Can Meshtastic Share Your GPS Location?

Yes. Meshtastic radios can broadcast your GPS position over the mesh, with no cell service or internet, so others on your channel see you on a map in the app. Radios with built-in GPS, like the WisMesh Pocket v2, T-Echo and WisMesh Tag, find their own location. Radios without GPS can share your phone's location through the Meshtastic app instead.

How does Meshtastic share location?

A radio with a location fix periodically sends a small position packet across the mesh, the same way it sends text messages. Other radios relay it, and anyone on the same channel with the app open sees your radio as a point on the map, along with when that position was last updated. The app can also show how far away other radios are when both have a position.

How often a radio sends its position is a setting. Frequent updates make tracking smoother but use more battery and more airtime on the mesh. Meshtastic can also send updates more often when a radio is moving and less often when it's sitting still, which is a sensible default for most families. Because it all runs over the radios themselves, it keeps working during a cell outage, as long as the radios are within range of each other or of a relay.

Which radios have GPS built in?

Several of the radios we carry have their own GPS receiver, which means they can report location without a phone connected.

The WisMesh Tag is a credit card sized radio with GPS, a 1000 mAh battery, an IP66 rating and magnetic charging. It's built to share location and send messages with no cell coverage, which makes it a good fit for a backpack, a vehicle or a family member who won't manage a full handheld.

The LILYGO T-Echo has GPS that uses GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou and QZSS satellites, an e-ink screen and a very low power chip. The WisMesh Pocket v2 adds GPS to a hard-cased handheld with a 3200 mAh battery and a screen. The T-Deck Plus also includes GPS along with its keyboard and color screen.

Like any GPS, these need a view of the sky. A radio deep inside a building or a bag may take a while to get a fix or lose it, and the first fix after being off for a long time can take a few minutes outdoors.

Can a radio use your phone's GPS instead?

Yes. The Meshtastic app can pass your phone's location to a paired radio, which then shares it on the mesh. That's how a radio without its own GPS, like a small screenless node, can still put you on the map. The catch is that it only works while the phone is paired and its location services are on. If the phone dies or disconnects, the radio stops getting fresh positions.

For a radio that never moves, such as a home node or a relay on a pole, you can set a fixed position instead of running GPS at all. That saves power and still shows the radio in the right place on the map.

What should you think about before sharing your location?

Position broadcasts go to everyone on the channel they're sent on. If your radio shares its location on the default public channel, anyone with Meshtastic in range can see where it is, and some radios forward public traffic to online maps. A radio that sits at your house every night tells strangers where you live.

• Share precise location only on a private family channel
• Lower the location precision, or turn position off, on the public channel
• Give radios neutral names that don't include your family name

Our Meshtastic Beginner Course covers these privacy settings in more detail. Location sharing also fits naturally into a written communication plan. Our guide to making a family emergency communication plan covers rally points and check-in times, which tell your family where to go when the map isn't enough.

Common questions

Does Meshtastic location sharing need cell service?

No. Positions travel over the LoRa radios themselves. You only need radios within range of each other, directly or through relays. Map tiles in the app may need to be downloaded ahead of time to show streets offline, so check that before you depend on it.

How accurate is Meshtastic location?

About as accurate as the GPS source, which outdoors is typically good enough to find someone on a street or trail. You can deliberately reduce the precision a channel shares if you want people to see a general area instead of an exact spot.

Can I track a child or a vehicle with Meshtastic?

You can see the last reported position of any radio on your channel, which works well for a backpack or vehicle within range of your mesh. It isn't a cellular tracker, though, so once the radio is out of range of every other radio, its position stops updating.

Does sharing location drain the battery?

GPS and frequent position broadcasts are two of the bigger power draws on a radio. Longer update intervals or using a fixed position for radios that don't move will stretch each charge.

If location sharing is the main reason you're looking, the WisMesh Tag is the simplest way to put a radio in a bag or vehicle.