frePPLe

frePPLe is supply-chain planning software for teams coordinating demand forecasts with inventory, production and replenishment decisions. It suits manufacturers and planners who need those activities connected and can choose between self-managed open-source software and paid deployment options. Its planning breadth and hosting flexibility are compelling, but support, scenario limits and item-location-based pricing deserve close attention.

Overview

frePPLe brings forecasting, inventory planning, production planning and replenishment into one planning scope. That connection can help teams carry demand expectations through to stock and production decisions instead of managing those tasks in isolation.

Production plans account for finite material supply and resource capacity, with an interactive Gantt chart for adjusting jobs. Forecasts use statistical and AI techniques; teams can select methods and review and edit forecasts together. Inventory planning calculates safety stocks and reorder quantities, generates replenishment orders, and supports item segmentation and tailored business rules.

Key features

• Forecasting: Hierarchical forecasting and SKU-location granularity support demand planning at product-and-location level. Method choice and team review are useful where forecasts need collaborative refinement.
• Production and capacity planning: Plans account for material and resource constraints, while the Gantt chart lets planners adjust jobs. This is relevant to manufacturers balancing capacity and supply; it is not merely a forecast view.
• Inventory and replenishment: Safety-stock and reorder calculations, replenishment orders, segmentation and tailored rules offer levers for differentiated stock policies.
• Integration: REST API, CSV, Excel and direct database access provide several routes for connecting existing systems. Community also includes two-way Odoo integration.
• Scenario planning: Cloud supports up to six scenarios, while Enterprise offers unlimited scenarios. The Cloud ceiling may constrain teams that compare many alternatives.

Pricing

frePPLe offers a free open-source Community edition and a 15-day trial. Academic users can ask the company about a free scheme. Subscription pricing is based on active item-location pairs; the displayed calculator describes a size below 20,000 pairs, so organizations should assess their own scale before budgeting. Cloud and Enterprise prices are custom pricing.

• Community: Free open-source software, with a multilingual browser-based application and Ubuntu Linux binaries and Docker images. It fits teams able to run the software themselves and rely on DIY support through the user group; it gives up the professional support listed for Cloud and Enterprise.
• Cloud: Hosted subscription with a maximum of six scenarios and professional support. It suits teams wanting a managed option that can work within that scenario limit.
• Cloud PLUS: Hosted on frePPLe cloud servers with doubled resource allocation; scenarios are limited by storage. It may suit teams needing more resource allocation than Cloud, though scenario capacity depends on storage.
• Enterprise: Installed on customer hardware, offers unlimited scenarios and professional support. It fits organizations that need customer-infrastructure hosting, including those whose policies or regulations may rule out cloud use.

Platforms

frePPLe supports API, Linux, self-hosted and web use. Community is a browser-based application, and Community and Enterprise offer Ubuntu Linux binaries and Docker images. Enterprise is installed on customer hardware, giving organizations more control over where the planning system runs.

Who it's for

frePPLe is a strong fit for manufacturers and supply-chain planning teams that need forecasts, stock policies, replenishment and capacity-aware production plans to inform one another. It is less suitable for teams that require professional support but cannot accommodate a paid plan, or that need more than six Cloud scenarios without choosing another edition.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Forecasting, inventory, replenishment and constrained production planning sit within one product, supporting connected planning decisions.
• Pro: Deployment ranges from a free open-source edition to customer-hosted Enterprise, which can address differing operational and regulatory needs.
• Pro: API, file-based and database integration options, plus two-way Odoo integration in Community, offer practical connection paths.
• Con: Community support is DIY through a user group, not professional support.
• Con: Cloud is capped at six scenarios, which can limit extensive scenario comparison.
• Con: Subscription pricing depends on active item-location pairs, so cost is tied to planning scale rather than a simple flat rate.

Alternatives

For a broader comparison, see Scenario Planning Software, Manufacturing Scheduling Software, Capacity Planning Software, Production Scheduling Software, Advanced Planning and Scheduling Software and Demand Planning Software.

Uniflow is worth comparing if a free plan with a stated one-scenario limit and six-month forecast better matches your planning scope. Workday Adaptive Planning is a paid alternative with a 30-day trial. TrueGradient Integrated Business Planning has a free Starter plan with 50 monthly credits. LivePlan offers Standard at $20 a month with one active company, five contributors and unlimited guests. OneStream is another paid platform to consider. Lokad is a paid supply-chain optimization alternative with a custom subscription. Planful tailors subscription pricing to company size, user count and selected modules. Jedox offers paid Business and Professional plans.

Verdict

Choose frePPLe if your team needs connected demand, inventory and capacity-aware production planning, especially when open-source access or customer-hosted deployment matters. Look elsewhere if you need professional support without a subscription, or if a six-scenario Cloud limit would obstruct your planning work.