OpenBOM

OpenBOM is a cloud product data platform for engineering and manufacturing teams coordinating design records, bills of materials and procurement. Its strongest case is for teams that need those workflows connected; buyers should weigh paid editing seats, record caps and separate CAD add-in charges before committing.

Overview

OpenBOM links CAD, BOM, PDM, PLM, engineering change, procurement and ERP workflows around shared product data. Its digital xBOM can represent engineering, manufacturing and software bills of materials in single-level, multi-level or flattened views. That range suits teams carrying product data from design toward production, but may be more scope than a team needs for a standalone parts list.

Key features

CAD and BOM management

Cloud PDM centralizes CAD files and supports locking, versions, revisions, releases and SmartSync, alongside automatic BOM extraction. This makes the Company tier more relevant to teams managing controlled design files than to users who only need BOM management. The xBOM views, revision control, BOM comparison and change workflows help teams work with product structures as they change.

Collaboration and procurement

Engineers can work on shared data in real time, with comments, tasks and mentions attached to items. Inventory control, RFQs and purchase orders extend the workflow beyond engineering, and supplier and contractor collaboration is among the supported uses. That breadth can keep purchasing activity close to product records; teams needing only engineering collaboration may have little reason to pay for it.

Integrations, security and support

Listed CAD integrations include SOLIDWORKS, Altium Designer, Onshape, Autodesk Fusion, PTC Creo, Siemens NX and Autodesk Inventor. QuickBooks, NetSuite and SAP are ERP integration examples, while API access has no call limits and is priced through data records. Communication between OpenBOM servers, browsers and client applications is encrypted, sharing permissions are granular, and the security page states SOC 2 Type II compliance. Support is available through product-embedded tools and 24/7 online support.

Pricing

OpenBOM uses a freemium model with a 14-day trial. Unlimited read-only users are free, but anyone editing or managing data needs a paid seat. Qualified educational, personal and non-commercial users may access free plans.

Data records (up to 2,000): free. The cap counts unique part numbers, BOM part records and managed CAD/PDM files, so teams should account for all three when estimating whether the free tier will last.

Professional Team (yearly): $30 a year, billed yearly at $30 / seat / month. It includes BOM management, a part catalog, inventory control, RFQ / purchase orders and REST API, with unlimited free read-only users. This is the entry point for active users who need these workflows without Company-level PDM controls.

Professional Team (monthly): $55 a month per seat, with the same included features. It costs more than the yearly rate, but avoids a yearly billing term.

Company (yearly): $90 a year, billed yearly at $90 / seat / month. It includes Team plus CAD file management (PDM), revision control, change management (ECO), advanced BOM (xBOM) and MFA. It fits teams that need controlled CAD and change workflows.

Company (monthly): $165 a month per seat, with the same Company features. As with Team, monthly billing has a higher stated rate than annual billing.

CAD add-in: $45 a month, billed monthly; the stated rate is $25 / seat / month / CAD system billed annually. It is per seat per CAD system and requires a Team or Company subscription, so CAD-connected users add cost on top of the core plan.

Data records (up to 5,000): $180 a month at the monthly rate, or a yearly rate of $100 per month.

Data records (up to 10,000): $360 a month at the monthly rate, or a yearly rate of $200 per month.

Enterprise: custom pricing. It includes Company, SSO, custom integrations, enterprise support and private and custom hosting.

ERP integrations: custom pricing, quoted by sales as a flat rate per integration.

The record tiers matter even with unlimited API calls: usage is priced through records, and a larger catalog can move a team beyond the free cap. Budget active seats separately from read-only collaborators, and include CAD add-ins for every user and CAD system that needs integration.

Platforms

OpenBOM is a cloud deployment with web, Windows, macOS and Linux platform support, as well as API access. The separate CAD add-in requirement means that platform support alone does not cover the cost of integrating each CAD user.

Who it's for

OpenBOM is best suited to engineering and manufacturing teams managing product data from design through production, especially when they need BOM structures, change control and procurement in a shared workflow. Its free read-only access can include broad audiences without buying a seat for every viewer. It is less compelling for teams seeking only a basic BOM or for organizations unwilling to budget per editor and per CAD integration.

Pros and cons

Pro: Multiple BOM views, CAD file controls and procurement workflows sit in one product data platform, which suits teams coordinating across engineering and purchasing.

Pro: Unlimited free read-only users let teams share data without paying for every viewer.

Pro: API access has no call limits, useful for integrations where record-based pricing is more relevant than call quotas.

Con: The free tier stops at 2,000 records, and records include part numbers, BOM part records and managed CAD/PDM files.

Con: Paid seats are required for editing or data management, and CAD add-ins carry an additional per-seat, per-system charge.

Con: Monthly Team and Company rates are higher than their annual-billing rates, making billing term a material cost choice.

Alternatives

Consider another tool if its deployment or licensing model is a closer fit:

Bill of Materials Software is a directory of BOM software options for comparing alternatives.

BOMIST is worth considering for a single-user BOM workflow: its free plan covers 100 parts and 3 products, while its listed PRO plan is $50 a year.

Cascadia PLM may suit teams seeking self-hosted PLM with unlimited editors and viewers under its free Self-Hosted Core plan.

NETVIBES is another option.

Dokuly is a free, open-source PLM offered as a self-hosted Docker stack, a fit for teams that prefer that deployment model.

Carbon may appeal to teams looking for community ERP, MRP, MES and QMS under AGPL-3.0; enterprise features require a commercial agreement.

Epicor Kinetic is another option.

Creo is another option.

MRPeasy is another option.

Verdict

Choose OpenBOM if engineering and manufacturing teams need shared BOM, CAD and procurement workflows, particularly when read-only collaborators outnumber active editors. Its connected product data and free viewing access are the main reasons to choose it; per-seat charges, record tiers and separately licensed CAD add-ins are the reasons to look elsewhere if costs must stay simple or tightly capped.