Permanent free tier, no card
CCTVplanner has a permanent Free tier, 2 projects, 6 cameras, no card. Real installers using it for real projects today. Installer is €4.17/mo when you outgrow it.
IPVM Alternative
The Free IPVM Design Calculator Alternative, EU-Hosted and Browser-Based (2026)
If you pay for the IPVM Design Calculator, CCTVplanner is the free, browser-based, EU-hosted alternative integrators are switching to in 2026. Same DORI math, bigger camera catalog, modern UI, your data in the EU, and €50/yr instead of $199/yr.
Free tier · No credit card · Open in your browser
Quick disambiguation: IPVM is two products
IPVM Research / news: the paywalled industry publication with vendor reviews, vulnerability disclosures and market intel. CCTVplanner is NOT an alternative to this. If that's what you need, IPVM remains the industry standard.
IPVM Design Calculator: the CCTV design software, sold as its own plan at $199 per year per person. CCTVplanner replaces this at €50/yr, with a larger catalog, EU hosting and a permanent free tier.
Why switch
Six reasons integrators leave the IPVM Design Calculator in 2026
The IPVM Design Calculator is good, and it is $199 per year per person. Here is what shifts the moment you switch to a design-first tool at €50/yr.
Purpose-built for design
CCTVplanner is a design tool first. The whole codebase, UX and roadmap exist for one purpose: placing cameras and rendering coverage.
Designed for tablet + mobile fieldwork
Walk the site with the customer, drop a camera on the tablet canvas, agree on the tilt right there. CCTVplanner is mobile-aware from the ground up, touch gestures, on-screen pan/zoom, PWA install.
EU-engineered, EU-hosted, GDPR-clean
DEFENSAR — 100% Engineered and Hosted in EU. GDPR-aligned by default with an auto-generated DPIA worksheet (Art. 35) inside every PDF export. IPVM is US-based — for EU government, defence, finance and critical-infrastructure tenders that matters in 2026.
22 UI languages, including RTL
English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Polish, Portuguese (BR/PT), Dutch, Czech, Ukrainian, Turkish, Arabic (RTL), Hindi, Indonesian, Filipino, Vietnamese, Japanese, Korean, Thai. IPVM is English-only. If your team or your tender lives outside that, this matters.
€50/year, not $199/year
Even Business (full DXF export, white-label PDF, unlimited offers) is €100/year. The IPVM Design Calculator is $199 per year per person.
Side-by-side at a glance
| CCTVplanner | IPVM Design Calculator | |
|---|---|---|
| Design tool cost | Free tier · Installer €4.17/mo · Business €8.33/mo | $199/yr per person |
| Design tool sold on its own | Yes, €50/yr Installer | Yes, $199/yr Design Calculator plan |
| Try before you commit | Free tier, 1 project, 6 cameras, permanent | 7-day money-back window |
| Origin / data residency | EU — DEFENSAR, GDPR-clean | United States |
| UI languages | 19 (incl. RTL Arabic) | English only |
What you keep, every IPVM Design Calculator capability that matters
Switching shouldn't mean downgrading. The design surface, the math, the exports — all present, in many cases broader.
DORI per EN 62676-4
Detect, Observe, Recognise, Identify thresholds at 25 / 62.5 / 125 / 250 px/m — same standard your AHJ expects, validated by 3,600+ unit tests. Plus the newer OODPCVS ladder (7 levels) when you need it.
65,000 cameras catalogued
Hikvision, Dahua, Axis, Bosch, Hanwha, Pelco, Uniview, Vivotek, Avigilon, Honeywell — including 100+ datasheet-verified flagship models with bitrate, lux, IP/IK, ONVIF, NDAA and environmental class metadata.
Multi-floor projects
Stack multiple floor plans, route cabling between them, project the full topology graph (cameras, NVRs, switches, WAPs, multi-closet daisy-chains) into a single BOM.
DXF in and out
Import the architect's DXF — full coverage including BLOCK, INSERT, SPLINE, ELLIPSE, HATCH and DIMENSION entities. Export your finished design as DXF for the electrical contractor.
Multi-page PDF with full BOM
Cover, floor plan, camera schedule, cable schedule, equipment list, elevation views, cost estimate and auto-generated GDPR DPIA worksheet (Art. 35). Hand it to the customer as-is.
26 standards validated
EN 62676 series, EN 50130-4/5, EN 62305 lightning, IEC 60529/62262, ISO/IEC 11801, IEEE 802.3 PoE, ONVIF, NDAA §889, GDPR, BS 8418, AS/NZS 4806, Garante 2010 and more — cited and validated, not just mentioned.
Honest comparison
Where IPVM is genuinely stronger
Not everything is a CCTVplanner win. Three areas where IPVM remains the better tool. If these matter most to you, the subscription is worth keeping.
Industry research depth
IPVM is the gold standard for video surveillance industry analysis — vendor reviews, vulnerability disclosures, market intel. We do not compete on research; we are a design tool. If that is what you need, the research subscription remains the right product.
Training courses + certification
IPVM runs paid training courses and offers IPVM-branded certificates which carry weight in some procurement contexts. CCTVplanner publishes free guides at /docs and /blog but does not yet certify integrators.
First-party camera testing lab
IPVM operates a physical testing lab, publishes independent vendor comparisons. Our datasheet metadata is sourced from manufacturer spec sheets — we trust the OEM data, we don't test in-house. For empirical comparison data, IPVM is the source.
Switch from the IPVM Design Calculator in 5 steps
Most installers redo a 20-camera site in 15-30 minutes. The math is the same; the muscle memory is the only thing you have to rebuild.
1. Export your floor plan from the IPVM Design Calculator
From your IPVM project, export the floor plan as DXF, PDF or PNG. If you only have the source CAD or a printed plan, that works too — skip to step 2.
2. Import into CCTVplanner
Open CCTVplanner in your browser, click New Project, drop the DXF / PDF / PNG / JPG. Full DXF geometry import — BLOCK, INSERT, SPLINE, ELLIPSE, HATCH and DIMENSION preserved. Set scale once and you are ready.
3. Re-place your cameras
Pick the same models from our 65,000-camera catalog, drop them on the plan, set mounting height and tilt. DORI rings, FOV cones and obstacle shadows render in real time. Typical 20-camera site: 15-30 minutes.
4. Export PDF and DXF
Generate a multi-page PDF with floor plan, BOM, cable schedule, equipment list, elevation views and DPIA worksheet. Export DXF for the electrical contractor. Send to the customer.
5. Cancel the IPVM Design Calculator plan
Once your next project is in CCTVplanner and your team is comfortable, cancel the IPVM Design Calculator renewal. Business is €100/yr; the Design Calculator plan is $199/yr per person.
Frequently asked
Is this also an alternative to IPVM's research and news?
No, and we want to be upfront about it. IPVM publishes industry research and news, and separately sells the IPVM Design Calculator. CCTVplanner replaces the design tool only. For independent vendor research, IPVM remains the industry standard. If you subscribe mainly for the design tool, CCTVplanner covers that side at €50/yr.
Is CCTVplanner really free, or is this a trial?
Really free. The Free tier is permanent — 2 projects and 6 cameras, no credit card, no expiry. Enough to design a small site, render a real PDF and verify the DORI math against your own datasheets. When you need more projects or cameras, Installer is €4.17/mo. That's the entire pricing model.
Can I import my existing IPVM Design Calculator project?
There is no direct project-file import, the IPVM Design Calculator's project format is closed and proprietary. What works in practice: export the floor plan from IPVM as DXF, PDF or PNG, import that into CCTVplanner, then re-place the cameras using our 65,000-camera catalog. For a typical 20-camera site, plan on 15-30 minutes. The five-step migration guide above covers it.
Do I need to install anything?
No. CCTVplanner is a pure web app. Open the URL in any modern browser — Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge — on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS or Android. No installer, no admin password, no licence key. After first load, the PWA caches the app so it also works offline.
Where is my data hosted?
Inside the European Union. CCTVplanner is operated by DEFENSAR — 100% Engineered and Hosted in EU. Core account and project data is stored on EU servers; any sub-processors (payments, analytics, email) are covered by GDPR transfer safeguards (SCCs / EU–U.S. Data Privacy Framework). GDPR-aligned by default. IPVM is US-based; for EU public-sector and critical-infrastructure tenders that matters.
Does CCTVplanner have a research portal like IPVM?
Not in IPVM's form. We publish design guides at /blog and /docs and a glossary at /glossary — free, indexed by Google. What we don't do is vendor reviews, vulnerability disclosures or paid courses. Those remain IPVM's domain.
What about offline access?
Once the app has loaded once, the PWA caches it for offline use — useful in basements, remote sites, on flights. Cloud sync resumes automatically when you reconnect.
How is the camera catalog kept current?
We pull manufacturer datasheets and update specs on a rolling basis. 100+ flagship models carry full datasheet-verified metadata (bitrate, lux, IP/IK, ONVIF, NDAA, environmental class). The remaining models carry the core specs needed for DORI / FOV / range calculations. New models land within weeks of public datasheet release.
Stop paying $199 a year for a design tool
Open the browser. Drop a floor plan. Place a camera. See your first DORI ring in under 60 seconds — for free, no card, no install.
IPVM alternative — by industry
Industry-specific comparisons covering procurement workflow, compliance review, and supplier vetting differences.