Which is better, Rentman or Current RMS?

Both are established rental and production platforms, and either can work well. The better one for you is the one that handles your kind of jobs with the fewest workarounds. Run a real past job through both, with your own inventory, before deciding.

Do I need a separate CRM if my rental software has one?

Not always. Many rental platforms include basic contact and opportunity tracking. A separate CRM earns its place when you run a real sales pipeline with target accounts, follow-ups and several salespeople. If you use both, connect them so nobody types a job twice.

Should I switch rental software or fix the one I have?

Try fixing it first. Many companies use a fraction of what their software can do because it was set up quickly and never revisited. Switch when the software can’t handle the work that makes you the most money.

How to choose rental software for an AV or event rental company

Rentman, Current RMS, Goodshuffle Pro and the rest can all run a rental company. The right one depends on how your jobs book, prep and bill, not on the feature list.

Devon Race

October 27, 20263 min read

Arena concert with full lighting and video production

Choose rental software by mapping how a job actually moves through your company, from inquiry to quote, holds, prep, delivery, return and invoice, then testing each system against that path with your own inventory and a real past job. Most rental and production platforms can track inventory and send a quote. The differences that matter show up in how they handle your kind of work: multi-day shows with crew and trucking, high volumes of small orders with deliveries, or serialized gear that needs prep and testing.

I’ve worked hands-on in Rentman, Current RMS, Goodshuffle Pro and IntelliEvent, plus CRMs like HubSpot, Salesforce and Zoho. Companies that end up unhappy with their software rarely chose a bad product. They chose one before deciding how they work.

How does a job really move through your company?

Write it down step by step, with who does each part, before you look at a single demo.

How inquiries arrive and who qualifies them
How quotes are built, priced, approved and sent
How gear is held, confirmed, subrented and released
How prep, pull sheets, loading and returns work in the warehouse
How crew, labor and trucking are scheduled and priced
How deposits, invoices and payments are handled, and where the books live

Which kind of rental company are you?

A full-service production company needs labor, crew scheduling, trucking and multi-day show schedules handled well. A party or event rental company needs fast quoting for many small orders, delivery and pickup routes, and often online booking. A dry-hire gear house needs serialized inventory, prep and test checks, kits, and clean subrental tracking.

Many companies are a mix. Decide which kind of job makes you the most money, and make sure the software handles that one without workarounds.

What should you test before you buy?

Ask for a trial and run a real past job through it, with your own gear, rates and schedule. Pay attention to the parts that hurt when they’re wrong:

Availability across overlapping, multi-day jobs and dark days
Kits, accessories and cases that should move together
Subrentals, including the cost going onto the quote
Labor and crew pricing, minimums and overtime
How the quote looks to a client, and whether they can accept and pay online
The connection to your accounting software, such as QuickBooks or Xero
The reports you’d actually use: utilization, revenue by service and open quotes

Will it connect to the rest of your company?

Your rental software has to talk to your CRM, your accounting and your website forms. When it doesn’t, someone ends up typing the same job into three places, and the numbers stop matching. Check what each connection does in practice, not only that one exists.

How do you switch without chaos?

Clean up your inventory list and rate sheet before importing anything.
Build quote templates for your common job types first.
Name one person who owns the setup and decisions.
Run real jobs in the new system before you switch everyone over.
Train by role: sales, warehouse, project managers and accounting each need different things.

When does custom software make sense?

Rarely as the first step. Custom tools earn their place when a core part of how you sell or deliver doesn’t fit any product, like a quote configurator for one specialist service, and they work best connected to the platform you already run.

Common questions

Which is better, Rentman or Current RMS?: Both are established rental and production platforms, and either can work well. The better one for you is the one that handles your kind of jobs with the fewest workarounds. Run a real past job through both, with your own inventory, before deciding.
Do I need a separate CRM if my rental software has one?: Not always. Many rental platforms include basic contact and opportunity tracking. A separate CRM earns its place when you run a real sales pipeline with target accounts, follow-ups and several salespeople. If you use both, connect them so nobody types a job twice.
Should I switch rental software or fix the one I have?: Try fixing it first. Many companies use a fraction of what their software can do because it was set up quickly and never revisited. Switch when the software can’t handle the work that makes you the most money.