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Fleet Management · head to head

Motive vs NexTraq

Motive logo

Motive

Fleet Management

ELD compliance, AI dashcams and spend management for North American commercial fleets

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
NexTraq logo

NexTraq

Fleet Management

US small-fleet telematics now absorbed into Michelin Connected Fleet

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Motive contracts are multi-year and per vehicle with hardware embedded, so a fleet that shrinks keeps paying for units that are sitting in a yard.; NexTraq the NexTraq brand has been absorbed into Michelin Connected Fleet, so the product name, the account team and eventually the platform underneath you are all subject to a consolidation plan you have no say in.
  • They diverge on capability: Motive covers ELD compliance, NexTraq covers Vehicle tracking.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Motive and NexTraq actually diverge.

Attributes where Motive and NexTraq differ
AttributeMotiveNexTraq

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Fleet Management).

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 Motive

  • ELD compliance
  • AI dashcams
  • GPS tracking
  • Driver safety scoring
  • Vehicle diagnostics
  • Spend management

Only in NexTraq

  • Vehicle tracking
  • Hours of service
  • Fuel and idling reporting
  • Maintenance scheduling
  • Job dispatch
  • Driver scorecards

What people use each for

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

Motive

  • A trucking fleet that must run FMCSA compliant electronic logs and wants cameras from the same vendornot NexTraq
  • An operator facing an insurance renewal that requires evidence of a driver coaching programmenot NexTraq
  • A construction fleet tracking both vehicles and unpowered assets such as trailers and generatorsnot NexTraq
  • A fleet suspecting fuel card misuse and wanting transactions matched against vehicle locationnot NexTraq

NexTraq

  • A North American trades or field service fleet that wants tracking, dispatch and ELD compliance from one mid-market vendornot Motive
  • An operator already buying Michelin tyres and fleet services that can negotiate telematics into a wider commercial agreementnot Motive
  • A fleet replacing an ageing tracking system that values an owner with a large corporate balance sheet over a venture-funded challengernot Motive
  • A distribution business needing straightforward fuel and idling reporting to justify a driver behaviour programmenot Motive

Where each one falls short

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

Motive

  • Contracts are multi-year and per vehicle with hardware embedded, so a fleet that shrinks keeps paying for units that are sitting in a yard.
  • Driver facing cameras generate real workforce resistance, and fleets in tight labour markets have lost drivers over the rollout rather than the technology.
  • Installation and calibration across a distributed fleet takes weeks of vehicle downtime, which is rarely costed into the comparison at the point of purchase.
  • The rebrand from KeepTruckin means older documentation, integration guides and third-party references are inconsistent, which slows technical work on connections.
  • Coverage depends on cellular networks, so remote route segments produce gaps in tracking and delayed log uploads that drivers then have to reconcile.

NexTraq

  • The NexTraq brand has been absorbed into Michelin Connected Fleet, so the product name, the account team and eventually the platform underneath you are all subject to a consolidation plan you have no say in.
  • Michelin is merging three separately engineered telematics products, which historically means feature freezes on the older platforms and a migration that existing customers pay for in disruption rather than cash.
  • The feature set is mid-market and unexceptional, so it rarely wins a technical evaluation against Geotab or Samsara on capability alone.
  • Contracts bundle hardware into multi-year terms, so a fleet that shrinks or is acquired continues paying for devices, and early exit triggers hardware recovery costs.
  • The integration ecosystem is small and the API is not a selling point, so connecting telematics data to job costing or payroll usually means custom work or scheduled file exports.

Pricing, plan by plan

Motive

On request
  • Motive$undefined/year
    • Per-vehicle subscription over a multi-year term
    • Hardware supplied within the agreement rather than purchased outright
    • Dashcams, asset trackers and spend management priced as separate lines

NexTraq

On request
  • NexTraq$undefined/year
    • Per vehicle subscription with hardware bundled into the term
    • Multi-year agreements are standard
    • ELD and dispatch modules priced as tiers

Which should you pick?

Choose Motive if

  • You need eld compliance.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want ai dashcams.
Motive review

Choose NexTraq if

  • You need vehicle tracking.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want hours of service.
NexTraq review

Questions people ask

Is Motive or NexTraq better?
Neither clearly leads. Motive starts at On request and NexTraq at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Motive or NexTraq?
Motive starts at On request and NexTraq at On request.
Does Motive or NexTraq run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Motive best used for?
Motive is most often used for a trucking fleet that must run fmcsa compliant electronic logs and wants cameras from the same vendor, an operator facing an insurance renewal that requires evidence of a driver coaching programme, a construction fleet tracking both vehicles and unpowered assets such as trailers and generators, a fleet suspecting fuel card misuse and wanting transactions matched against vehicle location. Of those, a trucking fleet that must run fmcsa compliant electronic logs and wants cameras from the same vendor and an operator facing an insurance renewal that requires evidence of a driver coaching programme are not what NexTraq is typically brought in for.
What can Motive do that NexTraq cannot?
Motive covers ELD compliance, AI dashcams, GPS tracking, Driver safety scoring. NexTraq covers Vehicle tracking, Hours of service, Fuel and idling reporting, Maintenance scheduling.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Motive: Is Motive the same company as KeepTruckin?

Yes. KeepTruckin renamed to Motive in 2022. The products and account relationships carried over.

NexTraq: Is NexTraq still a separate company?

No. Michelin bought it in 2017 and has folded it into Michelin Connected Fleet, together with Masternaut in Europe and Sascar in Brazil.

Motive: Can hardware be bought outright?

It is normally supplied inside a multi-year subscription rather than sold, which is why the exit cost of a shrinking fleet is high.

NexTraq: Will my NexTraq system be migrated to a different platform?

Assume so, eventually. Ask directly what the migration timetable is, what happens to historical data, and who bears the cost of re-fitting or re-configuring devices.

Motive: Does it work outside the United States?

Canada and Mexico are supported, including Canadian electronic logging requirements. Coverage elsewhere is limited.

NexTraq: Does buying Michelin tyres get me a better telematics price?

It is worth testing. The commercial logic of the acquisition is bundling vehicle services, and that is where discounting is most likely to be available.

Motive: Are the driver facing cameras optional?

Yes, road facing only configurations are available, and fleets worried about driver retention often start there.

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