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Government · head to head

mySidewalk vs Rhombus Systems

mySidewalk logo

mySidewalk

Government

Community data dashboards for local government and public health, prewired to federal datasets

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite
Rhombus Systems logo

Rhombus Systems

Cybersecurity

Cloud-managed cameras, sensors and access control with a per-camera annual licence

From
$149/year
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: mySidewalk it produces analysis and presentation rather than operational change, so the value has to be re argued at every renewal against services with more visible outputs.; Rhombus Systems the per-camera annual licence never ends and a camera without an active licence stops working, so the total cost over a ten-year hardware life is several times the hardware price.
  • They diverge on capability: mySidewalk covers Prewired federal datasets, Rhombus Systems covers On-camera storage.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which mySidewalk and Rhombus Systems actually diverge.

Attributes where mySidewalk and Rhombus Systems differ
AttributemySidewalkRhombus Systems
Starting priceOn request$149/year
Pricing modelquotePer camera per year licence plus hardware
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android
CategoryGovernmentCybersecurity

Identical on both: free tier (No), 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 mySidewalk

  • Prewired federal datasets
  • Margin of error handling
  • Custom geographies
  • Published dashboards
  • Local data integration
  • Report generation

Only in Rhombus Systems

  • On-camera storage
  • No NVR or server
  • AI search
  • Access control
  • Environmental sensors
  • Unlimited users
  • Ten year hardware warranty
  • Optional cloud archiving

What people use each for

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

mySidewalk

  • A public health department producing a community health needs assessment on deadlinenot Rhombus Systems
  • A city applying for federal funding that requires demographic and disparity evidence for a service areanot Rhombus Systems
  • An agency that lost its only analyst who understood American Community Survey margins of errornot Rhombus Systems
  • A council wanting published neighbourhood indicator dashboards residents can browsenot Rhombus Systems

Rhombus Systems

  • A school district running video across dozens of buildings with no local IT at each sitenot mySidewalk
  • A clinic group needing door access and cameras in one console under a single audit trailnot mySidewalk
  • A logistics operator that wants to search for a specific vehicle across sites without scrubbing footagenot mySidewalk
  • An office estate replacing ageing NVRs where nobody remains who knows how to maintain themnot mySidewalk

Where each one falls short

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

mySidewalk

  • It produces analysis and presentation rather than operational change, so the value has to be re argued at every renewal against services with more visible outputs.
  • Budget frequently comes from a grant, which means the subscription is exposed when the grant cycle ends rather than being protected as core infrastructure.
  • The prewired datasets are American, so the platform has effectively no value outside United States federal statistical sources.
  • Analytical depth is bounded by what the platform exposes, so an agency with a genuine analyst will hit the ceiling and move to a statistical environment.
  • Small area estimates remain small area estimates, and presenting them as polished dashboards can lend unwarranted confidence to figures whose error bars overlap.

Rhombus Systems

  • The per-camera annual licence never ends and a camera without an active licence stops working, so the total cost over a ten-year hardware life is several times the hardware price.
  • Cameras must be Rhombus, so there is no reuse of existing IP cameras and migrating away means replacing every device rather than changing software.
  • Cloud archiving is priced separately by retention and stream count, and long retention on multisensor cameras runs into five figures per camera, which can dwarf everything else in the quote.
  • On-camera storage is the default retention, so a camera physically stolen or destroyed takes its unarchived footage with it unless cloud archiving was paid for on that camera.
  • Analytics and integrations are good for mid-market needs but shallower than a dedicated enterprise VMS with a large third-party ecosystem, so specialist requirements like advanced LPR or forensic search hit limits.

Pricing, plan by plan

mySidewalk

On request
  • mySidewalk$undefined/year
    • Quoted annually by agency scope and dataset needs
    • Custom geography and local data integration work priced separately
    • No public price list, though agency contracts are public records

Rhombus Systems

$149/year
  • Professional$149/year
    • Per camera per year
    • Cloud console and management
    • On-camera storage retention
  • Enterprise$199/year
    • Per camera per year
    • Everything in Professional
    • Flexible cloud archiving options
  • Cloud archiving$undefined/year
    • Priced separately by retention period and stream count
    • Multisensor cameras cost several times a single sensor camera
    • Long retention on multisensor models can reach five figures per camera

Which should you pick?

Choose mySidewalk if

  • You need prewired federal datasets.
  • You also want margin of error handling.
mySidewalk review

Choose Rhombus Systems if

  • You need on-camera storage.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want no nvr or server.
Rhombus Systems review

Questions people ask

Is mySidewalk or Rhombus Systems better?
Neither clearly leads. mySidewalk starts at On request and Rhombus Systems at $149/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, mySidewalk or Rhombus Systems?
mySidewalk starts at On request and Rhombus Systems at $149/year.
Does mySidewalk or Rhombus Systems run on more platforms?
mySidewalk runs on Web. Rhombus Systems runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What is mySidewalk best used for?
mySidewalk is most often used for a public health department producing a community health needs assessment on deadline, a city applying for federal funding that requires demographic and disparity evidence for a service area, an agency that lost its only analyst who understood american community survey margins of error, a council wanting published neighbourhood indicator dashboards residents can browse. Of those, a public health department producing a community health needs assessment on deadline and a city applying for federal funding that requires demographic and disparity evidence for a service area are not what Rhombus Systems is typically brought in for.
What can mySidewalk do that Rhombus Systems cannot?
mySidewalk covers Prewired federal datasets, Margin of error handling, Custom geographies, Published dashboards. Rhombus Systems covers On-camera storage, No NVR or server, AI search, Access control.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

mySidewalk: What problem does it actually solve?

Correct use of American Community Survey and federal health data for small geographies, which is difficult and is usually held by one person in an agency.

Rhombus Systems: Do I need an NVR or a server?

No. Cameras record on board and connect directly to the cloud console, which is the main operational reason organisations pick it.

mySidewalk: Is it useful outside the United States?

No. Its value is the maintained pipeline into US federal statistical datasets.

Rhombus Systems: What does the licence cost?

Roughly $149 per camera per year for Professional and about $199 for Enterprise, typically sold in one, three, five or ten year terms.

mySidewalk: Who buys it?

Mostly public health departments and city planning or performance teams, often funded from a grant that requires the evidence it produces.

Rhombus Systems: Is cloud storage included?

No. On-camera storage is the default. Cloud archiving is a separate charge priced by retention duration and number of streams.

mySidewalk: Can we see comparable contract values?

Yes. Agency contracts are public records and appear in council and health board agenda materials.

Rhombus Systems: Can I use my existing cameras?

No. The platform works only with Rhombus hardware, which is the trade-off for the zero-server architecture.

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