In the fast-paced and complex world of manufacturing and reselling, speed and accuracy are paramount. Complex products, variable pricing, and endless customization options often slow down sales operations and frustrate buyers, causing cart abandonment. That’s where Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ) software comes in. It is a robust tool that can automate configuration, streamline pricing, and expedite the quoting process to close deals faster.
In this article, we will explore the 7 best CPQ software for manufacturers and resellers. Furthermore, you can also learn about Visual CPQ and 3D CPQ, advanced technologies that transform how teams sell highly modular, made-to-order, complicated products.
Right now, let’s dive into it with our experts!
What is CPQ Software?
CPQ stands for the three core functionalities the software performs:
- Configure
It enables users (e.g., sales representatives, designers, sellers, and customers) to design, build, or customize a product tailored to their needs. To ensure technical compatibility and manufacturability, the platform feature always adheres to predefined product logic.
- Price
The CPQ system automatically calculates the price and displays updated prices in real-time when you make changes to the product. This can range from simple pricing adjustments to more advanced calculations with complex pricing involving discounts, regional variations, customer-specific needs, and volume-based pricing. From that, sales teams and customers don't need to configure the price manually; instead, they can get instant prices to make faster, more informed decisions.
- Quote
The CPQ software generates quotes/ order summaries, as well as a Bill of Materials (BOMs), often including key details such as selected components, quantities, and prices. These are ready for your B2B/B2C client review, confirmation, and signature (if needed).
Visual CPQ & 3D CPQ: The Advanced Types of CPQ
While traditional CPQ software focuses on technical logic and pricing, manufacturers and resellers selling custom products often benefit from advanced visualization capabilities. Visual CPQ solutions address this need by allowing users to configure products interactively, see every change in real-time, and ensure a higher level of accuracy before production.
- 2D CPQ
This tool integrates static or dynamic 2D images of the product configuration within the quoting process. Customers can gain a clearer view of the product rather than just reading a description with text, especially for custom bags, clothing, and accessories.
- 3D CPQ
This is the ultimate in visual selling. 3D CPQ software enables 3D configuration, empowering users to configure and visualize a product from all angles in real-time while ensuring accurate price updates. This level of visualization is transformative for complex product designs, particularly those in the furniture, kitchen, and bath sectors, as well as retail display.
More importantly, customers and sales representatives can design, price, and quote their choices without the need for back-and-forth conversations to clarify each specification. All of these outstanding points make 3D CPQ one of the best CPQ software solutions, allowing businesses to deliver a faster, more engaging buying experience and perform error-free management activities.
Why do manufacturers and resellers need CPQ?
#1. Shorten the sales cycle for custom products
Selling custom items often involves numerous configurations, design options, and pricing variables, which can take a significant amount of time and effort to manage manually.
CPQ software streamlines this process by centralizing all configuration and pricing rules, ensuring every quote accurately reflects what can actually be built. Sales teams can quickly create accurate BOMs tailored to each customer’s design, saving time, reducing manual work, and accelerating the path from inquiry to order, thereby improving sales.
#2. Improve customer experiences and satisfaction
Buyers today expect a seamless, fast, and personalized shopping experience. Traditional CPQ tools and text-based product pages often make it hard for them to understand all the options. That’s when you need a visual CPQ software to enable immersive interactions.
Visual CPQ sales are particularly effective as customers can freely configure the product design and see precisely what they’re buying before making an official order. Even when the software is built with augmented reality (AR), customers can try the design in a real space, like an office, home, or store, to determine whether it will fit and meet their needs.
In fact, many kitchen design brands utilize visual CPQ to enable customers to personalize kitchen items, such as cabinets or storage solutions, for their dream kitchens. This makes them feel more engaged and satisfied, which in turn drives higher conversion rates.
#3. Sell highly-modular, complex products
For products such as shelves or retail displays, meeting every buyer’s unique needs can easily result in designs that are technically impossible or inefficient to produce. This often leads to delays, errors, and costly rework for both sales teams and customers.
With CPQ software that features rule-based product configuration, you can prevent incompatible selections and ensure that every configuration is manufacturable. Resultly, your team can minimize production errors and build greater trust with your customers.
#4. Gain a core differentiator in the competitive industry
Providing a fast, error-free experience is your competitive advantage. While competitors take days to reply to something, a CPQ-enabled business can finish it in minutes. This speed and professionalism position your business as a modern and trustworthy partner.
Which CPQ Software is Best For the Manufacturing Sector and Resellers?
Choosing the best CPQ software requires a strategic evaluation of your specific business needs, particularly those related to product complexity and sales channels. Let’s see:
Identify the type of CPQ software your brands need
If your products are primarily functional or have low complexity (e.g., standard industrial components), a traditional CPQ focused on pure logic and pricing can be a great option.
However, if your products are:
- Highly customizable (e.g., machinery, furniture).
- Aesthetically significant (e.g., architectural products).
- Complex to assemble or configure.
Then, a Visual CPQ (2D or 3D) is likely the better investment. The ability to see the exact configuration before purchase drastically reduces ordering errors and buyer's remorse.
Evaluate the ability of CPQ to improve your sales process
Most CPQ software is created to transform the sales process from reactive to proactive. Therefore, whether you want to choose the best CPQ software for enterprise or startups, let’s take a look at their ability to offer the following perspectives to have the best results:
- Pre-built product logics & rule-based configuration
- Real-time pricing and automated quoting
- Analytics and reporting
- Guided selling for personalized recommendations
Consider integrating CPQ into your current system
Your software CPQ should also work well with your other back-end systems, such as:
- eCommerce platforms like Shopify, WooCommerce, and Magento;
- ERP integration to synchronize data on materials, pricing, and inventory.
- CRM software to align customer insights and sales data in one place.
These integrations with your CPQ solution are key for creating a unified digital sales ecosystem where every department, from sales to production, works with the same accurate data in real-time.
7 Best CPQ Software: Breakdown into CPQ, 2D CPQ, 3D CPQ
CPQ
#1. Salesforce CPQ
Undoubtedly, Salesforce CPQ is one of the best CPQ software for enterprises. It can integrate with Salesforce CRM, allowing real-time pricing updates, automated approvals, and powerful analytics. If you are already managing your client profiles with Salesforce CRM without considering the high level of visualization, Salesforce CPS is a great choice.
Customers: Aryaka, Mindtree, Rochester, OneStep, RMSI, Infosys, Mirketa, and PwC.
Pricing: Starts at $75 per user/month
Why choose Salesforce CPQ
- Native to the Salesforce ecosystem, ensuring smooth data with Sales Cloud.
- Handle complex pricing models, discounts, and subscription products.
- Highly customizable for enterprise-level sales processes and approval workflows.
- Offer AI-powered insights and recommendations based on historical quoting data.
#2 Oracle CPQ
Oracle CPQ Cloud (formerly BigMachines) is part of the Oracle Cloud ecosystem. It guides your sales reps and channel partners in choosing the best solutions for clients. Moreover, you can deploy it stand-alone or integrate it with other CRM, eCommerce, Service, and ERP systems to provide clients with omni-channel customer experiences.
Customers: ESCO Corporation, FIS, Zamil Industrial - KSA, Synopsys, and Answernet.
Pricing: Custom
Why choose Oracle CPQ
- Scalable for large enterprises with complex product lines.
- Support international sales teams in multiple languages and currencies.
- Enable powerful guided selling and approval automation to speed up quoting
#3. Zoura CPQ
Zoura CPQ stands out because it can quote any combination of products, services, and subscriptions with recurring revenue models. That’s why it has become a go-to choice for most manufacturers offering maintenance or service packages alongside physical items.
Customers: Zendesk, Ubisoft, Gainsight, Box, Avalara, BigCommerce, and Zoom.
Pricing: Tier-based pricing available upon request.
Why choose Zoura CPQ
- Excel in the complexities of recurring revenue, billing, and contract management.
- Seamless quote-to-cash automation and usage-based pricing.
- Guide sales reps through complex deal arrangements.
2D CPQ
#4. Logik CPQ
This is a next-generation CPQ solution that is natively built on the Salesforce platform. This CPQ platform offers advanced functions, such as pricing optimization, guided selling, and image-based visualization for complex configurations. Moreover, its user-friendly interface empowers sales teams to create accurate quotes quickly, driving sales results and revenue growth.
Customers: CORT, Keysight, Tuff Shed, PowerSchool, Lamons, and Club Car.
Pricing: Custom
Why choose Logik CPQ
- Work well with Salesforce to target the best CPQ software for most businesses.
- Have an advanced logic engine to handle complex combinations.
- Offer 2D visualization for guided selling.
- Stands out with a more user-friendly interface than Salesforce CPQ.
#5. PROS Smart CPQ
PROS Smart CPQ focuses on AI-driven price optimization and automation. It’s designed for users to effortlessly find and bundle products with a rich, multi-channel catalog. Customers can also compare options, get 2D views, and create personalized bundles.
Customers: HP, Levova, Honeywell, and ABB.
Pricing: Starts from $60 per user/month
Why choose PROS Smart CPQ
- Advanced pricing management and high-performance quoting for larger deals.
- Integrate seamlessly with Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Salesforce.
- Enable collaborative quoting among sales teams, customers, and stakeholders.
- Apply rules and constraints to minimize incompatible product selections.
3D CPQ
#6. VividWorks CPQ
VividWorks CPQ is considered one of the best Visual CPQ software for 3D visualizations and 3D configurators. Many manufacturers, resellers, and B2B and B2C businesses partnered with this provider to bring complex designs, such as sofas, shelves, storage solutions, retail displays, and cabinets, to life, providing their buyers with immersive experiences. Additionally, VividWorks integrates AR technology into its CPQ software, enabling customers to visualize their desired products in their own space by scanning a QR code with their mobile phones.
Customers: Lundia, Montana, Grand + Benedicts, Frontier Sankyo, New Works, and more.
Pricing: Starting from €597/month & a custom plan for enterprise.
Why choose VividWorks CPQ
- Combine 3D visualization and AR simulation to enhance the buying journey.
- Built on rule-based logic to prevent invalid configurations.
- Dynamic pricing and quoting as the customer makes design changes.
- Easy scalability for complex, massive product catalogs.
- Work well with ERP, CRM, and eCommerce platforms for data synchronization.
- Expand configuration capabilities with 3D room planning.
- Dedicated customer support with experienced professionals across industries.
#7. KBmax (Epicor CPQ)
KBMax CPQ is another player in the 3D CPQ category. It offers a visual product configuration ability in 2D/ 3D, and automatically creates CAD drawings and BOMs to minimize manual work. However, customization options are limited, often to selecting colors, shapes, or sizes.
Customers: Graceland, FHC, CMTP, Van Wijnen, Repligen, Timberlane, and NanaWall.
Pricing: Custom
Why choose KBMax CPQ
- Offers 3D/2D visualization with engineering-level accuracy.
- Allows for AR configuration for immersive experiences.
- Integrates seamlessly with CAD, ERP, and CRM systems.
Conclusion
Last but not least, there isn’t a single best CPQ software for every business- your choice should depend on product complexity and type, sales processes, and customer needs. Book a demo with VividWorks to discover how our Visual CPQ solutions can support complex personalization requirements, transform sales, and build a competitive edge.
Otherwise, read our customer success stories to see how leading businesses use CPQ!
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