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Agriculture · head to head

Herdwatch vs Nofence

Herdwatch logo

Herdwatch

Agriculture

Farm & herd management made simple

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Nofence logo

Nofence

Agriculture

GPS collar virtual fencing for cattle, sheep and goats with no base station required

From
$229/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Herdwatch has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Herdwatch annual pricing amounts not displayed, calculated dynamically based on farm type and herd size; Nofence everything depends on mobile network coverage, so a farm in a signal shadow cannot change boundaries, receive escape alerts or rely on the fence at all, and no amount of spending fixes that.
  • They diverge on capability: Herdwatch covers Animal registry, Nofence covers Virtual paddocks.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Herdwatch and Nofence actually diverge.

Attributes where Herdwatch and Nofence differ
AttributeHerdwatchNofence
Starting priceFree$229/one-time
Pricing modelsubscriptionOne-time collar purchase plus annual subscription per collar
Free tierYesNo
Founded2014Unknown

Identical on both: platforms (Ios, Android, Web), 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 Herdwatch

  • Animal registry
  • Movement records
  • Breeding management
  • Medicine & treatment records
  • Compliance reports
  • Calving records
  • Weight tracking
  • EID tag reading

Only in Nofence

  • Virtual paddocks
  • No base station
  • Species range
  • Escape alerts
  • Grazing history
  • Solar charging
  • Multi-user access

What people use each for

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

Herdwatch

  • Livestock records for cattle and sheepnot Nofence
  • Calving and breeding records on a phone in the fieldnot Nofence
  • Medicine and treatment records for compliancenot Nofence
  • Pasture and grassland managementnot Nofence

Nofence

  • A conservation body grazing cattle on open heath or moorland where fencing is prohibited or impracticalnot Herdwatch
  • A contractor running goats to clear scrub and maintain firebreaks on rotating sitesnot Herdwatch
  • A smallholder rotating a small mob through awkward parcels without building temporary fencenot Herdwatch
  • A grazier renting seasonal parcels where investing in permanent fence makes no sensenot Herdwatch

Where each one falls short

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

Herdwatch

  • Annual pricing amounts not displayed, calculated dynamically based on farm type and herd size
  • Free trial available but actual subscription costs vary by farm size
  • Pricing shown excluding VAT

Nofence

  • Everything depends on mobile network coverage, so a farm in a signal shadow cannot change boundaries, receive escape alerts or rely on the fence at all, and no amount of spending fixes that.
  • Collar purchase is a real up-front barrier at roughly $349 a head for cattle, so fencing a 200 cow herd is a five-figure hardware outlay before the first subscription renewal.
  • Battery life depends on daylight and on how often the animal challenges the boundary; a busy animal in a Nordic or British winter runs the collar down faster than the headline figures suggest.
  • Virtual fencing is restricted or unaccepted in some jurisdictions and by some welfare and organic certification schemes, which can rule the product out on eligibility grounds regardless of cost.
  • It is a fencing product first, so herd health, rumination and reproduction monitoring are thin compared with dairy-focused collar systems, and a dairy will still need separate heat detection.

Pricing, plan by plan

Herdwatch

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Basic herd records
    • Animal movements
    • Simple reports
  • Premium$12.5/month
    • Unlimited animals
    • Breeding management
    • Medicine records
  • Complete$20/month
    • Everything in Premium
    • Financial tracking
    • Farm mapping

Nofence

$229/one-time
  • Sheep and goat collar$229/one-time
    • One-time collar purchase
    • First 12 months subscription included
    • Five year warranty
  • Cattle collar$349/one-time
    • One-time collar purchase for 1 to 24 collars
    • Approximately $309 per collar at 25 or more
    • First 12 months subscription included
  • Annual subscription$45/year
    • Per collar per year after the first 12 months
    • Approximately $35 per collar at 100 or more
    • Monthly option around $6.50 per collar

Which should you pick?

Choose Herdwatch if

  • You need animal registry.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Ios, Android, Web.
  • You also want movement records.
Herdwatch review

Choose Nofence if

  • You need virtual paddocks.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Web.
  • You also want no base station.
Nofence review

Questions people ask

Is Herdwatch or Nofence better?
Neither clearly leads. Herdwatch starts at Free and Nofence at $229/one-time, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Herdwatch or Nofence?
Herdwatch has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Herdwatch and $229/one-time for Nofence.
Does Herdwatch or Nofence run on more platforms?
Herdwatch runs on Ios, Android, Web. Nofence runs on iOS, Android, Web.
Can I use Herdwatch for free?
Yes. Herdwatch has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Nofence starts at $229/one-time.
What is Herdwatch best used for?
Herdwatch is most often used for livestock records for cattle and sheep, calving and breeding records on a phone in the field, medicine and treatment records for compliance, pasture and grassland management. Of those, livestock records for cattle and sheep and calving and breeding records on a phone in the field are not what Nofence is typically brought in for.
What can Herdwatch do that Nofence cannot?
Herdwatch covers Animal registry, Movement records, Breeding management, Medicine & treatment records. Nofence covers Virtual paddocks, No base station, Species range, Escape alerts.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Herdwatch: What pricing options are available for Herdwatch?

Herdwatch offers a 6-month promotional plan at $49 with full access to all Complete features and no long-term commitment. Pricing is customized based on your farm type and herd size, with both annual and monthly options available.

Source
Nofence: Do I need towers or a base station?

No. Nofence collars connect to the mobile network directly, which is the main structural difference from tower-based virtual fencing and removes the largest install cost.

Herdwatch: Can I try Herdwatch before purchasing a subscription?

Yes. Herdwatch offers a free digital calving book to new registrants and allows users to try the app free before committing to a subscription, with full access to features during the trial period.

Source
Nofence: What does the subscription cost after year one?

Roughly $45 per collar per year, dropping to about $35 for herds of 100 or more. Monthly options are around $6.50 and $4.50 per collar.

Herdwatch: What free features does Herdwatch provide?

Herdwatch provides a free subscription tier that includes a free digital calving book for tracking calving events. This free option allows basic record-keeping without requiring immediate payment.

Source
Nofence: Is the first year of subscription really included?

Yes, twelve months of subscription come with each collar purchase, so the first renewal bill arrives a year after install.

Nofence: Will it work for sheep?

Yes, with the smaller collar designed for sheep and goats, though horned and small-framed animals need care with fit.

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