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Agriculture · head to head

Bushel vs SMARTBOW

Bushel logo

Bushel

Agriculture

Digital infrastructure for grain

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
SMARTBOW logo

SMARTBOW

Agriculture

Ear tag cow monitoring with real-time indoor location, from Zoetis

From
On request
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; SMARTBOW real-time location depends on receivers covering the whole barn plus an on-farm server, so the install is a building project and the price bears no relation to what a simple activity collar costs.
  • They diverge on capability: Bushel covers Digital scale tickets, SMARTBOW covers Real-time location.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Bushel and SMARTBOW actually diverge.

Attributes where Bushel and SMARTBOW differ
AttributeBushelSMARTBOW
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWindows, Web, iOS, Android
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 SMARTBOW

  • Real-time location
  • Heat detection
  • Rumination monitoring
  • Health alerts
  • On-farm server
  • Individual baselines
  • Herd software integration

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 SMARTBOW
  • Payments between agribusinesses and growersnot SMARTBOW
  • Quoting and CRM for ag retailersnot SMARTBOW
  • Replacing paper processes across the grain supply chainnot SMARTBOW

SMARTBOW

  • A 1,500 cow freestall barn where finding a flagged animal by eye takes twenty minutesnot Bushel
  • A dairy replacing visual heat detection with per-animal oestrus alerts to tighten calving intervalsnot Bushel
  • A herd manager wanting rumination-based early warning of displaced abomasum or metritisnot Bushel
  • A vet practice using behavioural data to audit transition cow management across client herdsnot 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

SMARTBOW

  • Real-time location depends on receivers covering the whole barn plus an on-farm server, so the install is a building project and the price bears no relation to what a simple activity collar costs.
  • It is an indoor system; a grazing or partly grazed herd loses the location capability that is the main reason to choose it over cheaper monitoring.
  • Ear tags are consumable and go missing with the tag, so the running cost includes replacements at a rate that depends on how rough your handling facilities are.
  • Zoetis ownership means a pharmaceutical company holds continuous behavioural data on every animal alongside your treatment records, and the integration roadmap favours other Zoetis products.
  • Nothing is published on price, and sales run through veterinary and dealer channels, so comparing it against DeLaval, Nedap or CowManager requires several quotes and there is no reference list price.

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

SMARTBOW

On request
  • SMARTBOW$undefined/year
    • Ear tags priced per animal
    • Barn receiver infrastructure and on-farm server quoted per building
    • Installation and commissioning quoted separately

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 SMARTBOW if

  • You need real-time location.
  • You work on Windows, Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want heat detection.
SMARTBOW review

Questions people ask

Is Bushel or SMARTBOW better?
Neither clearly leads. Bushel starts at Free and SMARTBOW at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Bushel or SMARTBOW?
Bushel has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Bushel and On request for SMARTBOW.
Does Bushel or SMARTBOW run on more platforms?
Bushel runs on Web, Ios, Android. SMARTBOW runs on Windows, Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Bushel for free?
Yes. Bushel has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. SMARTBOW starts at On request.
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 SMARTBOW is typically brought in for.
What can Bushel do that SMARTBOW cannot?
Bushel covers Digital scale tickets, Contract management, Settlement tracking, Delivery scheduling. SMARTBOW covers Real-time location, Heat detection, Rumination monitoring, 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
SMARTBOW: What does SMARTBOW do that other activity monitors do not?

Real-time indoor location. It tells you where the flagged cow physically is, not just that she is behaving abnormally.

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
SMARTBOW: Does it work on grazing herds?

Poorly. Location depends on barn-mounted receivers, so animals out at pasture fall outside the system's coverage.

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
SMARTBOW: Who owns it?

Zoetis, which also owns Valley Agricultural Software and DairyComp. The technology came from Smartbow GmbH in Austria.

SMARTBOW: Is it cloud based?

Analysis runs on an on-farm server rather than in the cloud, which keeps it working during an internet outage but makes the server your responsibility.

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