If you grow vegetables, run a market garden, or manage a small farm, you have probably come across both CropsBook and FarmLogs while searching for a digital way to track your crops. Both tools promise to simplify record-keeping — but they take very different approaches to who they serve and how they deliver value. This comparison breaks down the honest differences so you can pick the right tool for your operation.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | CropsBook | FarmLogs |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — no in-app purchases | Free tier + paid plans starting ~$500/year |
| Works Offline | Yes — 100% offline capable | Limited — core features require internet |
| Account Required | No | Yes — email signup required |
| Best For | Vegetable growers, market gardens, solo operators | Row crop farms (corn, soybeans, wheat) |
| Platform | iOS (iPhone & iPad) | iOS, Android, Web |
| Key Features | Crop logs, planting schedules, harvest tracking, notes | Field mapping, profit/loss, satellite imagery, grain marketing |
| Data Privacy | Data stays on your device only | Data stored on company servers |
At a glance, you can see these tools target different farmers. FarmLogs was built for commodity row crop operations, while CropsBook was designed specifically for vegetable growers and small-scale producers who want something simple, free, and private.
Pricing
This is where the difference is most dramatic. CropsBook is completely free — not freemium, not a trial, just free. There are no in-app purchases, no subscription tiers, and no feature gates. You download it and get everything.
FarmLogs offers a free tier, but it is limited. The free version gives you basic field tracking and rainfall data, which is useful for getting started. However, the features that make FarmLogs genuinely powerful — satellite imagery, profit and loss reports, detailed input tracking, and grain marketing tools — sit behind paid plans. Those plans are priced for mid-to-large operations and can run several hundred dollars per year.
| Cost | CropsBook | FarmLogs (Paid Tier) |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $0 | ~$42–$83/month (billed annually) |
| 1-Year Total | $0 | ~$500–$1,000/year |
| 3-Year Total | $0 | ~$1,500–$3,000 |
To be fair, FarmLogs’s paid features deliver real value for the right operation. If you farm thousands of acres of commodity crops, the return on investment from satellite imagery and profit tracking can justify those costs. But if you are running a half-acre market garden or a backyard vegetable plot, paying that kind of money makes no sense — and the free tier leaves a lot of features locked away.
Save money. Try CropsBook free today. Download CropsBook on the App Store — no account needed, works 100% offline.
Features
Both apps track crops, but they do it in fundamentally different ways because they serve different types of farming.
Where FarmLogs excels:
- Field mapping: FarmLogs lets you draw field boundaries on a map, which is invaluable for large acreage operations. You can see exactly where each crop is planted and track activities by field.
- Satellite imagery: Paid plans include vegetation health maps derived from satellite data. This helps large-scale growers spot problems across hundreds or thousands of acres without physically walking every row.
- Grain marketing: FarmLogs includes tools to track grain prices and manage sales — a feature that only matters if you are selling commodity crops at elevators.
- Profit and loss tracking: The platform can calculate per-field profitability when you enter your input costs and sale prices.
- Weather integration: Automated rainfall tracking and weather forecasts tied to your specific fields.
These are genuinely useful features for a 500-acre corn and soybean operation. FarmLogs was built for that world, and it does it well.
Where CropsBook excels:
- Vegetable-first design: CropsBook was built for the way vegetable growers and market farmers actually work. You are tracking dozens of varieties across succession plantings, not three crops across large fields. The interface reflects that reality.
- Quick logging: Adding a planting, noting a harvest, or recording an observation takes seconds. There is no map to configure, no field to draw — just open the app and log what happened.
- Planting schedules: Plan your season with planting and transplant dates. CropsBook helps you stay on top of successions so nothing falls through the cracks.
- Harvest tracking: Record what you picked, when, and how much. Over time, this data becomes invaluable for planning next season.
- Zero learning curve: You can be productive in CropsBook within a minute of downloading it. There is no onboarding flow, no field setup wizard, and no account creation.
The core difference: FarmLogs gives you a powerful platform for managing a large commodity operation. CropsBook gives you a fast, lightweight tool for tracking the daily reality of vegetable farming.
Want to try CropsBook for free? Download CropsBook on the App Store — no subscription required.
Offline & Privacy
This is CropsBook’s strongest advantage, and it matters more than most people realize until they are standing in a field with no signal.
CropsBook works 100% offline. Every feature is available whether you have Wi-Fi, cell service, or nothing at all. Your data lives on your device and never leaves it. There is no cloud sync, no server, and no account. You own your data completely.
FarmLogs, by contrast, is a cloud-based platform. Your data is stored on their servers, and most features require an internet connection to function properly. This means that if you are out in the field — which is where you need a crop tracking app most — you may not be able to log activities in real time if your signal is spotty. Rural areas, greenhouses, and low-lying fields are notorious for dead zones.
There is also the privacy question. When your data lives on someone else’s servers, you are trusting that company with your operational details — what you plant, how much you harvest, your field locations, and your financial data. FarmLogs has a privacy policy and takes data security seriously, but the simplest way to protect your farm data is to never send it off your device in the first place.
For many small growers, the offline question is not theoretical. If you have ever tried to log something at a farmers market with weak signal, or out in the back forty with no service at all, you know the frustration of a cloud-dependent app.
Who Should Use FarmLogs
FarmLogs is a strong choice if your operation matches its strengths:
- You grow row crops (corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton) on significant acreage
- You need field-level mapping and satellite imagery to scout large areas
- You sell grain through elevators and want marketing tools integrated with your farm records
- You need profit and loss analysis at the field level to make planting decisions
- You have reliable internet access where you farm and do your record-keeping
- You are comfortable paying for software that delivers ROI on a large operation
If you fit this profile, FarmLogs can genuinely help your operation. It was designed for this exact use case and has invested years in building out these features. Do not let anyone tell you it is a bad product — it is a good product built for a specific farmer.
Who Should Use CropsBook
CropsBook makes the most sense when your farming reality looks like this:
- You grow vegetables, herbs, or mixed produce rather than commodity row crops
- You run a market garden, CSA, homestead, or small farm
- You want to track dozens of varieties and succession plantings without complexity
- You work in areas with unreliable cell signal or internet
- You do not want to create an account or hand over personal information to use an app
- You are a solo operator or have a small team and need something you can just pick up and use
- You are not willing to pay hundreds of dollars a year for crop tracking software
CropsBook was built for the grower who wants to keep good records without fighting software to do it. If you have ever abandoned a farm management app because it felt like it was designed for someone else’s operation, CropsBook is worth a look.
And if your farm includes more than just crops, you do not need to piece together workarounds. If you keep livestock alongside your vegetable operation, Barnsbook handles animal and barn management the same way CropsBook handles crops — simple, offline, and free. Beekeepers who pollinate their gardens or run hives alongside a market farm can track colonies and honey production with HiveBook. All three are designed with the same philosophy: no accounts, no subscriptions, and no data leaving your device.
The Bottom Line
CropsBook and FarmLogs are both legitimate tools, but they were built for different farmers solving different problems.
FarmLogs is a digital farming platform designed for commodity crop operations. It shines when you need satellite imagery, field mapping across large acreage, and grain marketing integration. If that is your world, it delivers real value — and the paid plans can pay for themselves on a large enough operation.
CropsBook is a free, offline crop tracker designed for vegetable growers and small-scale farmers. It shines when you want to log plantings, track harvests, and plan your season without creating an account, paying a subscription, or needing an internet connection. It is deliberately simple because the farmers it serves need speed and reliability, not dashboards and satellite maps.
The honest answer: if you grow row crops on hundreds of acres, FarmLogs is probably the better fit. If you grow vegetables on a smaller scale and want a tool that stays out of your way, CropsBook is hard to beat — especially at the price of free.
Ready to switch? Download CropsBook on the App Store — it takes 30 seconds and costs nothing.