Cannabis Retail Buyer Guide
Solink for Cannabis Dispensaries Pricing and Alternatives
Solink is a strong choice for dispensaries whose biggest loss happens at the register, because it links every sale, void and discount to the video behind it. It is priced per location, not per camera. This guide puts a number on it, lists the cannabis POS systems it connects to, and shows when another platform is the better buy.
Surveillant adds AI alerts and plain-English search to the cameras your dispensary already records with, from $49 a month.
Is Solink better than other surveillance platforms for cannabis retail?
For register and budtender loss, usually yes. Solink ties point-of-sale data to video, so a manager can open any void, comp or price override and watch the clip, and it publishes integration pages for Dutchie and Treez. For after-hours vault alerts or searching footage on cameras you already own, a per-camera AI tool is cheaper to start and does that job directly.
Solink's own cannabis page leans on employee theft. It cites MJBizDaily for the claim that 90 percent of cannabis product and cash loss ties back to employees. Treat that as the vendor's framing, not a measured number for your store. The useful question is narrower: where do your losses actually show up? If inventory counts come up short and the POS shows nothing odd, the gap is more likely in the vault, the back door or receiving, and POS-linked video will not see it.
Whatever you choose, the state rule sits underneath it. Your regulator decides retention, frame rate and coverage, and the platform has to meet that, not the other way round. Our cannabis dispensary security camera requirements guide has the numbers by state.
- Voids, comps, price overrides
- POS-linked video
- Cash drawer variances
- POS-linked video
- Vault entry after close
- AI after-hours alert
- Back door and receiving
- AI after-hours alert
- Regulator footage request
- Search plus compliant recorder
How much does Solink cost for a dispensary?
Solink does not publish prices. The number quoted most often by third parties is a subscription starting around $175 per month per location, which bundles the cloud software, an on-site appliance and every camera at that site. For a dispensary, that per-location model usually works in your favor.
The reason is camera count. State rules push a licensed store to cover every point of sale, every entrance and exit, the vault or storage room and often the parking lot, so 16 to 30 cameras is common even in a modest storefront. Spread $175 across 20 cameras and the software works out under $9 a camera a month. A per-camera product cannot get near that on price alone, and it should not try.
Where the bill grows is the add-ons and the store count. A three-store operator is looking at roughly $525 a month, or $6,300 a year, before any monitoring service or extra integrations. Our Solink pricing guide breaks down what drives the quote up, and the figures there are labeled the same way: third-party, not a published rate card.
One practical point for cash-heavy stores. Video tells you what happened at the drawer; it does not tell you whether the day's cash actually reached the bank. Many operators pair POS-linked video with bank reconciliation software that matches each deposit against the POS cash report, so a short deposit gets flagged the next morning instead of at month end.
Solink Alternatives for Cannabis Dispensaries Compared
Prices come from each vendor's own page where one exists. Where a vendor only quotes, the cell says so, and third-party figures are labeled. The last column is the honest one.
| Platform | Price | Cannabis POS link | Cameras | Better pick when |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solink | About $175 per location per month (third-party figure), cameras at the site included | Yes, the core feature; Dutchie and Treez pages | Most ONVIF cameras, on-site appliance | Register, discount and void loss across several stores |
| Envysion | Not published, quoted per location | Yes, POS exception reporting | Usually with its own recorder | Large chains that want managed exception reporting |
| Eagle Eye Networks | Not published, sold through resellers | Through partners | Yes, with an on-site bridge | Cloud recording with long retention under one reseller |
| Verkada | Cameras $699 to $5,299 MSRP plus a license, about $180 to $240 a camera a year at resellers | No native cannabis POS link | No, Verkada cameras | Replacing every camera and door reader with one vendor |
| Spot AI | Quote only; about $99 per camera per month is the third-party figure | Some POS integrations | Yes, recorder included | Operations analytics as much as security |
| Surveillant | Published $49 a month for 1 camera to $1,499 for 20, about half billed yearly | No POS link | Yes, any RTSP or ONVIF camera, no box | After-hours vault and back-door alerts plus plain-English search on cameras you own |
Volt AI, Lumana and Coram also come up on security shortlists, but none of them lead with cannabis POS integration. If a dispensary is weighing a bigger cloud camera system, our Solink alternatives page compares the wider field.
What cameras work with Solink?
Solink says it is compatible with most ONVIF cameras, which it puts at more than 30,000 models from 270 brands, and its compatibility page names Axis, Avigilon, Hanwha, Vivotek and Uniview models among many others. The same page marks some brands as not compatible, and its FAQ invites you to submit a model it does not list.
For a dispensary, that matters because the cameras usually came with the build-out and the original installer chose them. Pull the model numbers off your recorder before the first call, not after. The same rule applies to any platform that keeps your cameras: Surveillant, for example, connects to any camera that serves an RTSP or ONVIF stream, which you can confirm in a few minutes with the stream address and a view-only user.
Which cannabis POS systems does Solink integrate with?
Solink publishes integration pages for Dutchie and for Treez POS, both aimed at cannabis retailers. We found no published Solink integration page for Cova or Flowhub. That does not mean the link is impossible, but if your store runs either one, ask Solink in writing which transaction fields it pulls (voids, discounts, refunds, drawer opens) and whether the connection is live today.
The POS link is the whole reason to pick Solink over a cheaper camera platform. If it cannot read your POS, most of the value case goes with it.
When a Per-Camera AI Layer Beats Solink in a Dispensary
Some dispensary problems never touch the register. A vault opened at 2 a.m., a back door propped during a delivery, a car circling the lot after close. Those need an alert on a phone, not a transaction report the next morning. This is where an AI layer on the cameras you already own does better, and where it costs less to try.
Surveillant reads a second stream from the cameras your compliant recorder already uses, so the 24/7 footage your regulator requires stays exactly where it is. You point it at the vault door, the back entrance and the lot, set after-hours windows, and alerts arrive by email, Slack or webhook. When the regulator or an investigator asks for footage, plain-English search finds the moment, and the evidence export includes a chain of custody file with a SHA-256 hash.
It does not link to your POS. If voids and discounts are where the money goes, Solink is the right tool and we would say so. If both problems are real, the two do not conflict: one watches the register, the other watches the building. Our AI video analytics for cannabis dispensaries page covers the setup and the published price, $49 a month for one camera up to $1,499 for 20.
You run Dutchie or Treez, have several stores, and your shrink shows up as voids, comps and drawer variances.
You need after-hours alerts on the vault, back door and lot, and fast footage search, on cameras you already own.
Register loss and building loss are both real. The two read separate streams and do not interfere.
Five Things to Get in Writing Before You Sign
- 1Retention and frame rate per camera. The quote should state days of continuous recording and frames per second that match your state, for example 90 days at 15 fps in California.
- 2Your POS by name. Not "POS integration" in general. Dutchie, Treez, Cova or Flowhub, and which events come across.
- 3Every camera model on the list. Send the model numbers and get each one confirmed as supported.
- 4Term and exit. Contract length, renewal increases, and what happens to the appliance and the footage if you leave.
- 5Who answers a regulator request. How fast you can export a clip with a timestamp and who on your team can do it without a support ticket.
Questions Dispensary Owners Ask About Solink
Is Solink better than other surveillance platforms for cannabis retail?
Solink is the better pick when register and budtender loss is your main problem, because it ties each transaction to the video behind it and lists integration pages for Dutchie and Treez. It is not automatically better for after-hours vault alerts or for searching footage on cameras you own, where per-camera AI tools cost less to start.
How much does Solink cost for a dispensary?
Solink publishes no rate card. The figure cited most often by third parties is a subscription starting around $175 per month per location, covering the software, an on-site appliance and the cameras at that site. A three-store operator should budget roughly $525 a month before monitoring add-ons, and confirm the number in a written quote.
What cameras work with Solink?
Solink says it works with most ONVIF cameras, more than 30,000 models from 270 brands, and names Axis, Avigilon, Hanwha, Vivotek and Uniview among others on its compatibility page. It lists some brands as not compatible, so check each model on solink.com before you sign, especially older analog or budget cameras.
Does Solink integrate with Dutchie?
Yes. Solink publishes a Dutchie integration page and a Treez POS integration page aimed at cannabis retailers. We found no published Solink integration page for Cova or Flowhub, so if you run either, ask Solink to confirm the connection and what transaction fields it pulls before you buy.
Does Solink meet state cannabis video requirements?
Solink says it keeps evidence for as long as local compliance requires, but the rule you must meet is set by your state, not the vendor. California requires 90 days of continuous 24/7 footage at 15 frames per second, Colorado 40 days, Michigan and Illinois 30. Get the retention and frame rate in writing in the quote.
Is Solink worth it for a single dispensary?
Often yes, if the store has many cameras, because the location fee covers every camera on site and a dispensary usually runs 16 or more. It is weaker value for a small store with only a few cameras, or if you mainly want vault and back-door alerts rather than POS-linked review.
What is a cheaper alternative to Solink for a dispensary?
If you do not need POS-linked video, a per-camera AI layer on your existing cameras costs less to start. Surveillant publishes $49 a month for one camera up to $1,499 for 20, month to month, and runs beside your compliant recorder to watch the vault, back door and parking lot after hours.
Can I keep my compliant recorder and add AI alerts?
Yes. Most IP cameras serve more than one stream, so your existing recorder keeps the 24/7 footage your regulator requires while an AI layer reads a second stream for alerts and plain-English search. Nothing about your compliance recording changes, and you can test on one camera first.
Put After-Hours Alerts on Your Vault Camera Tonight
Connect one camera, set the after-hours window and see the alerts on your own footage. $49 a month for one camera, published, no appliance and no contract.