Juggling complex products, keeping customers happy, and always looking for ways to make a profit. To do this well, your business and engineering teams must work closely together. But you could be losing money if you’re still relying on spreadsheets and old-fashioned methods. These methods lead to inaccurate cost estimates, reducing your profits and leaving you scrambling to catch up.
Cost estimation software can change things for you. Not only does it give you much more accurate pricing, but it also helps you find ways to save money you might not have noticed before. This means better profits for your business.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through some of the best cost estimation software for manufacturing, highlighting their features and pricing.
Why Manufacturers Need the Best Cost Estimation Tools
Rising material costs, complex supply chains, and fluctuating customer demands are unavoidable. Cost estimation tools help manufacturers tackle these issues by:
- Offering precise project cost forecasts.
- Identifying areas to save money.
- Reducing risks of under or over-budgeting.
- Supporting better decision-making with actionable data.
Best Manufacturing Cost Estimation Tools of 2025
1. Cost It Right
Overview: Cost It Right stands out for its simplicity. It is a popular choice among manufacturers who need cost estimation at a unit level without wasting hundreds of hours. The software facilitates end-to-end cost management with industry benchmarks to easily fit across all types of manufacturing businesses and dynamic market conditions.
However, Cost It Right is more than a cost estimation tool; it is a complete vendor and procurement management solution with AI capabilities.
Key Features:
- Detailed MHR calculations.
- Versatile cost management.
- Multi-currency management.
- Historical RFQ analysis.
- Material and commodity price indexing.
- Advanced predictive what-if analysis.
- Centralized data repository.
- Configurable multi-level approvals for PO.
Pricing: Available upon request.
2. Costimator
Overview: Costimator helps machine shops and sheet metal fabricators estimate the cost for weldments and fabricated parts, even without a 3D model.
Key Features:
- Estimates for materials, labor, and overhead using parametric modeling.
- Seamless integration with CAD/CAM systems.
- A full breakdown of costs for each manufacturing step.
- Customizable industry-specific templates.
Pricing: Contact their sales team for an exact quote.
3. ProEst
Overview: This cloud-based solution helps you win more bids in nearly half the time your team usually spends. It is designed specifically for construction companies and provides them with conceptual estimates to analyze the viability of future projects.
Key Features:
- Bid management to track your bids in one place
- Document management to store reports, photos, notes, and other important documents.
- Four database options to protect your profitability.
- Real-time cloud access for collaboration and remote work.
- Extensive cost libraries for faster estimates.
- Construction CRM to build better relations with the clients and anticipate future opportunities.
- Integration with accounting software and project management tools specific to the construction industry.
- On-demand, on-site, and live virtual training for the users.
Pricing: ProEst has a fixed pricing model with complete access to features. Everyone on your team can use this construction cost-estimating software without upgrading to a new plan.
4. CostPerform
Overview: CostPerform is the best product cost management software for the manufacturing, healthcare, IT services, financial institutions, and government sectors. With its activity-based costing, forecasting, modeling, and budgeting, you can monitor the cost structures and profitability.
Key Features:
- Customizable templates for multiple industries.
- Scenario planning for assessing financial risks.
- Visual flows for a better understanding of cost.
- Different cost allocation methods.
- Deep insights into cost and performance.
Pricing: A general price list is available at request.
Also Read: Do’s and Don’ts of Choosing a Procurement Software for Your Business
5. EasyKost
Overview: EasyKost is an AI-powered software for automating cost estimation and data mining. It enhances accuracy through data enrichment and advanced simulations. The software also helps identify cost optimization opportunities, offering insights for better sourcing, renegotiation, and Value Engineering decisions.
With its intuitive and user-friendly interface, EasyKost is easily deployable within Costing, Purchasing, or R&D teams and can be used to cost industrial products, investments, and services.
Key Features:
- Product cost estimation using advanced algorithms and historical data.
- Cost-saving identification across products and processes.
- In-depth analysis of cost data for trends and insights discovery.
- Detailed cost models for product cost forecasting and optimization.
- Should cost modeling be based on industry benchmarks and best practices.
- Reverse costing for determining the cost structure of a product.
Pricing: Available upon request.
6. ImpactECS
Overview: ImpactECS is an enterprise-level software that solves the technology limitation of finance and operations leaders to get deep insights into cost data for strategic decisions. With ImpactECS, they can easily calculate costs at all stages, from sourcing to delivering. The tool is completely configurable with customer-defined rules and easily connects with any IT architecture, supporting the critical processes of any business.
Key Features:
- Detailed costing at SKU level.
- Quoting and costing for each product.
- What-if, Scenario Analysis, and Variance Analysis.
- Reporting / Dashboards
Price: Pricing is available at a request.
7. Esticom
Overview: Esticom is a feature-rich construction estimating software designed for managing simple to complete construction projects from start to finish. It allows you to effortlessly convert accepted estimates into project budgets or Statements of Value (SOV) with just one click, eliminating manual data entry. The software also matches drawings and estimates in real time to reduce errors in the project.
Key Features:
- Fast setup and minimal training required.
- Integration with accounting platforms like QuickBooks.
- Pre-loaded templates for common manufacturing tasks.
- Accessible anywhere with cloud support.
Pricing: An annual upfront fee with a detailed price is available at request.
8. SecturaFAB
Overview: SecturaFAB does estimating and quoting jobs that usually take half a day in 30 minutes. It is known as one of the best software for metal fabrication companies. The tool is customizable to match 30 machines, operations, and processes in the metal industry. The highlight of SecturaFAB is its compliance with ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) and cloud-based model to protect businesses’ data and profitability.
Key Features:
- True-shape nesting algorithm for material optimization.
- Bend recognition and weld calculator.
- Compatible with different CAD file formats such as DXF and vector PDF.
- CRM and quoting management.
Price: Custom pricing is available upon request.
Final Thoughts
Investing in the best product cost management software for manufacturing means fewer errors and better control over expenses. The tools listed above are only a short overview to help you select. Explore each software to get a complete product overview, request for trial or demos, or directly connect with their sales team to understand better.
But by carefully weighing your needs versus wants, considering deployment models, and analyzing costs against ROI, you’ll be able to find the right software.
