Best hog trap cameras and cellular triggers for remote trapping

What a trap camera is for

A hog trap camera answers one question: is the whole sounder inside? Texas A&M AgriLife describes a camera-based remote trigger as the alternative to a physical trigger, and it's candid about the cost: "This option is typically more costly and does require cell service" (AgriLife, Trapping). The payoff is timing. A trip wire closes on whichever hog pulls it first. A camera lets you wait for the last one.

A camera earns its keep before the trap is even set. AgriLife's corral-trap publication says a game camera "can help identify the number of hogs and other species entering the trap and suggest the optimal time to set the trap" (AgriLife, Corral Traps for Feral Hogs, L-5524), and its trapping page recommends bait and cameras to confirm that hogs visit a site regularly before a trap goes in. That's why this list mixes purpose-built trap cameras with cellular trail cameras that offer live view.

If you haven't chosen the trap yet, start with our best hog traps ranking. This page covers the eyes and the trigger, and the hog traps hub puts both in the context of a whole trapping plan.

All-in-one, or a camera plus a trigger

With what Amazon sells, there are two ways to put eyes and a trigger on a trap:

• All-in-one. The HogEye Mini streams live video and drops the gate through its included latch and 30 ft gate cable, all from one app. One device, one data plan, one warranty.
• Camera plus trigger. Any live-view camera on this list, plus a cellular trigger that drops the gate on a phone call: The Hunt Supply's ready-to-run trigger, or the budget KT-G3-A relay you wire yourself (it's ranked in our hog trap systems list). Two devices, two plans, and two apps or a phone call when the moment comes.

The second route costs less up front if you go the DIY relay way, and the camera can move to a feeder or fence line later. The first is simpler at the moment that matters, when the sounder is in and you have one app open. Our hog trap trigger ideas guide covers the trip-wire and DIY options in more depth.

How we ranked these

The four trap-first picks (the HogEye, both Reolinks and the Hunt Supply trigger) are scored on our trap rubric: whole-sounder capability, including a trigger you control (30%), remote control and monitoring (25%), power and field reliability (15%), setup burden (15%), and support and warranty (15%). The two Tactacams are cellular trail cameras, so they carry their scores from our cellular trail camera rubric (network flexibility, night imaging, power, plan-cost transparency and value), and they're ranked in full in our best cellular trail cameras roundup. The two rubrics measure different things, so a Tactacam's score can't be compared with a Reolink's. Both rubrics are published on How We Choose. We haven't tested these units; scores come from published specs and the rubric on our How We Choose page.

The rank follows the job, which is watching a trap and closing it on the whole sounder. The HogEye does both. The Reolinks are built around live view, the feature that matters most at a trap. The Tactacams are trail cameras first, with live view as an added subscription. The Hunt Supply trigger ranks last only because it isn't a camera: it's the part that lets picks 2 through 5 close a gate.

What each one does at a trap

The published specs

The picks in context

1. Wildlife Dominion HogEye Mini (AT&T)

The only camera here that closes the trap by itself. Live video runs in the HogEye app, and the box includes a latch, a latch adapter and a 30 ft gate cable, so the same screen that shows you the sounder drops the gate (Wildlife Dominion product page). The maker says it "works on any trap", and Boar Blanket names it as the remote trigger for its net trap. Power is a lithium battery with a solar charging system. The warranty is the best in this category: 3 years, total replacement, with U.S.-based support (HogEye Cameras). The trade-offs are a monthly data plan (no contract, start or stop anytime), an AT&T listing on Amazon (Verizon and Starlink versions are sold by the maker), and a night-vision range and video resolution the maker doesn't publish.

2. Reolink Go Ranger PT

The best camera here for watching a trap you'll drop with a separate trigger. It streams 4K live view for up to 20 minutes at a time, uses 940 nm no-glow IR, and pans 355 degrees and tilts 140 degrees, so one camera can check the gate, the bait at the back and the approach (Reolink Go Ranger PT specs). The SIM in the box connects to AT&T, Verizon or T-Mobile, and it runs on a 6,000 mAh battery made to pair with Reolink's 6 W Solar Panel 2 (check whether your listing includes the panel). It's rated IP65 with a 2-year warranty. The limit to plan around: IR is rated to about 33 ft, so mount it on or near the trap, not across the clearing.

3. Reolink Go Plus 4G with Solar Panel

The budget live-view option. It records 2560 x 1440 video at 15 fps, and its SIM picks the strongest of AT&T, Verizon or T-Mobile (Reolink Go Plus specs); the Amazon bundle includes the solar panel. Its 7,800 mAh battery is larger than the Ranger PT's 6,000 mAh. It gives up two things to the Ranger PT: there's no pan or tilt, and its IR is 850 nm rather than the 940 nm no-glow type. IR range is the same 33 ft rating, IP65, 2-year warranty. Like the Ranger, it can't drop a gate.

4. Tactacam Reveal Pro 4.0 Solar

A full-featured cellular trail camera that can double as a trap camera. It shoots photos and video on motion, which is what you want while you pre-bait and learn when the sounder shows up, and its selectable no-glow or low-glow flash is rated to 80 ft or 96 ft respectively (maker's claim). Live View Mode is available on an added subscription (Tactacam Reveal Pro 4.0). Amazon sells it as a solar listing, and the camera also takes 12 AA batteries or Tactacam's FlexPacks. Tactacam publishes its plan tiers with no activation fee and lets you pause off-season (Tactacam plans). The warranty is 1 year from activation, the shortest here.

5. Tactacam Reveal Ultra

The same selectable no-glow or low-glow flash and published plan menu as the Pro 4.0, with two differences that matter at a remote trap. Active GPS alerts you if the camera moves more than half a mile, and live streaming is offered on an added subscription (Tactacam Reveal Ultra). It has 16GB of internal storage. It runs on 12 AA batteries (not included) unless you add power through its 12 V DC input, and its warranty is 1 year from activation.

6. The Hunt Supply Cellular Hog Trap Trigger

The part that lets picks 2 through 5 close a gate. One phone call drops a guillotine-style gate on a rail, and the box includes a 12 V battery, a solar panel and 12 months of cell service (J4 Welding trigger page). It's built by the same shop as The Hunt Supply's 6 ft drop gate. It has no camera, the carrier isn't published, and neither the warranty nor the renewal cost after year one is stated. If you're comfortable wiring 12 V, the KT-G3-A relay in our trap systems list does the same job for far less, with more work.

Check the signal before you buy

AgriLife says a camera-based remote trigger "does require cell service", and every pick here depends on it. Match the device to what works at your trap site, not at your house:

Multi-carrier SIMs (Reolink and Tactacam) are the forgiving choice for a site with patchy coverage. For a single-carrier device, stand at the trap with a phone on that network before you order.

What to look for in a hog trap camera

1. Live video, not just photos. A motion photo tells you a hog came by. Live video lets you count the sounder before you close the gate. Check how the maker delivers it: Reolink streams in sessions of up to 20 minutes, and Tactacam sells live view as an added subscription.
2. A way to close the gate. Either built in, as on the HogEye, or through a paired cellular trigger. A camera alone watches hogs walk out again.
3. Night imaging that reaches the back of the trap. The trigger and bait sit at the back, and you need to see them whenever the hogs come in. Compare published IR ranges (the Reolinks are rated to about 33 ft) and prefer 940 nm no-glow IR where it's offered.
4. A carrier that works at the trap. See the signal table above. Multi-carrier SIMs reduce the risk.
5. Power you won't have to tend. The HogEye and the Hunt Supply trigger include solar charging, the Go Plus bundle includes a panel, the Ranger PT pairs with Reolink's panel, and the Pro 4.0 is sold as a solar listing. The Ultra runs on AA batteries unless you add 12 V power.
6. A plan price you can read before you buy. HogEye runs month to month with no contract, and Tactacam publishes its tiers. The Hunt Supply trigger's renewal cost isn't stated.
7. The warranty. HogEye: 3 years, total replacement. Reolink: 2 years. Tactacam: 1 year from activation. The Hunt Supply trigger: not published.

Where to mount a trap camera

Aim it so it sees both the gate and the back of the trap. AgriLife's corral-trap publication puts the trigger at the back, away from the door, so many hogs are inside before it closes, and it says to bait "all the way to the trigger at the back of the trap" once you're ready to set it (L-5524). The camera has to see that whole length.

The published IR ratings make the math simple. In a 20 ft round net trap, a camera on the fence line looks about 20 ft across to the far side, inside the Reolinks' 33 ft rating. In the minimum 20 by 30 ft teardrop that AgriLife's trap-design authors recommend for a corral (AgriLife, Hog Trap Design), a camera at the gate looking to the back covers about 30 ft, right at the edge of that rating. Mount it at the narrow end looking in, or use the Ranger PT's pan to swing between the gate and the back.

Put the camera up during pre-baiting, not on the night you set the trap. It shows you when the sounder arrives and how many there are, and it lets you follow AgriLife's advice to check traps from a distance and avoid leaving human scent, especially with trap-shy hogs. Our guide on how to trap feral hogs covers the full pre-bait, watch and close sequence.

What each budget buys

• Under $500: both Reolinks and both Tactacams, plus the KT-G3-A relay from our trap systems list. A Reolink paired with the relay is the cheapest route to live view and a remote drop, and the most do-it-yourself.
• $1,000 to $2,000: the HogEye Mini, which does both jobs, and the Hunt Supply trigger, which only drops the gate. A live-view camera plus the Hunt Supply trigger spans two tiers; the HogEye covers both jobs from one box in this tier.

Whichever route you take, add the monthly plans to the hardware. Every camera here needs one, and the camera-plus-trigger route can mean two.

Trap camera mistakes

• Buying a photo-only camera for a remote trap. Motion photos arrive after the fact. For a remote drop you need live view.
• Mounting it at the tree line. With IR rated to about 33 ft, the camera belongs on or beside the trap, not across the clearing.
• Buying the camera and forgetting the trigger. Only the HogEye closes a gate by itself.
• Assuming your house signal reaches the trap. Check it on site, on the device's carrier.
• Dropping the gate on the first hogs in. Count the sounder on the camera during pre-baiting, then wait for that number.
• Not planning for the hogs you catch. In Texas, moving live hogs is regulated by TAHC. Read what to do with trapped hogs in Texas before the first catch, not after.

For the bigger picture of where trapping fits alongside fencing and shooting, see our plan for getting rid of feral hogs.