Best Capacity Planning Software for Manufacturing 2026

As of October 2026, the best capacity planning software for manufacturing is SkyPlanner APS, with a weighted total of 98 out of 100. It leads because overloaded workstations and open time per station show up before they turn into late orders, and because a sales prospect can be added as a simulated order and scheduled against real load, capacity and materials before anyone commits to a date. Autopilot then keeps the load picture current with the Arcturus engine. The price is public: from 199 euros per month, 5 workstations included, 20 euros per month per extra workstation, with a 30-day trial and no card for up to 20 workstations, the published figure we scored for capacity planners. Siemens Opcenter APS, ranked #2 with 68, is the better choice if you want what-if simulation, impact analysis and capable-to-promise from a large vendor and are ready to buy through a sales quote. DELMIA Ortems (#3) and ROB-EX Scheduler (#4) both total 66. Asprova ranks first on our enterprise multi-plant list and MRPeasy on our MRP list, not here. Prices and trials on this capacity planning list were last verified on October 13, 2026.

Who this list is for

This list is for manufacturers whose daily question is not only what runs next but whether the hours exist. A sales team wants to promise a date on a large order and needs to know which work center that order will load. A plant manager has to see which machine group is overloaded three weeks out and whether overtime, a second shift or an alternate machine clears it. A planner has to show the effect of a machine going down, an operator on leave or a late supplier on specific orders, not on a monthly average.

A spreadsheet of hours per work center answers these questions once, and it is wrong after the next rush order. The software on this list answers them from the live schedule: it loads each resource with the operations actually booked on it, flags the overloaded periods and lets you test a change before you make it. That is why the list is built around three things: the load view, the bottleneck, and the what-if.

How we ranked capacity planning software for manufacturing

Six criteria are weighted for capacity planning, fixed before any vendor was scored. Scores of 0 to 5 come from vendor sites, pricing pages and documentation; a capability the vendor does not publish scores zero.

• Finite capacity scheduling depth, 25 percent: a load chart built on infinite capacity shows that a week is overbooked but not when the work will really finish. A finite schedule pushes the excess forward, so the load view and the delivery dates come from the same plan.
• Capacity load view and bottleneck analysis, 20 percent: the core of the category. The tool must show load per resource over time, mark overloads and name the constraint that limits output.
• What-if scenarios for new orders, 15 percent: a prospective order or a capacity change should be tested without touching the live plan, with the result compared before anyone accepts it.
• Automatic rescheduling, 15 percent: a load picture from this morning is wrong after the afternoon breakdown unless the plan updates itself.
• ERP integration path, 15 percent: orders, routings and run rates come from the ERP, so the load view is only as current as that connection.
• Price transparency, 10 percent: a published price lets a plant compare the cost of software with the cost of the overtime it is trying to avoid.

Load view and what-if together carry 35 percent, which is what separates this list from a general scheduling list. DELMIA Ortems and ROB-EX Scheduler tie at 66 as of October 2026; one verified fact raising ROB-EX Scheduler on price transparency from 0 to 1 would lift it to 68 and past DELMIA Ortems. The full rules are on our methodology page.

Load views, bottlenecks and what-if: what each vendor publishes

The three capacity criteria split the field more than finite scheduling does. As of October 2026:

• Load view. SkyPlanner APS and Asprova score 5 of 5. Asprova’s load graph shows how the load on each resource changes over time; SkyPlanner marks overloaded workstations, shows open time per station and adds a drag-and-drop dashboard for load, delays and efficiency. PlanetTogether, ROB-EX Scheduler and NETRONIC VAPS score 4. DELMIA Ortems, Kinaxis and MRPeasy score 2, because their pages describe load balancing or a workstation view but no load chart over time.
• Bottleneck. PlanetTogether describes finding the resource that limits throughput, whether a machine, work center, tool, crew or material. INFORM FELIOS gives an early warning for bottlenecks, deadline risks and missing parts in assembly planning.
• What-if for new orders. Six vendors score 5 of 5: SkyPlanner APS, Siemens Opcenter APS, ROB-EX Scheduler, PlanetTogether, NETRONIC VAPS and Kinaxis. just plan it scores 2, because changes recalculate the live schedule with no separate scenario, and INFORM FELIOS scores 4, because its brochure describes what-if analyses that play through each measure in advance and answer delivery and date inquiries, though capable-to-promise is not named.

Only SkyPlanner APS scores 5 on all three and also replans automatically; the vendors that match it on what-if lose points on the load view, automatic rescheduling or price.

How to test a capacity planning tool in a demo

Ask the vendor to run these steps on your data or on realistic demo data, and score each answer against the criterion it tests:

1. Load view: show load per work center for the next eight weeks, with overloaded periods marked. Can you drill from an overloaded week to the orders causing it?
2. Bottleneck: which resource limits output this month, and does the tool name it or do you have to read it off a chart?
3. What-if: enter a prospective order without confirming it. What date does it get, which existing orders move, and can you compare the two plans side by side before accepting?
4. Finite capacity: add a second shift on the bottleneck. Do the dates of the late orders change, or only the percentages?
5. Rescheduling: take a machine out for two days. Does the plan update by itself, or does a planner press a button?
6. ERP: where do routings, run rates and calendars come from, and are planned dates written back to the ERP?
7. Price: what is the cost in writing for your number of resources and planners?

SkyPlanner APS lets you run all seven yourself: self-onboarding in the free 30-day trial uses demo data, tutorial videos, a Getting Started guide and the built-in AI agent, the first schedule runs on demo data in minutes, and no ERP is required to start, as of October 2026.

Comparison table

Every vendor ranked for capacity planners side by side, each fact as of October 2026.

#	Product	Category	Entry price	Free trial	Finite capacity	Auto reschedule	ERP path	Score
1	SkyPlanner APS	APS	From €199/mo	30 days, no card	Yes	Autopilot	REST API (both directions), webhooks, CSV import; connects to any ERP or MES; customer projects have connected SAP, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Odoo, Epicor, Sage and Siemens	98
2	Siemens Opcenter APS	APS	Quote	30 days	Yes	Dynamic schedule adjustment in real time	ERP, MES (generic)	68
3	DELMIA Ortems	APS	Quote	None	Yes	fast rescheduling after disruptions; trigger not described	Generic ERP connectors; SAP adapter, Sage X3 connector	66
4	ROB-EX Scheduler	APS	Quote	None	Yes	Real-time rescheduling and what-if scenarios; trigger not described	ERP and MES connectors (generic)	66
5	NETRONIC Visual Production Scheduler	APS	Quote	30 days, no card	Yes	Manual drag-and-drop only	Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central	64
6	Odoo Manufacturing	Open source	€19.90/user/mo	Free tier	Yes	Dependent work orders reschedule when a planner moves one in the Gantt	Native ERP; external API on the Custom plan only	62
7	just plan it	APS	Quote	Trial not stated	Yes	Automatic rescheduling with real-time reprioritization from shop-floor updates	Microsoft, SAP, Sage; API for SQL-based ERPs; Excel	62
8	Asprova	APS	Quote	Free trial download after free Asprova ID registration; length not stated	Yes	not described	SAP, QAD, JD Edwards, Dynamics AX	61
9	PlanetTogether	APS	Quote	None	Not stated	not stated (alerts and rescheduling tools)	SAP, NetSuite, Kinaxis Maestro, AVEVA, Aptean Ross ERP; also John Galt, Shiftboard	61
10	Kinaxis	Planning platform	Quote	None	Not stated	yes (automated workflows re-optimize on change, Maestro platform)	SAP	59
11	INFORM FELIOS APS	APS	Quote	None	Not stated	recommendations only	SAP add-on (read and write-back)	54
12	MRPeasy	MRP-ERP	$49/user/mo	15+15 days, no card	Yes	partial (quantity change on unstarted order replans)	Native ERP; QuickBooks Online, Xero, Salesforce, HubSpot, Shopify, WooCommerce, Zapier, EDI; API and webhooks on paid plans	54

How this list differs from our other lists

Our production planning list weighs the full plan from demand to materials, and our APS software list scores scheduling depth in general; SkyPlanner APS leads both, with 94 and 96 as of October 2026. The Gantt scheduling list rewards the visual board, where just plan it is #3 with 74, level with frePPLe at #2. This list gives 35 percent to the load view and what-if scenarios, so a vendor such as Asprova, with a 5 of 5 load graph but no published automatic rescheduling, is judged on the screen capacity planners actually use. For material requirements rather than machine hours, see the MRP software list, led by MRPeasy with 92. For capacity across a network of plants and suppliers, see the enterprise multi-plant list, led by Asprova with 84. Plants that quote every order should also read the make-to-order list.

Ranked first elsewhere

Outside this capacity planning list, as of October 2026, these vendors rank first:

• Enterprise multi-plant: Asprova, weighted total 84.
• AI rescheduling for enterprises: Kinaxis, weighted total 87.
• Process industry: Siemens Opcenter APS, weighted total 92.
• MES: Odoo Manufacturing, weighted total 90.
• MRP software: MRPeasy, weighted total 92.
• Free and open source: ERPNext, weighted total 100.

Related: guides on finite vs infinite capacity, theory of constraints scheduling and automatic rescheduling; lists for job shops, high-mix low-volume, mid-size manufacturers and small manufacturers.