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Agriculture · head to head

CropTracker Pro vs SMARTBOW

CropTracker Pro logo

CropTracker Pro

Agriculture

Complete farm management and traceability

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 CropTracker Pro has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: CropTracker Pro pricing is not published; 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: CropTracker Pro covers Spray records, SMARTBOW covers Real-time location.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CropTracker Pro and SMARTBOW actually diverge.

Attributes where CropTracker Pro and SMARTBOW differ
AttributeCropTracker ProSMARTBOW
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWindows, Web, iOS, Android
Founded2008Unknown

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 CropTracker Pro

  • Spray records
  • Harvest tracking
  • Compliance reports
  • Label management
  • Traceability
  • QuickBooks
  • Sage
  • Weather services

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.

CropTracker Pro

  • Spray, harvest, irrigation and labour record keeping for orchardsnot SMARTBOW
  • Food traceability down to block and employee levelnot SMARTBOW
  • Task scheduling and crew activity monitoringnot SMARTBOW
  • Food safety compliance and audit preparationnot SMARTBOW
  • Fruit sizing and count estimation through computer visionnot SMARTBOW

SMARTBOW

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

Where each one falls short

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

CropTracker Pro

  • Pricing is not published
  • Built for fruit and vegetable growers, particularly orchards, rather than row crop or livestock operations
  • The computer vision modules such as Harvest Quality Vision and Crop Load Vision are separate products alongside the core record keeping

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

CropTracker Pro

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Basic tracking
    • 5 fields
    • Mobile app
  • Standard$39/month
    • Unlimited fields
    • Compliance reporting
    • Label database
  • Professional$99/month
    • All Standard features
    • Labor tracking
    • Inventory 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 CropTracker Pro if

  • You need spray records.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want harvest tracking.
CropTracker Pro 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 CropTracker Pro or SMARTBOW better?
Neither clearly leads. CropTracker Pro 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, CropTracker Pro or SMARTBOW?
CropTracker Pro has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for CropTracker Pro and On request for SMARTBOW.
Does CropTracker Pro or SMARTBOW run on more platforms?
CropTracker Pro runs on Web, Ios, Android. SMARTBOW runs on Windows, Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use CropTracker Pro for free?
Yes. CropTracker Pro has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. SMARTBOW starts at On request.
What is CropTracker Pro best used for?
CropTracker Pro is most often used for spray, harvest, irrigation and labour record keeping for orchards, food traceability down to block and employee level, task scheduling and crew activity monitoring, food safety compliance and audit preparation. Of those, spray, harvest, irrigation and labour record keeping for orchards and food traceability down to block and employee level are not what SMARTBOW is typically brought in for.
What can CropTracker Pro do that SMARTBOW cannot?
CropTracker Pro covers Spray records, Harvest tracking, Compliance reports, Label management. SMARTBOW covers Real-time location, Heat detection, Rumination monitoring, Health alerts.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CropTracker Pro: What is the base pricing for CropTracker?

CropTracker's base pricing starts at $3,300 USD per year, which includes the first 10 users.

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.

CropTracker Pro: What features are included in the standard CropTracker plan?

The platform includes punch clock labor tracking, spray record keeping, irrigation management, harvest tracking, quality control and GAP audits, shipping and receiving management, and AI-powered vision tools for harvest quality and crop assessment.

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.

CropTracker Pro: Does CropTracker offer enterprise-level solutions?

Yes, CropTracker offers enterprise-level software solutions with custom features including account linking, API integrations, and tailored reporting. Enterprise pricing varies based on client needs.

Source
SMARTBOW: Who owns it?

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

CropTracker Pro: Are pricing tiers broken down by features?

The pricing page indicates tiered plans exist but does not detail specific tier names or feature breakdowns. Contact CropTracker for information on pricing by features.

Source
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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