The best Bluetooth trackers for 2025

Most individuals consider AirTags once they image a Bluetooth tracker. And certainly, Apple’s little white discs was probably the most succesful possibility, counting on an enormous discovering community of close by iPhones to pinpoint misplaced tags. However now, each Google and Samsung have carried out discovering networks of their very own. And different Bluetooth tracker corporations, like Chipolo and Pebblebee, now have trackers that pair with both Google or Apple’s community too. In brief, you’ve received plenty of choices for tagging and monitoring your keys, backpacks, baggage and extra. So we examined all the most important manufacturers on the market to see how they work and put collectively a information that can assist you get probably the most out of your chosen tracker. Listed here are the very best Bluetooth trackers you should buy.Desk of contentsBest Bluetooth trackers for 2025Amy Skorheim for EngadgetFormat: Disc with gap | Compatibility: Android and iPhone | Water resistance: IP55 (splash and mud resistant) | Battery life: 1 yr | Replaceable battery: Sure | Distance for left-behind alerts: 450 ft. | Cellphone finder operate: Sure, through Chipolo app Chipolo’s earlier fob, the Chipolo ONE, was our prime choose for a pair years. The discharge of Samsung’s newest tag, new Tile trackers and different tags suitable with Google’s discovering community didn’t handle to nudge it from its throne. The Chipolo Pop got here out in early 2025 and it not solely retains all of the options we liked in regards to the authentic tracker, nevertheless it additionally solved our one criticism in regards to the earlier mannequin: Chipolo’s restricted discovering community. The Pop tracker faucets into both Google’s Discover Hub or Apple’s Discover My community, calling on each close by Android or iPhone, respectively, to anonymously ping a misplaced tracker for correct discovering. Not solely does it have some appreciable lost-in-the wild chops, it’s additionally louder than an AirTag, could make your cellphone ring, has 12 totally different ring tones, is available in cute colours and, notably, has a dang gap not like Apple’s slippery, accessory-requiring pebble. It solely works with one community at a time, nevertheless it’s simple to take away a tool that’s related to, say, an iPhone after which pair it up with a Galaxy handset. Setup was lifeless easy and quick. For each the iOS and Android assessments, simply bringing the Pop near the cellphone triggered a immediate to pair it. Chipolo’s tag is now not the loudest tracker we examined (Pebblebee’s Clip Common holds that honor), however you received’t battle to listen to it — and it has 12 elective ringtones, together with three which are holiday-themed. Neither Apple AirTags nor third-party trackers working with Google’s Discover Hub will allow you to ring your cellphone by squeezing the fob, however Chipolo Pop will. You’ll have to put in the Chipolo app and provides it permission to run within the background (doing so didn’t drastically drain both my iPhone or Android cellphone battery). The characteristic labored reliably in my assessments and was extremely appreciated, as my keys have a tendency to remain put once I’m house, however my iPhone likes to roam round the home like a bored housecat. iPhone customers who stroll away from an merchandise tagged with the Discover My community will get an alert earlier than they get too distant (normally a pair blocks), however Google’s discovering community has no comparable capacity. The Chipolo app permits left-behind (separation) alerts when utilizing an Android cellphone. In my assessments I received about 400 ft away from my stuff earlier than getting a notification I’d forgotten one thing. That’s truly sooner than AirTags’ notification and much faster than Tile’s. Alerts have been constant whether or not I used to be forgetting an merchandise at house, at a espresso store or inside my automotive. So far as dropping stuff out within the wild, the Pop paired with Apple’s Discover My community possesses the identical spooky accuracy as an AirTag. In my iPhone take a look at, I had a pal disguise the tag about 4 blocks away from me subsequent to a comparatively busy espresso store. As soon as they informed me the tag had been stashed, I went to the Discover My app to activate the misplaced merchandise characteristic — however no want, the discovering community had already positioned it. I tapped to observe instructions in Apple Maps and was taken inside about two ft from the bush the place it was hidden. Like my AirTags assessments, I used to be each impressed with and barely unnerved by the accuracy. The discovering expertise that depend on the Android community have been additionally spectacular. As soon as the Pop was hidden, I marked it as misplaced and received a ping that it had been noticed about six minutes later. Once more, the instructions led me shut sufficient to ring the tracker that I may discover it. Most individuals received’t must depend on the discovering community regularly, which is why it’s essential that Chipolo’s on a regular basis finding skills work properly, too. Tapping the Play Sound operate on both an Android or iPhone made the tag chirp virtually immediately, and it was ready to hook up with close by tags from additional away than fashions from different manufacturers. ProsLouder than an AirTagUses both or Apple or Google’s discovering networksChipolo app provides helpful featuresColorful disc with a holeEnables left-behind alerts for Android telephones$29 at AmazonPhoto by Valentina Palladino / EngadgetFormat: Clean disc | Compatibility: iPhone | Water resistance: IP67 (water and dust-resistant) | Battery life: 1 yr | Replaceable battery: Sure | Distance for left-behind alerts: 1,200 ft | Cellphone finder operate: No AirTags work with iOS’ Discover My app and are registered to your Apple ID, in order that they don’t require any further downloads. If you happen to’ve used the Discover My app earlier than, you’ll probably perceive how this works. These are the quietest of the trackers we examined and every time you press the Play Sound button, the tags solely ring for seven seconds. You’ll must hold urgent when you don’t discover your merchandise instantly and AirTags can’t be used to ring your cellphone. As for separation alerts, AirTags have been constant, all the time delivering a “left behind” alert once I traveled about 1,200 ft away, or about three sq. blocks, with out an merchandise. You’ll be able to flip off separation alerts for any given tracker, in addition to designate sure places, equivalent to your property or office, as exceptions for the notifications. One characteristic that AirTags have that no different tag provides is the flexibility to faucet into the ultra-wideband (UWB) wi-fi protocol. This lets you play a enjoyable sport of cold and hot with an merchandise when it’s inside about 25 ft of your iPhone. Directional arrows and a diminishing distance meter in your iPhone’s display level you to an merchandise with out having to ring it. This labored reliably about 75 p.c of the time in my assessments; generally it was simply simpler to ring the merchandise when the directional discovering couldn’t hold a lock on the tracker. UWB is supported by iPhone fashions 11 and later and whereas newer Galaxy and Pixel telephones additionally help UWB, no Android-compatible tracker has but been launched. In 2021, Tile introduced one that will, however has since missed its promised launch window of “early 2022.” AirTag’s capacity to find a misplaced merchandise out within the metropolis is nearly eerie. I had somebody (who was not carrying an iPhone) take my bike with a tracker hidden underneath the seat to a location somewhat over a half mile away. I set out a couple of minutes later and toggled on Notify When Discovered within the Discover My app. Inside three minutes, I obtained a notification that the bike had been “seen” close to an deal with. Tapping on Instructions navigates to Apple Maps, which took me to a spot about 30 ft from the bike. Had it been obscured from view, I may have then used the Discover Close by button to activate the UWB finding options. Ringing the tag was too quiet to listen to on the sidewalk. Each the Chipolo Pop and the Pebblebee Clip Common will work with Apple’s Discover My community, giving you an identical eerily correct discovering capabilities. The Pop goes for a similar $29 because the AirTag and the Clip Common goes for $35, however the former is rechargeable and provides lights to the combination. Each have built-in holes for simpler attachment and each ring louder than the AirTags. That stated, AirTags are nonetheless the gold commonplace for iPhone customers and stay our prime choose for iOS devotees. ProsVast discovering networkAccurate UWB for close by locatingConsiPhone onlyOnly rings for 7 seconds at a timeNo attachment level$24 at AmazonAmy Skorheim for EngadgetFormat: Disc with gap | Compatibility: Android and iPhone | Water resistance: IPX6 (water spray resistant) | Battery life: 1 yr | Replaceable battery: No (rechargeable) | Distance for left-behind alerts: 800 ft. (iPhone solely) | Cellphone finder operate: No Pebblebee might have landed on the very best design of all trackers on the market. The Clip Common feels the sturdiest, with a robust metallic ring encircling the fob. Constructed-in lights assist you find misplaced gadgets at the hours of darkness and it’s one of many few fobs that may be recharged, on this case, utilizing a regular USB-C port. I like that the packaging is fully plastic free, although I want it didn’t include a cable, as a result of actually, who amongst us doesn’t have a surfeit of USB-C cords at this level? However the included metallic carabiner key ring is a welcome addition. Like our prime choose, the Chipolo Pop, the Clip Common is a common possibility, working with both Google or Apple’s discovering networks and, within the assessments the place I hid the fob out within the metropolis, the respective apps precisely led me shut sufficient to the tracker to ring it. In assessments round the home and in my storage, my tester telephones didn’t hook up with the Clip fairly as shortly as they did to the Chipolo Pop. In a single iPhone take a look at, my helper planted the Clip close to a reasonably trafficked bakery and I didn’t get a ping for over a half hour, which is way longer than every other Discover My community take a look at I’d performed. Assessments utilizing an Android cellphone produced a connection to the Discover Hub community at about the identical velocity as different fobs I attempted, however I wasn’t all the time despatched a notification. As a substitute I needed to verify the Discover Hub app to see it had been noticed. One widespread criticism about AirTags is that they aren’t loud sufficient. If you would like a tracker that’s ear-shatteringly loud, the Clip delivers. My cellphone’s decibel meter app clocked it at 91dB — a stage that may trigger listening to harm when you’re uncovered to it for too lengthy. Paired with the flashing lights, it’s one of many best trackers to seek out. Setup wasn’t as computerized because it was with the Chipolo Pop, I needed to manually add the Clip, which wasn’t terribly troublesome, although having the previous Pebblebee app (Pebblebee Monitoring) on my iPhone triggered a immediate to obtain the brand new app (merely referred to as Pebblebee). The corporate recommends downloading its proprietary app with a purpose to hold the tracker’s firmware up to date and to “unlock its full potential.” However aside from the flexibility to rename the fob or take away it, I didn’t see any further options. The app does help one distinctive characteristic, nonetheless, with Hyperlink Labels. These are stickers with a novel QR code that you may declare and identify within the app, then stick with no matter you’d like: a water bottle, hat, sun shades case and so forth. If somebody finds the labeled merchandise and scans the code, you’ll instantly get a notification from the Pebblebee app that it was scanned. The one who finds it’s taken to a web site the place they will select to ship you the placement of the merchandise, a message and/or an image. No contact particulars are shared to maintain issues safer. I didn’t take a look at the characteristic extensively, because it’s somewhat exterior the purview of this information, nevertheless it might be a easy and intelligent technique to hold observe of stuff you don’t need to stick a tracker on. A few connection blips throughout testing and the dearth of additional options (like ring my cellphone and the dearth of Android left-behind alerts) put it behind the Chipolo Pop, however when you like the concept of recharging your tracker over throwing away batteries and desire a suitable (and loud) tracker with a sturdy design, the Chip Common is an efficient possibility. It is price noting that in June, the Pebblebee added private security options to the Common fob. It’s a free characteristic you need to use after a software program replace and works with the Clip Common. Whenever you squeeze the tag 5 occasions, it triggers a loud siren, brilliant flashes from the LED mild and sends a notification to the individuals you designate inside the Pebblebee app. ProsLoudest tracker we testedTaps into both Google or Apple’s discovering networksRechargeableConsThe Pebblebee units would not provide further featuresOccasional connection blipsNot as simple to arrange as different trackers$35 at AmazonPhoto by Amy Skorheim / EngadgetFormat: Rectangular fob with gap | Compatibility: Samsung telephones | Water resistance: IP67 (water and dust-resistant) | Battery life: 16 months | Replaceable battery: Sure | Distance for left-behind alerts: 1,300 ft. | Cellphone finder operate: Sure   Nothing can beat the vastness of Apple’s Discover My community, because it depends on each close by iPhone to assist find AirTags. The variety of Samsung telephones within the US could also be smaller than the variety of Apple handsets on the market, nevertheless it’s nonetheless important. The brand new SmartTag 2 depends on these telephones to supply a discovering community that will not finest Apple’s, nevertheless it was the primary tag to supply something near Apple’s community.  After all, now that Google has it is personal expanded Discover Hub community, Samsung’s community falls to 3rd place by way of dimension.  The SmartTag 2 solely works with Samsung units and after testing one out with a Galaxy S23, I used to be impressed how shortly it was capable of finding tagged gadgets out within the wild, although the precision didn’t fairly match that of Apple. Of all of the trackers I’ve tried, I just like the design of the SmartTag the very best. It’s an rectangular fob with an enormous gap for attaching on to your keys, or you should buy the elective silicone case and ring Samsung provides. Its quantity is louder than the AirTag and the Tile Professional, however not as loud as both the Chipolo One or the Pebblebee Clip. It’s also possible to change the tag’s ringtone or double squeeze it to ring your handset, each issues that you may’t do with AirTags. Setup is easy as properly: when you take away the plastic pull tab, your cellphone senses the tracker and walks you thru the usual permissions (location companies, notifications) and warnings (don’t use the tracker on individuals). The companion app, SmartThings Discover, tracks your Samsung units and the SmartTag with an intuitive and clear Google Maps-based interface. As for the way the tag works in follow, I discovered the left behind alerts triggered reliably once I received about three blocks (1,200 ft or so) away when strolling and about eight blocks away when driving. That’s far longer than Chipolo’s alerts, somewhat longer than Apple’s notifications and about on par with Tile’s left-behind characteristic. When the tag is out of vary and also you allow Misplaced Mode, you’ll get an alert when it’s noticed by one other Samsung cellphone. The tag additionally makes use of NFC to show your contact information and a customized be aware to anybody who finds the tracker, whatever the model of smartphone they carry. After all, whoever finds it could must know to carry it to the again of their cellphone to get the message, and it was more durable to set off with my iPhone when the tag was within the silicone holder. To check the discovering community, I requested a pal (and not using a cellphone of their pocket) to wander a half mile away with the tag. About 12 minutes after turning on Misplaced Mode, I received a message that the SmartTag was “noticed by a close-by machine” with a dropped pin. I tapped Navigate within the app, which opened Google Maps and led me to a degree straight throughout a reasonably busy road from the place my pal was standing. If I’d left the tag behind someplace I’d not too long ago been, simply seeing the placement on the map would have been sufficient to jog my reminiscence as to the place I might need dropped my stuff. But when somebody had stolen the tagged merchandise and I used to be wandering the streets making an attempt to get it again, vigilante fashion, it might not have been exact sufficient to assist. It might not be as correct because the iPhone-and-AirTag combo, however the SmartTag 2 is a stable entry within the Bluetooth tracker market and an excellent possibility in case you have a Samsung cellphone. ProsFinding community is largeAttractive and helpful designConsOnly works with Samsung telephones$22 at AmazonWhat to search for in a Bluetooth monitoring deviceBluetooth trackers are small discs or playing cards that depend on short-range, low-energy wi-fi indicators to speak along with your smartphone. Connect one among these devices your stuff and, if it’s in vary, your cellphone can “ring” the chip so you’ll find it. These monitoring units provide different options like separation alerts to let you know once you’ve left a tagged merchandise behind, or the place a misplaced merchandise was final detected. Some may even faucet into a bigger community of smartphones to trace down your machine once you’re out of vary. Relying on what you need the tracker to do, there are just a few specs to search for when deciding which to get.Machine compatibilityLike most issues from the oldsters in Cupertino, AirTags solely work with merchandise within the Apple ecosystem. Each Apple and Google have opened up entry to the Discover My and Discover Hub networks to third-party producers, together with Chipolo and Pebblebee. These two corporations make device-agnostic fashions that can work with the bigger monitoring community from both model, so iPhone and Android customers should buy the identical tag. Tile trackers work with both Android or Apple units, however use Tile’s personal Life 360 discovering community. Samsung’s newest fob, the Galaxy SmartTag2, solely works with Samsung telephones and faucets right into a discovering system that depends on different Samsung units to find misplaced tags.Discovering networkCrowd-sourced discovering capabilities are what make headlines, with tales about recovering stolen tools or monitoring misplaced baggage throughout the globe. Utilizing nameless indicators that ping different individuals’s units, these Bluetooth monitoring units can doubtlessly let you know the place a tagged merchandise is, even when your smartphone is out of Bluetooth vary.Apple’s Discover My community is the biggest, with over a billion iPhones and iPads in service all working Apple’s Discover My app by default. So until an iPhone person opts out, their cellphone silently acts as a location detector for any close by AirTags. Apple not too long ago elevated the AirTag’s discovering energy by enabling you to share the placement of a misplaced tag with a 3rd celebration, celebration, like an airline. Chipolo fobs that work on Apple’s community have the identical capacity. Google launched its Discover My Machine community in 2024 and has since renamed it Discover Hub, which, like Apple’s fining app, combines units and folks discovering in a single place. That community is now a detailed second for the biggest within the USNow that Google’s Discover Hub community is up and working, it’s a detailed second for the biggest within the US. Like Apple, Android customers are robotically a part of the community, however can opt-out by deciding on the Google companies possibility of their cellphone’s Settings app and toggling the choice within the Discover Hub menu. Samsung’s SmartTag 2 and associated community additionally defaults to an opt-in standing for locating tags and different units.Tile provides a big discovering grid that features Tile customers, Amazon Sidewalk prospects and folks working the Life360 community. Life360 acquired Tile in 2021, and, in keeping with the corporate, the Life360 community has greater than 70 million month-to-month energetic customers.In our assessments, AirTags and third-party tags utilizing its community, just like the Chipolo Pop and Pebblebee Clip Common, have been the quickest to trace down misplaced gadgets. They supplied almost real-time location knowledge in reasonably to closely trafficked spots round Albuquerque, together with a bar, bookstore and low outlets in Nob Hill, together with varied outside hangouts on UNM’s campus.Samsung’s SmartTags have been capable of find our misplaced gadgets more often than not, although not with the identical precision discovering accuracy as AirTags. Once we examined Google’s Discover Hub (then referred to as Discover My Machine) community proper after launch, it was noticeably slower than Apple’s community when utilizing the neighborhood discovering characteristic. Testing it once more in 2025, the time it took to find a misplaced merchandise was significantly improved, taking only a couple minutes for the neighborhood to trace a fob. In our assessments, Tile’s discovering community wasn’t capable of persistently find its misplaced fobs. Amy Skorheim / EngadgetSeparation alertsHere’s the place a tracker’s day-to-day utility actually shines. A separation alert lets you understand once you’ve traveled too far out of your tagged gadgets, which is helpful if you wish to make certain your laptop computer bag, or jacket or umbrella all the time comes with you once you depart the home.These notifications work once you’re out and about too. If you happen to’ve received a Bluetooth monitoring machine in your pockets and stroll out of a restaurant with out it, the separation alert ought to kick in, leading to fewer misplaced gadgets. This characteristic additionally tells you the place your tagged merchandise and cellphone have been final paired, permitting you to retrace your steps when you occur to overlook the alert.Every tracker handles left-behind gadgets otherwise. AirTags and third-party fobs utilizing its community (equivalent to from Chipolo or Pebblebee) embody the characteristic by default. Tile trackers require a yearly subscription to allow the alerts (presently $30 yearly). Tags working with the Google’s Discover Hub community don’t provide the characteristic in any respect, however Chipolo Pop tags can concern left-behind alerts utilizing its personal Android app. Each AirTags and Tiles let you flip off separation alerts at sure places, which means you may set your property as a “secure” place the place gadgets will be left behind, however alerts will nonetheless set off elsewhere.In our assessments, AirTags and others utilizing the Discover My community alerted us between the 600- and 1,400-foot mark. Tiles despatched a notification after about a mean of 1,500 ft and have been extra constant when utilizing an Android cellphone than an iPhone. Chipolo Pop tags paired with an Android cellphone and utilizing its personal app despatched an alert after we received round 450 ft away from our tagged merchandise.Connectivity, quantity and designThe characteristic you might use most frequently is the important thing finder operate, which makes the tracker ring once you hit a button within the app. With Apple’s AirTags, you may say “Hey Siri, the place are my keys?” and the assistant will ring the tag (assuming it would not mistakenly assume you are asking for instructions to the Floridian archipelago). It’s also possible to use the Discover Merchandise app in your Apple Watch to ring your fob. Asking good house/private assistants like Alexa or the Google Assistant to seek out your keys will work with Chipolo, Tile and Pebblebee trackers linked to your Android machine.When you’ve got your tag however can’t discover your cellphone, some trackers will allow you to ring them to seek out your handset. SmartTag2 fobs reliably rang our Galaxy cellphone after we double-pressed it. Tile trackers have the identical characteristic. Chipolo Pop trackers can ring your cellphone, however makes use of the Chipolo app to take action, which may run concurrently with the Discover My or Discover Hub connection. AirTags and any third-party tags utilizing solely Apple or Google’s networks don’t provide this characteristic.The quantity of the Bluetooth monitoring machine might decide whether or not you’ll find an merchandise buried in your sofa cushions or in a loud room. AirTags have a fame for being on the quiet aspect, and that aligned with what we noticed (measuring roughly 65 decibels). Chipolo’s Pop tags and Tile’s Professional mannequin measure between 83 and 86 decibels on common. Pebblebee’s new Clip Common was the loudest of any tag we’ve examined, clocking in at 91 ear-splitting decibels.Design will decide what you may connect the tracker to. AirTags are small, clean discs that may’t be secured to something with out equipment, that are quite a few, however that’s an extra value to contemplate. Chipolo, Pebblebee and Tile provide trackers with holes that simply connect to your key ring, and all three corporations additionally provide card-shaped variations designed to slot in your pockets. Pebblebee Clip Common tags include a useful carabiner-style key ring.Batteries are replaceable for AirTag, Tile Professional, SmartTag2 and Chipolo Pop fobs and every ought to go for at the least a yr earlier than needing to be swapped. Tile Mate and card-shaped trackers don’t have replaceable batteries, which suggests you’ll have to switch your entire unit each time it dies. Pebblebee trackers are rechargeable in each the disc and pockets selection. They’re additionally the one tags outfitted with onboard LEDs.Stalking, theft and knowledge privacyAirTags have gotten plenty of consideration and even prompted some lawsuits for Apple resulting from unhealthy actors planting them on individuals with a purpose to stalk them. Whereas this truth might not affect your shopping for resolution, any dialogue of Bluetooth trackers ought to be aware what steps Apple, Google and Tile have taken to deal with the difficulty. Final yr, all the most important gamers within the Bluetooth tracker enterprise teamed as much as fight misuse and standardize how unauthorized monitoring detection and alerts work for iOS and Android.Final yr, Tile launched a characteristic referred to as Anti-Theft Mode, which lets you render one among its trackers undetectable by others. Meaning if somebody steals your tagged merchandise, they received’t be capable of use the anti-stalking options to seek out and disable the tracker. That type of negates one of many main methods potential stalking victims can keep secure, so Tile hopes ID verification and a $1 million penalty will deter misuse. Individually, Tile was hit by an information breach, elevating totally different privateness considerations. The corporate issued an announcement in regards to the occasion, which it shared with Engadget:Just like many different corporations, Life360 not too long ago grew to become the sufferer of a legal extortion try. We obtained emails from an unknown actor claiming to own Tile buyer info. We promptly initiated an investigation into the potential incident and detected unauthorized entry to a Tile buyer help platform (however not our Tile service platform). The doubtless impacted knowledge consists of data equivalent to names, addresses, e mail addresses, cellphone numbers, and Tile machine identification numbers. It doesn’t embody extra delicate info, equivalent to bank card numbers, passwords or log-in credentials, location knowledge, or government-issued identification numbers, as a result of the Tile buyer help platform didn’t include these info varieties.We imagine this incident was restricted to the precise Tile buyer help knowledge described above and isn’t extra widespread. We take this occasion and the safety of buyer info critically. We have now taken and can proceed to take steps designed to additional shield our techniques from unhealthy actors, and we’ve got reported this occasion and the extortion try and legislation enforcement. We stay dedicated to holding households secure on-line and in the true world.As a theft deterrent, a Bluetooth tracker might or might not be the most suitable choice. Anecdotal tales abound during which individuals have recovered stolen items utilizing a tracker — however different tales are extra cautionary. Neither Apple nor Google promotes its trackers or discovering networks as a technique to cope with theft. GPS trackers, then again, are usually marketed for simply that objective.How we examined Bluetooth trackersBefore deciding on which trackers to check, we researched the sector, taking a look at person evaluations on Amazon, Finest Purchase and different retailers, together with discussions on websites like Reddit. We additionally checked out what different publications needed to say on the matter earlier than narrowing down our choices to Apple AirTag, Tile, and Chipolo trackers. When Samsung’s SmartTag 2 got here out in October of 2023, we added that to our testing, together with Pebblebee’s rechargeable Clip tracker. After Google launched its discovering community (now referred to as Discover Hub), each Chipolo and Pebblebee launched trackers in 2025 that work with both community and we examined the Pop and Common key fob fashions and up to date our prime picks accordingly.Right here’s the total checklist of each tracker we examined:After buying the trackers, I examined each over the course of some weeks utilizing each an iPhone 11 and a Samsung Galaxy S22 Extremely. I recreated probably person experiences, equivalent to dropping and leaving gadgets behind at house and out within the metropolis. I planted trackers at totally different spots close to downtown Albuquerque, principally concentrated in and across the College of New Mexico and the encircling neighborhood of Nob Hill. Later, I performed assessments within the Queen Anne neighborhood of Seattle. Every take a look at was carried out a number of occasions, each whereas strolling and driving and I used the measure distance characteristic on Google Maps to trace footage for alerts. I paid consideration to how simple the app was to make use of, how dependable the phone-to-tracker connection was and every other perks and downsides that got here up throughout common use.As new trackers come to market, or as we be taught of worthy fashions to attempt, I will take a look at them and add the outcomes to this information. I am presently within the means of acquiring Motorola Moto tags and look ahead to seeing how they work with an Android cellphone.Different Bluetooth trackers we testedTile Professional and Tile Mate (2024)Tile not too long ago got here out with a brand new suite of trackers, changing the Tile Mate, Tile Professional, Tile Sticker and Tile Slim with up to date fashions. Along with enjoyable new colours for the Mate and Slim, Tile added an SOS characteristic that may ship a notification to your Life360 Circle once you triple press the button on the tracker. It’s a intelligent addition that turns your keys right into a panic button, one thing supplied by private security corporations as standalone units.There are just a few caveats: You and the individuals you need to notify in an emergency will want the Life360 app put in in your telephones. If you would like your Tile to additionally set off a name to emergency companies, you’ll want a $15-per-month Life360 subscription (that’s along with a Tile membership, which begins at $3/month or $30 yearly). And enabling the SOS triple-press disables the flexibility to ring your cellphone with the fob.I examined the SOS characteristic and it did certainly ship a textual content message to my Circle, with the message that I had triggered an SOS and a hyperlink to a web site that confirmed my present location. I believed it odd that the hyperlink didn’t open the Life360 app (which reveals the placement of customers’ telephones), however I wasn’t as a lot involved with Tile’s private security options as I used to be with the monitoring capabilities, which turned out to be lower than superb.For my assessments, I planted Tile trackers in a densely populated space of Seattle (about 15,000 individuals per sq. mile). After setting the trackers to “misplaced” within the Tile app, I waited. After 4 hours, one of many trackers was not found by the discovering neighborhood, so I went and retrieved it. One other fob I planted alerted me that the tracker had been discovered by the Tile neighborhood after three hours — however the location it gave me was off by a 3rd of a mile. I then determined to plant a tracker in probably the most populated place I may consider — the dried fruit and nuts aisle of a Dealer Joes on a Friday night earlier than a significant vacation. It nonetheless took over a half an hour earlier than one other Tile person anonymously pinged my misplaced tracker.In my assessments with Samsung’s trackers and the fobs on Google’s Discover Hub community, it took round ten minutes for them to be found. AirTags took half that point and all have been examined in a far much less populated metropolis. 4 hours with no ping and over a half hour earlier than getting successful in a crowded TJs have been fairly lengthy stretches.Our prime choose, the traditional Chipolo, has just about no discovering community. However when you’re getting a tracker for that characteristic alone, it’s best to go along with AirTags in case you have an iPhone or the Google-enabled Chipolo or Pebblebee trackers when you use an Android cellphone. We want the Chipolo as a result of it really works with both iOS or Android units, it rings loud, it’s fast to let you know once you’ve left it behind and it connects almost immediately once you’re trying to find a misplaced tracker round the home.Tile units additionally work with each cell working techniques and its newest fashions are certainly louder than they have been earlier than. However they aren’t as fast to attach and it’s essential to pay for a membership to activate left-behind alerts. And once you do, these notifications don’t kick in as shortly as they do with competing trackers.Bluetooth tracker FAQsWhich Bluetooth tracker has the longest vary?Each the Tile Professional and the Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2 declare a most vary of round 400 ft, which is longer than the 300-foot declare for Chipolo’s Pop tags. The Pebblebee Clip Common claims a 500-foot vary, although different trackers with a shorter claimed vary carried out higher in our assessments. Apple doesn’t make vary claims for AirTags. Any Bluetooth sign, in fact, relies on just a few components. Obstacles like partitions and folks can block the sign, so a transparent line of sight is the one technique to obtain the utmost vary. Different indicators, like Wi-Fi, may intrude with Bluetooth connections. Even excessive humidity can have an impact and reduce the gap at which your cellphone will hook up with your tracker.Bear in mind, when contemplating the vary of Bluetooth trackers, the dimensions of the “discovering community” additionally comes into play. That is the variety of close by telephones that can be utilized to anonymously ping your tracker when your personal cellphone is out of Bluetooth vary. As of now, Apple AirTags have the biggest community, adopted by Google’s Discover Hub, Samsung’s discovering neighborhood and Tile’s Life360 members.What’s the finest Bluetooth tracker for a automotive?Bluetooth trackers are designed to trace small, private gadgets like keys, jackets, backpacks and the like. All trackers have safeguards to ban the tag from getting used to stalk individuals, so most will alert somebody if a tracker that doesn’t belong to them is detected following them. Meaning a automotive thief might get tipped off that there’s a tracker within the automotive they’re making an attempt to steal. That stated, you’ll see loads of tales about individuals discovering their automotive because of a Bluetooth tracker. Some police departments have even handed out trackers to fight excessive charges of carjacking. In most situations, the tracker of selection has been AirTags because of their large discovering community. If you happen to’re on the lookout for a tracker on your automotive, you might need to look into GPS trackers, a few of that are designed for simply that objective.How correct are Bluetooth trackers?Accuracy for Bluetooth trackers will be checked out in two methods: Discovering gadgets close by and discovering gadgets misplaced exterior your property. For close by gadgets, you’ll most frequently use the ring operate on the machine to hunt it down. Two tags, Apple’s AirTags and Samsung’s Galaxy SmartTag2, additionally use ultra-wideband expertise, which creates directional navigation in your cellphone to get you inside a foot of the tracker.Precisely discovering misplaced gadgets exterior your property will depend on the dimensions of the discovering community. Since this depends on the serendipity of a random cellphone passing inside Bluetooth vary of your tracker, the extra telephones on a given community, the higher. And since Bluetooth ranges and distance estimates are solely exact inside a few meter or so, getting pings from a couple of cellphone will assist finding gadgets. Right here once more, it’s price noting that Apple’s Discover My community is the biggest, adopted by Google, Samsung and Tile (each Chipolo and Pebblebee have fobs that work with the Apple and Google networks).Latest UpdatesAugust 2025: Up to date the identify of Google’s discovering community to Discover Hub, as an alternative of Discover My Machine. Added particulars about Pebblebee’s new Alert characteristic. Added a desk of contents.