithkerno.com › Know product costs kerno materials production cost visibi…(opens in a new tab) |
| PurchasingRaising and tracking purchase orders to suppliers from inside the system. | 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) | PartialReceiving without ordering. Vendors hold contact details, an account number, a contact person and payment terms, and Add Inventory books a receipt against a vendor with lot number, purchase date, expiry, cost and quantity. There is no purchase order to raise, send or track, so what you have ordered is not in the system until it arrives. Kerno told us on 2026-09-15 that the v2 it is building now adds purchasing, including tracking orders before the stock arrives. There is no release date yet, so this stays partial until it can be seen working. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Vendors (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Inventory (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Accounting connectionSends financial data to bookkeeping software, or includes its own general ledger. | YesThe help center has a Xero integration overview, which lists "Send purchase orders (POs) to Xero as bills". QuickBooks Online is shown in a 2026 vendor walkthrough: "To connect the QuickBooks Online integration to Katana, you first need to make sure that you have the integrations permission."Source: support.katanamrp.com › Xero integration overview(opens in a new tab); Vendor video, 2026, at 0:07(opens in a new tab); Vendor video, 2026, at 0:29(opens in a new tab) | NoThere is nothing to connect. Every settings surface was opened on 2026-09-15, the business Account Settings page and the owner's Businesses, Teams and Security, Roles, Billing and Profile pages, and none of them offers an integration, a connected app or an accounting export. Batch cost is worked out in Kerno and stays there, so the journal entry is yours to make. Seen in an account on 2026-09-15; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Account settings (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Profile (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Ecommerce connectionPulls orders and pushes stock levels to a storefront or marketplace. | 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) | NoNo store connection exists. The same walk of every settings surface on 2026-09-15 found nothing for Shopify, WooCommerce, Etsy or any other channel, and Finished Goods is a list of product definitions rather than listings, stock or orders. Seen in an account on 2026-09-15; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Account settings (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Finished goods (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab) |
| Openness & your data | ||
| APIA documented programming interface so other software can read and write your data. | 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) | UnknownStill unknown after three account walks, so treat it as absent until Kerno says otherwise. No page in the account offers API keys, a developer section or an integrations screen: business Account Settings covers batch and lot numbering, lot and SKU assignment, an electricity rate, cost methods, the secret formula switch and the QA PIN, and the five owner pages hold nothing of the kind. Loading /api/ while signed in lands on the owner dashboard. The public help center has an "Integrations & AI" category with no articles in it, and the homepage names no integration. None of that proves there is no API, which is why the field stays unknown. Checked in an account on 2026-09-23, on the site owner's login, including a new test business set up from scratch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them. |
| WebhooksThe system can notify other software the moment something changes. | 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) | UnknownStill unknown, and nothing points to them. No settings page in the account, business or owner level, has a webhook, notification endpoint or event subscription, and no public page describes one. Kerno has not been asked directly. Checked in an account on 2026-09-23, on the site owner's login, including a new test business set up from scratch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them. |
| 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. | 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) | UnknownStill unknown, and nothing points to one. The account has no connector, AI or integration settings, and the help center's "Integrations & AI" category was empty on 2026-09-23. Kerno has not been asked directly. Checked in an account on 2026-09-23, on the site owner's login, including a new test business set up from scratch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them. |
| CSV exportYou can get your lists out as spreadsheet files. | YesA 2023 vendor tutorial exports the serial-number list from the Stock screen: "exporting that we can export as an a CSV file or an Excel file". The same list can be brought back in through Settings, Data import.Source: Vendor video, 2023, at 4:38(opens in a new tab) | NoFour lists import and none exports. Vendors, Customers, Finished Goods and Labor Costs each offer Import CSV with a downloadable template, which is a real convenience for loading a shop. No list in the account has an export control, the Export button seen in the prototype's reporting area was not found, and the vendor's own guide for new users tells them to ask whether "the business export items, formulas, inventory, and production history in a usable format". Kerno confirmed on 2026-09-15 that CSV export does not exist yet and said it will add it to the roadmap, with no date. Until it ships, assume your data leaves by hand. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Vendors (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); app.buildwithkerno.com › Finished goods (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); resources.buildwithkerno.com › Kerno beta join the future of product management(opens in a new tab) |
| Full data exportYou can take everything, including history and relationships, not just a few screens' worth of rows. | Unknown | NoNothing in the account exports anything, and the Profile page's only bulk action is Delete Account, which the page says will "permanently remove all your shops and data". We asked Kerno on 2026-09-15 and it is checking internally, with an answer to follow. Until then, ask the vendor before you load real history. Seen in an account on 2026-08-27, in a test business with one product and one completed batch; the app pages cited need a login, and an account of your own reproduces them.Source: app.buildwithkerno.com › Profile (hands-on, signed in, September 2026)(opens in a new tab); resources.buildwithkerno.com › Kerno beta join the future of product management(opens in a new tab) |
Common questions
- Is Katana cheaper than Kerno?
- Katana publishes no paid price beyond its free plan, so you have to ask for a quote. Kerno starts at $59.99 a month for the plan that covers manufacturing (flat rate billing), and also has a free plan. Put your own users, orders and locations into the cost calculator to see what each comes to.
- Does Katana or Kerno have a free plan or a free trial?
- Katana has a free plan and a 15-day free trial. Kerno has a free plan and we have no trial length on record.
- Which has lot traceability, Katana or Kerno?
- Katana has batch and lot tracking, from the Free plan. Kerno has batch and lot tracking, from the Teams plan.
- Does Katana or Kerno tell you what to order and when?
- That is the test for material requirements planning: a dated recommendation to buy or make. Katana does. Kerno partly does.
- Do Katana and Kerno work with QuickBooks, Xero or Shopify?
- Katana: an accounting integration and an e-commerce integration. Named integrations: QuickBooks Online, Shopify, Xero, WooCommerce, BigCommerce and Amazon. Kerno: no accounting integration and no e-commerce integration.
Related
- Katana: full record
- Kerno: full record
- Alternatives to Katana
- Alternatives to Kerno
- Katana vs Cin7 Core
- Katana vs Fishbowl Manufacturing
- Katana vs MRPeasy
- Katana vs Odoo
- Katana vs Stocksmith
- Katana vs Unleashed
- Katana vs Zoho Inventory
- Kerno vs BatchMaster ERP
- Kerno vs Inventora
- Kerno vs MRPeasy
- Kerno vs Stocksmith
- Kerno vs Wherefour
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.