Is dedicated software worth it compared with spreadsheets?

At small volumes, often not. Spreadsheets cost little and everyone knows them. The case for software grows when the same data is retyped across kitchen lists, packing lists and route plans, and when a change in guest count has to reach all of them. Batchtab keeps one data set and calculates the lists from it.

How do I switch from spreadsheets to Batchtab?

Spreadsheet files can be imported, and Batchtab maps columns to its structure. Recipes, items and customers are the usual starting point. This is part of the scoped rollout.

Batchtab vs Excel / Google Sheets

The spreadsheet works until it has to connect.

A spreadsheet is a good start. When kitchen lists, packing lists and route plans must follow every change, one connected data set saves the retyping.

TL;DR

Spreadsheets are free or already licensed, flexible and familiar, and they work well at small volumes. Cloud spreadsheets even let several people edit at once and keep a revision history. What they lack is a built-in link between orders, recipes, packing lists and routes, and a scan-in and scan-out workflow for equipment. Batchtab keeps those in one data set.

Head-to-head comparison

What a spreadsheet does well and where it stops.

Feature	Batchtab	Spreadsheets
Setup time	Scoped rollout Depends on your operation	Depends on scope Free to start; the structure is yours to build
Error prevention	~ Quantities calculated from recipes and components	~ Data validation available; no built-in recipe or production rules
Live updates	Orders, production, packing and routes share one data set	~ Cloud spreadsheets co-edit live; no automatic link to production, routes or stock
Mobile access	~ Work UI in any modern browser; iOS app in TestFlight	Mobile app available
Asset tracking	~ Scan-based load manifests; return trips can be auto-created (setting)	No built-in scan workflow Asset lists are possible
Route optimization	Multi-vehicle, time windows, capacities	Not built in
Pricing	On request Flat license, unlimited users	Free or already licensed Staff time is not included in this figure

Competitor information as of 2026-10-24. Sources: Google Sheets features, Google Sheets data validation.

Key Differences

Spreadsheets have no built-in link between orders, recipes, packing lists and routes

Cloud spreadsheets support simultaneous editing and revision history, but each list stays a separate file or tab until someone connects them.

Spreadsheets have no built-in asset lifecycle or scan workflow

Asset lists are possible in a sheet. Scan-in and scan-out and project assignment are not built in.

Batchtab calculates quantities from recipes and components

Production requirements are derived from the confirmed order, so a change in guest count flows to the lists.

Spreadsheet errors are a known operational risk

Data validation exists in spreadsheets, but domain rules for recipes and production are left to whoever builds the sheet.

Where spreadsheets get stretched

Example scenarios, not measurements.

Example scenario: the changed guest count

The client adds 30 guests. The quote is updated, but the kitchen list and the packing list are separate files that someone has to correct by hand.

Batchtab: production quantities and packing lists are calculated from the order.

Example scenario: copies of the same project

Copies emailed around, or several files for the same project, create version conflicts. The driver has one file, the kitchen another.

Batchtab: one data set for kitchen, warehouse and drivers.

Example scenario: the missing chafer

Nobody scanned the chafer out, so nobody can say which project still has it.

Batchtab: items are scanned onto the vehicle from the load manifest, and return trips can be created automatically when a delivery is created (per-account setting).

What Batchtab adds

A connected data set.

One source of truth

Kitchen, warehouse, drivers and office read the same records.

Scan in and out

Load manifests with scan, per delivery.

Calculated quantities

Recipe and component quantities come from the confirmed order.

Routes

Multi-vehicle route optimization with time windows and capacities.

Planning your costs

An illustrative annual cost example

This example assumes EUR 200,000 of equipment and 52 working weeks. These are illustrative inputs, not measured customer losses, promised savings or a Batchtab quote. Costs like these can occur with any tool; use your own figures to assess your operation.

Equipment loss (3–5% × EUR 200,000/year) EUR 6,000 - 10,000

Admin time (10–15 hrs/week × EUR 25/hr × 52) EUR 13,000 - 19,500

Error recovery (2 hrs/week × EUR 25/hr × 52) EUR 2,600

Illustrative annual total

EUR 21,600 - 32,100

Batchtab

Flat software license instead of a price per user, with unlimited users. We quote the amount after discussing your needs.

From sheets to a system

Bring your spreadsheets. We map your columns to Batchtab's structure and start with the recipes, items and customers.

Data migration is part of the scoped rollout.

Does Batchtab fit your operation?

Spreadsheets stay a good tool for many tasks. Contact us if the retyping between lists is the problem.

Batchtab is in closed beta, with access limited to a small number of companies. Contact us to discuss whether it fits your needs.