Dockex vs. Samsara

Samsara tracks. Dockex files.

Samsara runs $27–33 per vehicle a month, plus hardware.
It won't file one form for you.

Third-party reviewers (tech.co, traxelio.com) peg Samsara at $27–33/vehicle/month plus $350–500 hardware per vehicle on a 3-year contract you can't walk out of. In 50 public G2 reviews, not one Samsara customer mentions DQ files, Clearinghouse, drug & alcohol result tracking, IFTA filing, IRP filing, or state registration. The camera is fine. The compliance bill is still yours.

Read-only integration with Samsara. Keep the hardware. Cut the paperwork bill in half.

Dockex pricing$79·$249·$599flat · filing included on Professional+
See pricing →Cancel from your billing page
Works with your Samsara hardware$249/mo flat, 30 trucks, month-to-monthDQ, D&A, Clearinghouse, filings — one loginDesign partner spots open →

Already using Samsara?

Stuck in a 3-year Samsara contract? You don't have to break it.

Dockex reads Samsara's API read-only. Keep the hardware, keep the contract, keep the dash cams your drivers are already using. Skip the separate compliance consultant — layer Dockex on top for DOT compliance + filings Samsara doesn't ship. You own the exit timing, not us.

  • Read-only Samsara API integration — no writes, no workflow disruption for drivers
  • DQ files, drug & alcohol result tracking + MIS report, FMCSA Clearinghouse query tracking + reminders — run inside Dockex
  • Dockex prepares your IRP, IFTA, 2290, UCR, MCS-150, and state registration on your behalf — 2290 and UCR filed for you nationwide; IRP, IFTA, and Oklahoma state registration filed for you in Oklahoma under a signed authorization
  • Keep your Samsara dash cams and ELD on the same terms you have today

The real bill

Two invoices. Only one of them files anything.

Samsara doesn't publish a public number — samsara.com/pricing is a quote-gated form. Third-party reviewers report customer-quoted ranges of $27-33/vehicle/month plus $350-500 hardware per vehicle on 3-year terms. Then your admin still handles every registration renewal by hand. Then you still need a compliance consultant — or you eat the audit risk. Three cost centers, and Samsara still doesn't file your IFTA return.

Samsara stack

Four invoices. Three years. Still no filings.

Samsara doesn't publish pricing. Third-party reviewers (tech.co, traxelio.com) report $27-33/vehicle/mo + $350-500 hardware on a 3-year lock. Then come the compliance bills.

Samsara software (30 trucks @ $27–33)~$810–990/mo
Hardware (30 vehicles @ $350–500)$10,500–15,000 upfront
Compliance / DQ / D&A featuresnot offered
Admin time per renewal (1.5 hrs @ $40/hr)$60 each
Compliance consultantseparate vendor

Year-one net cost

$20,000+ and zero forms filed

Dockex Professional

One bill. Renewals included.

Software + filing agent + compliance — one login.

30 trucks, all-in$249/mo
Monthly renewals included30
2290 / UCR (nationwide) · IRP / IFTA (filed in OK)we file on your behalf
DQ files + D&A result tracking + Clearinghouseincluded
Works with your existing Samsararead-only integration

Year-one net cost

$2,988 — every filing included

Dockex replaces Four invoices. Three years. Still no filings. — plus your tag agent and compliance consultant.

One price. One dashboard. One place to look when a truck is off the road.

Competitor pricing sourced from Capterra, G2, and public carrier reports; actual pricing varies by region, reseller, and plan. Figures current as of 2026.

An actual G2 review, copy-pasted

Billing and accounting are horrendous. This is the only downside of samsara. They have no clue what they are doing.
Jessica B., G2 — 5-star review

The 10 things Samsara won't do

10 things Samsara won't do. Every one is federal.

Across 50 public G2 reviews of Samsara, the terms below appear zero times. Not as a strength. Not as a gap. Not as a feature request. The silence is the category.

  • DQ files0
  • FMCSA Clearinghouse0
  • Drug & alcohol result tracking0
  • MVR auto-read + risk scoring0
  • IRP apportioned filing0
  • IFTA quarterly return filing0
  • Form 2290 (HVUT) filing0
  • UCR registration0
  • MCS-150 biennial0
  • State registration filing0

Samsara sells you the camera. Then you still need a compliance consultant and a tag agent. Dockex is the compliance consultant and the tag agent — DQ files, Clearinghouse, MVRs, and every filing — for $249/mo, one login. Keep your existing drug & alcohol consortium; Dockex tracks every result and generates your annual MIS report.

Every problem, fixed

Every Samsara complaint — answered in Dockex.

Left column: what Samsara customers said, on the record. Right column: how Dockex handles it without asking you to rip Samsara out.

3-year contract locks small fleets out

Amanjot S. — G2 (5★)

Dockex is month-to-month. Starter $79, Pro $249, Business $599, Enterprise custom. Cancel from the billing page. Your ELD hardware (Samsara/Motive/Geotab) stays yours.

AI mis-flags sunglasses / hand gestures / 'stop ahead' signs

Javier P. · Tania R. · Verified Auto · G2

Dockex doesn't replace your AI dash cam — it ingests the signal. We add the compliance layer on top: DQ file flags, CSA BASIC sync, Clearinghouse timers, the things you still handle in spreadsheets.

Mobile app can't do what desktop does

5 separate 5★ reviewers on G2

Dockex is a PWA — same codebase on phone and desktop. Work orders, documents, custom fields, filings — everything works on the truck.

Billing + accounting are 'horrendous'

Jessica B. — G2 (5★)

Stripe-powered billing from day one. Invoices in your inbox on the 1st. Self-serve card swaps. Cancel anytime — we don't chase you.

Sales team is boastful and pushy

Tara G. — G2 (4★)

There is no sales team. You try the sandbox, start a trial, and if you have questions you book 15 min with the founder directly.

Samsara doesn't handle DQ files / FMCSA / D&A

50 G2 reviews — zero mentions of these categories

Dockex was built for exactly this. DQ files (17 DQ file items across FMCSA §391 + §382), D&A test-result tracking + the §382.403 annual MIS report (bring your existing consortium/TPA), FMCSA Clearinghouse query tracking + reminders, MVR auto-read + risk scoring, CSA BASIC sync — all included at every tier.

Samsara tracks IFTA mileage — but doesn't file the return

Every Samsara review on filing

Dockex takes the mileage data (from Samsara, or any ELD) and prepares the actual IFTA quarterly return — nationwide. For Oklahoma carriers, we file it for you. Same for IRP, 2290, UCR, MCS-150, and state registration: 2290 and UCR we file for you nationwide; IRP, IFTA, and state registration/title are prepared nationwide and filed for you in Oklahoma, with more states rolling out.

Customer service takes days

Marina D. — G2 (5★)

Founder-led support. Bardia replies personally during design-partner phase. After that, a human who built the feature, not a Zendesk queue.

Data export doesn't include images/files

Megan E. — G2 (4★)

Dockex DOT audit packet exports every document, photo, and timestamped receipt as a single PDF bundle. Drop it on a DOT officer's desk.

Side-by-side

Capability by capability.

Parity on the telematics fundamentals (we integrate). Everything below that, we built and Samsara didn't.

Telematics fundamentals (parity)

Real-time GPS + ELD

Samsara

Dockex

Via Samsara/Motive/Geotab integration

AI dash cam + driver coaching

Samsara

Dockex

Ingests your existing dash cam data

IFTA mileage from ELD

Samsara

Dockex

What Samsara doesn't do

DQ files (49 CFR Part 391)

Samsara

Dockex

FMCSA Clearinghouse query tracking + reminders

Samsara

Dockex

Drug & alcohol test-result tracking + annual MIS report

Samsara

Dockex

MVR auto-read + risk scoring

Samsara

Dockex

State registration filing

Samsara

Dockex

Filed for you (Oklahoma; more states rolling out)

IRP apportioned filing

Samsara

Dockex

Pro+ — prepared nationwide; filed for you in Oklahoma

IFTA quarterly return filing (not just mileage)

Samsara

Dockex

Pro+ — prepared nationwide; filed for you in Oklahoma

Form 2290 (HVUT) filing

Samsara

Dockex

Pro+ we file it for you (nationwide)

UCR + MCS-150

Samsara

Dockex

Title transfers

Samsara

Dockex

Filed for you (Oklahoma; more states rolling out)

Commercial model

Contract length

Samsara

3-year minimum

Dockex

Month-to-month

Pricing transparency

Samsara

Quote-based, hardware-locked

Dockex

Flat monthly, published

Hardware required

Samsara

Proprietary cameras + ELD

Dockex

Bring your own (any ELD)

Based on Samsara's public product pages and 50 public G2 reviews as of 2026-04-20. Mischaracterization? contact@dockex.io — we'll correct within 48h.

Every receipt, in full

The 17 quotes behind every claim above.

Five themes. Seventeen verbatim quotes. Typos preserved. Star rating on every card. Every quote links to its source on G2.

3-year contract or you don't get a quote

Samsara won't publish a number on their own website. You get a quote, you sign a 3-year lock, then you find out what 'enterprise pricing' actually means.

The contract terms are quite long, usually a three-year commitment, which can be tougher for smaller operations that need more flexibility. Also, while the desktop dashboard is great, the mobile app feels a bit limited by comparison and can sometimes be slower to sync.
Amanjot S., G2
Pricing and video watching ability for only 5 minutes
Moutik P., G2
Ease of use ; navigate without guessing. Pricing is ok, the team is a bit pushier than I would like.
Tara G., G2

The AI flags sunglasses, stop-ahead signs, and hand gestures as infractions.

Samsara's AI flags sunglasses as distraction (Javier P., 5★), stop-ahead signs as rolling-stop violations (Tania R., 5★), hand gestures as phone use (Verified Auto user, 5★), and yawns when drivers cover their mouth. Every Friday, your drivers contest infractions they didn't commit. Your safety manager becomes a full-time appeals court. Per 50 public Samsara G2 reviews as of 2026-04-20.

Because the software relies heavily on AI, some of the infractions flagged by Samsara are not always correct--example: rolling stop alerts when AI picks up the stop symbol on a "stop ahead" sign.
Tania R., G2
that I have to back out at times instead of just going back to a previous page or it has more than one back arrow that can get confusing. It does sometimes give a driver infractions for just wearing sunglasses as well
Javier P., G2
There are some issues with movements and hand gestures with drivers. A driver will move their hand and the system thinks it's a phone and advises the driver to put the phone down, or when a hand is covering their mouth for whatever reason, it takes it as a yawn.
Verified User in Automotive, G2
The AI is very sketchy and not always accurate
AJ C., G2

The phone app is the second-class citizen

Same pattern we found at Fleetio: desktop works, mobile freezes, force-close required. In a business where the truck is the office, that's the opposite of a product.

while the desktop dashboard is great, the mobile app feels a bit limited by comparison and can sometimes be slower to sync
Amanjot S., G2
The phone app on Android freezes all the time, but if I force close it and restart, it works.
Kyle E., G2
UI on the mobile app could use some refinement / optimization. Sometimes find the UI to be laggy.
Mike W., G2
The mobile app or mobile webpage could use some bug fixes. I find the maps automatically zooming out when I'm searching, which is annoying.
Andrew P., G2

Billing is 'horrendous' per their own 5-star customers

The product gets 5 stars. The people who bill you get words like 'horrendous' and 'no clue.' You're signing a 3-year contract with the second group.

Billing and accounting are horrendous. This is the only downside of samsara. They have no clue what they are doing.
Jessica B., G2
Customer service is very slow. Even after submitting a query, it can take a couple of days to get a response, often just saying they'll address it in the order it was received or that someone will follow up later.
Marina D., G2
The sales team is boastful and pushy. Missing integrations, would like to see more options
Tara G., G2

Audit day: the export leaves the photos behind

Megan E. nailed it in 7 words: 'The export cannot include the images or files.' When DOT knocks, you need the photos. Samsara keeps them.

The export cannot include the images or files.
Megan E., G2
Some features are buried several pages down from where they are first shown, which slows down the performance of the platform
Matt S., G2

Live product · no signup

Samsara won't show you this. We will.

28 trucks, DQ files filled, D&A results tracked, Q1 2026 IFTA filed, IRP submitted, 90 days of operations already loaded. No signup. 24 hours of access.

No lock-in

Switching the admin layer doesn't break Samsara.

Four promises. No small print. If any of these turns out not to be true, email contact@dockex.io and we'll refund every dollar you've paid us.

  • 01

    Try the live sandbox — no signup

    Click through a real 28-truck Oklahoma fleet right now. Compliance Autopilot running, Q1 2026 IFTA filed, 90 days of operations loaded.

    Enter Sandbox →
  • 02

    Month-to-month — always

    No 3-year contract. No auto-renewal. No hardware commitment. Cancel from the billing page and we export your data to CSV on request.

  • 03

    Your ELD stays yours

    Dockex integrates with Samsara, Motive, and Geotab in read-only mode. Keep the Samsara contract you already have, or switch to a cheaper ELD — we don't care which.

  • 04

    14-day free trial

    No credit card required. Full platform, every feature.

  • 05

    Design Partner spots open

    First 10 DOT-regulated fleets get 50% off year 1, direct Slack with Bardia, quarterly roadmap input.

    See the program →

Stop reading. Start clicking.

28 trucks. 100-point compliance grade. 2 seconds away.

Every DQ file filled. D&A results tracked, MIS report ready. Q1 2026 IFTA already submitted. The Oklahoma carrier Samsara would call 'out of scope' — running, in your browser, right now.

  • Contract lengthSamsara3-year minimumDockexMonth-to-month
  • Pricing transparencySamsaraQuote-based, hardware-lockedDockexFlat monthly, published
  • DQ files (49 CFR Part 391)SamsaraDockex
  • FMCSA Clearinghouse query tracking + remindersSamsaraDockex
  • Drug & alcohol test-result tracking + annual MIS reportSamsaraDockex
  • MVR auto-read + risk scoringSamsaraDockex
  • State registration filingSamsaraDockexFiled for you (Oklahoma; more states rolling out)
  • IRP apportioned filingSamsaraDockexPro+ — prepared nationwide; filed for you in Oklahoma
  • IFTA quarterly return filing (not just mileage)SamsaraDockexPro+ — prepared nationwide; filed for you in Oklahoma

EVERY DOCKEX FEATURE · EVERY PLAN · $0 IN ADD-ONS

Enter Sandbox — no signup →
  • no signup
  • no credit card
  • 24h sandbox
  • every feature unlocked

FAQ

Everything else you're probably wondering.

Do I have to rip out my Samsara contract?+

No. Dockex reads from Samsara's API in telematics-only mode. Keep your Samsara ELD + dash cam on the same 3-year contract you already signed. Dockex layers the DOT compliance + filing workflows on top — DQ files, D&A result tracking, FMCSA Clearinghouse, state registrations, federal filings.

Can Dockex replace Samsara entirely?+

For compliance, filings, maintenance, and fleet-admin work — yes. For AI dash cam + ELD hardware — you still need one. We support Samsara, Motive, and Geotab via OAuth today. Pick the ELD that fits, we'll read from it.

What's the real price difference?+

Samsara doesn't publish a public number — samsara.com/pricing is a quote-gated form, no price shown without a fleet-size selection. Third-party reviewers report customer-quoted ranges of $27-33/vehicle/month plus $350-500 hardware per vehicle on 3-year terms; get a current quote directly from Samsara for your fleet. Dockex is $79-$599/mo flat, with 10 / 30 / unlimited renewals included per tier (Enterprise custom for 500+ vehicles).

Why would I keep Samsara AND add Dockex?+

Keep the cameras if they're working for you. Use Dockex for everything Samsara doesn't do: DQ files, state registration filing, IFTA quarterly returns (not just mileage), IRP apportioned filing, Form 2290, UCR, MCS-150, title transfers, compliance consulting.

What if I cancel Samsara when my contract ends?+

Dockex comes with you. We integrate with Samsara, Motive, and Geotab via OAuth today. You keep your Dockex account — we just point it at the new ELD's API.

Does Dockex work outside Oklahoma?+

Full compliance + federal filings (2290, UCR, MCS-150) work nationwide. State registration filing launches state-by-state — Oklahoma live today, Texas next. Outside those, your existing tag agent or admin still handles in-state renewal — Dockex replaces your compliance + filings stack in every state we're live.

Can I keep my Samsara contract while using Dockex?+

Yes. Dockex reads Samsara's API read-only and layers compliance + filings on top. Your existing contract, hardware, and driver workflows don't change. Most design partners keep their telematics vendor for the remainder of the current term and switch on their own calendar when it expires.

What's the Design Partner Program?+

First 10 DOT-regulated fleets: 50% off year 1 (annual plan, no clawback on exit), direct Slack access to the founder, and quarterly roadmap input. In exchange: one written case study at day 90, logo on our site with your approval, 15 minutes of async feedback per month. See /design-partners for full terms.

Stop paying five figures a year for a dashcam.

30 trucks, Samsara-read, every filing handled, $249 flat, month-to-month. Click in. 2 seconds. No card, no signup, no sales call.

Sourcing & corrections

Comparison based on Samsara's public product + pricing pages, G2 reviews, and public industry-forum discussions as of 2026-04-20. Dockex LLC is not affiliated with Samsara. Competitor trademarks are used for identification purposes only under comparative-advertising fair use. See our full audit process on the methodology page. Found something wrong? contact@dockex.io — we'll correct within 48h.

Dockex vs. Samsara — Samsara watches. Dockex files.