Best luggage trackers

Apple’s AirTag is perhaps the best-known tracker, due to the brand it bears. This small, coin-like device can easily be tucked into your luggage or placed in a keyring-style holder and clipped to the outside of a bag.

The tracking is handled by Apple’s U1 chip, which is also found in all iPhone 11 and later models. Working together, they offer a Precision Tracking mode that acts like map directions to guide you exactly to the spot where you’ll find your luggage. Now, as this is Bluetooth, it only tracks up to an area of 30-40ft, which isn’t great if your suitcase is a long way away. But, thanks to Apple’s extensive Find My network, any iPhone, iPad or Mac that’s close to the AirTag will send its position to iCloud.

You can then use the Find My app on your iPhone to hopefully track it down. As so many people use Apple products, there’s a good chance that one or more will be near your lost luggage, giving you a good chance of recovery.

There’s also the Lost Mode that you can trigger from the Find My app, which allows you to add a message that anyone finding your luggage can access by tapping their NFC enabled device to the AirTag. This could contain contact details that would allow them to call or message you that they’ve found your stuff.

An IP67 rating means that the AirTag will survive being out in the rain or even a short dip, plus the power comes from standard batteries that you can easily and cheaply replace. One thing to note, as you may have already guessed, is that AirTags only work with iPhones, so they’ll be useless for those who prefer Android devices.

Read our full Apple AirTag review

Chipolo is another smart little tracker that can be attached to pretty much anything and is small enough to slip into bags. The plastic disc has a keyring hole at the top, so you don’t need a specific holder as with Apple’s AirTags. It also works with either Android or iOS devices, but there are some drawbacks in this area.

The standard Chipolo One is compatible with both platforms, although it doesn’t work with either Google’s Find My Device or Apple’s Find My networks. This means if the Chipolo (and your luggage) get over 200ft away, you’ll be reliant on the Chipolo community network to track it down. This works in the same way as the Apple Find My network, in that anyone on it will receives proximity alerts if they are near your Chipolo One, which can then be relayed back to the app so you can track it down. But, the Chipolo network is tiny compared to either Google or Apple’s ones.

Chipolo does offer two other versions of its One tracker, the Chipolo One Spot and Chipolo One Point, which work respectively with the Apple or Google network. They cost around the same, and have identical appointments, although these Ones are platform specific. So, if you want the One Spot because you have an iPhone, then you won’t be able to use it with an Android phone, and vice versa for the Chipolo One Point. We’re sure this is due to the encryption and network permissions that each platform requires, but you’ll probably want one of those as the general Chipolo One doesn’t have the support you’d really need to find your luggage once more.

The device itself is cute, coming in a variety of lively colours if you don’t like black, plus it uses standard replaceable batteries to ensure you won’t have to throw it away when the cells die. There’s in internal speaker, which can help guide you to its location, plus an IP5X rating means it’s also water resistant against rain rather than total immersion, much like your luggage.

Tile is one of the most popular brands in this area. It’s been around for years and helped popularise the concept of Bluetooth trackers. Although the field may be a bit more crowded these days, its Pro model is still a very good choice for those who want to be able to locate their lost bags and luggage without signing up to a GPS subscription.

Rather than the circular approach of Apple and Chipolo, the Tile Pro is more of a curved rectangle that looks a bit like a modern car-key, albeit a lot slimmer. It’s powered by a standard replaceable battery, which makes it good for the environment, and you should get at least a year before needing to swap in a new one. Tile also adds IPX67 water resistance, so the little plastic device can survive being immersed in up to 1 meter of water for a maximum of 30 minutes.

The Bluetooth range is also good, keeping a solid connection to your phone for up to 400ft, and after that you can make use of the Tile network in the same way as the Apple Find My or Google Find My Device, where anyone else using a Tile or the Tile app will sense your nearby tracker and send details to the Tile servers. Again, it doesn’t have the extensive reach of Apple of Google, but with Tile being around for so long and selling many of its trackers, it does still have a large network to draw from.

The Tile Pro is compatible with Android and iOS, so you don’t need to play favourites. You can’t get the same range of colors as on the Chipolo, but the black and white models are smart and should fit in with most luggage.

If you want additional features, such as smart alerts that warn you when you’ve left your bags behind or a 30-day location history, then you can sign up to the Premium subscription. This will set you back $29.99/£29.99, although it seems better suited to those who travel regularly or want to use the Tile Pro for their keys or other valuables between trips.

There’s no getting away from the fact that a GPS tracker commands a much higher price than Bluetooth. At the time of writing, both the US and UK Tracki websites were offering 50% off the usual price of the device, so be sure to check there if you’re tempted.

The tracker itself is compact and the company even promotes it as one that can be used to track pets and keys as well as your luggage.  It comes with replaceable batteries that will last around 2-3 days if you have the GPS tracking every 1 to 5 minutes. This stretches out to 3-months if you only want it reporting back once a day. The former is great for when you’re travelling, while the other can be used for less adventurous activities, such as where you left the car in the car park.

The 4G LTE/GPS coverage is supported in up to 190 countries worldwide, which should mean you’ll be able to locate your precious cargo no matter where it goes, there’s also the bonus that when indoors the device can use additional tracking via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

Tracki comes with a dedicated app with which you can be guided to the tracker’s location, plus there’s also neat features like geo-fence warnings where you set up boundaries that send alerts if they’re crossed. Not necessarily for suitcases, but it does mean the Tracki can be a useful multi-purpose tracker.  

The Tracki doesn’t have an IP rating for water resistance, although the company does sell a waterproof box which can hold the device if you want to attach it to your luggage or other, larger item. If the Tracki seems expensive, you won’t like the fact that it also requires a monthly subscription for the SIM, which at the time of writing was a hefty $19.95 / £16.18.

Another company that’s been making trackers for a number of years now is Gego. You may have seen some of its LugLoc range, but with its latest tracker that brand has been dropped and it’s simply Gego GPS. The device is a little chunkier than many of its rivals, measuring up around the size of a slightly wider Mars bar. You’ll find three indicator lights on the front to report the current status of its GPS connection, power levels and mobile signal. The rechargeable battery is supplied juice via a USB-C port and can last around a week in the standard mode.

There are two others – Flight and Battery Saver – which can respectively reduce or extend the times between needing to be plugged in again. Flight mode is optimised to report on the location of the luggage when it reaches an airport, while the Battery Saver mode sends its location less frequently when the luggage isn’t moving, which in turn makes the charge last longer. Gego state that its tracker is fully compliant with TSA regulations, so it should be safe on any flight.

Tracking information is provided by a mix of 4G cellular connection and A-GPS to provide accurate worldwide coverage. You have the option to set up location-based alerts, and there’s also automatic notifications when your suitcases arrive that the airport destination. Every is relayed to the Gego tracking app, which is available for both Android and iOS devices.

The price does appear high in comparison to some of its rivals, but again the company also seems to run regular discounts to entice customers. You’ll need to factor in the $19.99 (approx. £16) monthly subscription, although you can cancel at any time, while frequent travellers may prefer to pay in advance for the year and save some money.

The LandAirSea 54 is a small tracker that has plenty built into its circular frame. For a start there’s a strong magnet, which enables you to attach it to the inside of a metal case, plus it features an IP67 waterproof rating, which means it can survive total immersion so long as the water is not deeper than 1 meter and for no more than 30 minutes.

Design-wise, it’s a thick, circular puck with three LEDs on the front to let you know its GPS, Cellular and power levels. Charging is via micro USB rather than the more modern USB-C, but once you’ve spent the six or so hours it needs to fully replenish the cells (not exactly fast), you’ll be good to go.

LandAirSea states that if you use the Energy Saver mode, which sends location data at intervals you set, then you can get up to a year’s use from a single charge (with the device reporting once a day). Crank those frequencies up to every half an hour and the duration drops to a still respectable 15 days.

Using the motion tracking mode, you can get reports as often as every three seconds, albeit with the battery being drained flat after 24 hours. All of this is controlled via the dedicated app, which can also be used to set up geo-fencing locations, track the 54 to its precise location, share its position with friends or family, as well as seeing the logged location history of the device.

Unusually, the monthly subscription model used by LandAirSea is related to how frequently you want updates on the 54’s location. It starts at $19.95 (approx. £16) for a maximum of every three minutes, while those who want only 3-second intervals will need to pay $49.95 (approx. £39) each month for the privilege.