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A warehouse management system improves your eCommerce business by helping your team pick, pack and ship more items faster. It also provides real-time visibility into your supply chain to give you a full picture at any moment.If you want to learn more about warehouse management systems, you’ve come to the right place. Read on for a complete guide on warehouse management systems in 2023.
Warehouse management is the process of overseeing all operations and activities in a warehouse. This generally includes receiving, picking, packing and shipping goods, planning workloads, training staff and handling customer returns.While warehouse management is barely visible to customers, it’s integral to ensure goods are delivered on time. Good warehouse management ensures every activity is run as efficiently as possible, from maximizing inventory storage to organizing goods for easy picking to ensuring returns are handled professionally.However, running a warehouse can be costly, especially for smaller eCommerce businesses. Instead of managing their own warehouses, they sometimes hire third-party logistics (3PL) companies. Outsourcing warehouse operations helps eCommerce businesses focus on expansion and sales instead of spending considerable time and resources to manage inventory and take customer orders.
A warehouse management system (WMS) is software that assists you in the warehouse management process. A warehouse management system gives you real-time updates on your inventory levels, warehouse team productivity and order fulfillment progress.Warehouse management systems are essential for managers because they can use them to gauge work performance and spot improvement areas. They also provide managers with the data and reports to make informed business decisions.The best warehouse management systems assist your company with five key processes:
One of the primary purposes of a warehouse is to receive and store inventory items from a manufacturer or distributor. Warehouse management systems let you scan and organize each new item upon arrival and storage, so you’ll know which items have arrived and where they're stored.
Inventory tracking ensures you get real-time updates on your stock levels. This helps in determining how many items you can sell and whether you should order more items based on accurate forecasts of consumer demand.As your eCommerce business grows, inventory tracking will become even more important because you may handle hundreds of goods and dozens of different product types simultaneously. Manual inventory tracking is more prone to human error and may result in costly mistakes.
When employees pick and pack items, they take the goods from warehouse shelves and pack them for shipping. Warehouse management systems can generate picking lists that instruct your warehouse team to pick items as efficiently as possible.Your warehouse management system also automatically generates shipping labels, which packers attach to products after packing them.
Warehouse management solutions let you track the shipping progress in real time. You can also show the shipping progress to customers so they know where their items are at any time.
Your warehouse management system should provide advanced reporting features that cover order fulfillment accuracy, staff inventory forecasting and warehouse expenses. Automating report creation means you don’t have to spend much time gathering data. Instead, you can immediately use the insights from these reports to improve your warehouse operations.
Warehouse management systems are useful for any company that operates a warehouse, regardless of industry. Here are examples of industries that can benefit greatly from WMS:
Manufacturers need to have good warehouse management systems because they have complicated warehouse operations that may involve combining multiple materials into new goods.A WMS can help manufacturers track each material as they’re sent in for processing and alert the staff to reorder when stocks are running low to keep production running. The system can also regulate production line speed based on consumer demand forecasts, preventing overstock or understock.
Managing a retail chain is challenging because you operate multiple stock rooms in each store. A warehouse management system helps retail business managers by tracking items as they move from your main warehouse to individual stores. It also monitors stock levels in each store and puts orders in whenever an item is running low in stock.
Food and beverage warehousing is trickier than most because products often need to be stored at specific temperatures and have expiration dates. A WMS for F&B manages shelf placement to ensure everything is stored in its appropriate places. It also regulates picking and packing to guarantee all items shipped don’t expire before they reach store shelves.
Warehouse management is at the core of every third-party logistics company, and they need a warehouse management system to excel in their job. Many 3PLs use adaptable warehouse management software to meet the various demands of their clients and juggle multiple warehouse operations simultaneously.Some third-party logistics companies even choose a baseline warehouse management system and develop their own modules according to their needs, creating client-specific dashboards tailored to every job.
You should use a WMS because manual warehouse management is prone to human error, especially if you run a large eCommerce business.Here are five other reasons why you should use a WMS:
Warehouse management systems improve your inventory management by monitoring its levels, increasing pick and pack efficiency and improving order fulfillment processes. By automating these various inventory management processes, you’ll get all the information needed to run your warehouse smoothly without spending precious time asking around or looking for data.
While customers don’t directly interact with your warehouse, it plays a big part in their satisfaction. Smooth warehouse operations with the help of a WMS means customers receive orders quickly and accurately. Even if their item is defective, a good WMS can help you handle product returns to ensure customers get their replacement goods quickly.
The right warehouse management software improves your sales and order processing speed without adding new warehouse staff. This means you can process more items and sell more products without a considerable increase in cost, ultimately improving your profit margins.
Warehouse inventory management systems generate reports on essential warehouse performance parameters like order accuracy, orders fulfilled and staff efficiency. By analyzing these reports, your management team can develop plans to improve your eCommerce business further down the road.
In addition to keeping up with customer demand, businesses must also follow local regulations and rules. A good WMS should give you the tools necessary to stay compliant with these regulations by recording real-time data, making your company easier to audit.
Warehouse management systems work by monitoring and automating key warehousing processes. Here’s a look at how warehouse management systems help you in those areas:
Tracking the goods that enter and exit your warehouse is one of the primary functions of a WMS. For incoming items, the WMS will register them in the system and send the products to the appropriate shelf or container for storage.For outgoing items, the WMS will show you which shipping service is delivering the products and provide real-time tracking information. The WMS can also show the tracking information to the customer, so they know when their products will arrive.
A WMS helps you track and manage physical inventory levels in the warehouse. When inventory stock starts to get low, the WMS can notify you to order more from the distributor or supplier before stock runs out.
When a customer order comes in, your warehouse crew picks and packs the items to get them ready for shipping. Warehouse management systems create picklists to help your team pick items faster. The WMS also creates shipping labels, so the items can be ready for shipping as soon as they’re packed.
Real-time warehouse reporting is one of the greatest strengths of a WMS. You can easily get insights into your warehouse's operation by generating real-time reports. Instead of spending hours gathering data, you can immediately use this information to make informed decisions and improve your warehouse team’s performance.
While it may be a considerable investment, a warehouse management system pays for itself in many ways. Here are eight great benefits you’ll get by implementing a WMS:
Inventory control involves managing your warehouse’s inventory levels to prevent understock and overstock. Automating inventory control through a warehouse management system means you don’t have to spend time checking inventory levels regularly. Instead, your system will notify you when it’s time to order new products.
Transparency and traceability are essential for both businesses and customers. Tracking where products are in real-time allows you to identify bottlenecks and delays in the supply chain. On the customer side, real-time product tracking ensures they know when their items are arriving.Some product safety regulations also require your goods to be easily traceable to prevent fraud and counterfeiting. From a safety standpoint, knowing where a product comes from and where it’s going also makes product recalls easier when necessary.
The relationship might not be immediately clear, but a warehouse management system contributes to customer service. Your WMS gives you real-time updates on how many items are in stock and which ones are out of stock, which means customers likely won’t order something that’s out of stock. Warehouse management improvements help you ship products quicker, satisfying your customers’ demands for fast deliveries.
There are many tasks in your warehouses or distribution centers, like picking and packing orders, loading trucks and handling returns. Your WMS can create these tasks and assign them to the relevant employees immediately based on where they are in the warehouse. Your software’s task management features also prevent workers from walking from one end of the warehouse to another when completing their work by assigning them to well-defined work zones, increasing overall warehouse efficiency.
Containerization is when you merge multiple individual shipments into a single container to ship together. You can save on shipping costs by sending multiple items in one big batch. Your WMS assists in containerization by choosing which items go into which container, ensuring they stack well and nothing gets crushed or damaged in transit.
A warehouse management system increases the overall order processing and fulfillment speed by making product picking, packing and shipping more efficient. You can deliver more items to more people by increasing order speed, increasing total revenue and customer satisfaction.
Without a WMS, you may need to create shipping labels manually, which takes a lot of time and effort. A warehouse management system can automatically generate shipping labels, so your warehouse team only needs to attach them to packages before sending them to the carrier.
Labor management features provided by a WMS track your warehouse staff performance in real time, giving you insights into how your team works. Tracking labor lets you identify possible logistics bottlenecks, pinpoint improvement areas and learn which employees may need extra training to succeed.
There are four warehouse management system types, each with unique benefits and drawbacks. Here’s a look at each WMS type:
A standalone warehouse management system is the most basic WMS in this list because it only offers warehouse management features and nothing else. A standalone WMS is usually installed on-premise, meaning the vendor will come to your warehouse and install a physical server for the WMS.Standalone warehouse inventory management software is typically the most affordable due to its limited features, but it may not be enough if you need extra functionality from your WMS. Standalone warehouse management systems are best for businesses without a large software budget and limited warehousing needs.
A cloud-based warehouse management system means the vendor provides its services through the Internet without any physical on-premise installations. Cloud WMS users usually pay a subscription fee to use these services instead of an upfront expense, making them more affordable for new businesses without large premises.Cloud-based WMS is scalable, meaning you can pay for extra accounts and features if necessary. It’s also easier to update since the vendor can do it online. However, as with most cloud-based services, you need a strong and stable Internet connection to make the most out of a cloud-based WMS.
ERP (enterprise resource planning) is a software bundle that merges numerous business functions like accounting, inventory and human resources in one package. It’s a good choice if you want to merge all your company information into one dashboard that’s accessible by all employees.While ERP systems often have a warehousing or inventory management module, it’s not the system’s core functionality. Additionally, implementing ERP is often expensive and time-consuming, so you may be better off implementing dedicated warehouse management software if you can’t commit to full ERP implementation.
Supply chain management systems work at a much broader scope than a WMS but generally still provide warehousing features. These modules work best for companies that work with numerous supply chains, like manufacturers and retail businesses.
Choosing the best WMS means picking the one that caters to all of your warehousing needs at a reasonable price. Here are five tips to help you pick the right WMS for your business.
You should first identify what you need out of warehouse inventory management software. Create a list of feature priorities based on your requirements as a guide when shopping for warehouse management systems. Don’t blindly follow the latest warehouse technology trends because what other companies need may not be what your company needs.
Ensure you have a budget before shopping for a warehouse management system. Search for popular WMS providers online, and estimate how much you’re willing to spend on the features you need.
These days, manual demand forecasting can be unreliable, and you may find yourself out of stock in periods of high demand or overstocked in periods of low demand. If your product demand fluctuates according to the seasons, it might pay to choose a WMS with demand forecasting. A warehouse management system’s demand forecasting can use historical sales to predict popular product demands, letting you increase or reduce orders based on the forecasts.
Purchasing a warehouse management system isn’t a one-and-done deal. You need to build a relationship with the vendor because they’ll provide technical support and apply updates regularly. To pick the right vendor, note how helpful their representatives are and how in tune they are with your needs and requirements.
When shopping for warehousing software solutions, make sure they provide you with room to grow. Ask your vendor representative about how much scalability and customizability their software has – this ensures it can meet your business needs even when your company grows.
A warehouse management system makes your warehouse processes more efficient through various features like automated reports, pick list generation and shipment tracking.While a good WMS offers many benefits, it’s often a major financial commitment, so you need to choose the right one before implementing it. To do so, you need to identify your company’s needs, define a budget and pick the right WMS provider that can scale with your business.
You can improve warehouse management by measuring your current performance and identifying areas for development. From there, you enhance your warehouse management by:
A WMS (warehouse management system) assists you in the warehouse management process by giving you real-time inventory updates, automatic report creation and demand forecasting, among other features.
The cost of a warehouse management system varies depending on the vendor and the features you choose. Expect to pay at least $1,500/month for an entry-level cloud warehousing system.
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The ShipHero Model Context Protocol (MCP) connects supported AI clients directly to your live ShipHero data, so warehouse teams can ask questions and get specific answers from their own account. It is built for day-to-day operational checks, including inventory levels, open orders, shipment status, holds, returns, purchase orders, and exceptions. For ShipHero customers, it is available at no additional charge and runs on existing API credits.
Every order, shipment, inventory movement, hold, return, and purchase order creates data inside ShipHero. Your warehouse information is right there, but getting to it can be a slow, complex process.
Before the ShipHero MCP, answering a specific operational question often meant logging in, finding the right report, applying the right filters, exporting data, or asking the one person on the team who knew where to look.
Even when the answer was simple, like a quick inventory check, it could turn into a 20 to 45 minute task. A customer question could sit half a day while someone pulled the right numbers. That delay adds friction to the floor. It slows decisions. It keeps teams waiting on data they already own.
The ShipHero MCP gives supported AI clients secure, read-only access to live ShipHero data.
That means operators can ask questions in plain English and get answers from their actual account, not from a generic help article or static knowledge base. A chatbot can tell you where to find a number. The ShipHero MCP can return the number itself.
It works with MCP-enabled AI clients, including Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, and Codex. Connect it once, authenticate access, and your team can start asking operational questions from the AI tool they already use.
The workflow is simple:
The MCP does not replace ShipHero. It makes the data inside ShipHero easier to reach when your team needs a fast answer.
The ShipHero MCP is designed for everyday operational questions, such as:
If the data lives in your ShipHero account, the MCP gives your team a faster way to ask for it.
Speed matters, but safety matters too.
The ShipHero MCP is read-only by design. It can retrieve information from your account, but it cannot create orders, modify records, delete data, or change warehouse settings.
That gives teams a practical way to use AI for operational visibility without risking accidental account changes. Operators can ask. Managers can check. 3PL teams can answer client questions faster.
The data becomes easier to use, while the records stay protected.
For founders, the MCP can turn a quick inventory check into a simple question.
For operations leads, it can surface shipment status, holds, exceptions, and low-stock SKUs without digging through reports.
For 3PL operators, it can help answer client questions faster, using live account data instead of manual follow-up.
The result is a faster way to reach the information already inside ShipHero.
The ShipHero MCP is available to all ShipHero customers at no additional charge. It runs on existing API credits, so specific questions help keep usage efficient.
To get started, visit developer.shiphero.com or contact your ShipHero account representative.
ShipHero MCP is a read-only connection between supported AI clients and your live ShipHero data. It lets users ask operational questions in plain English and receive answers from their actual ShipHero account.
A chatbot usually answers from fixed, generic information. ShipHero MCP connects to live account data, so it can return specific answers about your orders, shipments, inventory, holds, returns, and other ShipHero records.
ShipHero MCP works with AI clients that support the Model Context Protocol, including Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, and Codex.
No. ShipHero MCP is read-only. It can query data, but it cannot create, update, or delete records in your ShipHero account.
No. The MCP is built for operators and can be connected from a supported AI client in minutes. Developers may use more advanced tools for deeper analysis, but most day-to-day users can work directly with the MCP.
Yes. ShipHero MCP is available to ShipHero customers at no additional charge and runs on existing API credits.
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Transitioning to a new Warehouse Management System (WMS) is a high-stakes decision that often triggers concerns regarding downtime, data integrity, and workforce adaptation. As warehouses prepare for 2026 growth, understanding these common hurdles—and the technical solutions that resolve them—is essential for a successful migration. This guide addresses the five primary barriers to adoption and how a high-velocity infrastructure ensures a seamless transition.
Warehouse operators frequently hesitate to upgrade due to perceived risks that can halt operations. These challenges typically include:
To clear these hurdles, a structured implementation strategy is used to prioritize data density and entity clarity.
In the competitive eCommerce landscape, staying stagnant with manual workarounds is often more costly than the transition itself. Moving to a high-velocity WMS converts your warehouse from a cost center into a growth engine by providing Labor Efficiency and ROI through automated routing and reduced authentication friction.
Because the platform is built for the floor worker, features like Workforce Hero allow seasonal temps and new staff to be authenticated and productive in under an hour.
No. High-velocity infrastructure increases visibility by providing Total Real-Time Control. Managers can monitor exactly what is in the Hospital queue and track replenishment in real-time from a single dashboard.
Before going live, a ground-up audit is performed using cycle counting tools. The system's architecture ensures that every movement on the floor is synchronized with sales channels instantly, maintaining 99.9% accuracy.
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Picture a packer at Peak Season. A box is in front of them, a product in each hand, and somewhere on a cluttered desk there's a mouse they need to find to confirm the order. They look down. They hunt. They click. Then they do it again. Thousands of times a day.
That moment of friction is small. But it is never just one moment. Multiply it across your entire pack line, across an entire shift, and you are looking at a measurable and largely invisible drag on your total throughput.
Tap-to-Pack is a purpose-built hardware controller designed by ShipHero to eliminate digital friction at the packing station. It connects via USB-C, requires no drivers or additional software, and syncs automatically with the ShipHero WMS packing app. This new system is now available at the ShipHero Store.
Instead of navigating a screen with a keyboard and mouse, packers execute every high-frequency command — such as selecting box sizes, printing labels, finalizing orders, flagging exceptions — with a single physical tap on one of eight programmable buttons.
Key specifications:
Most warehouses are running 2026 operations on 1990s peripheral standards. The keyboard and mouse were designed for spreadsheets and emails, not high-volume fulfillment. When used at a packing station, they create three compounding problems:
The problem is not your people. It is the tools you are asking them to use.
Tap-to-Pack introduces a "Rodent-Free" packing standard: a workflow where the packer's hands stay on the product, their eyes stay on the work, and the software fades into the background.
The device guides the packer through two feedback systems:
ShipHero customers running Tap-to-Pack are already seeing a 90% reduction in on-screen interactions and a significant increase in the number of orders packed per hour, without adding headcount or changing their warehouse layout.
One of the hardest challenges in fulfillment is absorbing volume quickly, especially during Peak Season, when temporary staff need to reach target productivity fast.
Because Tap-to-Pack's interface is physical and intuitive, there is almost nothing to teach. Pick up the product, follow the light, tap the button. New packers can reach target productivity in minutes rather than hours.
The system is also modular:
Whether you are a growing DTC brand or a high-volume 3PL, Tap-to-Pack is designed so your hardware never becomes a ceiling on what your team can do.
Tap-to-Pack is a programmable, industrial-grade hardware controller that connects to the ShipHero WMS and allows warehouse packers to execute packing station commands, such as printing labels, selecting boxes, and completing orders. All with a single physical button press, eliminating the need for a keyboard and mouse.
The device connects via USB-C and syncs automatically with the ShipHero WMS packing app. It is a true plug-and-play solution: no drivers, no background software, and no manual configuration required.
Yes. Buttons are configurable for a range of packing actions, including Print Label, Complete Order, Select Box Size, and the Hospital function, which flags a problematic order and keeps the line moving without stopping to resolve it on screen.
The system is fully modular. Connect up to two additional 8-button hubs to the Main Hub for a total of 24 programmable buttons, supporting even the most complex multi-step packing workflows.
Tap-to-Pack devices require ShipHero Packing App v1.0 or higher. The current release is v1.1.0.
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