Screen printing software: the small tools built for decorators

The established systems

The bigger shop management systems are not on this list, because they are not hard to find. Five of them are compared side by side, from their own pricing pages and docs, on Leaving Printavo: switch to what?:

• Printavo, the system many shops start on, owned by Inktavo.
• YoPrint, a cloud shop system from a two-founder company in Delaware.
• Teesom, business management software for apparel decorators, from the people who built FastManager.
• shopVOX, shop management for sign, print and apparel shops.
• DecoNetwork, print shop software with online stores built in.

The same page also covers ShopWorks and InkSoft in a line each.

How to size up a new tool

A small tool can end up the best thing in your shop or a dead end, and the difference rarely shows on its home page. These are the questions I would ask of any tool on this list. They grow out of the eight I asked of the big systems on the Printavo page, cut down for tools that do one job.

1. How does my data get out?

If the tool keeps your quotes, proofs or customers, find the export on the first day and open the file. A tool that keeps nothing, like a script or a calculator that runs in your browser, has nothing to lose, and that is an answer too.

2. Who is behind it, and what if they stop?

Many of these are built by one person, or by a shop for its own floor, which is often why they fit so well. Ask what happens to your work if the maker walks away, and keep your own copy of anything you could not rebuild.

3. What does it cost at my volume, over a year?

Gang sheet builders often charge a percentage of every order, some with a cap and some without. Some separation tools sell credits. Work the price out at your real monthly volume and compare twelve months, not one.

4. Does it fit what I already run?

Check it against your store, your design software and your books: Shopify or WooCommerce, Illustrator or Photoshop, QuickBooks. A tool that needs a second copy of your data will drift away from the first.

5. Where does my artwork go?

Some tools run entirely on your own computer. Others upload your art, and some send it on to an AI service. Read the privacy policy for where files are kept and for how long, especially when it is a customer’s art.

6. Is anyone still working on it?

Every tool here shows its last sign of activity. An old date is not a verdict, since plenty of good tools are simply finished, so send the maker a question before you pay and see whether an answer comes back.

7. Try it on a real job from last week

Run a job you already priced, separated or proofed, and compare the result with what you did by hand.

No longer available

Tools I found while building this list that are gone, or no longer offered on their own. Each line says only what I saw, and when.

• DGI Apparel. Its home page is a letter saying the company has decided to wind down operations. Checked September 27, 2026.
• Extavo. Its address no longer resolves. Checked September 27, 2026.
• InkTrack. Its address opens a login page titled ShopCur, with no product page, price or signup. Checked September 27, 2026.
• T-Quoter. Its address forwards to inktavo.com, which forwards to taivo.co. Checked September 27, 2026.

Suggest a tool, or correct an entry

Know a small tool built for decorators that is not here, or make one? Email me at ryan@autoprintshop.com. I read a tool’s own pages before it goes on the list, and a maker’s correction goes in once I have checked it against their public page. Nobody pays to be listed.