Last Updated on February, 2025
Look, if you want a GPS tracker and don’t want to pay any monthly fee, the options you’ve got are quite low, yes, even if you find one, they are not going to be as reliable, and that’s why I have a better option.
GPS trackers need cellular for accurate location tracking and for that, you need to pay. There are other options such as using Bluetooth, however, that’ll only work within a few feet.
So yeah, I tested 10 no monthly free trackers and just picked 5, those were the ones I think are even worth considering if you’re dead set on not paying a fee. Keep reading to learn which ones are those.
Table of Contents
- My Evaluation Process
- Best 5 Subscription-Free Dog Trackers
- How Are These Collars Subscription Free?
- No Subscription-Based GPS Trackers Vs. Subscription-Based GPS Trackers
- Benefits and Downsides of a No Subscription Tracker
- Top Factors to Consider When Buying a No Monthly Subscription Dog Tracker
- Is Buying a Dog Tracker Without Subscription Worth it?
- In Conclusion
- FAQs
My Evaluation Process
I had to buy all of these for the sole purpose of checking them on my own. Some parameters I considered were the battery life, location updating rate, waterproof characteristics, and dimensions.
Eventually, I chose the best and sold the rest.
Choosing what I chose might not be the best for YOU. That’s why I’m inviting you to read to the end. That should help you to make a firm decision.
Best 5 Subscription-Free Dog Trackers
1. PetSafe Guardian (Editor’s Choice)
This is the better option I told you about at the beginning.
The PetSafe Guardian GPS Fence is a smart system that helps keep your dog safely inside a set area using GPS technology.
Unlike GPS trackers that show where your pet is, this system stops your dog from leaving the area by using beeps, vibrations, or static stimulation. Plus, there are no monthly fees, making it a simple and cost-effective way to keep your dog safe outdoors.
This is the better option I told you about at the beginning.
The PetSafe Guardian GPS Fence is a smart system that helps keep your dog safely inside a set area using GPS technology.
Unlike GPS trackers that show where your pet is, this system stops your dog from leaving the area by using beeps, vibrations, or static stimulation. Plus, there are no monthly fees, making it a simple and cost-effective way to keep your dog safe outdoors.
Below I’ve listed all the important features and benefits you can expect from PetSafe Guardian.
- AccuGuard™ Technology: The heart of this system is its AccuGuard™ technology, which uses GPS satellite data combined with motion detection from the collar. Unlike traditional fences, it doesn’t rely on buried wires or physical barriers.
This ensures that your dog is safely contained within the designated area, even if the weather is cloudy or the terrain is uneven.
- No Monthly Subscription Fees: Unlike most GPS systems, which come with hefty monthly subscription fees for tracking, the PetSafe Guardian GPS Fence only requires a one-time purchase.
This can save you money over time, especially if you have a large property or multiple pets. The upfront cost isn’t high either, that combined with no hidden fees or recurring payments, makes it a long-term, cost-effective solution.
- Customizable Boundaries: Using the My PetSafe app, you can set up custom virtual boundaries for your dog. Whether you have a large, open yard or an irregularly shaped property, you can easily adjust the boundaries to fit your needs.
This flexibility is particularly useful for larger properties that are over three-quarters of an acre, which is the minimum area for effective operation. Just open the app, and you’re in control.
- Rechargeable Collar: The system comes with a waterproof, rechargeable collar that lasts up to 48 hours on a single charge. This collar has several settings, including tone, vibration, and up to ten levels of static correction.
The variety of correction OPTIONS allows you to choose what works best for your dog’s training and temperament. Keep in mind, though, that the battery life, while generally sufficient, may require more frequent recharging compared to other models.
- Multiple Dog Support: If you have more than one dog, the PetSafe Guardian GPS Fence has you covered. The system can manage up to eight dogs with additional collars, and each collar can be customized with its settings.
This means you can set different boundaries or correction levels for each pet if needed.
- Easy Setup: Setting up the PetSafe Guardian GPS Fence is a breeze. It typically takes 1 to 2 hours and doesn’t require digging trenches or burying wires, which is a big advantage over traditional containment systems.
The My PetSafe app guides you through the setup process, making it user-friendly for most homeowners.
However, LISTEN; there are some important considerations too.
But before that, let me you how this device works. You set up the boundary, no matter its size or shape, it can be as you like. Next, choose the right correction out of tone, vibration and static stimulation for your dog and that’s it, the collar will do the rest of the job.
If your dog decides to approach the fence boundary and is a few feet away, it’ll be corrected with a tone and then if the dog continues, it’ll be corrected with either vibration or static stimulation, based on what you’ve chosen.
With those out of the way, the PetSafe Guardian GPS Fence has a few limitations to keep in mind. It’s designed for dogs weighing over 25 pounds, so it’s not ideal for smaller breeds. Additionally, the GPS signal may struggle in areas with dense tree coverage, which can affect performance.
It’s important to note that this system doesn’t track your dog’s location in real-time. If your dog escapes, you won’t be able to locate them with this product. For tracking, you’ll need a separate GPS tracker, which often requires a subscription.
That said, even if you’re not going to pay any fee, you’ll need to spend some time training your dog to understand the fences, you can do that with PetSafe’s 2 week training program which is free upon purchasing the Guardian. If you do that, the chances of your dog escaping are probably pretty slim.
In short, The PetSafe Guardian GPS Fence is an excellent choice for pet owners who want to keep their dogs safely contained without paying for monthly tracking services. While it isn’t a tracking device, it offers a reliable and customizable solution for keeping your dog within a designated area, ensuring their safety and your peace of mind.
2. Garmin Astro 430 Tracker (#2nd Best Choice)
Garmin is a company that specializes in GPS devices across several industries. Some of them are aviation, automobile, and even sports.
The Astro 430 is significant in their dog tracker product line.
It comes with the T 5X collar and the Astro 430 handheld locator.
All Garmin trackers have no subscription plans whatsoever.
Their tracking technology is based on GPS, GLONASS, and radio frequency for signal transmission.
Let’s start the evaluation by looking at the design, communication range, location updating rate, and accuracy.
The T 5X locator’s dimensions are such as a height of 1.75, a width of 3.5, and a depth of 1.85; every unit is in inches. The weight is around 6.6 oz with a one-inch collar strap and antenna.
The T5X fits larger dogs with a neck circumference of 9.5 inches and above.
The handheld locator’s dimensions are 6.3 x 2.4 x 1.4 (height x width x depth) in inches. It weighs around 9.2 oz., and that’s with the batteries included.
The Garmin 430 handheld has a transflective 65-K color TFT display. Its dimensions are 1.43″ x 2.15″ (width x height); 2.6″ diagonal length.
You get 9 miles of range with 2.5 seconds location update rate — that’s as accurate and fast as a GPS tracker can get.
The tracker has a mean accuracy of 12 feet, but I noticed that it could be as close as 9-10 feet as long as the signal strength is strong.
Now, let’s move to battery life, resistance capacities, special features, and the mobile app/locator.
I observed the maximum battery life of the Astro 430 handheld to be around 18-19 hours.
This checks out with the maximum battery life in the specs, which is 20 hours.
The T 5X collar, on the other hand, has an impressive 80 hours of battery life.
The T 5X collar has a 1 ATM waterproof rating in terms of resistance capacities. That means it’s submersible up to 10 meters.
The handheld locator has the standard IPX7 waterproof rating.
So, the product is entirely waterproof.
When we look at the special features, preloaded TOPO maps bring a lot of value to the device. You can also store data on a microSD card for up to 4GB (not provided).
It also has geofencing with an alert system. If you’re unfamiliar with how geofencing works, let me explain.
You can draw a boundary on the map shown in your designated app; this could be a geofence or a virtual fence.
What makes the difference? A geofence ALERTS the mobile phone when your dog crosses the boundary, informing you.
A virtual fence, on the other hand, VIBRATES the collar, or emits a sound. It is your job to train your dog to respond accordingly.
There’s automatic rerouting with optimal mapping for detailed roads as well. Finally, hunt metrics let you share details of your dog’s speed, location, etc., with others if you wish to.
The locator is pretty straightforward and has no connection to mobile phones.
The tracker is best for hunting dog tracking. But it doesn’t mean that you can’t use it for typical dog tracking purposes at all.
Learn more about Garmin Astro 430.
Pros
Cons
3. Petfon 2 Tracker (#3rd Best Choice)
Petfon brings three distinctive products under the Petfon 2 product line; one for one dog, two dogs, and three dogs.
I had only one dog, so I went with the Petfon 2 for one dog.
How do you think it went?
Let’s start off with the design, communication range, location updating rate, and accuracy.
The all-new Petfon 2 has a design made of glossy material. Coming in two colors such as glossy dark blue or white, the tracker also has an ABS cover.
The trackers’ dimensions are 1.7 x 1.7 x 0.6 inches; 5.28 oz in weight.
So, it fits all sizes and breeds comfortably.
The communication range depends on the environment since it uses a combination of GPS and LoPoWan technology (low-power WAN).
This technology connects devices that run on low-battery and low bandwidth with low bit rates over long ranges.
For example, the range is about 0.65 miles in congested urban areas. But the range increases to 3.5 miles in outdoor and suburban environments.
Although Petfon claims real-time tracking, I experienced the actual location updating rate being between 8-10 seconds. However, the accuracy is pretty impressive, coming close to around 5-10 feet in my experience.
Now, let’s move to the battery life, resistance capacities, special features, and the mobile app/locator.
Their lowest battery life is 9 hours, and the maximum is 17 hours. It checked out because mine ran for about 14 hours.
The tracker is IP65 rated; it’s both dustproof and waterproof.
However, Pefton advises their customers not to wear the collar when the dog is swimming.
Like the Garmin Astro 430, the Petfon 2 also has a geofencing system termed the E-fence. To increase the efficiency, there’s both sound AND light integrated.
You can also view the activity tracking of your pet in terms of the distance covered, the time taken, resting time, and also the number of paws (similar to number of steps).
All of these operations are centralized on the Petfon app. It’s a free app that can be found in both the App Store and the Play store.
Overall, the Petfon 2 also qualifies as one of the best non-subscription trackers with many features.
Read more about PetFON Pet GPS Tracker.
Pros
Cons
4. Marco Polo Tracker
The Marco Polo tracker is somewhat similar to the Garmin dog trackers. One main reason is the requirement for a handheld locator to use it.
The tracking technology is based on the Marco Polo game we all know and love.
Instead of calling out “Marco” and “Polo,” the collar or tag uses radio signals for tracking.
That’s why it’s free from subscription-based GPS tracking.
So, let’s start by talking about the design, communication range, location updating rate, and accuracy.
The Marco Polo handheld has a lot of comfortably placed buttons. The surface is smooth and made of a rigid polymer.
These are the dimensions of the handheld:
Made out of velcro and synthetic fiber, the tag is also protected by a durable nylon holder.
Here are the dimensions of a tracking tag:
The tracker is recommended for both small and large dogs as long as the neck size is 7 inches or more.
The communication range of the Marco Polo tracker directly depends on the surrounding area. The maximum range is up to 2 miles, with an accuracy of 10-15 feet.
Here’s how the range differs:
As per my observation, the location update rate is 5 seconds on average.
But the problem is that you do not get to see the exact location, only the direction, and the distance.
Now, let’s look at the battery life, resistance capacities, special features, and the mobile app/locator.
The battery life depends on which mode the tracker is running in.
In monitor mode, the battery life will be around six weeks.
In the monitor mode, your dog should not leave the house. Which means there is no location tracking being done.
That’s because there isn’t any movement picked up strong enough to track.
However, the battery will last up to 3 days in active tracking mode (which I think is self-explanatory).
The Marco Polo tracking device has the IP67 waterproof rating.
Amongst the special features, geofencing and alerts take a significant place. However, you cannot draw a boundary on a map.
The boundary is the radial zone, the circle, making the locator the center. The smaller radius you can choose is 50 ft. When you move, the boundary moves.
You also can add up to 3 pets to one Marco Polo locator.
All things considered, Marco Polo is definitely a reliable solution if the requirements are satisfied.
Here you can read more about Marco Polo Pet Tracker.
Pros
Cons
5. Garmin Alpha 200i
Most Garmin trackers are made for tracking hunting dogs.
But what’s advantageous is how those features directly apply to everyday dog tracking.
Their Alpha 200i is one such product.
This locator is recommended to be bought with either the TT 15X, the T 5X, or the T 5 mini.
Since I already had the T 5X, I chose the TT 15X to test the Alpha 200i.
Now, you know we start with the design, communication range, location updating rate, and accuracy.
Weighing 9.9 oz with the standard antenna and battery, the Alpha 200i is not too big. Its dimensions are such as 2.7″ (width) x 6.4″ (length) x 1.3″ (depth).
The minimum recommended neck size of your dog to wear the tracker is 9.5”.
Since the communication mostly depends on the collar, the maximum tracking range of the Alpha 200i is 9 miles. The location update rate is 2.5 seconds.
Like all Garmin dog tracking devices, the surrounding obstacles are irrelevant to the Alpha 200i.
The accuracy is up to about 5 feet, and you can track up to 20 dogs at once.
I am moving on to the battery life, resistance capacities, special features, and mobile app/locator.
The battery life of the Alpha 200i is around 20 hours. The battery life of the TT 15X is between 20-40 hours.
In my experience, my Alpha 200i was on for around 16-17 hours, and the TT 15X was on for about 30-34 hours.
So, the numbers are accurate.
The TT 15X collar has a water rating of 1 ATM (submersible up to 10m). On the flip side, the Alpha 200i is IPX7 rated.
The tracker lets you store data with a microSD card whose maximum storage shouldn’t exceed 16 GB.
With this storage, you can add multiple maps to the Alpha 200i device.
The special features are pretty loaded on the Garmin Alpha 200i.
For a start, you get preloaded TopoActive maps along with BirdsEye satellite imagery.
These maps include all the public land boundaries well indicated.
You’ll also see the “hunt metrics” of your dogs, such as their daily distance and speed. You also get 18 levels of stimulation, which is designed to train your dog faster and more efficiently.
Did I tell you about the barometric altimeter that helps you accurately monitor ascent and descent?
Finally, the Alpha 200i locator has a TFT color touchscreen with a 282 x 470 pixel resolution. The display size is 1.8″ in width and 3″ in height with 3.5 inches of diagonal distance.
This tracker is compatible with the Garmin Explore app. So you don’t have to worry about carrying the locator everywhere. You can view all the data on your smartphone itself.
Overall, like other Garmin trackers in the list, the Alpha 200i meets and exceeds the expected features of a non-subscription tracker.
Pros
Cons
How Are These Collars Subscription Free?
GPS is not a necessity to facilitate location tracking. But you can’t do much with Bluetooth tracking as well.
These trackers work without subscription because they do not directly depend on GPS satellites. Because when that happens, you should pay for the service.
Instead, the trackers use their own localized signaling and receiving system. So, some of these trackers can function without cell service anywhere in the world.
For example, all the trackers that come with their own handheld locator are what enable this localized signal system.
So, there are no hidden fees; these trackers work as they are described here with no monthly subscription.
No Subscription-Based GPS Trackers Vs. Subscription-Based GPS Trackers
One could say that subscription-based GPS trackers have more features than non-subscription ones.
That’s a partially true statement.
There are trackers that are designed to work with a subscription. But these can be used without the subscription, which takes away so many features.
In situations like that, yes, it might be better to have a subscription.
But some pet trackers do not require a monthly subscription by design. The available subscriptions are optional.
So, no subscription GPS trackers can be as amazing. They can be even better than subscription-based GPS trackers.
All you need to do is ensure that their operational features cater to your needs.
Benefits and Downsides of a No Subscription Tracker
Benefits
Downsides
Top Factors to Consider When Buying a No Monthly Subscription Dog Tracker
Size of Your Dog
Not all dog collars are of the same size or weight. They differ in terms of the lowest and maximum circumference too.
So, it’s essential to check whether the collar fits your dog. In order to check that, you should know the size of your dog in terms of length parameters and weight.
Location Tracking
You’re buying a dog tracker to track your dog. So, its location tracking capacity must be checked. You must check the specs such as the location updating rate, location accuracy, and whether you can choose the location updating rate.
Build Quality and Durability
The build quality and durability are like the two sides of the same coin.
But some branded trackers use premium materials to enhance the durability and convenience of use.
On the other hand, durability against impact, dust, and water is guaranteed via standardization.
For example, the IP67 waterproof rating ensures complete resistance against water and dust.
But the company must separately mention the drop height to ensure impact resistance, such as 1m, 1.5m or 2m.
Battery Life
The device is electronic since the collars run with GPS technology. So, there’s a battery life to each collar.
You need to check the maximum battery life and whether there are different operational modes, because the battery life tends to differ in each mode.
Some trackers, like the Garmin products, come with a separate handheld. You must check for its battery life too.
Extra Features
Is it enough as long as you’ve checked the above features? No. You should also see what extra features there are.
For example, there can be geofencing, activity tracking, or maybe you could store AND share location and activity data. But remember to double check how relevant those extra features are to your needs.
Is Buying a Dog Tracker Without Subscription Worth it?
If you’re okay with hiccups during tracking and slow location updates, then yes, there is no problem going with a dog tracker without a subscription.
If you want the opposite experience, fast location updates with zero lag, then NO. You’re not going to be satisfied with the results.
In Conclusion
No-subscription GPS trackers can work when you pick the right one. That said, I’d suggest you try out the PetSafe Guardian before making a decision, without any subscription, those fences are something you can rely on more than the no subscription tracker.
The Garmin Alpha 200i is one tracker you can give a shot if you’re ready to spend some money.
FAQs
Was this article helpful?
All I want is an activity tracker. Think, Fitbit, or Apple Watch for a dog with no monthly fees, and something where I can see the history overtime trend so forth.
Any suggestions would be well worth it none of these seem to be what I need- esp the fi 2 which only shows you one day
Hey Joseph,
You can check out the updated Fi Series 3 where the activity tracking has largely improved or take a look at our guide on the best activity trackers: http://dogsacademy.org/best-dog-activity-trackers/