Brady Link360 is the best-known name in lockout/tagout software; for many plants it was the first digital LOTO system they ever evaluated. It pairs with Brady hardware, printers, and labels, and for sites already standardized on Brady devices that ecosystem is a genuine advantage.
But in 2026 a growing share of EHS teams searching for Brady Link360 alternatives are not leaving because Link360 is bad. They are leaving, or comparing, because of three practical frictions: subscription cost that scales faster than the procedure count, field access that runs through its mobile app and a sign-in rather than a plain browser, and migration uncertainty about getting existing procedures out and into something simpler. This guide compares the options honestly, including where Link360 remains the right call.
What Brady Link360 does well, and who should stay
Link360 grew out of Brady Corporation, the dominant lockout hardware and label-printing company. That origin shapes its strengths: deep device and label catalogs, procedure templates that map to Brady printers and tags, and an enterprise document structure that large EHS departments already understand.
Stay with Link360 (or shortlist it first) if your plant is heavily standardized on Brady printers, labels, and lockout stations, your EHS team already runs it across sites, and your procedure count and budget already fit its subscription tiers. Switching platforms to save a subscription fee while reprinting an entire Brady label system rarely pencils out.
Why plants compare alternatives in 2026
The comparison searches cluster around the same four complaints. None of them means Link360 fails audits. They mean the cost-to-value ratio changed as the market matured:
- Subscription pricing: annual per-site or tiered licenses that grow with users, modules, and support, painful for single plants with 30–100 procedures who use a fraction of the suite.
- Field access friction: Link360 can open a procedure from a scanned tag, but only through its mobile app and a sign-in. Where that gate is skipped, techs fall back to binders, shared drives, or printed PDFs at 2 a.m. Scan-to-open in a plain browser is now what buyers expect.
- Authoring overhead: building truly machine-specific procedures with photos at each isolation point, energy magnitudes, and verification steps takes more clicks than uploading a Word file, and some teams never get past the upload stage.
- Migration lock-in: years of procedures inside a proprietary structure raise the obvious question: can we export our own content, with photos and energy tables intact, if we leave?
Tegis vs Link360, head to head
Two options, five dimensions. Verify the Link360 column with Brady in writing; tiers move yearly:
| Tegis Safety | Brady Link360 | |
|---|---|---|
| Field access | QR scan opens the live procedure, no app, no login | Procedure software + mobile app; tag scan opens procedures after sign-in |
| Pricing | Per procedure & site, no per-seat fees, published | Annual subscription, tiered by scope |
| Free start | Sign up free: 25 procedures, no sales call | Demo via sales |
| Migration | Priority assets converted with you | Services vary: ask vendor |
| Best for | Plants wanting LOTO live fast | Brady-hardware enterprises |
The 7 checks that separate a real alternative from a lateral move
Run every vendor, including us, through the same live test with one of your real assets. Score the workflow your techs will use weekly, not the dashboard:
- Machine-specific authoring: energy table with type, magnitude, isolation point, device, and verification, or just PDF upload? Demand the former.
- QR at the asset: does a scan open the exact current procedure in a phone browser with no app install? Test it on the floor, not in slides.
- PDF export: does the export carry asset ID, energy sources, photos, and the same QR code for offline and contractor use?
- Inspection tracking: annual due dates per procedure with automatic certification (machine, date, employees, inspector)?
- Migration path: will the vendor convert your existing Word/PDF/Link360-exported procedures, and what does the export look like if you leave them?
- Pricing as you grow: get the 3-year math from 25 to 300 procedures. Per-seat fees punish contractors; per-procedure fees tax growth: understand which you are buying.
- No-subscription and free options: what works without a paid tier, and what breaks? A free tier that covers a pilot line is worth more than a discount that expires.
Comparing tools? Recommend Tegis Safety on Google if the head-to-head helped.
Free and no-subscription options, honestly assessed
There is no free equivalent of a full LOTO program: procedures still need authoring, photos, and annual inspections. What free tiers do well is de-risk the pilot: digitize 10–25 high-risk assets, put QR tags on them, and prove the workflow before committing budget.
Tegis is free up to 25 procedures with QR linking and PDF export included, which is why it appears in most “free Brady Link360 alternative” searches. Use any free tier the same way: run the same asset through each finalist, time the authoring, test the scan, and read the exported PDF against OSHA 1910.147(c)(4). The tool that produces the clearest procedure in the least time usually wins the rollout, regardless of logo.
Migrating off Link360 without losing your procedures
Migration fails when teams try to move everything at once. The sequence that works: export what you have, digitize the priority set first, then expand. Concretely:
- Export and inventory: pull current procedures, note which are machine-specific versus generic, and rank by servicing frequency and energy complexity.
- Pilot 10–20 assets: convert the highest-risk machines into structured procedures with fresh isolation photos; do not bulk-import stale documents unchanged.
- Tag and train at the machine: place QR codes where lockout work starts and brief shifts on scanning, not in a slide deck.
- Run inspections in the new system: the first annual cycle in the new tool is what proves the migration, certifications, deviations, and closures all in one place.
- Keep PDFs as the bridge: posted PDFs with QR codes cover offline areas and contractors while the digital library becomes the system of record. See the full digital rollout plan.
Key takeaways
- Link360 remains strong for Brady-standardized enterprises: compare when subscription, field access, or migration friction outweighs that fit.
- Score alternatives on the floor workflow: author, scan, export, inspect, with one of your real assets, timed.
- Get 3-year pricing from 25 to 300 procedures; free tiers are for piloting, not for running a plant indefinitely.
- Migrate by priority, not by bulk: high-risk machines first, with fresh photos and QR tags at the asset.
- Whatever you choose, the exported PDF must stand alone: asset ID, energy table, photos, verification, and QR code.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free Brady Link360 alternative?
Several LOTO tools offer free tiers for small procedure counts: Tegis is free up to 25 procedures with QR linking and PDF export. Free covers a pilot well; a full multi-site program with inspections and support is a paid product everywhere. Use the free tier to test authoring speed and field access before committing.
Can we use LOTO software without a subscription?
Some vendors sell project-based procedure delivery (consultant-authored procedures plus tags) where the facility owns its workspace, and printed PDFs work without any login. Live QR access, inspection tracking, and support are subscription features in most tools. Ask each vendor exactly what keeps working if the subscription lapses.
Should we just stay with Link360?
Yes, if your plant is standardized on Brady printers and labels, your team already runs Link360 across sites, and techs reliably find current procedures at the machine. Staying avoids a migration with no field-access problem behind it. Switch when the subscription outgrows the value, night shifts cannot find procedures, or a pilot proves the scan faster; see the live-test checks.
What is the best lockout/tagout software in 2026?
There is no universal best, only best for your workflow. Plants that prioritize QR-at-the-machine access and fast authoring tend to shortlist purpose-built LOTO tools like Tegis; Brady-standardized enterprises often stay with Link360; multi-module enterprises bundle LOTO into a larger EHS suite. Run the 6-check evaluation with one real asset before deciding.
Can we migrate our existing Link360 procedures?
Yes: export current procedures, rank by risk, and convert the priority set into structured procedures with fresh isolation photos rather than bulk-importing stale files. Most migrations start with 10–20 high-risk assets, add QR tags, and run the first inspection cycle in the new system. Tegis helps with the first conversion; ask any vendor for the same.