Softwr

Cybersecurity · head to head

Milestone XProtect vs MyRec.com

Milestone XProtect logo

Milestone XProtect

Cybersecurity

Open platform video management software with perpetual per-device licences

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
MyRec.com logo

MyRec.com

Government

Recreation management for small parks departments, priced on your annual revenue with no contract

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Milestone XProtect has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Milestone XProtect care Plus is presented as optional but is not in practice: without it, perpetual licences stop receiving version upgrades and eventually you cannot add a current camera because your frozen version does not support it.; MyRec.com the annual fee scales with department revenue, so a successful department pays more for the same software as its programme income grows.
  • They diverge on capability: Milestone XProtect covers Open device support, MyRec.com covers Revenue-based annual fee.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Milestone XProtect and MyRec.com actually diverge.

Attributes where Milestone XProtect and MyRec.com differ
AttributeMilestone XProtectMyRec.com
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelOne-time purchase per device licence, plus annual Care PlusPer year by department annual revenue
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWindows, Web, iOS, AndroidWeb
CategoryCybersecurityGovernment

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Milestone XProtect

  • Open device support
  • Perpetual device licences
  • Federated architecture
  • Failover recording
  • Evidence export
  • Smart Map
  • Integration platform
  • Video summarisation

Only in MyRec.com

  • Revenue-based annual fee
  • Programme registration
  • Facility reservations
  • Point of sale
  • League scheduling
  • Everything included

What people use each for

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

Milestone XProtect

  • A city or transport operator running tens of thousands of cameras across federated sitesnot MyRec.com
  • An enterprise with mixed legacy camera brands that refuses to standardise on one manufacturernot MyRec.com
  • A critical infrastructure site needing failover recording servers and tamper-evident evidence exportnot MyRec.com
  • An integrator building a bespoke security application on top of an open VMS platformnot MyRec.com

MyRec.com

  • A town recreation department of one or two staff moving off paper registration forms and a shared spreadsheetnot Milestone XProtect
  • A department that wants to choose its own payment processor rather than accept the software vendor ratenot Milestone XProtect
  • Replacing a system that charges per module, where every new programme type triggered an upsellnot Milestone XProtect
  • A department needing field permits and league scheduling without buying a facilities management suitenot Milestone XProtect

Where each one falls short

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

Milestone XProtect

  • Care Plus is presented as optional but is not in practice: without it, perpetual licences stop receiving version upgrades and eventually you cannot add a current camera because your frozen version does not support it.
  • Per-device licensing means multi-sensor and multi-imager cameras consume several licences each, so a headline camera count badly understates the true licence cost of a modern design.
  • It is Windows only for servers and needs a properly designed server and storage architecture, so the software price is a fraction of a project that also needs recording servers, storage and an integrator.
  • Complexity requires trained staff or a certified integrator; organisations that install it without either end up running a large deployment on default settings and never using the features they paid for.
  • Milestone retired Kite from its portfolio in favour of Arcules from January 2025, which stranded buyers who had standardised on Kite and is a reminder that the cloud side of the portfolio has changed direction more than once.

MyRec.com

  • The annual fee scales with department revenue, so a successful department pays more for the same software as its programme income grows.
  • It is built for small and mid-sized departments and lacks the permitting, aquatics and multi-facility depth a large city requires.
  • Credit card processing is explicitly excluded from the fee, so the total cost depends on a merchant agreement the department must source and negotiate itself.
  • Integration surface is thin, with no meaningful connection to municipal ERP or finance systems, meaning revenue reconciliation is a manual export.
  • The vendor is small, so there is limited third-party consulting capacity and a narrow bench for support during peak registration periods.

Pricing, plan by plan

Milestone XProtect

Free
  • XProtect Essential+Free
    • Free for up to 8 cameras
    • No recording time limit
    • No vendor support included
  • XProtect Express+$109/one-time
    • Perpetual device licence, distributor list price
    • Single site, single server
    • Care Plus purchased separately per device per year
  • XProtect Professional+$177/one-time
    • Perpetual device licence, distributor list price
    • Multiple recording servers
    • Edge storage retrieval
  • XProtect Expert$282/one-time
    • Perpetual device licence, distributor list price
    • Failover recording servers
    • Advanced video wall and evidence handling

MyRec.com

On request
  • MyRec.com$undefined/year
    • Single annual fee calculated from department annual revenue
    • Third parties report entry around 2,850 to 3,445 USD per year
    • Site build, onboarding and training included

Which should you pick?

Choose Milestone XProtect if

  • You need open device support.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want perpetual device licences.
Milestone XProtect review

Choose MyRec.com if

  • You need revenue-based annual fee.
  • You also want programme registration.
MyRec.com review

Questions people ask

Is Milestone XProtect or MyRec.com better?
Neither clearly leads. Milestone XProtect starts at Free and MyRec.com at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Milestone XProtect or MyRec.com?
Milestone XProtect has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Milestone XProtect and On request for MyRec.com.
Does Milestone XProtect or MyRec.com run on more platforms?
Milestone XProtect runs on Windows, Web, iOS, Android. MyRec.com runs on Web.
Can I use Milestone XProtect for free?
Yes. Milestone XProtect has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. MyRec.com starts at On request.
What is Milestone XProtect best used for?
Milestone XProtect is most often used for a city or transport operator running tens of thousands of cameras across federated sites, an enterprise with mixed legacy camera brands that refuses to standardise on one manufacturer, a critical infrastructure site needing failover recording servers and tamper-evident evidence export, an integrator building a bespoke security application on top of an open vms platform. Of those, a city or transport operator running tens of thousands of cameras across federated sites and an enterprise with mixed legacy camera brands that refuses to standardise on one manufacturer are not what MyRec.com is typically brought in for.
What can Milestone XProtect do that MyRec.com cannot?
Milestone XProtect covers Open device support, Perpetual device licences, Federated architecture, Failover recording. MyRec.com covers Revenue-based annual fee, Programme registration, Facility reservations, Point of sale.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Milestone XProtect: Is XProtect really free for small sites?

Essential+ is free for up to eight cameras with no recording time limit, but it comes with no vendor support and no multi-server capability.

MyRec.com: How is MyRec priced?

A single annual fee calculated from your department annual revenue, using a calculator on the MyRec site. Third parties report entry around 2,850 to 3,445 USD a year.

Milestone XProtect: Are licences perpetual or annual?

Device licences are perpetual. The annual cost is Care Plus, the support and software update contract, which you need to stay on current versions.

MyRec.com: Is there a setup fee?

No. Site build, onboarding and training are included in the annual fee.

Milestone XProtect: What happens if I do not renew Care Plus?

The system keeps recording, but you stop getting version upgrades, and over a few years that blocks you from adding newer cameras.

MyRec.com: Are card fees included?

No. Credit card processing is separate and you arrange your own merchant account.

Milestone XProtect: Who owns Milestone?

Canon. The portfolio also includes BriefCam analytics and Arcules cloud video, with Arcules replacing Milestone Kite from January 2025.

MyRec.com: Is there a contract?

No long-term contract is required, which is unusual in municipal software.

Share

Related pages

More on Milestone XProtect

More on MyRec.com

Keep looking

Other head to heads