
We are very pleased with the support team! Fishbowl is a component in chain of order processing software (Quickbooks, EDI VAN, ECommerce sites, 3rd Party Shipping etc) The Fishbowl support team has always been able to analyze and pinpoint issues even it was outside of Fishbowl. Every rep we've interacted with has been fantastic! The software is constantly evolving and there is a plugin that expands Fishbowls capabilities to interact with just about any 3rd party application. Dollar for dollar it is the most scalable and economical solution out there for businesses that revolve around quickbooks. Appropriate even as a standalone warehouse management tool. It works on mobile devices and allows all the freedom and features needed to handle every shipping and receiving task that we have. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
If there is one criticism it would be the it's Java based and the code base look and feel dated. The UI Design makes it feel like a Windows 98 or XP application. That said, it does work on windows platforms as far back as windows 7 and there is also a native Mac client. Being java based comes with the same requirements and caveats as any other java based programs. The licensing model is a bit expensive but very fair considering the power and support behind the software. Again I want to emphasize that when support is need I've always spoken with a live rep who would remote into my desktop when needed and almost always solve my issue in 1 call session. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
The implementer that worked with me did a great job and we got a very personalized experience and a lot of up front training and support. They took care of all the hangups you're going to have when you implement new software to every employee at the company.
UPDATE:
We've been using Fishbowl for about 2 years now and we've been more happy then ever. We've moved a lot of our business online and we've been very happy with our integration with both our shopping cart, and shipping through shipstation. On another note, they've since moved to a new database system and it's much smoother and faster. But more important than anything else is the fact that they've decreased their support teams response time significantly. I almost always get through to the support team the same day with someone who is ACTUALLY an expert in the software. It's such a breath of fresh air to get support from someone who actually knows the software instead of someone in some other building who seems to have a list of canned responses to the questions I ask.
UPDATE:
Using for our 3rd year now, and it just keeps getting better. The integrations just got a huge amount of new mapping options which eliminated our need for anything custom that we may have wanted before.
UPDATE:
Using Fishbowl for our 5th year now, and since my last review Fishbowl has been able to cover my custom reports, and my integrations with both accounting and online selling channels. Updated to 2021 Yesterday, and the new look and feel of the software is really crisp, and beautiful. I'm glad to see them keeping up with online markets. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
If you want to split hairs this is a box type software and if you want to customize things in the UI there really isn't an option. Update to this as well. The UI update leaves very little to be desired, and they are willing to customize the functionality of plugins now as well, so... Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
I can manage our entire warehouse with this tool - the implementation was easy and there are many integrations we can use. Every order can be tracked and allocated. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
Our shipping department staff can scan products but it takes a while for them to show up in our system as shipped - to get accurate reports I have to press the refresh button - it would be good if the dashboard would update automatically. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
With the handheld we can scan the new products and identify them precisely. The software already outputs a number of existing products as suggestions. The automatic recognition works perfectly and without any problems. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
Unfortunately, the NFC technology is not yet as advanced. At the moment we are still using the barcode scanner - but hopefully we will be able to change this with the next update. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
The 1-800-Support team is really good, the software is intuitive once you apply yourself. but its not rocket science, its basic inventory and accounting knowledge and Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
A bit more of a quick start guide for FB Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
I like how easy it is to track inventory and keep products up to date. It also integrates with other e-commerce sites for easy order fulfilment. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
I don't like how basic functions are nonexistent. If you want to change something as simple as a unit of measure, you can't. And then you can't delete the part if you want to. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
You can call for help, We didn't get anywhere but you can call instead of making an appointment and waiting for however long. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
This program is extremely outdated and problematic! It has been strung along with updates that seem to make it slower and slower. That would be ok if it wasn't outrageously expensive. It is long since time they just started over using the original concept with modern programming. You will see familiar windows and layouts akin to install wizard circa 2000. Again that would be ok if not for the price. In the end it never worked properly and since they use a third party to "lease" the software, you are locked in to overpay until completion. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
Fishbowl has a basic user interface that is very easy to use. Customer support staff are in the US and respond via phone or email within an hour or two usually. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
The server tends to crash once or twice a day. This isn't a huge problem but does require someone to close and re-open the program on the server computer, taking only a minute or two. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
It’s easy to use! We use it to inventory all of the parts we use in manufacturing. Then we are able to pick the parts for purchase orders, sales orders and Bill of Materials. It also keeps a record of everything. We also like that we can limit what each user can do. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
No undo button has been my biggest dislike. In the beginning of learning how to use, I made a few mistakes that were permanent. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
its clear and easy to use. API's are well made and easy to connect to Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
Manufacturing is almost impossible. You will need to have supplemtary software to create proper batches as well as putting things into inventory (unless you do it manually)
Barcoding is silly as well as when you are picking it wants specific item (including batch number) scanned so when picking you can't h Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
It can integrate with Shipstation which is the shipping platform we use so once we fulfill orders, it automatically pushes through and we don't have to do any extra imports. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
1. Our trainer was unable to answer many of our questions and would say he'll need to check with his developers but never followed up with us afte.r
2. Contacting their support team will get you various different answers. Some are more knowledgeable than others.
3. Their reporting system is awful. Compared to Quickbooks where you can easily drag and drop fields around, you are very limited with their reporting tool and many basic things you need will require to ask their team for a "custom report" which requires additional costs. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
Accuracy, multiple locations and allocations Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
Correcting a mistake is not easy this is time consuming specially when you have a new hire and or someone that is not familiar with the software. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
It works. As advertised and better. Some companies embellish the quality and quantity of their features. Not Fishbowl. They do every they say and more. I really like that there are not bugs everywhere you turn. It is built so well. Like a database should be. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
That Fishbowl doesn't make financial software so that I could stop using Quickbooks. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
The interface is very user-friendly and it is easy to navigate. Some of the support guys are really good. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
It is in a limbo between wanting to replace QuickBooks and not. You have to create invoices on Fishbowl to track inventory, but it cannot track payment credits. So, refunds and exchanges are impossible without manually adjusting the invoices on Quickbooks. Cannot handle partial shipment well. Doesn't have agiring A/R and A/P summary. Everything requires a custom solution, regardless if it is basic or advanced. Everything costs an additional cost of upwards of $2,000. Very frustrating to use. The shipping plugin is broken and cannot print shipping labels. It is filled with useless functionality. Cannot handle multiple out-source and drop-ships for a single item.
Too many hidden costs. Every small feature has a price tag of $1999+ Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
It's not over complicated, yet it integrates well with external channels. If you're stuggling with keeping track of inventory, in and out, and would like to automate this process, predict when and how much fr replinishment, it does a great job at vizualizing that aspect. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
While simple and easy to navigate, it can be slow at times. Sometimes feeling a bit beta, especially exporting data. The job of the software itself is great. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
The way I can control almost every aspect of the warehouse from one place. Easy access to data for better forecasting in the future. better and more efficient way to purchase, store and sell stock. Better use of time and better work flow for warehouse workers. Easy way to track your current orders, packed orders and whats shipping. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
hard to customize reports, some issues with the Canadian version due to taxes and connectivity with other software like Quickbooks. The design is a bit rough,. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
I could do multiple things at once, and had accurate count if my inventory with a click of a button Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
We couldn’t upgrade our fishbowl because it would screw up everything in salesforce, so I had to use an older version and it would crash everyday Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
If you have a list of over 1,000 products, Fishbowl is great. It integrates well with accounting and fitment for auto/boat parts. It saves every customer's order which is very useful because we get repeat customers, however it may have been years since they last ordered a certain part. We can look up previous orders from them which aids in customers only ordering what they need and no more. That in turn keeps the customers happy and coming back. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
its a little clunky to use, could definitely be a bit more user friendly. There is a bit of a learning curve and does take time to train new employees. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
When I was creating custom reports for Fishbowl I loved how easy it was to really customize the program for each company's individual needs. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
At the time I disliked that you could not get snap shots of past inventory levels. The company I worked for was creating after market solutions that could be integrated with Fishbowl to make that a reality. Perhaps that function has become standardized now. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
Their willingness to improve the software and their support teams. They've made huge improvements on how they handle support cases and turn around times. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
The pricing is a little high but their Sales Team are always willing to work with you and get the best pricing they can provide. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
I like our implementation specialist, Anthony Mann, the best of all of the features of fishbowl. He has been amazing to work with. Extremely responsive, he has an amazing understanding of the product, he has gone above and beyond in helping us with both issues and just simple questions. Additionally the software is compatible with many platforms and if there isn't a native integration already available it is somewhat simple to have a new integration created. It is pretty user friendly, and anyone with moderate IT experience/interests will be able to set up the product. I implemented the system entirely on my own (I'm a CPA and have a decent understanding of IT and how systems communicate with each other.) Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
I think the reporting capabilities are limited. You are able to set up as many custom fields as you want that are specific to your business, but unless you get a custom report created or understand how to write in jasper files. The reporting in quickbooks is way more robust. This has been probably the biggest frustration. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
Modules are fantastic. Great for inventory management. Accountants will love it. Great for managing POs and adding landing costs. Manufacturing module and BOM is great. Simple and intuitive yet very comprehensive. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
We had a custom manufacturing shop and Fishbowl did not seem to be the best setup for this. Better fit for assembly of components or standardize manufacturing. Did not support multiple currencies. Some challenges at times with Quickbooks integration. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
We couldn't find anything we liked because we were never able to get the software to run. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.
The product looks like it hasn't been updated since the 1990's. The sales pitch does not include the technical skills you need to get the product to work. Installing servers, remote desktops, etc. They have a 30 day return policy, however it took us that long to get things set up. At that time the product failed to even open. We had had enough, and requested a refund but were denied, even though we had not entered one piece of data into the software yet, and we were not able to get it to run. We then asked for a partial refund to compromise, and were denied again. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.