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Manufacturing · head to head

Propel vs Tractian

Propel logo

Propel

Manufacturing

PLM, quality and product information management built on the Salesforce platform

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Tractian logo

Tractian

Field Service

CMMS with published per-user pricing plus vibration sensors sold as a separate per-asset subscription

From
$60/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Propel your product data lives in a Salesforce org, so a future decision to leave Salesforce becomes a PLM migration as well as a CRM one, and the extraction is not trivial.; Tractian sensors are excluded from both published CMMS tiers and are quoted per monitored asset, so the transparent rate card covers only the part of the deployment that costs least.
  • They diverge on capability: Propel covers Item and BOM management, Tractian covers Published per-user pricing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Propel and Tractian actually diverge.

Attributes where Propel and Tractian differ
AttributePropelTractian
Starting priceOn request$60/month
Pricing modelquotePer user per month
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Android, Cloud, APIWeb, iOS, Android
CategoryManufacturingField Service

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 Propel

  • Item and BOM management
  • Change management
  • Quality management
  • Product information management
  • Supplier collaboration
  • Native Salesforce
  • Licence types

Only in Tractian

  • Published per-user pricing
  • Unlimited requesters
  • Smart Trac sensors
  • Automatic work order creation
  • Mobile execution
  • Preventive maintenance planning
  • Power BI connector
  • ERP integration

What people use each for

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

Propel

  • A medical device company needing linked design control and CAPA records for an ISO 13485 audit without an on-premise PLM programmenot Tractian
  • A consumer products firm publishing the same product record to engineering, packaging and e-commerce teamsnot Tractian
  • A company already standardised on Salesforce that wants product data governed with the same admin skills as the CRMnot Tractian
  • A hardware manufacturer routing customer complaints straight to the part revision and supplier that caused themnot Tractian

Tractian

  • A mid-market plant replacing spreadsheet maintenance planning where hundreds of operators must report faults but only a dozen plan worknot Propel
  • Instrumenting critical motors and pumps and having detected faults become work orders without an integration projectnot Propel
  • A maintenance manager who needs a defensible budget figure before an approval meeting rather than a quote in three weeksnot Propel
  • A multi-site manufacturer wanting the same CMMS and sensor platform across Brazilian, Mexican and United States plantsnot Propel

Where each one falls short

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

Propel

  • Your product data lives in a Salesforce org, so a future decision to leave Salesforce becomes a PLM migration as well as a CRM one, and the extraction is not trivial.
  • CAD data management is handled through connectors rather than natively; Propel manages metadata and files well but is not a substitute for a CAD vault on large assemblies.
  • The published cost bands are extremely wide, from 10,000 to 500,000 US dollars a year, and setup can approach the annual licence, so early budgeting without a scoped quote is close to meaningless.
  • Licence roles are split across Performance, Quality, Enrichment, Collaboration and Partner types, and buyers frequently discover mid-project that a user needs a more expensive role than budgeted.
  • Salesforce platform limits such as governor limits, API call ceilings and storage allowances apply, and organisations with very large BOMs or heavy integration traffic hit them in ways a purpose-built PLM would not surface.

Tractian

  • Sensors are excluded from both published CMMS tiers and are quoted per monitored asset, so the transparent rate card covers only the part of the deployment that costs least.
  • Smart Trac hardware reports into the Tractian platform, so a plant that later changes analytics vendor writes off the installed sensor base.
  • The five-user minimum on Standard and ten-user minimum on Enterprise put a floor under the cost that small maintenance teams cannot get below.
  • ERP integration, single sign-on and the Power BI connector are Enterprise-only, so an organisation needing SAP integration pays the higher rate for every licensed user including technicians who need none of it.
  • The company is young and venture-funded with rapid product expansion, so enterprise features are newer than the core CMMS and reference sites at large industrial scale are fewer than for established EAM vendors.

Pricing, plan by plan

Propel

On request
  • Propel$undefined/year
    • Annual user-based licensing in role types
    • Salesforce platform access included in each licence
    • Indicative small deployment band of 10,000 to 150,000 USD a year plus 10,000 to 25,000 setup

Tractian

$60/month
  • Standard$60/month
    • From 60 USD per user per month, billed annually
    • Minimum five users
    • Unlimited assets and unlimited requester accounts
  • Enterprise$100/month
    • From 100 USD per user per month, billed annually
    • Minimum ten users
    • Single sign-on and custom entities
  • Bundle$undefined/year
    • CMMS combined with condition monitoring sensors
    • Priced per monitored asset, quoted rather than published
    • Includes failure detection, root cause analysis and reliability support

Which should you pick?

Choose Propel if

  • You need item and bom management.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, Cloud, API.
  • You also want change management.
Propel review

Choose Tractian if

  • You need published per-user pricing.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want unlimited requesters.
Tractian review

Questions people ask

Is Propel or Tractian better?
Neither clearly leads. Propel starts at On request and Tractian at $60/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Propel or Tractian?
Propel starts at On request and Tractian at $60/month.
Does Propel or Tractian run on more platforms?
Propel runs on Web, iOS, Android, Cloud, API. Tractian runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What is Propel best used for?
Propel is most often used for a medical device company needing linked design control and capa records for an iso 13485 audit without an on-premise plm programme, a consumer products firm publishing the same product record to engineering, packaging and e-commerce teams, a company already standardised on salesforce that wants product data governed with the same admin skills as the crm, a hardware manufacturer routing customer complaints straight to the part revision and supplier that caused them. Of those, a medical device company needing linked design control and capa records for an iso 13485 audit without an on-premise plm programme and a consumer products firm publishing the same product record to engineering, packaging and e-commerce teams are not what Tractian is typically brought in for.
What can Propel do that Tractian cannot?
Propel covers Item and BOM management, Change management, Quality management, Product information management. Tractian covers Published per-user pricing, Unlimited requesters, Smart Trac sensors, Automatic work order creation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Propel: Do I need to buy Salesforce separately?

No. Each Propel licence includes Salesforce platform access, and end users do not need their own Salesforce licences or Salesforce expertise.

Tractian: What does the CMMS actually cost?

Standard is from 60 USD per user per month with five users minimum, Enterprise from 100 USD with ten minimum, both billed annually.

Propel: Does being on Salesforce lock me in?

Practically, yes. The application, its configuration and your product data all sit in a Salesforce org, which is a real consideration at renewal.

Tractian: Are the sensors included?

No. Both CMMS tiers explicitly exclude sensors, which are priced per monitored asset under a separate bundle that is not published.

Propel: What does it cost?

Propel publishes indicative bands rather than list prices: roughly 10,000 to 150,000 US dollars a year for a small deployment and 250,000 to 500,000 for a large one, plus setup.

Tractian: Do fault reporters need licences?

No. Requester accounts are unlimited on both tiers, which is the main reason the per-user price is workable for large plants.

Propel: Is it suitable for regulated medical devices?

Yes, that is a core segment; the quality module covers CAPA, non-conformance, audits and training records with electronic signatures.

Tractian: Can I use the sensors with another platform?

No. Smart Trac hardware reports to the Tractian platform.

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