Last updated: 6 October 2026 · Independent buyer’s guide · We do not sell rankings or coverage.
Choose Epicor Kinetic if you are an Australian manufacturer whose hardest problems sit on the shop floor: finite scheduling across many work centres, job costing for make-to-order work, machine data collection and quality control tied to production. Choose Oracle NetSuite if production is only one part of a wider business that needs a single cloud ledger across several entities, strong order management and ecommerce, and you are prepared to add NetSuite’s manufacturing SuiteApps to reach the depth you need. Neither vendor documents native Australian payroll, so you will need a separate payroll product for STP Phase 2, award interpretation and Payday Super with either choice. The better system for you depends on how complex your production is, how many entities you run, and whether you want the option of a dedicated or on-premises deployment, which only Epicor offers.
Australian manufacturers with revenue between roughly $10 million and $500 million often end up with these two names on the same shortlist. They reach that shortlist from different directions. Epicor built Kinetic as a manufacturing system and added finance around it. Oracle built NetSuite as a cloud business suite and added manufacturing modules to it. This comparison looks at editions, deployment, production depth, Australian compliance, payroll, costs and local partners. Our sibling guide to the best ERP for Australian manufacturers covers the wider field, and our best ERP software in Australia guide covers buyers outside manufacturing.
Key takeaways
- Epicor Kinetic offers more production depth in its core product, including Advanced MES, advanced planning and scheduling, a product configurator and nesting for sheet and plate work.
- NetSuite covers assemblies, work in process, routings and outsourced manufacturing natively, and adds finite scheduling and shop floor data capture through the Advanced Manufacturing SuiteApp.
- NetSuite runs only as Oracle’s multi-tenant cloud, hosted in Sydney and Melbourne. Epicor offers public cloud, a dedicated custom cloud and, until its 2028 cut-off, on-premises.
- Epicor ends new on-premises Kinetic releases in January 2028 and active on-premises support on 31 December 2029, so any new Epicor project should be planned as a cloud project.
- Neither vendor documents Australian payroll. Budget for a separate payroll system that handles STP Phase 2, the Manufacturing Award and Payday Super.
- Epicor publishes an indicative starting price of about $150 per user per month through a vendor-supplied profile. Oracle publishes no NetSuite price list.
Where each product starts from
The design origin of each product explains most of the differences you will see in a demonstration. Epicor positions Kinetic for discrete, process and make-to-order manufacturing, and its Australian product page lists target industries such as industrial machinery, fabricated metals, rubber and plastics, electronics and medical devices (Epicor AU, checked 6 Oct 2026). In its vendor-supplied profile for the iStart ERP Buyers Guide, Epicor states it has more than 1,000 installed sites across Australia and New Zealand, with offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland, and names Volgren Australia, the Royal Australian Mint, Bradken and Steel Blue as references (iStart, April 2026).
NetSuite starts with financials, order management and inventory in one multi-tenant cloud database. Oracle documents assembly items, assembly work orders, advanced bills of materials, manufacturing work in process, manufacturing routings and outsourced manufacturing as standard manufacturing features (Oracle NetSuite Help, Manufacturing Overview, checked 6 Oct 2026). That covers many assemble-to-stock and light make-to-order businesses.
Epicor Kinetic editions and deployment options
Epicor does not publish named editions with list prices in the way some vendors do. Its Australian Kinetic page describes industry bundles bought in three steps: you choose a platform core, a cloud package and a number of concurrent users (Epicor AU, checked 6 Oct 2026).
Deployment is where Epicor differs most from NetSuite. Epicor’s iStart profile lists cloud SaaS, on-premises and hybrid deployment, with cloud hosting on Microsoft Azure in Australian and New Zealand regions (iStart, April 2026). Within the cloud there are two broad models. Public Cloud is the multi-tenant service with standardised, limited customisation. Custom Cloud is a dedicated, single-tenant environment that allows custom external code and lets you choose when to upgrade, as long as you stay within two major versions of the current release, according to 2W Tech, an Epicor partner that sells Custom Cloud (2W Tech, no date shown).
On-premises Kinetic now has an end date. Epicor will ship its final on-premises Kinetic release in January 2028, end active support on 31 December 2029 and move to sustaining support from 1 January 2030 (CIO.com, 7 Jan 2026). If you run an older Epicor version on your own servers today, a move to Kinetic in Epicor’s cloud is the realistic path. If you are buying new, plan for cloud from the start and treat Custom Cloud as the option for heavy customisation.
NetSuite editions and deployment
NetSuite runs only as Oracle’s multi-tenant cloud service. Oracle lists data centres in Melbourne and Sydney among its Asia-Pacific locations (Oracle NetSuite data centre datasheet, 2025). There is no on-premises or private cloud version. All customers move to each new release on Oracle’s schedule, which keeps you current but removes the upgrade control that Epicor’s Custom Cloud offers.
NetSuite is sold through SuiteSuccess editions described as Starter, Standard and Premium, with cost driven by users, modules and service tier, according to Annexa, a NetSuite partner (Annexa, updated 21 Sep 2026). Manufacturing capability depends on what you add. Oracle states that you must install the Advanced Manufacturing SuiteApp to set up Advanced Manufacturing, and that the Manufacturing Mobile SuiteApp lets mobile scanners report shop floor data (Oracle NetSuite Help, Manufacturing Overview, checked 6 Oct 2026). Oracle’s help does not say whether the Advanced Manufacturing SuiteApp carries an extra subscription fee, and Oracle publishes no price list, so ask your partner to show it as a separate line in your quote.
Manufacturing depth: production, scheduling and the shop floor
Epicor Kinetic’s manufacturing scope includes Advanced MES for real-time equipment data collection with touch-screen interfaces and statistical process control, advanced planning and scheduling with multiple constraint methods and capable-to-promise checks, Epicor QMS for inspection, non-conformance and corrective action, PLM through PRO.FILE, a product configurator with integrated pricing, and automated nesting through Epicor NestLink, according to ERP Research, an independent comparison site that may pass enquiries to implementation partners (ERP Research, 2026, no specific date shown). Advanced MES, QMS and PLM are separately named Epicor products, so confirm which are in your bundle.
NetSuite’s Advanced Manufacturing SuiteApp adds production planning, production scheduling, mobile shop floor data capture, labour codes, work instructions, resource supply and demand comparison, and downtime and loss accounting (Oracle NetSuite Help, Advanced Manufacturing Overview, checked 6 Oct 2026). Oracle’s help states that the planned start date on a work order is populated from finite scheduling details (Oracle NetSuite Help, Scheduling Work Orders, checked 6 Oct 2026). NetSuite Quality Management covers inspections, specifications tied to items, vendors and locations, a tablet interface for quality engineers, and non-conformance workflows with quarantine and release (NetSuite Quality Management datasheet, 2024).
Both products can schedule to finite capacity and capture shop floor data. Epicor goes further from its own product family, with machine-level data collection, statistical process control, nesting and a configurator. With NetSuite, those requirements usually involve a third-party product or partner development. If you run high-mix jobbing work, test this with your own parts and work centres.
| Capability | Oracle NetSuite | Epicor Kinetic |
|---|---|---|
| Work orders, BOMs, routings, WIP | Native | Native |
| Finite scheduling | Advanced Manufacturing SuiteApp | Advanced planning and scheduling with multiple constraints |
| Shop floor and machine data | Mobile shop floor data capture via SuiteApps | Advanced MES with equipment data collection and SPC |
| Quality | NetSuite Quality Management | Epicor QMS |
| Configurator and nesting | Not documented in sources reviewed | Configurator; NestLink nesting |
| Outsourced manufacturing | Native | Not documented in sources reviewed |
Australian compliance: GST, BAS, PTRS and eInvoicing
Both products handle Australian indirect tax. Oracle documents that the Tax Reporting Framework, with the SuiteTax Country Tax Reports APAC SuiteApp, generates the Australian Business Activity Statement, covering the GST boxes, PAYG withholding boxes and the payment or refund calculation (Oracle NetSuite Help, Business Activity Statement, checked 6 Oct 2026). Epicor’s Australian country-specific functionality lists GST and BAS reporting, a tax box report, EFT and BPAY processing for payables and receivables, bank formats for ANZ, NAB, CBA, Bankwest and Westpac, Payment Times Reporting Scheme support and eInvoicing (Epicor, Australia country-specific functionality, checked 6 Oct 2026).
Producing a BAS is different from lodging it. Only SBR-enabled software lodges directly with the ATO (ATO, 24 Apr 2026). Ask either partner how lodgement will work in your configuration. On eInvoicing, private business-to-business eInvoicing is not mandatory in Australia, and the ATO describes eInvoicing as a business efficiency measure (ATO, 7 Jul 2026). Epicor’s explicit eInvoicing listing is useful if your larger customers already ask for Peppol invoices, but it should not decide the evaluation on its own.
Australian payroll, award shifts and Payday Super
Australian payroll is a gap in both products. Oracle’s SuitePeople Payroll supports United States payroll only (Oracle NetSuite Help, checked 30 Aug 2026). Epicor’s Australian country-specific functionality page does not list payroll or Single Touch Payroll (Epicor, checked 6 Oct 2026), and Epicor’s iStart profile does not mention payroll (iStart, April 2026). Pronto Software, which sells a competing ERP, states that Epicor delivers Australian compliance through country-specific configuration packs set up by the local partner (Pronto Software, 4 Aug 2026). Epicor’s Australian pages do not say whether it offers or certifies an Australian payroll product for Kinetic, so ask your partner to show STP Phase 2 reporting in a demo.
Your payroll product has to handle three things that matter to manufacturers. The first is the Manufacturing and Associated Industries and Occupations Award, which covers metal work, vehicle manufacturing, rubber and plastics and associated industries, with penalty rates and allowances set out in Fair Work pay guides (Fair Work Ombudsman, no date shown). The second is STP Phase 2, which requires gross pay to be split into components such as overtime, allowances and paid leave (ATO, 12 Nov 2025). The third is Payday Super, which from 1 July 2026 requires super guarantee contributions to be paid with each pay run and to reach the employee’s fund within seven business days (ATO, 10 Aug 2026).
Ask each partner to show how labour time recorded against operations in the ERP reaches your payroll system, and how payroll costs flow back to jobs and the general ledger.
What each costs in Australia
Neither vendor publishes a full Australian price list. Epicor’s vendor-supplied iStart profile gives an indicative cloud price from approximately $150 per user per month, depending on modules, with cloud subscriptions covering software, maintenance, support and hosting, and on-premises licences priced per concurrent user with annual maintenance as a percentage of the licence (iStart, April 2026). ERP Research estimates Epicor Kinetic at US$100 to US$200 per user per month plus a base platform fee of about US$1,500 per month, with mid-market implementations typically between US$100,000 and US$400,000 (ERP Research, 2026, no specific date shown). Treat these US dollar estimates as a starting point only.
Oracle does not publish NetSuite list prices. Annexa, a NetSuite partner, states that there is no price list and that cost depends on edition, users, modules and service tier (Annexa, updated 21 Sep 2026). Klugo, another NetSuite partner, publishes analysis-phase rates of $150 to $250 per hour, minimum subscription terms of 12 months and self-service user licences at one-fifth of the cost of a full user (Klugo, checked 6 Oct 2026). For more detail, see our NetSuite pricing guide for Australia and our assessment of whether NetSuite is worth it.
| Cost item | Oracle NetSuite | Epicor Kinetic |
|---|---|---|
| Published price | None; partner quote only | From approx. $150 per user per month (vendor-supplied profile) |
| Licence basis | Edition, named users, modules, service tier | Platform core, cloud package, concurrent users |
| Manufacturing add-ons | Advanced Manufacturing and Quality Management SuiteApps | Advanced MES, QMS, PLM sold as named products |
| Payroll | Separate Australian product required | Separate Australian product expected |
Implementation and Australian partners
Epicor’s iStart profile names five Australian partners: Precise Business Solutions, Biscit, SoftLabs, Stratus Consulting Group and Rohling (iStart, April 2026). OneKloudX, an Australasian consultancy, announced an Epicor partnership covering implementation, sales and managed support in February 2026 (Australian Manufacturing, 3 Feb 2026). Pronto Software, a competitor, states that Epicor ANZ support is delivered through partners and varies with the partner engaged (Pronto Software, 4 Aug 2026). The pool is small, so check each partner’s Kinetic cloud references in your industry and the depth of its local consultants.
NetSuite has a larger Australian partner market, including Annexa, Klugo and Jcurve Solutions, alongside Oracle’s own services team. A larger pool helps on price and availability, but manufacturing experience varies widely. Ask NetSuite partners for Australian manufacturing references that went live with Advanced Manufacturing, not only with assemblies and work orders. Our NetSuite implementation guide for Australia covers timelines and common failure points.
Our independent take
For a manufacturer where production scheduling, machine data and job costing drive profit, Epicor Kinetic is the stronger starting point, because that depth comes from Epicor’s own product family rather than add-ons. For a business that manufactures but also distributes, sells online and runs several entities, NetSuite is usually the better platform, and its Advanced Manufacturing SuiteApp now covers finite scheduling and shop floor capture for moderate complexity. In both cases, your Australian payroll will sit in a separate system, and the quality of your local partner will matter as much as the software.
Give both vendors the same demonstration script: one real job with its routing, a schedule change after a machine breakdown, a quality failure, and a month-end close across your entities.
Australian buyer scenarios
Precision engineering, Adelaide, 120 staff. A defence and mining components supplier runs high-mix, low-volume jobs with long routings, CNC machines and first-article inspection. Scheduling changes daily and margins depend on accurate job costing. Epicor Kinetic is the better fit, with Advanced MES and QMS in scope from the start. The firm should budget for a separate payroll system covering Manufacturing Award penalty rates.
Food and beverage brand, Melbourne, 200 staff and three entities. The business makes batches in one plant, sells to supermarkets and online, and operates a New Zealand subsidiary. Consolidation, ecommerce and demand planning matter more than machine data. NetSuite fits better, with the Advanced Manufacturing and Quality Management SuiteApps added for batch production and inspection. Our guide to multi-entity ERP in Australia covers the consolidation requirements.
Fabricated metals, Brisbane, 60 staff, on Epicor 10 on-premises. The business faces Epicor’s 2028 on-premises cut-off and is weighing a move to Kinetic in the cloud against a switch to NetSuite. If its processes rely on nesting and configured products, staying with Epicor and moving to Kinetic Public Cloud or Custom Cloud keeps that capability and the existing data model. A switch to NetSuite makes sense only if the business wants to standardise on a broader cloud suite and can live without native nesting.
When NetSuite is not the right choice
NetSuite is a weaker fit if your competitive advantage depends on detailed shop floor control, machine integration, nesting or complex product configuration, because those needs push you towards SuiteApps, third-party products and partner development. It is also unsuitable if you need an on-premises or dedicated cloud deployment, or if you want control over when upgrades happen. Budget planning is harder because Oracle publishes no price list. As with Epicor, you will run Australian payroll in a separate product.
When Epicor is not the right choice
Epicor Kinetic is a weaker fit for a small manufacturer with simple assembly and a lean finance team, because its depth brings more configuration, training and partner effort than the business may need. It is also a weaker fit if your priority is multi-entity consolidation, ecommerce and subscription billing rather than production. The Australian partner pool is smaller than NetSuite’s, so your choice of partner carries more risk. Australian payroll is not documented on Epicor’s local functionality page, so budget for payroll integration until Epicor confirms otherwise. If you still run Epicor on-premises, you need a cloud migration plan before support ends in 2029.
Head-to-head summary
| Criteria | Oracle NetSuite | Epicor Kinetic |
|---|---|---|
| Best suited to | Multi-entity businesses with moderate manufacturing | Manufacturers with complex production |
| Deployment | Multi-tenant cloud only; Sydney and Melbourne | Public Cloud, Custom Cloud; on-premises until 2028 releases end |
| GST and BAS | Tax Reporting Framework with APAC SuiteApp | GST, BAS, tax box report, PTRS, eInvoicing listed |
| Australian payroll | Not available; SuitePeople Payroll is US-only | Not documented on Australian functionality page |
| Published pricing | None | Indicative from approx. $150 per user per month |
| Australian partners | Larger pool | Smaller pool plus Epicor ANZ offices |
How we evaluated
We compared the two products on the criteria that decide manufacturing ERP projects in Australia: production planning and scheduling, shop floor data capture, quality, deployment and upgrade control, GST and BAS support, payroll and award handling, published pricing and the local partner market. We relied first on vendor documentation and Australian government sources, then on partner and independent material, and we name partners and competitors where they are the source. Where a vendor publishes nothing on a capability, we say so and mark the point for verification. Neither Oracle nor Epicor paid for or reviewed this article, and we do not name an overall winner.
Frequently asked questions
NetSuite vs Epicor: which is better for manufacturing?
Epicor Kinetic is usually better for manufacturers with complex production, because it includes Advanced MES, advanced scheduling, a configurator and nesting within its own product family. NetSuite is usually better for businesses where manufacturing is one part of a wider operation that needs multi-entity consolidation, distribution and ecommerce on a single cloud ledger. NetSuite’s Advanced Manufacturing SuiteApp now provides finite scheduling and shop floor data capture for moderate complexity.
What is the best ERP for manufacturers?
There is no single best ERP for every manufacturer. Production complexity, entity structure, deployment needs and payroll approach decide the fit. For Australian mid-market manufacturers, Epicor Kinetic and NetSuite are common shortlist choices, alongside MYOB Acumatica, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and Pronto Xi. Our guide to the best ERP for Australian manufacturers compares the wider field.
Does Epicor or NetSuite include Australian payroll?
Neither vendor documents native Australian payroll. NetSuite SuitePeople Payroll supports the United States only, and Epicor’s Australian functionality page does not list payroll or STP. Plan for a separate payroll product that handles STP Phase 2, the Manufacturing Award and Payday Super.
Can I still buy Epicor Kinetic on-premises?
Epicor still lists on-premises and hybrid deployment, but it will release its final on-premises Kinetic version in January 2028 and end active support on 31 December 2029 (CIO.com, 7 Jan 2026). A new project should be planned for Epicor’s cloud.
How much does Epicor Kinetic cost in Australia?
Epicor’s vendor-supplied profile gives an indicative price from approximately $150 per user per month depending on modules (iStart, April 2026). Implementation is quoted separately, and ERP Research estimates typical mid-market projects at US$100,000 to US$400,000. Confirm both figures with an Australian partner quote.
Sources
Every figure and claim in this article traces to one of these. Pages without a visible date are marked with the date we checked them. Partner and competitor sources are labelled because those firms sell software.
- Epicor, Kinetic product page (Australia), checked 6 October 2026. epicor.com
- Epicor, Epicor Financials country-specific functionality: Australia, checked 6 October 2026. epicor.com
- iStart, ERP Buyers Guide 2025-26: Epicor Kinetic (vendor-supplied profile), April 2026. istart.com.au
- CIO.com, Epicor sets timeline to sunset on-prem ERP, 7 January 2026. cio.com
- 2W Tech, Epicor Kinetic Custom Cloud FAQ, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. Epicor partner. 2wtech.com
- ERP Research, Epicor Kinetic modules, 2026, no specific date shown. erpresearch.com
- ERP Research, Epicor costs and price list, 2026, no specific date shown. erpresearch.com
- Australian Manufacturing, ANZ manufacturers to benefit as OneKloudX partners with Epicor, 3 February 2026. australianmanufacturing.com.au
- Pronto Software, Pronto Xi and Epicor comparison, 4 August 2026. Competing ERP vendor. pronto.net
- Oracle NetSuite Help, Manufacturing Overview, checked 6 October 2026. docs.oracle.com
- Oracle NetSuite Help, Advanced Manufacturing Overview, checked 6 October 2026. docs.oracle.com
- Oracle NetSuite Help, Scheduling Work Orders, checked 6 October 2026. docs.oracle.com
- Oracle NetSuite Help, Business Activity Statement, checked 6 October 2026. docs.oracle.com
- Oracle NetSuite Help, SuitePeople Payroll country support, checked 30 August 2026. docs.oracle.com
- Oracle NetSuite, Quality Management datasheet, 2024. netsuite.com
- Oracle NetSuite, data centre datasheet, 2025. netsuite.com
- Annexa, How much does NetSuite cost in Australia and New Zealand, updated 21 September 2026. NetSuite partner. annexa.com.au
- Klugo, NetSuite price calculators, checked 6 October 2026. NetSuite partner. klugo.au
- ATO, About Payday Super, 10 August 2026. ato.gov.au
- ATO, STP Phase 2 employer reporting guidelines, disaggregation of gross, 12 November 2025. ato.gov.au
- ATO, How to lodge your BAS, 24 April 2026. ato.gov.au
- ATO, About eInvoicing, 7 July 2026. ato.gov.au
- Fair Work Ombudsman, Manufacturing and Associated Industries and Occupations Award summary, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. fairwork.gov.au