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Manufacturing · head to head

COPA-DATA zenon vs Samotics

COPA-DATA zenon logo

COPA-DATA zenon

Manufacturing

HMI, SCADA and energy automation platform licensed by I/O tag count

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Samotics logo

Samotics

Manufacturing

Condition monitoring of motor-driven assets using electrical signature analysis from the motor control cabinet

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: COPA-DATA zenon the I/O count that determines your licence band is a weighted calculation, not a variable tally, so projects sized from a tag list routinely land in a higher and more expensive band than budgeted.; Samotics sAM4 only sees what reaches the motor electrically, so it covers the driven train and misses un-driven equipment, structures, process conditions and anything downstream of a mechanical decoupling.
  • They diverge on capability: COPA-DATA zenon covers I/O-banded licensing, Samotics covers Electrical signature analysis.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which COPA-DATA zenon and Samotics actually diverge.

Attributes where COPA-DATA zenon and Samotics differ
AttributeCOPA-DATA zenonSamotics
PlatformsWindows, Linux, WebWeb, Cloud

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Manufacturing).

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 COPA-DATA zenon

  • I/O-banded licensing
  • IEC 61850 native
  • zenon Logic
  • Pharmaceutical compliance
  • Multi-project engineering
  • Redundancy

Only in Samotics

  • Electrical signature analysis
  • Switchroom installation
  • Energy and efficiency measurement
  • Submersible and hazardous area coverage
  • Fault classification
  • Fleet view

What people use each for

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

COPA-DATA zenon

  • A pharmaceutical plant needing audit trail and electronic signature in the SCADA layer without building a validation wrapper around a generic HMInot Samotics
  • A utility automating substations that wants IEC 61850 SCL import and DNP3 in the base product rather than as chargeable driver optionsnot Samotics
  • A machine builder shipping identical HMI applications to many customers who wants one engineering project reused across machine and line levelnot Samotics
  • A food and beverage site in German-speaking Europe where local integrator availability for zenon is strong and Rockwell coverage is notnot Samotics

Samotics

  • A water utility monitoring submersible and borehole pumps that no vibration sensor can be fitted to without lifting the pumpnot COPA-DATA zenon
  • A chemical plant with assets in ATEX zones where certifying and maintaining in-field sensors is more expensive than the monitoring itselfnot COPA-DATA zenon
  • A food plant that wants pump and mixer condition data without opening guarding or taking a hygiene-critical line down to fit sensorsnot COPA-DATA zenon
  • A site building an energy reduction case, where measured motor efficiency and waste give the business case a payback that reliability alone would notnot COPA-DATA zenon

Where each one falls short

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

COPA-DATA zenon

  • The I/O count that determines your licence band is a weighted calculation, not a variable tally, so projects sized from a tag list routinely land in a higher and more expensive band than budgeted.
  • The integrator and engineering talent pool is concentrated in German-speaking Europe; a North American or Asian site can find itself dependent on a single partner with no competitive quote available.
  • English-language documentation and community material lag the German equivalents, which slows engineers who are learning the product without formal COPA-DATA training.
  • The annual software maintenance contract is a percentage of licence value, so a large I/O estate carries a recurring cost that does not fall even when the plant is stable and nothing is changing.
  • Third-party ecosystem extensions are far fewer than for Ignition or FactoryTalk, so requirements outside the box tend to become custom engineering billed at partner day rates.

Samotics

  • SAM4 only sees what reaches the motor electrically, so it covers the driven train and misses un-driven equipment, structures, process conditions and anything downstream of a mechanical decoupling.
  • Each monitored motor needs hardware installed in the motor control centre by a qualified electrician, and in older switchrooms that installation, including any required outage, can cost more than a year of the subscription.
  • Per-asset subscription pricing means the cost scales linearly with the number of motors, so a plant with a thousand small motors faces a bill that a fixed-price plant-wide vibration system would not impose.
  • Electrical signature analysis on variable-speed drives is harder than on direct-on-line motors, and results vary with drive type, so a heavily VSD estate should insist on a pilot on its own drives before committing.
  • Nothing is published on price, contract length or minimum deployment size, and the vendor sells multi-year subscriptions, so early exit terms are a negotiation you have to raise yourself.

Pricing, plan by plan

COPA-DATA zenon

On request
  • zenon$undefined/year
    • Runtime licensed in bands by calculated I/O count
    • Numeric variables weighted upward in the I/O calculation, binary counted singly
    • Engineering Studio licensed separately from runtime

Samotics

On request
  • SAM4$undefined/year
    • Subscription priced per monitored asset
    • SAM4 sensor hardware required in each motor control centre
    • Electrical installation by a qualified electrician, quoted separately

Which should you pick?

Choose COPA-DATA zenon if

  • You need i/o-banded licensing.
  • You work on Windows, Linux, Web.
  • You also want iec 61850 native.
COPA-DATA zenon review

Choose Samotics if

  • You need electrical signature analysis.
  • You work on Web, Cloud.
  • You also want switchroom installation.
Samotics review

Questions people ask

Is COPA-DATA zenon or Samotics better?
Neither clearly leads. COPA-DATA zenon starts at On request and Samotics at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, COPA-DATA zenon or Samotics?
COPA-DATA zenon starts at On request and Samotics at On request.
Does COPA-DATA zenon or Samotics run on more platforms?
COPA-DATA zenon runs on Windows, Linux, Web. Samotics runs on Web, Cloud.
What is COPA-DATA zenon best used for?
COPA-DATA zenon is most often used for a pharmaceutical plant needing audit trail and electronic signature in the scada layer without building a validation wrapper around a generic hmi, a utility automating substations that wants iec 61850 scl import and dnp3 in the base product rather than as chargeable driver options, a machine builder shipping identical hmi applications to many customers who wants one engineering project reused across machine and line level, a food and beverage site in german-speaking europe where local integrator availability for zenon is strong and rockwell coverage is not. Of those, a pharmaceutical plant needing audit trail and electronic signature in the scada layer without building a validation wrapper around a generic hmi and a utility automating substations that wants iec 61850 scl import and dnp3 in the base product rather than as chargeable driver options are not what Samotics is typically brought in for.
What can COPA-DATA zenon do that Samotics cannot?
COPA-DATA zenon covers I/O-banded licensing, IEC 61850 native, zenon Logic, Pharmaceutical compliance. Samotics covers Electrical signature analysis, Switchroom installation, Energy and efficiency measurement, Submersible and hazardous area coverage.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

COPA-DATA zenon: How is a zenon licence sized?

By calculated I/O count. Numeric variables are weighted upward in that calculation and binary values counted singly, so ask your partner for the calculated figure, not the variable count, before signing.

Samotics: Does Samotics replace vibration monitoring?

For motor-driven assets it often does, and it reaches assets vibration cannot. For un-driven equipment and structures it does not apply at all.

COPA-DATA zenon: Is zenon only for factories?

No. A significant part of its installed base is electrical substation automation, where IEC 61850 support is native rather than an add-on.

Samotics: Do I have to buy Samotics hardware?

Yes. SAM4 requires the vendor's sensors fitted in the motor control centre; there is no software-only option.

COPA-DATA zenon: Is there a free version?

There is a demo mode for evaluation and a free educational licence, but production runtime always needs a paid, I/O-banded licence.

Samotics: Does it work on variable-speed drives?

It can, but performance depends on the drive and the operating profile. Pilot it on your own VSD assets rather than accepting a reference from a direct-on-line site.

COPA-DATA zenon: Can zenon replace a PLC?

zenon Logic is an IEC 61131-3 soft PLC and can control non-safety-critical processes, but most deployments keep a hardware PLC and use zenon for visualisation and supervision.

Samotics: How is it priced?

Subscription per monitored asset, quoted, typically on a multi-year term, with hardware and electrical installation on top.

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