Questions people actually ask

No. MeshCore runs on license-free ISM spectrum, 902–928 MHz in the United States. No exam, no callsign, no application. This is a real difference from amateur radio, and it also means encryption is permitted, which it generally is not on ham bands.

One radio, and then nothing. Boards run roughly $25–$60, plus a better antenna. There is no subscription, no SIM, no account, and no per-message cost. A solar repeater costs more up front but still has no recurring bill.

Per hop, anywhere from a mile or two in dense terrain to well over nine miles with good line of sight and height. Messages then hop between nodes, so total reach is much larger than any single link. Terrain matters far more than hardware, check a real path in the explorer.

Yes, that is the entire point. Your phone talks to the radio over Bluetooth, and the radio talks to other radios. Nothing in the path touches a carrier or an internet connection. You can put the phone in airplane mode and it still works.

No. LoRa carries a few hundred bits per second, text, positions, and small telemetry only. That constraint is exactly what buys the range and battery life. If you need voice or media, you need a different tool.

Yes, end-to-end and on by default. Keys are generated on your device, and repeaters, including ours, forward encrypted payloads they cannot read. See Security & privacy for what that does and does not cover.

Yes. Radio is observable, anyone with a compatible receiver can hear that packets are moving, and with direction-finding equipment a transmitter can be located. The routing path remains visible to help it navigate the network while the message remains encrypted. So even if the message can't be read, the source of the transmission can be traced to the area where the first repeater heard it. This protects the contents, not the existence of the transmission. We'd rather say that plainly than let anyone assume otherwise.

No. MeshCore reaches other MeshCore users, not emergency dispatch. Keep a phone, a satellite messenger, or both for genuine emergencies. The mesh is a resilient supplement, not a replacement for emergency services.

They're cousins, both are LoRa mesh projects on the same hardware. MeshCore takes a different approach to routing and to roles like repeaters and room servers, aimed at keeping larger networks efficient as they grow. Many people run both on different boards. If you already have Meshtastic hardware, it will very likely run MeshCore.

Amateur radio is excellent and covers things a mesh never will. But it requires a license, generally prohibits encrypted content, and has a much steeper on-ramp. MeshCore trades capability for accessibility: anyone can join this afternoon, and privacy is built in. Plenty of our members hold licenses and do both.

Satellite messengers work anywhere and carry a subscription per device, per year, forever, and they connect you to a service, not to your neighbours. A mesh has no recurring cost, works better in a group, and gets stronger as more local people join. For remote solo travel, satellite still wins.

A WisMesh Tag in the US915 / 902–928 MHz version, is compact and works well out of the box. Full detail on the Get started page, and ask in the group before ordering, since availability changes constantly.

Usually not. Nodes routinely reach further than people expect, and a single node in a new area often turns out to be the missing link for several others. Run a line-of-sight check in the explorer, then ask in the group, someone nearby may already be listening.

No, though the network is better when you do. A node that is on and well-placed is relaying for other people even when you aren't using it, which is the whole bargain that makes a mesh work.

No. MeshCore is an independent open project. Comchan is a volunteer group in Central Texas that supports it locally, runs repeaters, and hosts the analyzer and explorer for the region.