Last Updated on February, 2025
80% of online reviews of dog GPS trackers online omit the most crucial piece of information.
Whether or not it can work in your country.
Some reviews will make you buy a tracker that only works worldwide but doesn’t have worldwide coverage.
See how confusing it sounds?
But there comes a time when you need reliable information before purchasing. Being an Australian dog parent, that’s only the starting common factor between you and me.
This review of the 5 best dog GPS trackers is highly accurate for one primary reason.
Table of Contents
My Reviewing Process
It’s because I bought around twelve GPS tracking devices and tested them myself.
My endorsements are backed-up results that I observe. So, every piece of performance information you’re about to read about each pet tracker will not be found anywhere else.
Eventually, I trimmed the list down to the top 5.
So, if you want to invest in the best dog GPS tracker for dogs in Australia — let’s see what you’d pick.
The 5 Best Pet Trackers in Australia
If you didn’t know already, the most popular GPS trackers made in America don’t work in Australia.
The main reason is the dependence on AT&T and Verizon.
However, these 5 GPS tracking devices I ended up discovering are guaranteed to work in Australia with no issues.
Off we start!
1. Tractive GPS Dog Tracker (Editor’s Choice)
The Tractive company has been based in Austria since 2012, and its founders have a tech background.
The company has two major products — the tracker for dogs and cats.
It definitely was a friendly feeling browsing their website. They seem to understand average pet owners.
So, let’s start reviewing the product by design & dimensions, communication range & accuracy, location tracking, and resistance properties.
Lily is a medium-sized dog and doesn’t like wearing uncomfortable collars. The Tractive GPS collar feels quite comfortable by design.
You can conveniently attach it to the collar with a rubber clip too.
It’s not too big either — the length is 2.81″, the height is 1.1″, and the width is 0.68″.
Most importantly, it weighs only 1.2 ounces. So, this dog tracking collar is recommended for dogs weighing above 8.8 pounds (4kg).
You can buy the collar in 5 different colors; Snow (white-ish), coffee, midnight blue, and light pink.
I chose Midnight blue because the contrast of color is beneficial, and dark colors don’t get untidy as fast as lighter colors.
The Tractive GPS dog collar has worldwide coverage — even if you and the dog were on two different ends of the world, you still could track.
What about accuracy? The accuracy is said to be 7.8m by design. When I checked it, it was around 8-8.5 m of accuracy — which is pretty much the same in the context.
The location updating rate is every 2-3 seconds. As a matter of fact, this is real-time tracking in the context of GPS collars This is extremely impressive compared to most pet GPS trackers in the market. It checked out when I tested.
This GPS device works amazingly when finding a lost dog too.
So, it’s safe to say the Tractive is one of the best pet trackers in terms of location tracking.
This pet tracker is waterproof with the IPX7 standard waterproof rating.
Now it’s time to look at these features: battery, special features, and the mobile app/locator.
I didn’t believe it when I read that the tracker could run for 7 days. With my use, it ran for 3 and a half days with one full charge and with tracking.
The tracker has geofencing — you can draw a boundary, and you get alerts when your dog leaves the perimeter. With the Tractive tracker, the response time is almost real-time.
You also can share the location with your friends and family. I’ll tell you how in a bit.
There’s the dog-safe power button just in case the tracker turns off when your dog wanders playfully.
On top of all this, you can store the location history of your dog — believe me, you’ll want to see how your dog spends the day.
The entire operation is managed by a free designated mobile app to which the pet trackers connect. I use an Android, and it worked just fine. The app is available in the App store as well.
Location sharing takes place via the app.
Because it uses GPS technology, you must choose a subscription plan based on the time commitment.
Overall, the tracker is hassle-free and has several useful features. With a reasonable subscription plan, this tracker sure can do wonders in tracking your furry friend.
Learn more about Tractive Dog Tracker.
Pros
Cons
2. Petfon 2 Pet Tracker (#2nd Best Choice)
The first reason why Petfon 2 pet tracker caught my eye was simple — no monthly subscription.
But then I started thinking, “does that come at a cost?”
What I found was pretty impressive.
The Petfon 2 tracker comes in 3 versions; to track one dog, two dogs, and three dogs.
I only have Lily, so I bought the tracker that lets you track one dog.
Let’s start by talking about the design & dimensions, communication range & accuracy, location tracking, and resistance properties.
The Petfon 2 comes in either blue or white. The surface is glossy and has an ABS cover. So, it’s pretty comfortable to wear, as you can feel it when you hold the tracker.
This square tracker is relatively tiny, with dimensions such as 1.8″ x 1.8″ with a thickness of 0.7″. Its weight is just 0.9 ounces fitting all types of breeds and sizes.
The communication range varies between 0.65 to 4 miles. This variation happens because the range depends on the environment. When I checked it, the most coverage I acquired was around 3.8 miles.
The accuracy also depends on the environment and it uses GPS, WiFi and Bluetooth for most accurate tracking.
As an added benefit, the radar searching feature lets you see the direction of the dog, which is not the same as radio frequency.
I live in a mildly crowded suburban area, and the location accuracy came as close to 15 feet — that’s not bad at all.
I observed the location updating rate to be between 9-11 seconds. The product advertises for 10 seconds, so it checks out as well.
Finding your pet’s location with a multicolour light and sound integrated into the Petfon 2 GPS tracker is quite easy.
The product is IP67 waterproof rated, which means it has complete resistance against dust too.
Now, let’s look at the features, such as the battery, special features, and the mobile app/locator.
My Petfon 2 pet tracker lasted for around 15 hours, whereas the longest it would stay with one charge is 17 hours.
I absolutely love the variety of fencing in the Petfon 2 — danger fence, safe fence, Wi-Fi fence, and Bluetooth fence.
Here’s how they work:
You can also track the dog’s activity in terms of walking time, distance, resting time, and the number of paws (steps); that’s a feature unseen in most pet trackers.
Overall, this tracker brings a lot of valuable features, and its value is higher since it doesn’t require any monthly plan.
If you want to learn more about this device, check out this Petfon 2 Pet Tracker Review.
Pros
Cons
3. Cube GPS Tracking Device (#3r Best Choice)
When I saw that the Cube tracker runs for two whole months AND works in Australia, I knew I had to check it out.
Guess what? The pet tracker made it to the list as well.
The company produces three more pet trackers: the Cube Shadow, Cube Pro, and Cube Tracker.
We’re talking about the third one.
Let’s start by looking at the design & dimensions, communication range & accuracy, location tracking, and resistance properties.
The tracker is quite small in size, with dimensions such as 2.75″ in length, 1.57″ in width, and 0.64″ in thickness.
The smooth matte rubber-coated surface of the tracker brings the utmost comfort.
Since the Cube tracker works with GPS, I tested the communication accuracy to be between 10 and 20 feet. But the communication range?
Anywhere in the world as long as there is a cellular network.
To me, the location updating speed changed between 5-15 seconds.
However, Cube does not specify the dog’s location updating rate on its website. Like other best pet trackers, the Cube uses all Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth to give you the most accurate location data.
I know that’s a relief for any pet parent.
The cube pet tracker is waterproof with an IP67 rating too. So, the durability aspect is well balanced.
Now, let’s look at the battery, special features, and the mobile app/locator.
I charged this tracker exactly one month and a week ago, and it’s still running.
Although the company guarantees 2 months of battery life, even one month should do the trick.
For special features, you get geofencing, along with an SOS button.
The activation happens through the mobile app; you can alert your friends and family with custom messages.
You also get a lifetime of warranty under one condition; the tracker should be active. This means that you need to have the GPS subscription running.
Finally, you also get to store location info in the app. The covered parameters are the location, the journey stops, and the traveling speed.Sharing criteria is not commonly found in most dog trackers.
All of these performance features are managed with the mobile app. It’s compatible with both iOS and Android. The interface is clean and straightforward.
Since the tracker uses GPS, you need to purchase a subscription plan.
Overall, the tracker is a premium pick for Australian pet parents, with several useful features.
Pros
Cons
4. Geozilla GPS Dog tracker
I came across the Geozilla tracker accidentally on Amazon. After that, I ended up on their website to discover that they were an American company.
So, that’s a green light when it comes to tech products.
Are you curious to find out what I did?
Let’s start off with design & dimensions, communication range & accuracy, location updating, and resistance properties.
First of all, the tracker doesn’t come with a collar. So, if you already have one, you should find your preferred method to attach to the dog’s collar.
The material is a mixture of polymer plastic. It has a beautiful almost-squircle shape with the letter G in the center. What can I say? I love the design.
The tracker is pretty small in size and lightweight.
Its dimensions are 1.8″ in length x 1.6″ in width and 0.7″ in maximum thickness. The weight is just 1.05 ounces.
Geozilla claims that the communication range is worldwide. While I cannot guarantee that it’ll work worldwide, it sure worked perfectly fine in Adelaide — that means it works in all of Australia.
I personally experienced the location updating speed fluctuating between 60-70 seconds. But there were occasions when it was below 60 seconds too.
The Geozilla pet tag is NOT waterproof. There’s a solution for this, and that is using a waterproof tracker holder which comes with a collar.
Next, we discuss the battery, special features, and the mobile app/locator.
My Geozilla battery lasted for around 3 and half days. The company says the maximum battery life would be 5 days — so the specs check out.
There’s a safe zone mode for the battery; you can temporarily stop the device from working or tracking. That extends the battery.
Geozilla brings a lot of useful special features.
Here are some of them:
Since it uses GPS technology, you should choose a monthly service plan and there must be a cellular network.
But all things considered, the Geozilla tracker is an excellent product with multiple useful features, especially with the company’s better customer care.
Pros
Cons
5. Tracki GPS Pet Tracker
Tracki was actually a recommendation from a fellow dog parent. Even if I trusted him, I couldn’t be sure that the tracker would work for me.
So, I went ahead and bought the GPS dog collar directly from their website.
The company is US based, but don’t worry, it works perfectly fine in Australia.
It works pretty impressively, and you’re about to read what I found out.
Let’s begin by talking about the design & dimensions, communication range & accuracy, location tracking, and resistance properties.
This tracker felt like the material was a mixture of plastic and metal, solid and durable by design.
It’s pretty small and lightweight too. The dimensions are 1.75″ in length x 1.5″ in width x 0.55″ in thickness weighing just 1.26 ounces; a lightweight GPS tracker by design fitting all types and breeds.
The tracker works worldwide and has an accuracy of up to a few feet in GPS mode. You can even track your pets in indoor spaces when you switch to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
The location updating rate is 1-5 times per minute and can be more than 5 minutes, depending on your need.
The Tracki tracker is NOT waterproof by nature. But it comes with a bespoke, silicon water-resistant cover, so it’s not that much of an issue.
Now, let’s move to looking at the battery, special features, and the mobile app/locator.
The battery power depends on how you use the tracker:
As for the special features, there’s the SOS button, for starters, found in better GPS collars.
You get to store the location history for up to 5 years for no extra cost. Stats like these are essential in decoding your dog’s behavioral changes. Other trackers do not deliver this much of history.
Finally, you get a lifetime warranty for all Tracki trackers which is not seen in many tracking devices.
All of the operations are done with a mobile app. It is quite simple, straightforward, and easy to use.
Oh, you can also add up to ten users to whom the alerts will be sent, and they can access the tracking data.
Since it’s a GPS tracker, you should choose one of the three monthly subscription plans.
So, it’s safe to say that the Tracki pet tag is a good GPS tracker with many features. All these features directly increase your dog tracking experience.
Pros
Cons
Top Factors to Consider With Your First GPS Dog Tracker
The factors to consider when choosing dog collars also depend on the situation.
But if we were to simplify the factors, here are some of the main ones:
Benefits of a GPS Dog Tracker
I have always believed that the benefits of a GPS tracker are case-sensitive.
But some key benefits can be generalized as follows:
How Does a GPS Tracking Device Work?
GPS would not exist if not for the satellites. But most GPS trackers combine data from satellites, cell towers, and even Wi-Fi to determine the location.
But GPS tracking systems heavily depend on the global navigational satellite (GNSS) network. The network is used by a process termed Trilateration.
In this method, three or more satellites from the GNSS system send special satellite signals, which are processed by a receiver.
That’s why most pet trackers have their own app.
In Conclusion
It’s clear how Tractive wins a lead. After all, you’re here to buy the best GPS tracker that works in Australia.
The bottom line is that choosing a GPS tracker is not complicated; what’s difficult is choosing the right one. Since you shouldn’t take chances regarding your dog’s safety.
That’s why I’m suggesting you go with one on the list. That should do the trick for a very long time.
FAQs
Was this article helpful?
Hi Mario,
Thanks for your research, I started with the Apple trackers but quickly realised they relied only on an iphone being nearby to send info so lost in the paddock was no good to me. I read all of your info and will try the “tractive” one and number 3 as the battery life appeals to me. As a registered breeder of Australian Cattle Dogs (Hall’s Heelers), each of my registered dogs are worth from 100K to 300K; so it is a minor spend I feel.
Sincerely
Brian
Hi Brian,
Glad to hear that my research was helpful. Tractive and Cube seem like great choices for you. Keeping track of valuable registered dogs is important and the small investment in a tracker is well worth it. Let me know if you have any other questions or need more information.
Best,
Mario
Hello Mario
I have 3 mini dachies who love to wander. We live in the country so phone service is patchy
I tried putting AirTags on them but no joy finding them without ph service
I’m happy to pay a subs if necessary but I need a system that just picks them up anywhere without phone service
Is there such a thing????
Cheers
Bronwyn
Hey There Bronwyn!
The Garmin Alpha 200i is a good option for you, as it does not require phone service or a subscription.
Hi Mario,
I’m curious if you have reviewed the Osmo Doggofind?
Would like to know your thoughts!
Hey Kim,
Guess what? While I was doing my research for this article, I stumbled upon Doggofind. Now, here’s the interesting part: I wasn’t quite convinced to give it a shot because their website seems a bit fishy. Believe it or not, they’re using images that belong to another dog tracker called PETFON! I mean, seriously, they couldn’t even bother to use their own pictures. So yeah, needless to say, I won’t be investing in a product that doesn’t put in the effort to showcase its authenticity.