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Agriculture · head to head

Bushel vs Halter

Bushel logo

Bushel

Agriculture

Digital infrastructure for grain

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Halter logo

Halter

Agriculture

Solar collar virtual fencing and cow monitoring for dairy and beef grazing

From
9.9/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Bushel has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Bushel pricing is not published for the agribusiness products; Halter the subscription is permanent and per head, so a 500 cow dairy carries a five-figure annual bill indefinitely and the collars become inert if it lapses; there is no owned-outright end state.
  • They diverge on capability: Bushel covers Digital scale tickets, Halter covers Virtual fencing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Bushel and Halter actually diverge.

Attributes where Bushel and Halter differ
AttributeBushelHalter
Starting priceFree9.9/month
Pricing modelfreemiumPer cow per month plus one-time install
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidiOS, Android, Web
Founded2017Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Agriculture).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Bushel

  • Digital scale tickets
  • Contract management
  • Settlement tracking
  • Delivery scheduling
  • Multi-location management
  • Price notifications
  • Offer management
  • Mobile access

Only in Halter

  • Virtual fencing
  • Remote shifting
  • Heat detection
  • Health alerts
  • Pasture management
  • Solar collars
  • Exclusion zones

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Bushel

  • Grain trading and contract workflows between farmers and elevatorsnot Halter
  • Payments between agribusinesses and growersnot Halter
  • Quoting and CRM for ag retailersnot Halter
  • Replacing paper processes across the grain supply chainnot Halter

Halter

  • A 600 cow grazing dairy that shifts breaks twice daily and cannot recruit enough staff to do itnot Bushel
  • A beef ranch fencing off riparian margins and wetlands without building physical fencenot Bushel
  • A dairy replacing a separate heat detection collar system with one collar that also does fencingnot Bushel
  • An operation running cell grazing on country where the cost of internal fencing exceeds the collar subscriptionnot Bushel

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Bushel

  • Pricing is not published for the agribusiness products
  • Sold as many separate modules, including CRM, portals, Trade, Bushel Pay, quoting and loyalty
  • Its value depends on network effects across the 3,500 grain and ag retail facilities already connected

Halter

  • The subscription is permanent and per head, so a 500 cow dairy carries a five-figure annual bill indefinitely and the collars become inert if it lapses; there is no owned-outright end state.
  • On-farm tower infrastructure is a separate up-front install cost that is not in the headline per-cow price, and terrain with hills or bush can require more towers than the initial quote assumed.
  • Coverage is concentrated in New Zealand, Australia and parts of the United States; buyers elsewhere face no local support, no local install crew and uncertain regulatory acceptance of virtual fencing.
  • Virtual fencing is not universally legal or accepted: some jurisdictions and some organic or welfare certification schemes restrict aversive stimulus devices, which can decide eligibility before price is even discussed.
  • Total vendor lock-in on collar, towers, app and animal data means there is no second source for a replacement collar and no way to keep the fencing working if the commercial relationship ends.

Pricing, plan by plan

Bushel

Free
  • Bushel FarmFree
    • Grain contracts & settlements
    • Scale ticket access
    • Delivery scheduling
  • Bushel for Elevators$undefined/month
    • Customer portal
    • Mobile ticketing
    • Offer management

Halter

9.9/month
  • Core$9.9/month
    • Virtual fencing and remote shifting
    • Per cow per month
    • On-farm tower infrastructure charged separately
  • Pro$undefined/month
    • Everything in Core
    • Heat detection and reproduction tools
    • Health and behaviour alerts
  • Unlimited$undefined/month
    • Everything in Pro
    • Full feature set for larger operations
    • Pasture and residual management

Which should you pick?

Choose Bushel if

  • You need digital scale tickets.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want contract management.
Bushel review

Choose Halter if

  • You need virtual fencing.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Web.
  • You also want remote shifting.
Halter review

Questions people ask

Is Bushel or Halter better?
Neither clearly leads. Bushel starts at Free and Halter at 9.9/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Bushel or Halter?
Bushel has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Bushel and 9.9/month for Halter.
Does Bushel or Halter run on more platforms?
Bushel runs on Web, Ios, Android. Halter runs on iOS, Android, Web.
Can I use Bushel for free?
Yes. Bushel has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Halter starts at 9.9/month.
What is Bushel best used for?
Bushel is most often used for grain trading and contract workflows between farmers and elevators, payments between agribusinesses and growers, quoting and crm for ag retailers, replacing paper processes across the grain supply chain. Of those, grain trading and contract workflows between farmers and elevators and payments between agribusinesses and growers are not what Halter is typically brought in for.
What can Bushel do that Halter cannot?
Bushel covers Digital scale tickets, Contract management, Settlement tracking, Delivery scheduling. Halter covers Virtual fencing, Remote shifting, Heat detection, Health alerts.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Bushel: What subscription tiers does Bushel offer?

Bushel offers multiple tiers for farmers including Rainfall, Lite, and Essentials. Specific pricing and feature comparisons are available on their pricing page at bushelpowered.com/farmers/oldpricing.

Source
Halter: Do I buy the collars or rent them?

In practice you are buying into a per-cow monthly subscription plus a one-time install for the towers. The collars are not useful without an active subscription.

Bushel: Does Bushel offer services for agribusinesses beyond farmers?

Yes. Bushel serves agribusinesses with solutions including Customer Relationship Management, Customer Portal, Commercial Portal, Trade, Bushel Pay, Farm Management, Website Management, Professional Services, Loyalty Program, and Quoting.

Source
Halter: What does it actually cost for 500 cows?

Starting from around NZ$9.90 per cow per month, that is roughly NZ$59,000 a year before the one-time tower infrastructure cost, and it recurs every year.

Bushel: Does Bushel offer payment processing?

Yes. Bushel Business Account includes payment processing with interest-bearing capabilities. Banking services are provided by The Bancorp Bank, N.A. Interest rates are variable and subject to change.

Source
Halter: Can I finance it?

New Zealand dairy farmers can finance the install through ANZ, ASB, BNZ or Westpac over two years, and paying the subscription up front attracts a discount.

Halter: Does it replace heat detection collars?

Yes on the higher tiers. That is the main reason dairies justify the cost, because it removes a second per-cow system.

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