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Agriculture · head to head

CattleMax vs Soil Scout

CattleMax logo

CattleMax

Agriculture

Cattle herd management software

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Soil Scout logo

Soil Scout

Agriculture

Buried wireless soil sensors with a ten to twenty year battery and no cables to the surface

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: CattleMax priced by active animal count, so the bill grows with the herd rather than with usage; Soil Scout sensors are unserviceable once buried, so a failed or drifting unit means excavation and the confidence you place in a single reading has no easy verification.
  • They diverge on capability: CattleMax covers Individual animal records, Soil Scout covers Fully buried sensors.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CattleMax and Soil Scout actually diverge.

Attributes where CattleMax and Soil Scout differ
AttributeCattleMaxSoil Scout
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
PlatformsWeb, Windows, Ios, AndroidWeb
Founded2003Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), 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 CattleMax

  • Individual animal records
  • Breeding management
  • Calving records
  • Health & treatment tracking
  • Weight management
  • EPD/genetic data
  • Custom reporting
  • Photo management

Only in Soil Scout

  • Fully buried sensors
  • Ten to twenty year battery
  • Underground radio
  • Dual depth sensing
  • Moisture, temperature and salinity
  • Soil Scout Hub
  • Web service API
  • Long base station range

What people use each for

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

CattleMax

  • Cow-calf herd records and reproduction trackingnot Soil Scout
  • Weights, treatments and performance history per animalnot Soil Scout
  • Registered cattle records for breed association reportingnot Soil Scout
  • Unlimited users on one operation's accountnot Soil Scout

Soil Scout

  • A golf course monitoring greens moisture where a surface-mounted probe would be hit by mowers and playnot CattleMax
  • A stadium pitch under a closed roof where hand-held probing is impractical during the seasonnot CattleMax
  • A research plot needing consistent multi-year soil data below cultivation depthnot CattleMax
  • An irrigated field where a surface logger would not survive tillage or a spray boomnot CattleMax

Where each one falls short

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

CattleMax

  • Priced by active animal count, so the bill grows with the herd rather than with usage
  • The Registered plan costs more than Commercial at every band, from $16 against $12 a month
  • Operations above 2,000 animals move to custom pricing
  • Support is Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm Central only
  • Cows and calves count separately toward the animal limit

Soil Scout

  • Sensors are unserviceable once buried, so a failed or drifting unit means excavation and the confidence you place in a single reading has no easy verification.
  • No pricing is published at all, which makes it hard to justify against commodity probes that quote openly, and per-sensor cost is well above the alternatives.
  • It measures but does not control, so tying moisture readings to actual irrigation decisions requires either manual interpretation or a separate integration project with the control system.
  • Underground radio range depends on soil type and moisture; heavy wet clay attenuates the signal and can force more base stations than the headline kilometre figure suggests.
  • The company is small and Finland-based, so outside its established golf and sports turf distribution the support, spares and installation expertise depend entirely on whether a competent local distributor exists.

Pricing, plan by plan

CattleMax

On request
  • Commercial Plan$15/month
    • For herds focusing on cow-calf market
    • Track reproduction and performance data
    • Unlimited users
  • Commercial Plan Annual$12/month
    • Same as Commercial Plan
    • 20% discount when billed annually
  • Registered Plan$20/month
    • For herds focusing on selling registered cattle
    • Collect data for breed association
    • Unlimited users
  • Registered Plan Annual$16/month
    • Same as Registered Plan
    • 20% discount when billed annually

Soil Scout

On request
  • Soil Scout$undefined/year
    • Sensors and base station quoted per site
    • Hub subscription terms quoted with the hardware
    • No individual sensor data plans required

Which should you pick?

Choose CattleMax if

  • You need individual animal records.
  • You work on Web, Windows, Ios, Android.
  • You also want breeding management.
CattleMax review

Choose Soil Scout if

  • You need fully buried sensors.
  • You also want ten to twenty year battery.
Soil Scout review

Questions people ask

Is CattleMax or Soil Scout better?
Neither clearly leads. CattleMax starts at On request and Soil Scout at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CattleMax or Soil Scout?
CattleMax starts at On request and Soil Scout at On request.
Does CattleMax or Soil Scout run on more platforms?
CattleMax runs on Web, Windows, Ios, Android. Soil Scout runs on Web.
What is CattleMax best used for?
CattleMax is most often used for cow-calf herd records and reproduction tracking, weights, treatments and performance history per animal, registered cattle records for breed association reporting, unlimited users on one operation's account. Of those, cow-calf herd records and reproduction tracking and weights, treatments and performance history per animal are not what Soil Scout is typically brought in for.
What can CattleMax do that Soil Scout cannot?
CattleMax covers Individual animal records, Breeding management, Calving records, Health & treatment tracking. Soil Scout covers Fully buried sensors, Ten to twenty year battery, Underground radio, Dual depth sensing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CattleMax: What are CattleMax's pricing tiers?

CattleMax offers two plan types with identical tier structures by active animals (up to 50, 100, 250, 500, 750, 1,000, 1,500, or 2,000+). Commercial Plan costs $15/month ($12/month annual). Registered Plan costs $20/month ($16/month annual). All plans include unlimited users, free support, and bank-level security.

Source
Soil Scout: How long do the sensors last?

Up to ten years for the Happi100 and up to twenty for the Hydra100, buried, with no battery replacement.

CattleMax: What is the difference between CattleMax Commercial and Registered plans?

Commercial Plan is for herds focusing on the cow-calf market. Registered Plan is for herds focusing on selling registered cattle and collecting breed association data. Both include unlimited users and identical security/support features.

Source
Soil Scout: Do the sensors need mobile data plans?

No. Sensors transmit to a base station through the soil, and only the base station uses a cellular modem.

CattleMax: Can I try CattleMax before paying?

Yes, CattleMax offers a 21-day free trial with no credit card required. The trial includes full access to all plan features for evaluation.

Source
Soil Scout: Can it control irrigation directly?

No. It is a measurement and alerting system; controlling valves needs an integration with your irrigation controller through the API.

Soil Scout: What happens if a buried sensor fails?

You dig it up. There is no remote service option, which is the trade-off for having nothing above ground to damage.

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