A guard tour app that's actually free.
Most "free" patrol apps turn out to be a trial, a stripped-down tier, or a per-guard fee waiting to happen. PatrolBadges is free for up to 5 checkpoints with every feature, for as many officers as you have, for as long as you use it.
Free guard tour app
What's free, and what isn't.
No catch hiding in the small print. Here's exactly what the free plan covers, and the one thing that would make you pay.
5 checkpoints covers more than it sounds: the main doors of a church, a small office's entrances and server room, or one floor of a fire watch.
- Checkpoints
- Up to 5 active ones. Archived checkpoints don't count.
- Officers, routes and scans
- Unlimited. Nothing is charged per guard, per device or per scan.
- Features
- All of them: alerts, incidents with photos, SOS, offline patrol mode, reports and CSV export.
- Time limit
- None. It's a plan, not a trial, and there's no card to enter.
- When you'd pay
- At a 6th checkpoint: Pro is $9 a month for 10, then $1 for each one after.
How it works
Set up in minutes, from your phone.
No readers, no wands and no app to roll out. If your people can take a photo, they can scan a checkpoint.
- 01
List up to 5 checkpoints
The doors, gates and rooms a patrol has to reach. Pick how often they're walked. No signup to try it.
- 02
Print the stickers
Each checkpoint gets a QR sticker for any printer, or a link to write to an NFC tag.
- 03
Officers scan as they walk
With their own phone's camera. Nothing to install, and you're emailed when a checkpoint is missed.
An example route
What a night patrol route looks like.
That's the whole free plan at work: five checkpoints, a schedule, and every alert and report.
Checkpoints
In walking order- FD01Front door
- Locked?
- BD02Back door
- Locked and alarmed?
- ST03Stairwell
- Exit clear?
- RA04Roof access Photo required
- Door closed and latched?
- PL05Parking lot
- Lights working?
- Nothing suspicious?
Night patrol
Every day · 10 PM – 6 AM · one round
Missed checkpoints are emailed as each round ends, by name.
A round not started is emailed 60 minutes in, while there's time to act.
A Problem on any checklist needs a note, and is emailed to you as an incident.
What you get
Everything the record needs. Nothing to learn.
Missed-checkpoint alerts
An email naming any checkpoint nobody scanned, as the round ends. Free.
Incidents with photos
Officers report a forced door or a leak from the checkpoint, with photos. Free.
Offline patrol mode
Keeps scanning in stairwells and basements, then sends with the real times. Free.
SOS and welfare checks
One-tap SOS with location, and an alert when someone working alone goes quiet. Free.
Daily patrol reports
Print them, export a CSV, or have them emailed to a client each morning. Free.
Scans that hold up
GPS stamps, officer PINs and flags on scans that came too fast or too far away. Free.
Plus everything else in PatrolBadges: NFC tags, PINs, incident reports, offline scanning, CSV export and four sticker layouts. See all features
Pricing
Free to start. Priced by the checkpoint after that.
Free means free for 5 checkpoints, with no end date. If you grow past that, Pro is $9 a month for 10 and $1 for each one after, still with unlimited officers.
Free for up to 5 checkpoints. Pro is $9 a month for your first 10 checkpoints, plus $1 a month for each one after that. Officers, routes and scans are unlimited on both. No per-user fees, hardware, contracts or setup costs.
$9 for your first 10 checkpoints, plus 10 × $1.
FAQ
Questions, answered.
The quickest answer is to try it: add your checkpoints and scan one from your phone in about two minutes. No card. Or ask us.
Is there a completely free guard tour app?
Yes. PatrolBadges is free for up to 5 checkpoints, with every feature and unlimited officers, routes and scans. It isn't a trial: there's no time limit and no card. Officers don't install anything; they scan a checkpoint's QR code with their phone's camera and it logs in the browser.
What's the catch?
The checkpoint limit. 5 covers a small building, but a bigger site needs Pro, and that's what pays for the free plan. Every feature stays on the free plan, and nothing you record is deleted if you never upgrade.
How is this different from free guard tour apps in the app stores?
Many free patrol apps are a trial, a log for one guard with no dashboard, or a free download whose useful features are paid. The free plan here includes the dashboard, missed-round alerts, incident reports, client reports and unlimited officers, and nobody has to install anything.
Can I try more than 5 checkpoints for free?
Yes. Set up as many as you like before signing up, and walk a test patrol from your phone. When you sign up, keep them all on Pro or pick 5 to keep free; the rest are archived, not deleted.
Do officers need an app or an account?
No. Officers point their phone's camera at the code, which opens the checkpoint in the browser. The first scan of a shift asks their name, or their PIN if you use PINs, and every scan after that logs on arrival. That's true on the free plan and on Pro.
What happens when I need a 6th checkpoint?
Adding it asks you to go Pro: $9 a month covers 10, then $1 each, month to month. Or archive one you no longer patrol. Either way, nothing you've recorded is deleted.
Start the free plan. No card, no trial clock.
Add your checkpoints and scan them from your phone, right off your screen. No card, and sign up only when you're ready to keep it.
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- How Much Does a Guard Tour System Cost? Real Prices, ComparedPublished prices, from free plans to per-guard apps and wand hardware, side by side.
- guardtour.app Alternative: PatrolBadges vs guardtour.app (2026)The same free plan size. One needs an app and keeps 30 days of history on free; one doesn't.
- PricingFree for 5 checkpoints. Pro is priced by the checkpoint, with unlimited officers.
More ways to use PatrolBadges
- Guard toursSecurity patrols with a QR code at every checkpoint and alerts when one's missed.
- Fire watchRounds every 30 minutes while the alarm or sprinklers are down, logged for the fire marshal.
- HOA & apartmentsNightly rounds of gates, garages and amenities, with a report the board can read.
- Construction sitesAfter-hours rounds of the gate, containers, fuel and equipment, proven with a scan at each.
- WarehousesAfter-hours rounds of dock doors, yards and fence lines, with a checklist at each stop.
- Church safety teamsDoor and building checks by a volunteer safety team, before, during and after services.
- Vacant propertyInspections of empty buildings on the schedule your insurer sets, with photos at every stop.
- Facility roundsDaily walks of the boiler room, risers, generator and roof, with a checklist at each stop.
- Night checksOvernight hall and door checks in group homes, shelters and dorms, with safety for staff working alone.
- Restroom cleaningA QR code in place of the clipboard on the door, with a checklist and a photo at every clean.