CalAmpvs
Samsara
Samsara: A more unified, better-capitalised hardware-and-software telematics platform, the clearest current market leader
CalAmp
Fleet telematics hardware and software provider that went through Chapter 11 restructuring in 2024 and is now privately held by its former lender
As of 1 September 2026, CalAmp's pricing is not published; the vendor quotes on request. A telematics device and cloud platform vendor for vehicle tracking, now operating under new private ownership after a fast-tracked 2024 bankruptcy that eliminated $230 million in debt. Softwr lists it under Fleet Management. CalAmp is made by CalAmp Corp., available on Web, iOS, Android.
Overview
What CalAmp does
CalAmp provides GPS tracking hardware and its Telematics Cloud software for fleet vehicle location, driver behaviour monitoring, diagnostics and asset tracking, sold both directly and through a network of software partners who build applications on top of the CalAmp device and data layer. The fact that changes how a buyer should evaluate CalAmp today is its 2024 restructuring: the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on 3 June 2024, had a plan confirmed by the court on 11 July, and completed the process, being taken private by Lynrock Lake Master Fund LP in under 60 days, eliminating roughly $230 million of debt in the process. That is a fast and relatively clean restructuring by bankruptcy standards, but it is still a recent change of ownership and balance sheet structure that any buyer signing a multi-year telematics contract should factor in, particularly around long-term product roadmap and support continuity. Buyers are fleets and, significantly, software companies and system integrators building their own fleet applications on CalAmp hardware and data platform rather than using CalAmp own end-user interface directly. The trade-off is that a buyer evaluating CalAmp today is evaluating a company one restructuring removed from its prior public-market ownership, which is different from picking a telematics vendor with a stable, unchanged corporate history.
What people use it for
- A software company or system integrator wanting telematics hardware and a data API to build a custom fleet application on top of
- A fleet needing basic GPS tracking, driver behaviour and diagnostic alerting without a full BI-grade analytics suite
- An asset-heavy operation needing non-powered trailer and equipment tracking alongside vehicle telematics
- A buyer specifically wanting a hardware-plus-cloud vendor rather than a software-only platform layered on third-party devices
Related searches
The honest half
Where it falls short
Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about CalAmp.
- The company underwent Chapter 11 restructuring and a change of ownership in 2024, and any multi-year contract should factor in the risk and uncertainty that follows a recent bankruptcy, even a fast one.
- Pricing is entirely unpublished and combines hardware and subscription costs, making direct comparison against software-only telematics competitors harder to do cleanly.
- It has historically leaned on a software partner ecosystem rather than a single polished end-user product, so the buying experience and interface quality vary depending on which partner application sits on top of CalAmp data.
- Newer, well-capitalised competitors such as Samsara and Motive have captured significant market share with more unified hardware-software products, and CalAmp market position has weakened relative to them.
- As a private company since 2024, financial transparency that public-market buyers previously had access to (quarterly filings, analyst coverage) is now reduced.
Cross-shopped
What people choose instead of CalAmp
Each pairing was judged by two reviewers asking whether a buyer would genuinely weigh the two against each other. The ones that failed were deleted rather than published.
- CalAmpvsGeotab
Geotab: Another major telematics platform with a strong partner ecosystem model similar in structure to CalAmp
- CalAmpvsMotive
Motive: A combined telematics and compliance platform competing directly for the same fleet buyers
Pricing
What CalAmp costs
Taken from the vendor's own pricing page. Prices move, so check before you buy.
CalAmp Telematics Cloud
On request
- Hardware and subscription priced together, no published rate
- Cost varies by device type, data plan and partner/direct sales channel
Capabilities
Features
GPS tracking hardware
OBD and hardwired telematics devices for vehicle location and diagnostics
Telematics Cloud platform
Cloud data platform for fleet location, driver behaviour and diagnostic data
Driver behaviour monitoring
Harsh braking, speeding and idling event tracking
Asset tracking
Non-powered asset and trailer tracking alongside vehicle telematics
Partner API access
Data and device APIs for software partners building custom fleet applications
Diagnostic alerts
Engine fault code and maintenance alert reporting
Answered, with sources
Questions people ask
Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.
Is CalAmp still in business?
Yes. It completed a fast Chapter 11 restructuring in 2024, eliminating roughly $230 million in debt, and is now privately held by Lynrock Lake Master Fund LP.
Does CalAmp sell directly to fleets or through partners?
Both, but a significant part of its business is providing hardware and data APIs to software partners who build the end-user fleet application.
Is pricing published?
No. Hardware and subscription costs are combined and quoted, varying by device type, data plan and sales channel.
Keep looking
Where to go from CalAmp
- CalAmp alternativesEvery product people weigh against it
- CalAmp pricingPlans, floors and what the tiers exclude
- CalAmp badgesWhich rules it meets, and the figure behind each
- All Fleet Management softwareThe full category
- Best Fleet Management softwareThe shortlist, and how it was cut
Best Fleet Management software for
Compare CalAmp with
- Motive
- Samsara
- Geotab
- Fleet Complete
- Quartix
- Chevin FleetWave
- GPS Trackit
- Uptake
- Verizon Connect
- AssetWorks
- Ridecell
- Webfleet
- Whip Around
- Zonar Systems
- Lytx
- NexTraq
- Uptake
- Webfleet
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Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for CalAmp, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.
More on CalAmp
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