- Value for money.
- A wide range of tools for different uses.
- All tools provide in-depth information.
- Excellent for keyword and product research.
- Can be used in several Amazon marketplaces around the world.
- One of the best inventory management tools on the market.
- Saves you time by automatically listing new products in Seller Central.
- Their accounting feature allows you to create a Profit & Loss.
- Instantly see which products to restock with their “Velocity Report”.
Are you trying to decide between Helium 10 vs Inventory Lab?
Understand that these are two very different platforms.Let me explain this in more detail.
Helium 10 is a complete suite of tools for your entire FBA business. It has tools for product research, keyword research, and inventory management. It also has tools for listing optimization and profitability. Plus, some tools give you hijack alerts and allow you to send automated emails.
Inventory Lab is primarily an inventory management tool. It also has tools for product research but these work quite differently. Plus, Inventory Lab connects to your Amazon account. This means that you can quickly create new listings within the IL dashboard.
So, let’s compare the tools that are similar for each platform.
Comparison Table
| Features | Helium 10 | Inventory Lab |
|---|---|---|
| Our Rating | 4.9/5.0 | 4.4/5.0 |
| Price | From $97/month | $49/month |
| Free Trial | Free Basic Plan with usage limits | 30-day free trial |
| Product Research | ✅ | ✅ |
| Listing Creation | ❌ | ✅ |
| Keyword Research | ✅ | ❌ |
| Listing Optimizer | ✅ | ❌ |
| Keyword Rank Tracker | ✅ | ❌ |
| Hijack Alerts | ✅ | ❌ |
| Refund Reimbursement Assistance | ✅ | ❌ |
| Follow-up Email Automation | ✅ | ❌ |
| Competitor Analysis | ✅ | ❌ |
| Financial Analytics | ✅ | ✅ |
| Inventory Management | ✅ | ✅ |
| PPC Ad Automation | ✅ | ❌ |
| Connected Accounts | From 2 to 4 accounts | Only available for the US marketplace |
| Chrome Extensions | ✅ | ❌ |
| Sourcing App | ❌ | ✅ |
Presenting The Products
#1: Product Research
In Inventory Lab you can do product research using the Scout module on the desktop dashboard. Or, you can use the Scoutify app on your mobile. These tools are useful if you’re sourcing from retail stores or wholesale suppliers.
Here’s the information that you’ll find on both of these tools.
This is the desktop view.
This is the view on the mobile app.
As you can see from this, you need to first input either a product ASIN, UPC, or product title. This will allow you to see how viable the product would be..
Helium 10 will give you similar information with their Chrome extension. You can view this right on an Amazon product page.
This information is set out in a slightly different format but you can do a lot more with it. Like with Inventory Lab, you can easily see if the product is going to be profitable by plugging in your cost price.
You can also see the sales rank and roughly how well it sells. Whereas Inventory Lab incorporates the Keepa graph, Helium 10 has its own graph
If you click on “Inventory Levels” in the Helium 10 graph, you’ll get a pop-up. This tells you how many sellers there are and roughly how much stock they have.
This is vital information that you need to know if you’re going to be competing for the Buy Box.
On the IL mobile app, it does show you how many sellers there are but not how much stock they have. But, if you have a Keepa subscription, you can see this information on the “see all buying options” page on Amazon.
Another feature on the Helium 10 graph is the “Xray” function. When you click on this, it brings up a list of sellers and the price they’re listing at. It also shows you whether the sellers are FBA, Amazon direct, or merchant fulfilled.
Read Also: Helium 10 vs ZonGuru
Now you will find all of this information on the Scout desktop version as well but set out differently.
I actually do like the way that the information is set out in Inventory Lab. It’s all on one page and you don’t have to click on anything for pop-ups to appear.
So, up to this point, both platforms are giving you the same information, just set out differently.
But, there’s a couple of other features that the Helium 10 graph offers that Inventory Lab does not.
When you click on “keywords” it will take you to Helium 10’s Cerebro tool.
This tool then shows you an entire list of keywords. Plus, it gives you their search volume.
Read Also: AMZ Trackers vs Helium 10
While this may not be necessary if you’re sourcing from wholesalers, it can be useful for new product ideas.
Or, even bundling ideas where you’re setting up your own listings.
Then, there’s also the “Listing Optimizer” tab. This takes you to another Helium 10 tool called Scribbles. This is a listing creator tool that allows you to create an entire listing from scratch. This tool also ensures that you use all the relevant keywords in your new listing.
Comparative Analysis
Whether you choose to use Helium 10 or IL for your research really depends on the amount of information you need.
As an Amazon seller who sources from wholesalers, the Inventory Lab tools would work fine. Plus, I do like their clean layout and how all the information is right there at your fingertips.
It’s also quite useful that you can set your ideal product parameters. Such as the number of sellers, preferred ROI, and profit margin. I think this would save a lot of time when you’re sourcing more products to add to your inventory.
But, if you want to take your product research to the next level, then Helium 10 is a better bet. The tools will allow you to find new product opportunities.
#2: Listing Creation
This is where you’ll find that using Inventory Lab will save you a ton of time. How it works is that you create a “batch” in IL for the products that you’ve purchased. These can be either from a retail store or a wholesale distributor.
When you create the batch, a new MSKU is created for products that are not already in your Amazon inventory. You’ll also be adding the wholesale price and the supplier you purchased the product from.
Once your batch is complete, it will sync with your Amazon listings. And, it will automatically create new ones for products not already in your inventory. This means that you don’t have to go into Seller Central and create each listing one at a time.
This will save you an immense amount of time and is not a feature offered by Helium 10.
Read Also: Helium 10 and Sellics Comparison
Here you can see what entering products into a batch consists of. Then, if you prep your own products to send to Amazon, you can print your FNSKU labels right from this screen. Further along the process, you can also print your Amazon shipping labels. You can do this without going into Seller Central.
Of course, you won’t need to do this if you’re using a prep center as we do.
Helium 10 does have a listing feature called Scribbles. This allows you to create a new listing from scratch. But this is not designed for products already on Amazon and won’t sync with your Amazon listings.
Comparative Analysis
The automatic listing feature is endemic to Inventory Lab. It’s not available with Helium 10. Personally, I think this is a great feature. It’s definitely worth the investment in Inventory Lab.
It will save you a ton of time. This is because you won’t have to navigate the multiple screens when creating your own listing on Amazon. Especially for products that are already in their catalog that you also want to sell.
#3: Inventory Management
Inventory management is also handled extremely well in Inventory Lab. When you click on the “inventory” tab in their dashboard, you’ll see a complete list of your inventory.
This will show you what you have in stock and what you need to replenish. It also has all your MSKUs listed. I can see that this would be a time-saver if you have to add incoming inventory into your prep center system.
There’s also a “Velocity Report” available under the “Reports” tab on the main dashboard. This will alert you as to when you should replenish your inventory.
Helium 10 also handles inventory management quite well. Their tool allows you to create supplier and purchase orders. You can do this from within the dashboard.
They also have a cool feature that gives you restock suggestions. All you have to enter is the lead times and reorder frequency. This means that you can instantly see what you should reorder at a glance.
Read More: Viral Launch or Helium 10?
Comparative Analysis
For inventory management, both Helium 10 and Inventory Lab have adequate tools. So, which one you choose depends on what other features you’re looking for.
#4: Financial Analysis
You can use either Inventory Lab or Helium 10 to analyze the profitability of your products. Both tools will allow you to see analytics of each individual product that you sell. It’s important to watch trends over time to see which products remain profitable over time.
Then, you can drop those products that have tanked in price and are currently not profitable.
You can also identify which of your products are selling the most. Plus, how much profit you make over time on those products.
Here’s a sample of the profit information you get in Inventory Lab.
And, this is what the financial information looks like in Helium 10’s profits.
But, one feature that Inventory Lab has and Helium 10 does not, is that IL will also create a Profit and Loss report. This means that you don’t have to invest in extra accounting software if you don’t want to.
At the end of the financial year, all your accountant needs is a P&L to do your tax. Plus, some figures, like your stock on hand, to determine your net worth.
Here’s a sample Profit & Loss report generated in Inventory Lab.
With this report, you can see instantly how profitable your business is.
Now, both Helium 10 and Inventory Lab connect to your Amazon account through an API. This means that both systems will pull in all your Amazon fees and itemize them for you.
You then can add extra expenses such as subscription fees etc.
So, why Helium 10 doesn’t haven’t the option to produce a profit and loss report is unclear.
Read Also: Merchant Words vs Helium 10
#5: Pricing
Both Helium 10 and Inventory Lab have competitive pricing for the tools that you get.
With Helium 10 you get an entire suite of tools for a competitive price starting at $97 per month.
Here’s their pricing structure.
They do have a free plan but this has limited functionality. But, it’s a good way to take some of the tools for a test run. You can access their free plan here.
We’ve also been able to secure some special coupon deals that you can find here.
Inventory Lab only has a one-tiered pricing structure. It’s either $49 per month if you pay monthly or $40 per month if paid annually. Plus, they have a free 30-day trial so you can take it for a test run. Better still, there’s no credit card required to sign up for the free trial.
#6: Customer Support
Inventory Lab has a support portal and a community forum. They also have a chatbot. This means that you can get your questions answered when you need to.
They also have training webinars that are recorded. Plus, they have a blog with lots of helpful articles for all aspects of your business.
Helium 10 have their own help center and blog. Here you can find a lot of articles covering the many tools that they have. They also have a chatbot and a contact form if you need specific help.
Plus, you can find a ton of videos on their YouTube channel. They also have a regular podcast and their own Facebook group.
Final Word
Whether you choose Helium 10 or Inventory Lab depends on what type of business you have and what you need from your tools.
If your business focuses on adding products, then Inventory Lab might be all you need. Especially if you source from retail stores or wholesalers. It’s a complete inventory management and accounting system. It will save you a ton of time in running your Amazon business.
The only drawback I can see with Inventory Lab is that it only works in the US marketplace. So, if you sell in other market places, then Helium 10 is a better option.
Also, if you’re involved in creating private-label products you might be better off with Helium 10. They have a wealth of extra tools that will help you. This includes tools for keyword research and listing optimization. Plus, their subscription fee is excellent value for money for what you get.
So, here are my recommendations:
Use Helium 10 if:
- You want a complete set of tools for your FBA business.
- You’re interested in doing keyword research to find new opportunities.
- If you sell on other marketplaces besides the US.
- You also sell private-label products and need to optimize your listings.
Use Inventory Lab if:
- You only sell in the US marketplace.
- You are constantly adding new products to your inventory and you want to list fast.
- The ability to create a profit and loss report within their dashboard appeals to you.
- You prep and ship your own products to Amazon.
Easily manage and grow a thriving e-commerce business with just one platform. All plans are covered by a no-hassle 100% money-back guarantee for your first 30 days of service.
