January 2, 2021

Best 5 Software Inventory Tools 2023

You can do much better than using your spreadsheet software to track software assets. Today, there’s no shortage of sophisticated software inventory tools that make software asset discovery and tracking a piece of cake. In this article, we explain what software inventory is, go over some of the most significant advantages of using software inventory tools for software inventory management, and, finally, present our top 5 favorite software inventory tools.
Editor’s choice 2019
Network Inventory Advisor
Automatically collect all relevant data on all network devices and get detailed OS and devices statistics.
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Network Inventory Advisor for Windows scans Windows, Mac OS X, Linux computers and SNMP devices, any of them will count as a node.

Software inventory management tools are often confused with inventory management software. Whereas software inventory management is part of IT asset management, inventory management is an element of supply chain management. It is the management of inventory and stock, including aspects such as controlling and overseeing ordering inventory, storage of inventory, and others.

What Is Software Inventory?

A software inventory consists of all the software and applications used within an IT environment. The process of keeping a record of a software inventory is called software inventory management.

“Along with hardware inventory management, software inventory management is part of IT asset management, enabling the recording of various data related to software installations. ”

Along with hardware inventory management, software inventory management is part of IT asset management, enabling the recording of various data related to software installations. A typical software inventory management process keeps a record of the number of software installations, corresponding installation dates, the type of software installed, expiry and license renewal dates, and sometimes even the total monetary worth of the installed software.

What Are the Advantages of Software Inventory Management?

Software inventory management is the answer to the growing complexity of the software market. With the proliferation of cloud-based enterprise software solutions and subscription-based licensing models, even relatively small companies often find it difficult to keep track of their software assets.

A failure to comply with license agreements may prompt a software audit, which may have far-reaching consequences. Instead of risking a software audit, it makes sense to invest into a robust software inventory management solution capable of automating the entire process of software asset tracking.

Some of the best software inventory tools have integrated software monitoring capabilities that allow them to automatically detect and track all software installations within an IT environment. Most software monitoring tools can generate detailed reports and send alerts in case of incoming software license expirations.

As such, software inventory tools should be an integral part of any wider IT asset management strategy. A well-implemented software inventory management process can save the company a significant amount of time by automating what would otherwise be a time-consuming process that would most likely become a responsibility of the IT department.

What Are the Best Software Inventory Tools?

The market with software inventory tools is booming, and there’s no shortage of capable, reliable software inventory management solutions. Comparing many leading software inventory tools and taking into consideration the experience of other users, we’ve been able to create a list of top 5 best software inventory tools that you can try today.

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choice #1
4.9
#1 • Editor choice
Network Inventory Advisor
Professional Network Inventory
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Runs on Windows. Scans Windows, Mac OS X, Linux computers and SNMP devices.
Network Inventory Advisor is a comprehensive software asset management solution that answers the needs of modern businesses and organizations with its combination of an easy-to-use user interface and powerful asset discovery, tracking, and reporting features.

Network Inventory Advisor is designed to be the backbone of your IT asset management, helping you keep track not only of your software but also your hardware assets. Network Inventory Advisor can aggregate the information about software products from more than 500 major vendors, including Microsoft, and Adobe, just to name a few.
Hardware Inventory
Best of all, Network Inventory Advisor can be tested for free for up to 15 days. Only when you experience first-hand how well it works and how significantly it can simplify the management of your software licenses, it becomes necessary to decide which Network Inventory Advisor license is right for you.
Editor’s choice 2019
Network Inventory Advisor
Automatically collect all relevant data on all network devices and get detailed OS and devices statistics.
Download for Windows
Network Inventory Advisor for Windows scans Windows, Mac OS X, Linux computers and SNMP devices, any of them will count as a node.
choice #2
4.5
#2 • Author rank
AssetExplorer
ManageEngine AssetExplorer is a web-based IT asset management solution that you can use to discover all IT assets in your network and manage the complete IT asset lifecycle. AssetExplorer can handle software license management, purchase order management, and many other things.
Assetexplorer
The software is available in three editions: free, trial, and professional. Part of AssetExplorer is a Configuration Management Database (CMDB), which lets you manage software installations and IT and business services in a single place.
choice #3
4.2
#3 • Author rank
Snipe-IT
Snipe-IT is an excellent step-up from managing software assets with the help of an Excel spreadsheet. This simple software asset management solution is designed with the finance department in mind, offering the ability to export assets to a CSV file. Select employees can get permissions to view and download reports within Snipe-IT without being able to edit assets.
Snipe-IT
Snipe-IT is an open source software management solution that is completely free if you host it yourself. If you’d rather let someone else take care of the installation and maintenance of Snipe-IT, you can select from several available Snipe-IT hosting solutions.
choice #4
4.2
#4 • Author rank
Asset Panda
Asset Panda is a cloud-hosted asset tracking solution with helpful customer support, flexible features, and unlimited configurability. Asset Panda can be quickly and painlessly integrated with existing asset tracking systems and adapted to suit a variety of different needs. Asset Panda can be accessed through an always-available online interface or a convenient mobile app.
Asset Panda
The software is suitable for businesses and organizations of all sizes, and the pricing structure and hardware and software compatibility reflect this.
choice #5
4.0
#5 • Author rank
InvGate Assets
InvGate’s IT asset management (ITAM) solution makes it possible to track both software and hardware assets in a centralized way, providing continuous and automated monitoring to support high-level company decision-making. InvGate Assets provides detailed information on software licenses, their value, expiry, and other things, ensuring compliance with license agreements.
InvGateAssets
With the InvGate Software Metering tool integrated into the product, InvGate Assets can help you optimize software use across your company and deploy software assets where they are needed the most.
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Editor’s choice 2019

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Network Inventory Advisor for Windows scans Windows, Mac OS X, Linux computers and SNMP devices, any of them will count as a node.