Essential quality management software buying information
Quality management software (QMS) is an enterprise platform that automates the process of tracking and controlling product defects, maintains documentation for audits, and helps ensure adherence to compliance and regulatory requirements.
Quality management software users are often production line employees, quality management specialists, and supervisors at companies producing goods. QMS can be used by service providers, such as information technology (IT), to track and manage the quality of their service.
“Businesses may be ready to invest in a quality management system when they find themselves struggling with unwieldy spreadsheets and digitized information that is hard to extract,” says Jim Rogers1, a veteran in construction management who currently develops and gives LinkedIn courses for construction professionals.
Most products in the QMS market are priced on a “per user, per month” basis and their entry level pricing for 1 to 9 users averages $315 per month. Mid-tier and premium QMS systems range from $829 to $1,099 per user, per month.2
First-time buyers should start their evaluation with a set budget, number of users, specific use cases, and necessary integrations in mind. Partner with key stakeholders on a list of critical questions to help when evaluating systems, such as:
Which quality check and corrective action tasks can this system automate?
How can we use this tool’s dashboards to better visualize and track the rate of defects?
How easy is it to add customizable fields and workflows to accommodate our specific industry?
What level of technical support will I need from the QMS provider?
Does this tool use artificial intelligence to deliver personalized corrective action or quality management recommendations? If so, how?
What are the most reviewed quality management systems?
Capterra Shortlist identifies the top quality management systems based on a proprietary blend of user ratings and popularity, helping small businesses efficiently find the most effective quality management solution for their needs.3 Here are the five most-reviewed products in our Capterra Shortlist for this category:
These rankings are determined by combining verified user ratings and publicly available web search popularity data:
Ratings score: Relative score of the software based on ratings given by users on Capterra, normalized for number and recency of reviews.
Popularity score: Relative popularity of software based on web search trends and products’ web presence.
What is quality management software?
Quality management software helps users identify, isolate, and correct unforeseen defects in products that could result in failure to fulfill customer needs. It also provides the tools to evaluate the effectiveness of repair attempts and aids in maintaining product compliance as per international regulations. Managers can use the software to check the final quality and ensure improvements in processes, production, and revenue.
“The software offers significant advantages over manual methods, particularly in meeting industry standards and regulatory requirements,” explains Rogers. “With quality management software, you can capture data in real time and timely report on them, enabling issues to be identified and addressed before they escalate. It simplifies compliance with reporting requirements and ensures that critical information is not lost in the field.”
On Capterra, you’ll find 696 different quality management products and 2,245 user reviews for these products have been added in the past year.3
Quality management software pricing
Most products in this market are priced on a “per user, per month” basis and can be divided into three subscription-based pricing tiers based on our research of publicly available pricing information in December 2023.
Entry level systems for 1 to 9 users average $315
Mid-tier systems for 10 to 24 users average $829
High end systems for 25 or more users average $1,099
First time buyers should be aware that:
Implementation, integration, and customization are common upfront costs
Maintenance and support are common recurring costs
Costs often overlooked by first-time buyers include those related to data migration, in-person training, and maintenance and system upgrades
Many QMS offer free versions and trials to give buyers an initial feel for their features. Potential software buyers may want to explore the user interface and functionalities to better understand how the platform works in their own real-world context.
While free trials and versions offer an opportunity for users to utilize quality management software without an initial cost, they should be aware of the potential limitations and risks. Free versions often come with restricted functionality, however, many provide access to the core features of the software, allowing users to accomplish certain tasks without needing to upgrade.
Users should read the terms and conditions, be mindful of trial expiration dates, and review the features and support provided in free versus paid versions before committing.
Quality management software features rated by users
All QMS include audit management, document coding and control, and compliance management features, and most share a variety of common features such as quality control, change management, and corrective and preventive actions (CAPA).
Core quality management software features
Compliance management: Track and manage adherence to policies for any service, product, process, or supplier. 71% rate this feature as critical or highly important.
Document coding and control: Management and control of the creation, approval, and distribution of documents and processes to ensure they meet industry regulations.
Audit management: Plan, schedule, and execute organization's accounts and assets to ensure they all comply with policies, laws, and requirements.
Highly rated common quality management software features
Document management: Store, manage, and track all electronic documents in a centralized location. 86% rate this feature highly.
Access controls/permissions: Define levels of authorization for access to specific files or systems. 82% rate this feature highly.
Quality control: Ensure that quality requirements and standards are met across production processes. 79% rate this feature highly.
Corrective and preventive actions (CAPA): Investigate and take action at root cause or error in products/processes to prevent recurrence of the same error. 73% rate this feature highly.
Change management: Track and monitor efficient handling of all changes/transitions. 71% rate this feature highly.
Training management: Track employee/learner's progression through training programs. 71% rate this feature highly.
Top quality management software benefits identified by users
Enhanced team collaboration: QMS provides centralized access to documents, real-time communication tools, and task assignment features, improving efficiency and accountability across the team.
“Its fully customizable processes, multi-stage approval system, and robust collaboration tools have streamlined our operations, enhancing efficiency and communication.”
–Vimarsh., owner, consumer services
Improved compliance and auditing: Users of QMS say it can automate compliance processes, track audit trails, and generate comprehensive reports to ensure adherence to regulatory standards and industry requirements, minimizing risks of non-compliance.
“[Our product] has proven to be a valuable tool in streamlining our audit workflows, providing detailed and actionable reports, and ultimately helping us maintain high standards of compliance and quality across our operations.”
–Patryk K., facilities and project support manager, retail
Facilitates quality improvement: QMS systems can enable systematic monitoring, analysis, and improvement of product quality through features such as defect tracking, performance metrics, and corrective action management, enhancing customer satisfaction.
“The system itself has transformed our quality management practices, providing us with the tools and insights we need to maintain high standards and continuous improvement.”
–Daniel B., CEO, information technology and services
Efficient task tracking: Users say QMS’s tracking of tasks, deadlines, and milestones provides visibility into project progress and ensures timely completion of objectives.
“Comprehensive platform that allows for customizability, diligent oversight, as well as control of quality.”
–Ann S. executive assistant, logistics and supply chain
Common challenges of quality management software identified by users
It is not uncommon for prospective buyers to face some challenges when planning to invest in new software solutions. Quality management system reviewers on Capterra most frequently cited issue management, and problems related to form creation and document management as the most common limitations in using the software.
For example, software users may find that the QMS’s form creation tools are too rigid or lack customization capabilities, making it difficult to capture all necessary data for unique processes.
If a QMS platform also lacks proper access control mechanisms, unauthorized users may access or modify sensitive documents, leading to data integrity issues. Quality documents might be accidentally deleted or altered by individuals who should not have editing privileges.
If these features are important for your quality management processes, be sure to discuss them specifically with software vendors as you evaluate their products.
When you're talking to QMS vendors, you should ask a few questions to help ensure you don't encounter the same issues:
Can the platform automate notifications and alerts for issue status updates?
Can forms be customized to capture specific data points required by our organization?
Can documents be accessed and shared securely across different teams or departments?
Another important question software buyers should ask is whether or not the system can interact with external parties. You should determine if the system can interact with people you collaborate with, such as engineers or architects, who are not users of the system. Specifically, does the system have a built-in way to submit data for approval, or do you need to extract and manually send it to external parties?
“This is a significant concern in construction, where project team members often belong to different companies and use various software,” explains Rogers.”Understanding how data is shared and whether the software can communicate with those not using the same system is crucial for seamless collaboration and efficiency.”
What is quality management software used for?
Analysis of our extensive reviews for QMS systems highlight the most common use cases:
Compliance management: Automate regulatory assessments, document controls, and reporting, ensuring adherence to industry standards and mitigating compliance risks. This helps minimize risks of non-compliance and potential penalties, guiding employees through the steps to maintain operational integrity.
Tracking and control: Leverage QMS tracking and control functionalities to monitor quality metrics, identify deviations, and implement corrective actions, maintaining consistency and compliance across processes.
Customer satisfaction: Implementing a QMS helps businesses meet customer requirements, deepening trust in your brand and boosting customer loyalty. Quality management takes into consideration customer feedback so that teams can make improvements in the processes.
Audit management: Schedule, conduct, and track internal and external audits efficiently, ensuring thorough examination of quality systems and regulatory compliance.
Team collaboration: Use QMS collaboration features for communication and document sharing among team members and suppliers, enhancing productivity and alignment on quality-related tasks.
Who uses quality management software?
QMS systems are a speciality software type specifically designed to help businesses manage and improve their quality processes, compliance efforts, and overall operational efficiency. Various industries use QMS, including:
Manufacturing
Construction
Food and beverage
Information technology and services
Aerospace, automotive, and transportation
The software market includes vendors that cater to specific sectors and industries, such as pharmaceutical, government agencies, and educational institutions to ensure quality standards are met in their operations and services.
While anyone involved in quality, testing, and/or product feedback can use a QMS, the most common users are QA specialists and/or managers, engineers, and operations managers.
We found that 65% of the businesses who left reviews for quality management systems in the last year have 500 or fewer employees. Some of the common industries to utilize QMS platforms are related to IT and services, food and beverage, and hospital and healthcare. 4
Common quality management software integrations
Business decision-makers planning to integrate new software tools with existing systems are likely to face a few obstacles when doing so. However, the number of user reviews mentioning challenges with software integration were low, but were also favorable as it seems QMS software vendors generally do well in tackling these issues.
We analyzed our extensive reviews database and determined that the three categories that most often integrate with quality management software are ERP, document management and accounting software.
Focusing on software tools with integration capabilities that complements a QMS platform provides businesses with a comprehensive, connected approach to managing quality operations, compliance and customer satisfaction.
For deployment types, a 2023 Gartner survey of QMS provider revenue showed that 57% of QMS customers use cloud/SaaS deployments, 32% use on-premises deployments and 10% are on hosted cloud solutions.5
Recent trends in quality management software
The industry is growing as quality demands increase: A Gartner vendor questionnaire of quality management systems providers found an estimated 20% year-over-year growth in 2022. Gartner says, “critical growth drivers include supply chain disruptions, economic volatility, changing business models, intensifying regulatory environments, changes in risk appetite and a compendium of other factors.” This means manufacturers can expect to see an increase in the number of products available on the market and improvements in functionality and usability.
IoT in the early stages of helping identify problems: The Internet of Things (IoT) can give quality management an edge, with the help of digitized processes and connected sensors. For instance, IoT can detect when a sub-standard material enters the supply chain or when a product attribute deviates from the predefined quality criteria. Although this is new, slowly emerging technology, Gartner advises to “be cautiously open minded with regard to vendor offerings that include nascent technologies (IoT). Ask questions about levels of adoption and for specific use cases. Verify the efficacy of these offerings by engaging customer references.”
Learn more about how quality management software can help your business
For more information about quality management software, check out our catalog and articles listed below: