MRPeasy alternative with per plant pricing instead of per user
ProductionPlanning.ai is an MRPeasy alternative for manufacturers whose problem is the schedule, not the inventory ledger. MRPeasy charges 49 to 149 USD per user per month, so the bill grows every time another shift lead needs to see the plan. We charge per plant, from 149 USD a month, and every person in the building is included. The table below compares both honestly, including the cases where MRPeasy is the better buy.
Why plants go looking for an MRPeasy alternative
MRPeasy is a capable small manufacturing ERP and most of its users rate it well. The complaints that send people to a comparison page are consistent, and they are mostly about shape rather than quality.
- The price is per user, so putting the schedule in front of operators costs money
- It is a full MRP suite when some plants only need scheduling
- Setting up inventory, purchasing and costing takes longer than a planner wants
- Finite capacity scheduling is one module inside a much larger system
- A plant that already runs an ERP does not want a second one
If any of those describe you, the question is not which MRP system is best. It is whether you need an MRP system at all, or a scheduler that sits next to the one you have.
MRPeasy vs ProductionPlanning.ai, side by side
| What matters | ProductionPlanning.ai | MRPeasy |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per plant, unlimited users | Per user, per month |
| Entry price | 149 USD per plant per month | 49 USD per user per month |
| Cost for a 6 person plant | 149 to 429 USD per month | 294 to 594 USD per month |
| Finite capacity scheduling | The whole product | One module of the suite |
| Inventory and stock control | Material shortages per order and date | Full stock control with lot traceability |
| Purchasing and supplier orders | No | Yes |
| CRM and quoting | No | Yes |
| Accounting integrations | Export to your ERP or accounting system | QuickBooks, Xero and others, built in |
| Shop floor screens | Included from the Plant plan | Included, priced per operator seat |
| Time to first real schedule | An afternoon | Days to weeks |
| Best for | Plants that need the schedule fixed | Plants that need one system for everything |
Prices are MRPeasy's published list rates at the time of writing. Check their price list before you decide, because vendor pricing changes.
What each one costs as the plant grows
MRPeasy's list price is 49 USD per user on Starter, 69 on Professional, 99 on Enterprise and 149 on Unlimited, with a bulk rate of 79 USD per block of ten users from the eleventh user onward. Our plans are 149 USD per plant on Line, 429 on Plant and 1,290 for a group of up to five plants, with unlimited users on all of them.
| People who need access | MRPeasy Professional | ProductionPlanning.ai |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | 207 USD | 149 USD |
| 6 | 414 USD | 149 USD |
| 10 | 690 USD | 429 USD |
| 25 | 848 USD | 429 USD |
| 60 | 1,085 USD | 429 USD |
The Line plan at 149 USD covers up to ten work centers and 500 open orders, so a plant past that size sits on the Plant plan at 429 USD. Either way the number does not move when another person needs the schedule.
Two honest readings of that table. The gap is widest between three and ten people, which is exactly the size of plant that wants operators looking at the schedule. Past ten users MRPeasy's bundle rate flattens the curve, so the argument there stops being price and becomes scope: you are paying for purchasing, CRM and stock control whether or not you use them.
Why per user pricing hurts a shop floor
The people who most need to see a schedule are the ones who never sit at a desk. A mill operator needs one screen showing the next three jobs on that machine. Under per user pricing, that screen has a monthly cost, so most plants quietly decide the operators do not get one, and the schedule stays in the planner's head. That is the failure our pricing is built to avoid: one price per plant, and everyone in the building looks at the same plan.
Where MRPeasy is the better choice
We would rather you buy the right thing than the wrong thing from us. Pick MRPeasy if any of these is true.
- You need stock control, purchase orders and supplier management in one system
- You have no ERP and want one system to run the whole company
- Lot and serial traceability is a regulatory requirement for your product
- You want manufacturing data to flow straight into QuickBooks or Xero without an export
- You sell through Shopify or WooCommerce and want orders pulled in automatically
MRPeasy is a genuine ERP for small manufacturers and reviewers consistently call it good value at that job. We do not do purchasing, we do not do CRM, and we do not keep your books. If those gaps matter, the comparison is over and they win.
Where we win
- The schedule is the product, so it gets every feature rather than one module's share
- Finite capacity on every work center, with setup times and alternative machines
- The bottleneck for this week named, with the orders it will make late and by how many days
- Unlimited users, so operators, shift leads and the office all see the same plan
- Runs next to the ERP you already have, instead of replacing it
Plants that already run an ERP and still plan in a spreadsheet are the clearest case. Read how that works on our manufacturing ERP alternative page, or see the load view on capacity planning software.
How to move from MRPeasy without losing a week
1. Export your products and routings
MRPeasy exports products, bills of materials and routings to spreadsheets. Take the operation list with its setup and cycle times, which is the part a scheduler needs.
2. Set up work centers and shifts
Enter a work center per machine or cell and the shifts each one runs, including planned downtime. This is the step that makes capacity finite, and it usually takes an hour.
3. Import open orders and run the schedule
Bring in the orders that are still open with their quantities and due dates, then run the schedule. You get finish dates per order and the bottleneck named on the first run.
4. Decide what stays in MRPeasy
Many plants keep MRPeasy or their ERP for stock and purchasing and move only the schedule. That is a supported end state, not a halfway house: we export the plan back so the other system stays current.
Questions people ask before switching
What is the best alternative to MRPeasy?
It depends on which part of MRPeasy you actually use. If you need inventory, purchasing and costing in one system, look at Katana or Unleashed. If your real problem is which job runs on which machine this week, a dedicated finite capacity scheduler like ProductionPlanning.ai is a closer fit and costs less once more than two people need access.
Is MRPeasy expensive?
MRPeasy starts at 49 USD per user per month, which is cheap for one or two users and adds up quickly at six or ten. A six person plant on the Professional tier pays 414 USD a month. Reviewers generally call it good value for the functionality, with the common caveat that the cost climbs as users and modules are added.
Does MRPeasy do production scheduling?
Yes. MRPeasy includes production planning with drag and drop rescheduling, and for many small manufacturers it is enough. It is one module of an ERP suite rather than the whole product, so plants with complex routings, heavy setup times or alternative machines often find they want a scheduler built for that job alone.
Can I use a scheduler alongside MRPeasy?
Yes, and plenty of plants do. Keep stock, purchasing and costing where they are, export products, routings and open orders, and run the schedule separately. We export the finished plan back so dates in the other system stay current. Nothing has to be ripped out.
Do I need an MRP system or a scheduling system?
If you are short of material, you need MRP. If you have the material and still ship late, you need scheduling. Most plants that ship late have enough stock and a schedule that ignores how many hours the machines actually have. Our MRP software page works through where the line falls.
How long does it take to get a schedule running?
An afternoon for a small plant. Work centers and shifts take about an hour, routings take as long as your product list, and the first schedule runs the moment open orders are in. Full ERP implementations are measured in weeks because they also involve stock, costing and purchasing.
Price your plant, not your people
Start on the Line plan at 149 USD a month with everyone included, or run the demo on a sample machine shop week first. Working through what MRPeasy would cost you first is fine too: the numbers are in our MRPeasy pricing breakdown.
Your data stays yours. Export or delete it any time. No card to try the demo.