// At a glance
Quick comparison
| Feature | THERMS | Belfry |
|---|---|---|
| Core strength | Incident reporting & records management | Scheduling & shift management |
| Incident reporting | Advanced: searchable, linked records | Standard |
| Records management | Full: persons, vehicles, properties, timelines | Limited |
| Scheduling | Proficient: custom assignments, copy shifts/weeks, geofenced clock in/out | Strong: built around scheduling |
| Client portal | Yes | Yes |
| GPS tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Guard tour / patrol | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing | From $45/mo (1–5 users) | Not publicly listed |
| Free trial | 14 days, no credit card required | Demo-based |
| Best for | Reporting-critical operations | Scheduling-heavy operations |
// Scheduling Focus
Where Belfry wins
Belfry was built scheduling-first, and it shows. If your biggest operational headache is managing a large rotating roster across multiple sites (filling open shifts, handling callouts, tracking availability), Belfry is purpose-built for that workflow.
If you're running a company where the volume of guards and shifts is the primary complexity, and incident documentation is secondary, Belfry deserves a serious look.
// Built reporting-first
Where THERMS wins
THERMS was built reporting-first. That's not a limitation. It's a deliberate design decision that makes a significant difference for security companies where documentation is mission-critical.
Incident reporting depth. THERMS doesn't just let guards submit a report. Every incident is linked to searchable records for the people, vehicles, and properties involved. A suspicious vehicle that turns up across three incidents at two different apartment complexes gets connected automatically. That's the kind of documentation that proves your value to property managers and protects your contracts at renewal time.
Records management. THERMS maintains full historical timelines for persons, vehicles, and properties across your entire operation. When a client asks for everything related to a specific incident or individual from the past six months, you pull it in seconds, not hours.
Client portal. Your clients get a dedicated portal with real-time updates on activity at their locations. They see what's happening without calling you. That's a retention tool as much as it's a feature.
Scheduling that works without being the whole product. THERMS includes a capable scheduling system: custom assignments, copying single shifts or entire weeks, availability toggles for your employee pool, hours-scheduled visibility by location and by user, and mobile clock in/out with geofenced punches and out-of-bounds alerts. It handles the scheduling needs of most security companies cleanly. Belfry goes deeper on scheduling-specific automation, but for companies where reporting and records are the priority, THERMS covers scheduling without making you compromise on documentation.
Transparent, predictable pricing. THERMS pricing is public and user-count based. You pay for active users only, not seats, not modules, not add-ons. Starting at $45/month for up to 5 users, it scales cleanly with your roster. See the full pricing table.
Some of our customers have told us they run THERMS alongside a dedicated scheduling tool, and still come out ahead on cost compared to all-in-one platforms that charge a premium for scheduling depth they don't fully use. If deep scheduling is important to your operation but so is best-in-class reporting, that's a combination worth pricing out before you commit to a single platform.
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Events: incident lifecycle
Incident reporting depth
A suspicious vehicle across three incidents at two properties gets connected automatically, the kind of documentation that protects contracts at renewal time.
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Records: persons, vehicles, properties
Records management
Full historical timelines across your operation. Pull everything tied to a person or incident from the past six months in seconds.
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Client portal: location view
Client portal
Clients see real-time activity at their locations without calling you: a retention tool as much as a feature.
Who should choose THERMS
THERMS is the stronger choice if any of these describe your operation:
- You run vehicle or foot patrols across apartments, commercial buildings, shopping centers, or residential communities and need to prove your guards showed up and did the work
- Your property-manager or client contracts depend on them being able to see clear, professional activity and incident reports
- You've ever had a client question whether a patrol happened, or lost a contract because you couldn't prove the value you delivered
- You want your clients to have real-time visibility into activity at their sites without having to call you
- You need to track persons, vehicles, or properties across multiple incidents and sites over time
- You serve higher-compliance clients too (healthcare, government, HOAs, corporate campuses) where documentation standards are even stricter
- You want predictable, transparent pricing that scales with your headcount
Who should choose Belfry
Belfry is worth considering if:
- Scheduling complexity is your primary operational problem: large rosters, frequent shift changes, multiple sites with different requirements
- Incident documentation is a secondary concern for your client base
- Your clients aren't asking for detailed reporting or audit trails
The bottom line
The security guard software market has a lot of platforms that do a little of everything adequately. THERMS is built for companies that can't afford to do reporting and records management adequately. They need to do it exceptionally.
If a client ever questions whether your guards showed up, whether a patrol happened, or how an incident was handled, and your answer determines whether you keep the contract, THERMS is built for that reality. That's true for a patrol company covering apartments and shopping centers, and it's true for a firm holding a hospital or government contract where the documentation bar is even higher. Belfry is built for companies where the hardest problem is the schedule.
Curious how other platforms stack up too? See our full comparison of the best security guard reporting software.
THERMS is a product of American Software Solutions, a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business.