HomeGear7 Best Trackers (2023): GPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Cellular

7 Best Trackers (2023): GPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Cellular

July 21, 2023

7 Best Trackers (2023): GPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Cellular

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Most Versatile

Jiobit Smart Tag

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$130 at Amazon

Best for iOS

Apple AirTag

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$29 at Apple

Best for Android

Chipolo One

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$25 at Chipolo

Best for Kids

Apple Watch Series 8

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$399 at Amazon
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4 / 7

“Systems!” My friends and Marie Kondo’s internet shout. “All you need is a system. As long as you always put your things down in the same place, you’ll never lose anything again,” they say, as I stagger in the door carrying children’s backpacks, a bag of dirty laundry, my waist pack, and a sack of dog food.

Like Elizabeth Bishop, I have developed losing into a fine art. I hid my Kindle from the 5-year-old, and now I can’t find it. My husband borrowed my wallet to grab the car insurance card; while I was looking for that, the dog got out of the yard. You may feel ambivalent about possibly stalking your friends or loved ones (please resist the urge to sew a tracker into your shady boyfriend’s coat), but without Bluetooth and GPS trackers, I would barely be able to function. I’ve listed my preferred uses for each of my favorite trackers, but many of these are multipurpose—if you can stick it on a dog, you can also stick it on a kid, and vice versa.

For more ideas, check out our roundups on kids travel gear and our many other buying guides, such as the Best Strollers.

Updated July 2023: We added Apple AirTags, updated information about several products, and updated links and pricing.

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  • Photograph: JioBit

    Most Versatile

    Jiobit Smart Tag

    The most precious things to keep track of? Your people. The Jiobit smart tag (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is one of the most versatile ways I know to do that. It's simply a small tracker, smaller than an Oreo, that connects to an app on your phone and uses a combination of Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, cellular, and GPS data to keep track of your pet, child, or elderly parent with dementia wherever they go.

    The app is incredibly easy to use. You can track your person in real time, geofence them, or make sure that they're in the company of trusted people. It's incredibly durable and waterproof and comes with a huge array of accessories—and if you don't want to use those, I found that a little hair tie worked just as well to attach it to my daughter's backpack. The most important part, however, is that Jiobit also has rigorous security protocols, like including a dedicated chip to access the Jiobit servers and burning away part of the circuit board, so you can’t steal it and physically reprogram it.

    $130 at Amazon
    $130 at Jiobit

  • Photograph: Apple

    Best for iOS

    Apple AirTag

    If you have an iPhone, you probably have one, or several, AirTags. Apple's long-awaited Tile competitor came out in 2021 and uses Bluetooth connectivity and Apple's special U1 location finding chip to help you pinpoint its location via the Find My app. As long as you and your AirTag are near Apple products, you will find your lost keys.

    AirTags are about the size of a quarter and have zillions of beautiful, if overpriced, accessories with which to attach them to your keychain or purse. You can also throw them into your luggage when you travel. The Find My network is giant, anonymous, and encrypted end-to-end, and in the app you can walk around with your phone and use the phone's accelerometer, camera, and gyroscope to direct you towards your missing object. Of course, the downside here is that the ubiquity and ease of use of the AirTag means that evil people can use it to find you as well. Here's how to check if you're being tracked.

    $29 at Apple
    $29 at Amazon

  • Photograph: Chipolo

    Best for Android

    Chipolo One

    In the competition between Tile and Chipolo for the most ubiquitous tracker, I would not have guessed that Chipolo would be the one to land exclusive collaborations with both Apple and Google (cough, antitrust congressional hearings, cough). Yet here we are. Now Chipolo has three separate product lines: the Chipolo One, card, and bundle that works with the Chipolo app; the ONE Spot, card, and bundle that works with Apple's Find My; and most recently, the ONE Point, card, and bundle that works with Google's Find My.

    My colleague Julian Chokkattu and I have tested several of these lines, with the Android Find My coming soon. They're a similar price point to Tile's and come in a variety of cheerful colors. Setup is simple, especially if you use your phone's native app. I currently have a CARD Spot in my wallet and it's loud enough for me hear even when it's in my wallet, inside my purse, and in another room. Like the Tile, you can choose to get alerts if you leave the house without your keys. As with many Bluetooth trackers, the connection can get wonky—I do sometimes have to walk around a bit—but it's usually able to find an accurate last location.

    $25 at Chipolo

  • Photograph: Apple

    Best for Kids

    Apple Watch Series 8

    I used the Jiobit when my children were smaller. Now that they're in elementary school, however, I track them with Family Setup on two old Apple Watches. It's more effective to strap an Apple Watch onto their tiny wrists than to pin a Jiobit onto their backpacks, as I did when they were much less mobile.

    When her Apple Watch is on, I can track her location via Apple's Find My app, which I have found to be pretty accurate; for example, I can see her walking around a corner, coming back from the playground, and time my head to face her so that she can bear witness to Mom's All-Seeing Eye. The major benefits of an Apple Watch are that she can also text and call me and her other family members. We can also use Apple's Walkie Talkie function to talk from Apple Watch to Apple Watch so that we can keep in touch with each other on a minute-to-minute basis, but this drains the battery within a few hours.

    I would go with the smallest and lightest case size possible with the iPhone SE, but whichever old Apple Watch you have at home is clearly the best one. We also do not recommend smartwatches marketed exclusively for kids, as these tend to have glaring security holes.

    $399 at Amazon
    $399 at Apple
    $400 at Target
    $399 at Best Buy

  • Photograph: Fi

    Best for Dogs

    Fi Collar

    I’ve tested several dog trackers on my patient pups, but the Fi is my favorite, if only for the battery life. While other trackers need to be recharged every week or so, the Fi only needs to be charged every three months.

    You don’t need to fiddle around with attaching or reattaching it to a collar when you charge it, since it comes with its own collar, and the unit is IP68-rated and waterproof. It also uses a combo of Bluetooth, GPS, Wi-Fi, and cellular connectivity to keep 24/7 tabs on your dog. Use the app to designate a safe zone around your house and alert you if your dog wanders off the property. It also includes a dog activity tracker and a collar light for walks at night. I've used the Series 1 and been happy with it; I'm currently testing the Series 3 on my 70-pound heeler mix. It's much smaller and lighter, and the charging base is also smaller, with a new real-time GPS tracking (yup, there she is, at my feet again).

    $149 at Fi

  • Photograph: Tile 

    Best for Remotes

    Tile Sticker Two-Pack

    Tile doesn't have exclusive contracts with anyone, but its Bluetooth thing-finders are still everywhere and come in an even wider variety of forms. After years of being in circulation, the latest models are even more durable and waterproof, and the batteries are replaceable. Now there are even Lost and Found stickers ($15) that you can put on your not-so-valuable items that have a tendency to walk off (of course, this requires that the person who finds your item knows to scan a random QR code).

    However, I still think the most useful form factor are the Tile stickers, which are great for remotes and the back of my Kindle Paperwhite. Each sticker is waterproof, has a three-year battery life, and offers a 150-foot range, which is pretty impressive for a tool that’s so small. After a year, the small bump did get knocked off my much-abused Kindle; however, I still think this is a fair price to pay for being able to read my requisite soothing 10 to 15 pages of Naomi Novik before going to bed every night.

    $39 at Amazon
    $60 at Walmart
  • Photograph: Apple 

    Best for People

    Your Phone

    As many of my colleagues have noted, the best people-tracker is the device that many of us keep nearby at all times. It's also the one I use the most often. Google Maps, Life360, and Apple's Find My are just three popular ways for people to share their location with close contacts.

    I use Apple's Find My all the time, whether to reassure my kids their dad will be home soon or to meet up with family members while traveling. Apple's Find My is the safest, as both Google Maps and Life360 require you to store location history. However, location sharing can be turned against you. You can also restrict the length of time that you share with a contact, or turn off location sharing in the app itself.

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