The best vendor management software for a small business is one you can keep using for free, not a 14-day trial. oboloo is free forever with unlimited users and unlimited suppliers, and puts suppliers, contracts and sourcing in one place. Odoo's One App Free plan gives you one app with unlimited users, and Airtable's free plan comes with a free vendor management template but caps you at 5 editors and 1,000 records per base. TrustLayer (up to 50 vendors) and bcs (up to 25 vendors) have free plans for insurance certificates only. Gatekeeper, Precoro, Zapro and Smartsheet have no free plan.
Supplier management (also called vendor management) means one shared record of who you buy from, what you agreed and when things expire. Here is what good vendor management software covers.
Full disclosure: oboloo is our product. We checked every free plan and price below on the vendor's own site on 16 October 2026.
| Tool | Free plan | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| oboloo | Yes, free forever: unlimited users and suppliers | Supplier Plus $28 per user a month, billed annually | Small teams that want suppliers, contracts and sourcing together, with no user limit |
| Odoo | Yes, One App Free: one app, unlimited users | Standard plan charged per user a month; prices shown in local currency | Vendor records inside purchasing and stock |
| Airtable | Yes: 5 editors, 1,000 records and 1 GB of attachments per base | Team $20 per user a month, billed annually | Building your own vendor database from a free template |
| Zoho Creator | Free Edition: one custom app. The ready-made vendor management app is a 15-day trial | Standard $8 per user a month, billed annually ($12 monthly) | Teams happy to build and maintain a low-code app |
| TrustLayer | Yes, Starter: up to 50 vendors | Not published | Insurance certificate tracking only |
| bcs | Yes, up to 25 vendors, no time limit | Self-Service $0.95 per vendor a month | Insurance certificate tracking only |
| Smartsheet | No, 30-day free trial | Pro $9 per member a month, billed yearly | Teams already working in Smartsheet |
| Gatekeeper | No | Quote only. Pro covers up to 250 third parties, unlimited users | Larger teams that want contracts and vendors in one platform |
| Precoro | No | Core from $499 a month, billed annually | Purchase orders and invoice approval |
| Zapro | No | Spark $699 a month, up to 50 vendors, unlimited users | Paid vendor management with unlimited users |
oboloo is free-forever procurement software for SMEs and charities. The free plan includes all four core modules: supplier management, contract management, sourcing (RFQs, RFPs and RFIs) and savings tracking. There is no limit on users or suppliers, no card and no expiry. Each contract links to its supplier, and you get alerts before renewals, expiries or notice windows close.
The paid step for vendors is Supplier Plus at $28 per user a month, billed annually, with a 14-day free trial. It adds supplier compliance, supplier onboarding, document requests from suppliers, custom fields and tabs, and supplier scorecards. Registered charities get 50% off paid plans, forever.
Where it fits less well: oboloo does not do purchase orders or invoices. Compliance documents, onboarding and scorecards are in Supplier Plus, not the free plan.
Odoo's One App Free plan costs nothing and includes one app with unlimited users on Odoo Online. If you pick the Purchase app, you get supplier price lists, RFQs, purchase orders, vendor bills and a purchase analysis dashboard. That suits a business that buys stock. If you want a second app, you move to Standard, which includes all apps and is charged per user a month (Odoo shows prices in your local currency).
Airtable's free vendor management template covers vendor data, contracts, performance and onboarding, and you shape it yourself. The free plan allows 5 editors, 1,000 records and 1 GB of attachments per base. Read-only users are free. At the limit, you can still use the base but cannot add more. Team costs $20 per user a month, billed annually.
Zoho's ready-made vendor management app (vendor ratings, contract expiry alerts, performance reviews) is a 15-day free trial. After a trial, Zoho moves you to its Free Edition, which covers one custom app. So it is free if you build and look after the app yourself. Standard costs $8 per user a month billed annually, or $12 monthly.
Both track certificates of insurance (COIs), not the full supplier record. TrustLayer's Starter plan is free for up to 50 vendors, with expiry tracking, messaging and AI document collection. Paid prices are not published. bcs is free for up to 25 vendors with all features, and says this is permanent, not a trial. Its Self-Service plan is $0.95 per vendor a month. More on this in our guide to supplier compliance software.
Smartsheet offers a 30-day trial, then Pro at $9 per member a month billed yearly. Gatekeeper does not publish prices; all plans have unlimited users and contracts, and Pro covers up to 250 third parties. Precoro is procure-to-pay software: if you need purchase orders and invoice approval, Precoro is built for that and oboloo is not. Core starts at $499 a month, billed annually. Zapro's Spark plan is $699 a month for up to 50 active vendors with unlimited users.
A spreadsheet is free and fine for a short list of suppliers with one person looking after it. It starts to fail when:
Free software fixes the shared record and the alerts. The catch is the limits. Before you commit, check how many users can edit, how many vendors you can hold, what sits behind the paid plan, and whether "free" is a plan, a trial or a template.
oboloo is free forever with unlimited users and suppliers, plus contracts and sourcing. Odoo (one app, unlimited users) and Airtable (5 editors, 1,000 records per base) also have real free plans.
Yes. oboloo's free plan has unlimited users and unlimited suppliers. Odoo's One App Free plan also has unlimited users, but only one app. Gatekeeper and Zapro offer unlimited users on paid plans only.
From free to several hundred dollars a month. On 16 October 2026, oboloo Supplier Plus was $28 per user a month billed annually, Precoro Core started at $499 a month billed annually, and Zapro Spark was $699 a month.
Yes, for a short list and one owner. It breaks down when several people edit it, or when contracts and certificates expire without anyone being alerted.
A free plan has no end date but has limits, such as users, vendors or records. A free trial gives you the paid features for a set time, often 14 to 30 days, then you pay or drop back.
