An Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR) system is a software system used to recognize and identify license plates without the need for human mediation. These systems employ smart cameras and video analytics to recognize a license plate and then compare it to a cloud database. The recognition within the cloud database then allows for authorization and access control.
ALPR systems are often used by law enforcement, security agencies, and other organizations that may need site vehicle management. ALPR software can be used for Amber Alert vehicle identification, electronic tolling, vehicle authorization at a gate, parking enforcement, and other instances where license plate recognition may be necessary.
When choosing an ALPR system for your organization, there are plenty of options. But with so many big ALPR software players, how do you know you’re choosing the right one? This ALPR software comparison guide will help you assess all of your options to choose the best ALPR software for your organization in 2023.
Automatic License Plate Recognition Software Comparisons
We’ve evaluated the top 3 ALPR software based on pricing, accuracy, and usability.
OpenALPR
OpenALPR is an open-source license plate reader service. The software’s open lpr solution is written with bindings in Java, C#, Python, and Node.js. Open ALPR provides light analytics of data collected.
An upside of OpenALPR is that the software is compatible with most cameras and works in most environments. Overall, the software ranks very well for usability.
Looking at pricing, OpenALPR isn’t extremely transparent about the pricing. It takes some searching to find information about pricing on OpenALPR’s website. Something to note is that pricing tends to run on the more expensive side, with OpenALPR’s ALPR SDK coming in at $1000 per camera. Affordability can be a big factor when choosing the best ALPR solution for your organization, so this may not be the right option for everyone in terms of pricing.
Another area to consider when looking at OpenALPR is accuracy. The software has a 99.02% accuracy rating, meaning that the ALPR software is highly accurate.
Overall, the software bodes well for accuracy and usability, but wouldn’t be considered an affordable option.
PlateRecognizer
Another big player in the open ALPR software market is PlateRecognizer. PlateRecognizer is an automatic license plate recognizer service that works in real-world situations, whether that means blurry or low resolution, images at an angle, or other hard to view situations.
In terms of usability, the software gives developers a choice of Shell, Javascript, Python, or Ruby. Plate Recognizer doesn’t require any special software adaptions and runs on Mac, Linux, Windows, and Raspberry Pi. Additionally, the software is compatible with most environments and the website provides a list of all supported environments. PlateRecognizer’s algorithm is also trained with datasets from over 100 countries. Overall, the software ranks very high for usability.
PlateRecognizer is also extremely transparent with pricing. Information on pricing can be found directly at the top of their website. The company is also one of the very few companies that allows customers to request custom quotes if the standard pricing doesn’t fit their situation.
Lastly, PlateRecognizer ranks highly in terms of accuracy. Their website is very transparent with how their software works in various situations. The website showcases results of plate recognizition in various situations, such as blurry images, side-angles, etc. PlateRecognizer’s accuracy results can be found here.
Overall, PlateRecognizer ranks well for usability, pricing, and accuracy.
PlateSmart Technologies
PlateSmart is an intelligent video analytic ALPR solution. The company provides camera-agnostic software that allows for peer-to-peer data sharing, making it an ideal solution for law enforcement organizations. Because of the software camera-agnostic ability, the PlateSmart ranks highly for usability.
PlateSmart’s website showcases plenty of case studies and real-life video demonstrations of the software’s accuracy and usability. One of the white pages made available on the website states that the software offers 99% accuracy.
Where PlateSmart falls short is pricing. The website provides no transparency on pricing, making it difficult to determine whether or not the software is an affordable option.
Choosing an ALPR Software Provider
When choosing an ALPR software provider, it all comes down to what your organization prioritizes. Looking at the above information, we can say that all three options rank well for accuracy and usability, but only PlateRecognizer ranks well for pricing.
