8 Best Dash Cams for Truckers

How to Choose A Dash Cam: 2024 Buyer’s Guide

Dash cams are available in plenty of different types and sizes, but if you don’t know anything about the product, it’s tough to know where to start. This is especially true when weighing the price of dash cams, which can vary dramatically from product to product. Here are a few questions to ask, along with a few details about what to look for.

What video quality do you need?

Dash cams typically film in two different types of HD video- either video with a 1280×720 pixel resolution (also called “720p“), or video with a 1920×1080 pixel resolution (also called “1080p,” or “full HD”). Perhaps unsurprisingly, 1080p offers more detail than 720p, so our research team recommends 1080p in order to better ensure your dash cam captures license plate numbers or street signs when needed. Some cameras film in even higher definitions, like 2K or 4K, but these cost several hundred dollars more.

Which camera angles do you need?

Most dash cams are single-lens, front-facing cams, which film just the road in front of a vehicle. (Some of these cameras can also be swiveled to film inside the cab when needed during a traffic stop). Other types of cameras include dual-facing dash cams, with two lenses that allow for simultaneously filming the road in front and the inside of the cab. These might be used by a fleet of trucks, if the manager wants to monitor driver behavior (such as checking that a driver’s eyes were on the road during a collision incident).

What storage do you need?

A dash cam’s storage capacity is key: A camera that offers a loop recording feature will record until storage is full, and then begin to record over the oldest existing footage. So, the more storage you have, the farther back you can record. One extra wrinkle is that a higher resolution video will take up more storage.

What display size do you need?

A dash cam’s display size refers to the physical screen of the camera itself, which drivers can watch, or operate if it has touchscreen functionality. If you are mainly using a cam to record footage in case of a collision, your display shouldn’t need to be very large, and our testers find a typical 2 or 3 inch display will work fine.

How much do dash cams for truckers cost?

A high-quality dash cam for truckers typically starts at $150 and can cost as much as $400 or $500. Many dash cams include software and driver apps with the one-time cost of buying the hardware unit, but additional licensing fees may apply. If the cams are integrated with other fleet management services, this licensing fee is often included as an add-on to the monthly fleet management software fee.

While you can find a $50 dash cam, few will offer the quality of video you need, and they may need to be replaced sooner. Learn more about all the factors that influence dash cam prices, including installation, warranties, insurance savings, features, and where to find the best cheap dash cams, in our dash cam price guide.

What’s the difference between a car dash cam and a dash cam for truckers?

A dash cam for truckers is set apart from a non-commercial dash cam mainly by the width of the video footage it captures. This width is measured in degrees: the view of a front-facing camera on a typical trucker dash cam might be as wide as 170 degrees, though 165 degree and 150 degree views are also common. Car dash cams offer less, and even a smartphone camera could qualify if paired with one of the best dash cam apps.

Commercial vehicles also handle more extremes than non-commercial automobiles. Truckers need a dash cam that can record continuously for hours on end, handle bumps and jolts, and function despite temperature fluctuations. Many pro-grade dash cams include GPS data embedded in video footage, can be triggered to record and upload a quick clip when they register a collision or a harsh driving incident, and will record HD video that can capture license plate numbers in both dark or bright lighting.

How do I install a dash cam?

A typical dash cam can be mounted inside its vehicle’s windshield, usually behind the rear view mirror in order to leave the windshield itself clear and make sure the camera doesn’t obstruct a driver’s view. If installed anywhere else on a windshield, a trucker might run into legal trouble when visiting some states.

Do you need GPS data?

Some dash cams don’t include GPS location tracking, while others include GPS data logging in the video, allowing viewers to match a timestamp to a specific location (this GPS ability can typically be turned off if needed).

Do you need a small camera?

Some dash cams are slimmer and more compact than others, allowing them to be discreetly mounted in a vehicle, without drawing attention.

Do you need night vision?

Any long-haul trucker will frequently find themselves driving outside of daylight hours, and their dash cam will need to have night vision capabilities. All of the best dash cams for truckers, including all of our research team’s top picks on this page, have night vision included as standard. Cheaper models may not.

Do you need a fleet management system?

A dash cam by itself can record video, but a dash cam offered by a major fleet management software company like Verizon Connect or Samsara can integrate with their main fleet management software to offer additional features like fuel tracking, safety habit tracking, ELD compliance, or routing and dispatch abilities.

How to Combine Dash Cam Clips

You might need to compose a collection of dash cam clips for any reason. Perhaps you’re a fleet manager, and need to round up every time your vehicle was driven over a curb in order to file an insurance claim. Or, maybe you just want a clip of all the times your motion-activated camera caught a racoon in the parking lot for a fun home video.

Whatever the case, combining video clips can be done one of two ways. First, you can check to see if your dash cam allows you to combine clips within the hardware or within a connected software platform. Most standalone dash cams will just allow you to export the files individually, but fleet management software may include video trimming and combining tools.

The second way should work with any dash cam clips: Simply export the clips you need, and then edit them on your desktop computer, using a free software like QuickTime Player, which works on both Mac and Windows. It allows you to trim and combine the clips you need from each of your seperate video files. Adobe Premiere Pro can also accomplish this, and CapCut is another free service that you might find to be a simple solution as well.