TMS/WMS — comparison & selection

How transport and warehouse management systems differ, and when each is needed

Rough recommendation: Excel/Sheets — sufficient for now

Active trips per day

SKUs in warehouse

Pallet spaces

TMS (Transport Management)

Trip planning, carrier selection, tracking, documents, carrier settlements. Needed from ~15–20 active trucks/orders per day.

WMS (Warehouse Management)

Address storage, receiving/picking/shipping, inventory, scanner integration. Needed from ~3–5k SKUs or >1000 pallet spaces.

ERP logistics module

Logistics inside ERP — for companies where logistics isn't core and processes are simple.

Excel + Google Sheets

Up to ~5–10 trips/day is realistically manageable in sheets. First breaking point — version desync and no real-time status.

E-com specialized WMS

Fast single-order picking, zone picking, marketplace integration — different logic than pallet warehouses.

TMS manages movement, WMS manages location. Often both with integration. WMS on an unstandardized warehouse first needs an address system and barcoding — the system won't launch without it.