Method

How we test

Same sample business, same tasks, same order — for every tool, whether or not it pays a commission.

1. Same sample business for every tool. A fictional wholesaler with 3 warehouses, 200 SKUs, suppliers and customers. No real customer data.
2. Trial accounts only. We test on free trials or demo accounts and say so in every review. We do not claim long-term use we have not had.
3. Same tasks, same order.
   • Receive stock
   • Transfer between warehouses
   • Set reorder points per location
   • Run a cycle count
   • Find dead stock
   • Check user permissions per branch
4. Prices and limits from official pages, dated. Every price or plan limit links to the vendor's page and shows the date we checked it. Vendors change pricing; check before you buy.
5. “Not a fit if” in every review. Each review lists the cases where the tool is the wrong choice.
6. Commissions do not set rankings. Tools without an affiliate program are included when they fit, with a plain link.

About the reviewer

Tests on GROWCEAN are run and signed by Sebastian Pop, a general manager with about 20 years of experience in B2B distribution and retail operations in Central and Eastern Europe. He built a commercial-vehicle parts distributor from a greenfield start to a national network of 19 branches, where stock accuracy across locations, replenishment and dead stock were daily management issues. He holds an Executive MBA from Kennesaw State University.

He reviews inventory software on trial accounts with sample data; he has not used these tools as a paying customer unless a review says so.