Who hasn’t seen those great videos of crazy pet antics captured on home surveillance cameras? It’s just one-way pet owners keep tabs on their furry family members. Knowing that your pet is safe and sound is important. Understandably, it is this concern that causes the most anxiety during pet transports. Rationally a pet owner knows that, most likely, everything will be fine, but being out-of-touch with your pet during transport can be difficult. Fortunately, technology offers a peace-of-mind solution.
GPS pet trackers can be safely and easily attached to a pet – either as a collar or an attachment to an existing collar. These devices allow a pet owner to track the location of a pet, in real-time, anywhere in the U.S., through a smartphone app. In addition, these devices provide location history data, making it easy to determine a pet’s entire journey. Depending on the GPS device selected, there are additional enhancements to keep owners connected with their pets. There’s even one GPS tracker that can send a voice message to a pet while on the road!
The average cost of these types of GPS trackers ranges from $50 to $120 per device. Plus, there is a subscription fee for the tracking service that varies from $5 to $10 monthly. So, GPS trackers are an investment. Of course, the question is whether this type of investment is worth it for what may be a one-time transport. Obviously, that is for the pet owner to decide. However, most of these higher-end GPS tracking devices have additional functionality that makes them valuable in a pet’s everyday life. Some monitor a pet’s vitals and sends health updates. Others monitor a pet’s diet, exercise, activity, and training schedule. Still others allow the creation of a safe zone area and send an alert when a pet goes outside of it. The bottom line is a GPS pet device does have many more uses than just transport tracking.
To help pet owners who may be interested, we’ve pulled together some information on the more reputable, unlimited distance GPS pet trackers currently available below.
While we don’t recommend one GPS tracker over another, we do want to offer some advice on the many other "GPS-like" touted trackers found online that are considerably less and advertise no subscription fees. The key difference is these trackers offer a very limited distance range – the farthest being about 3 miles. Despite being advertised as “GPS” trackers, that’s not what they are. And while they may be great for monitoring a pet’s moves at home, they are not effective in determining location during transport with any amount of distance. Before purchasing, review all the specifications and features of a pet tracker to ensure it can deliver the information, and reassurance, necessary to help calm the anxiety caused by pet separation.
Fi Tracker
Website: tryfi.com
Package Includes: 1 Fi module, 1 Fi collar band, 1 Fi base, 1 USB charging cable, 1 USB power adapter
Price: $149.00 ($99 with referral coupon)
Subscription: $99 yearly per tracker
Warranty/Trial: 1-year limited warranty, 14-day free trial period
Battery Life: up to 2 days in lost dog mode (1-min updates), multiple weeks in other modes
Phone Interaction: LTE-M Network; app available from App Store or Google Play.
Other Features: network provides 30% more coverage; waterproof; red lights activate in lost dog mode; choice of collar colors; also tracks various activities; fits dogs 10 lbs. or over
FitBark
Website: fitbark.com
Package Includes: 1 FitBark tracker, 2 black tracker covers, 10 zip ties, 1 charging cable, 1 instruction manual
Price: $99.95
Subscription: Starts at $9.95 monthly per tracker (cost depends on the level of service purchased and whether paid monthly or annually)
Warranty/Trial: 1-year warranty, 30-day return policy
Battery Life: up to 20 days when fully charged
Phone Interaction: Verizon coverage; app available from App Store or Google Play
Other Features: 1-minute updates; waterproof (submerged up to 1 meter for 30 min); wide assortment of health and training tracking options; fits animals 5-240 lbs in weight
Furtrieve
Website: furtrieve.com
Package Includes: 1 Furtrieve tracker, subscription bundles (variable)
Price: $110.00
Subscription: $9.95 monthly per tracker
Warranty/Trial: 90-day warranty
Battery Life: 15 days when fully charged
Phone Interaction: cell service or wi-fi; app available from App Store or Google Play.
Other Features: allows two-way communication with the pet; real-time updating with street view (accurate to 3 meters); history available; crowd notify of lost pet (up to 10 texts to location); water-resistant (IPX67); custom collars available starting at $15
Geozilla
Website: geozilla.com
Package Includes: 1 GeoZilla tracker, 1 eSIM card, 1 rechargeable battery, 1 USB cable, 1 lanyard, 1 attachment pouch
Price: $49.95 (special offer, normally $99.95)
Subscription: start at $4.42 per month for a long-term plan (3 years or more)
Warranty/Trial: 30-day money-back guarantee
Battery Life: 2 days (on a 30-min refresh rate)
Phone Interaction: uses GPS and Cell ID technology to accurately locate the device, transmitting its position via wireless GSM to the GeoZilla app
Other Features: SOS button (location broadcast via app notification, email, or text); full customer service by dedicated experts
Gibi
Website: getgibi.com
Package Includes: 1 Gibi GPS tracker, 1 collar/harness attachment clip, 1 charging cradle, 1 USB cable, 1 A/C adapter, 1 quick user guide
Price: $99.99 (also available for short-trip rental)
Subscription: $9.99 monthly per tracker or $99 yearly (plus discounts for multiple trackers)
Warranty/Trial: 90-day limited warranty
Battery Life: 2-3 days
Phone Interaction: usable wherever wi-fi or cell service is available; the free app works with any smartphone
Other Features: locates every 15 minutes (accuracy to 10 ft.); IP67 waterproof-certified for water-loving dogs; ability to create safe zones, sending out alerts when out of the zone
Link Smart Collar
Website: linkakc.com
Package Includes: 1 tracker, 1 carrier, 1 base station, 1 power cord; collars sold separately
Price: $59.99
Subscription: $9.95 monthly per tracker (different service levels & payment plans available)
Warranty/Trial: 90-day free trial period
Battery Life: 3 days
Phone Interaction: can use any phone but only works with stable AT&T coverage; app available at Google Play or App Store
Other Features: shows real-time locations on the phone screen; tracks wellness activities; impact- and water-resistant (up to 3 ft.); recommended for pets 10 lbs. and up; different colors and styles available
Pawtrack
Website: pawtrack.com
Package Includes: 1 Pawtrack collar; 2 rechargeable batteries; 1 USB charger
Price: $49.99
Subscription: $7.99 monthly per tracker
Warranty/Trial: 1 year
Battery Life: up to 2 days
Phone Interaction: GPS, Glonass, Galileo; needs wi-fi and cellular service access; cat tracking available via the internet on any browser, or through the free app on Apple Store/Google Play
Other Features: primarily intended for cats, but can work on small dogs if the collar fits; splashproof; updates every 6 minutes or allows for immediate location
The Paw Tracker
Website: thepawtracker.com
Package Includes: 1 PawTracker; 1 PawTracker collar clip; 1 USB to micro-USB cable; 1 instruction manual; 1 SIM card w/software pre-installed
Price: $99.95
Subscription: $9.95/month for 1 pet, $8.95/month per pet for 2-3 pets; $7.95/month per pet for 4-6 pets; $6.95/month per pet for 7+ pets
Warranty/Trial: 30-day money-back guarantee
Battery Life: 5 days
Phone Interaction: international 2G M2M/IOT SIM card; no specific carrier required; free app download at App Store or Google Play
Other Features: real-time tracking plus historical route for 24-hr periods; Geo-Fence alerts if pet leaves designated area; water-resistant; flashing LED Lights; choice of colors
Tractive GPS
Website: tractive.com
Package Includes: 1 tracker, 1 collar clip, 1 charger, 1 SIM card
Price: $49.99
Subscription: starts at $5.39 monthly per tracker, varies depending on the payment plan and level of service purchased
Warranty/Trial: 1-year warranty
Battery Life:
Phone Interaction: works with any phone carrier; free app on Google Play or App Store
Other Features: LIVE mode updates every 2-3 seconds real-time, plus a history of the pet’s movement; share locations with friends/family; virtual fence alerts when the pet leaves a safe zone; waterproof (up to 1 meter for 30 minutes)
Whistle Go
Website: whistle.com
Package Includes: 1 tracker, 1 snap collar attachment, 1 hook & loop collar attachment, 1 USB charging cable, 1 quick start guide
Price: $99.95
Subscription: starts at $9.99 monthly per tracker, varies depending on the payment plan and level of service purchased
Warranty/Trial: 90-day free trial when purchased on whistle.com, 1-year limited warranty
Battery Life: up to 10 days
Phone Interaction: works with any phone carrier; requires Wi-Fi or cell service; uses AT&T towers, so check for coverage; free Whistle app available for Android (6.0 or later) and Apple devices (iOS 11 or later)
Other Features: recommended for pets 8 lbs. and up; real-time tracking w/15-second intervals plus history of pet movement; health tracking options; waterproof (1 meter, 30 min); choice of colors
Disclaimer: CitizenShipper does not officially endorse any of these products. The information presented above is collected from the manufacturers’ and distributors’ websites.
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