ERP selection is one of the highest-stakes decisions an ecommerce operator makes. The wrong system locks you into bad workflows for years. The right one disappears into the background while the business scales. Here's how we'd map the field for Shopify merchants in 2025.
Most articles on this topic give you a feature matrix and call it research. That's not how the decision works. The right ERP for a $2M Shopify brand is wrong for a $200M Shopify brand, and the same is true in reverse. Below is the framework we use with clients, then a tier-by-tier read of the contenders.
Worth flagging up front: AI is not yet a meaningful differentiator at the ERP layer. The systems that claim heavy AI features are mostly putting a copilot on top of the same workflows. Pick the system that gets your operations right. AI will catch up after.
The questions to ask before you start a demo.
- Where is the business breaking right now? Inventory accuracy? Multi-warehouse routing? Financials? Pick the system that fixes the actual pain.
- What's the next revenue tier? Buy for where you're going to be in 18 months, not where you are today. Migrations are brutal.
- How many SKUs, channels, and entities? This is the dimension that quietly disqualifies most lightweight options.
- Who is going to own it? ERPs need a champion internally. If you don't have one, no software is going to save you.
Sub-$10M: keep it light.
Cin7 Core (formerly DEAR).
Still the best entry-level ERP for Shopify-native brands. Strong inventory, decent purchasing, integrates cleanly with Shopify and most 3PLs. The accounting hand-off to Xero or QuickBooks is mature. It will not scale forever — but you'll know when you've outgrown it.
Katana.
Specifically strong if you make what you sell. Manufacturing-aware inventory, BOMs, production scheduling. If you're a CPG brand or a maker, this is often a better fit than Cin7.
Brightpearl.
Worth a look if you're multi-channel from day one. Built more around order management than manufacturing. Owned by Sage, which means the financials story is solid.
$10M–$50M: the messy middle.
This tier is where most brands get the decision wrong. The lightweight tools start to crack. The enterprise tools feel like overkill. Two systems consistently come out as the right answer:
NetSuite.
The default for a reason. Painful to implement, expensive to maintain, completely transformative when done well. Pair it with a strong NetSuite consultancy, not a generalist agency. The Celigo and FarApp connectors to Shopify are mature and battle-tested.
Acumatica.
The challenger that's been winning more of our clients lately. Cloud-native, more modern UX, better licensing model than NetSuite. Strong commerce and distribution editions. Worth a real evaluation.
$50M+: built for scale.
- Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central or F&O — strong if you're already in the Microsoft stack and have an integration partner who knows commerce.
- SAP S/4HANA — heavy. Real. The right answer for a small set of brands and the wrong answer for everyone else.
- NetSuite, still — most $50M+ Shopify brands we work with are on NetSuite and not actively shopping. The migration cost at this size is brutal.
Adjacent systems that often replace 'getting an ERP'.
Sometimes the answer isn't a full ERP — it's the right combination of best-of-breed tools. A few configurations we've seen work:
- Shopify + Stocky + ShipBob + QuickBooks — surprisingly capable for sub-$5M brands.
- Shopify + Cin7 Core + Gorgias + Klaviyo + QuickBooks Online — the modern stack for a focused $5M-$15M brand.
- Shopify Plus + NetSuite + Celigo + a real 3PL relationship — the standard mid-market configuration.
The mistakes we see most often.
- Buying an ERP to fix a process problem. It will not. The system enforces the process. Get the process right first.
- Cheaping out on implementation. A NetSuite implementation done badly is worse than no NetSuite at all. Pay for the partner.
- Skipping data hygiene. Your existing SKU and customer data will go in. If it's a mess now, it'll be a worse mess inside the new system.
- Treating the launch as the finish line. The first six months post-launch are when value gets realized — or not.
An ERP isn't software. It's the skeleton your operation hangs from. Pick it accordingly.