Softwr

Agriculture · head to head

Tend vs Tucor

Tend logo

Tend

Agriculture

Crop planning and record keeping for small diversified market farms, priced in flat tiers rather than by acre

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Tucor logo

Tucor

Agriculture

Decoder irrigation controllers with a yearly remote-access subscription priced separately for cellular and Ethernet

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Tend has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Tend the free tier keeps only three years of history and 500 MB of storage, so a grower who stays on it loses the multi-season comparison that makes crop planning software worth having in the first place.; Tucor nLPNet is a yearly subscription priced differently for cellular and Ethernet, so a site with no cabled network path is committed to the higher recurring rate for the life of the controller with no way to change it later without running fibre.
  • They diverge on capability: Tend covers Visual crop planning, Tucor covers NLP-C controller.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Tend and Tucor actually diverge.

Attributes where Tend and Tucor differ
AttributeTendTucor
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelPer month by user countquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, Windows, iOS, Android

Identical on both: 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 Tend

  • Visual crop planning
  • Growing templates
  • Crop library
  • Task management
  • Harvest and inventory tracking
  • CSA and sales storefront
  • Financial reporting
  • AI credits

Only in Tucor

  • NLP-C controller
  • Decoder diagnostics
  • Flow monitoring
  • MAD-based programming
  • Station prioritisation
  • Weather correction and water budget
  • NLPNet remote access
  • Cycle Manager

What people use each for

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

Tend

  • A three-acre market garden running weekly lettuce successions that needs the seeding calendar to generate itself from the harvest targetnot Tucor
  • A cut-flower farm planning bed space against wedding orders months aheadnot Tucor
  • A CSA operation managing 150 member shares alongside the planting plan that has to fill themnot Tucor
  • A two-person farm replacing a spreadsheet and a whiteboard without paying a per-acre platform's minimumnot Tucor

Tucor

  • A university retrofitting a conventional multi-wire system to two-wire without trenching a new cable to every valvenot Tend
  • A nursery or greenhouse needing 50 independent programmes on one controllernot Tend
  • A grounds team chasing a decoder fault on a mile-long loop who need it located rather than dug fornot Tend
  • An HOA that wants unscheduled-flow alarms after a contractor cut a lateralnot Tend

Where each one falls short

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

Tend

  • The free tier keeps only three years of history and 500 MB of storage, so a grower who stays on it loses the multi-season comparison that makes crop planning software worth having in the first place.
  • Data retention is a paid feature at every level below Ultimate, which is an unusual thing to meter: a farm that downgrades from Pro to Free after a bad year risks losing records it may need for organic certification audits.
  • There is no machinery, telematics, soil sampling or variable-rate capability at all, so any operation that adds broadacre ground has to run a second platform rather than extend this one.
  • AI features are metered in credits rather than included, and the allowances are small at the lower tiers, so the assistant becomes something you ration rather than rely on.
  • The company is small and privately held with a narrow customer base, which means integrations outside payments and basic accounting are thin and a request for a connector to a regional distributor or certifier is unlikely to be built.

Tucor

  • NLPNet is a yearly subscription priced differently for cellular and Ethernet, so a site with no cabled network path is committed to the higher recurring rate for the life of the controller with no way to change it later without running fibre.
  • Neither the controllers nor the subscriptions have published prices, so a multi-controller estate cannot budget a rollout without distributor quotes for each site.
  • Tucor runs two separate cloud portals, NLPNet and Cycle Manager, which is a confusing surface for a small vendor and means the answer to where a function lives depends on which product line you bought.
  • It is a small independent competing with Rain Bird, Hunter and Toro, so the installer and spares network is thinner and a site is more exposed if a distributor relationship in its region ends.
  • The product documentation is sparse compared with the major manufacturers, so specifying and commissioning depends heavily on the local distributor knowing the platform rather than on published material a consulting engineer can read.

Pricing, plan by plan

Tend

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1 user
    • 25 AI credits per month
    • 3 years data retention
  • Pro$30/month
    • 5 users
    • 500 AI credits per month
    • 7 years data retention
  • Ultimate$75/month
    • Unlimited users
    • 2,500 AI credits per month
    • Unlimited data retention
  • Enterprise$400/month
    • Unlimited users
    • 10,000+ AI credits per month
    • 250 GB storage and up

Tucor

On request
  • NLPNet remote access$undefined/year
    • Yearly subscription required for remote access
    • Separate pricing for cellular and Ethernet connections
    • Priced per controller

Which should you pick?

Choose Tend if

  • You need visual crop planning.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want growing templates.
Tend review

Choose Tucor if

  • You need nlp-c controller.
  • You work on Web, Windows, iOS, Android.
  • You also want decoder diagnostics.
Tucor review

Questions people ask

Is Tend or Tucor better?
Neither clearly leads. Tend starts at Free and Tucor at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Tend or Tucor?
Tend has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Tend and On request for Tucor.
Does Tend or Tucor run on more platforms?
Tend runs on Web, iOS, Android. Tucor runs on Web, Windows, iOS, Android.
Can I use Tend for free?
Yes. Tend has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Tucor starts at On request.
What is Tend best used for?
Tend is most often used for a three-acre market garden running weekly lettuce successions that needs the seeding calendar to generate itself from the harvest target, a cut-flower farm planning bed space against wedding orders months ahead, a csa operation managing 150 member shares alongside the planting plan that has to fill them, a two-person farm replacing a spreadsheet and a whiteboard without paying a per-acre platform's minimum. Of those, a three-acre market garden running weekly lettuce successions that needs the seeding calendar to generate itself from the harvest target and a cut-flower farm planning bed space against wedding orders months ahead are not what Tucor is typically brought in for.
What can Tend do that Tucor cannot?
Tend covers Visual crop planning, Growing templates, Crop library, Task management. Tucor covers NLP-C controller, Decoder diagnostics, Flow monitoring, MAD-based programming.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Tend: Does Tend charge by the acre?

No. Pricing is flat by user count, and there are no acreage or crop limits on any tier including the free one. That is the main reason small growers pick it over broadacre platforms.

Tucor: Is remote access included with the controller?

No. NLPNet is a separate yearly subscription, and it is priced differently depending on whether the controller connects over cellular or Ethernet.

Tend: Can Tend handle a CSA?

Yes, including member share management and a farm-stand storefront, though payment processing runs through a third party.

Tucor: How many valves can one controller run?

The NLP-C addresses up to 500 decoders and 125 sensors across 20 points of connection, with up to 50 programmes.

Tend: Is it suitable for a 500 acre grain farm?

No. There is no machinery data, no prescription writing and no as-applied reporting. It is built for high-crop-count, low-acreage operations.

Tucor: Can Tucor retrofit a conventional system?

Yes, converting a conventional multi-wire installation to two-wire decoder control is the main reason sites choose it.

Tend: What happens to my records if I cancel?

Export before you cancel. Retention limits apply per tier, and the free tier keeps three years, so downgrading is not a safe archive strategy.

Tucor: Who owns Tucor?

It is a privately held company founded in 1995, based in Harmony, Pennsylvania, and independent of the major irrigation manufacturers.

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