Item tracker FAQs

No — you need an iPhone or iPad to set up and find an AirTag, because it uses Apple’s Find My network. Android phones can, however, detect an unknown AirTag travelling with you. For Android, look at trackers for Google Find Hub, or trackers such as Chipolo POP that can be set up on either network.

No. Samsung says Galaxy SmartTag2 works with Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets through SmartThings Find. If you have another Android phone — a Pixel, Motorola or OnePlus, for example — choose a Find Hub tracker. Galaxy phones can use Find Hub trackers too.

Two options: Tile, whose app runs on both, or a tracker that can join either Apple Find My or Google Find Hub — such as Chipolo POP, LOOP and CARD, Pebblebee Clip 5 and Card 5, eufy SmartTrack Card E40 or Xiaomi Tag. Those work with one network at a time, so each tracker belongs to either an iPhone or an Android user. Try the Which tracker? tool.

Not for the main Bluetooth trackers. Apple and Samsung don’t mention one for AirTag or SmartTag2, and Tile says finding is free, with optional Tile Premium extras such as left-behind alerts. GPS pet trackers are different: most need a plan from the maker. Each product page shows what the maker says.

Ultra Wideband lets a compatible phone show the distance and direction to a nearby tracker — Apple calls it Precision Finding and Samsung calls it Compass View. It needs UWB in both the tracker and your phone. Without it you can still see the tracker on a map and make it ring. Filter trackers with UWB.

Apple says the second-generation AirTag (January 2026) has a second-generation Ultra Wideband chip for Precision Finding from up to 50% further away, an upgraded Bluetooth chip and a speaker that is 50% louder. It is the same size and shape, so existing holders fit, but it needs a newer iOS version. Compare them.

It depends on the tracker and how you use it. Makers quote about a year for most replaceable coin-cell trackers (Samsung says up to 500 days for SmartTag2), up to three years for sealed trackers such as Tile Slim, and months per charge for rechargeable ones. See changing tracker batteries.

A CR2032 3V lithium coin cell, fitted positive side up. Apple warns that some CR2032 batteries with bitter coatings might not work with AirTag. Keep coin cells away from children — they are very dangerous if swallowed.

Bluetooth range is short — makers quote from about 10 m up to around 150 m in ideal conditions. Beyond that, a tracker is found when a phone on its network passes nearby and reports its location, so there is no fixed limit, but it only updates where there are phones. Read how the networks work.

Open the alert, play a sound to find the tracker, and check whether it belongs to someone you’re with. Hold your phone to an AirTag to see its serial number, and take a screenshot. If you feel unsafe, go somewhere safe and contact the police — 999 in an emergency. Follow our step-by-step guide.

Yes. Google says Android 6.0 and later can alert you to unknown trackers, including Apple AirTags, and you can scan manually in Settings → Safety and emergency → Unknown tracker alerts → Scan now.

Apple and Google both say their networks are encrypted and anonymous: the owner sees the item’s location, not who found it. On Android you can choose how your phone takes part in the Find Hub network, or switch it off. See privacy and anti-stalking protections.

Item trackers are for your own belongings. Apple says AirTags should not be used to track people and that doing so without consent is a crime in many countries, and Google’s rules forbid tracking someone without their knowledge and consent. In England and Wales, the CPS lists monitoring someone’s electronic communications and following or watching them among examples of stalking behaviour. This isn’t legal advice.

Apple says AirTag is designed exclusively for tracking objects, not people or pets, and Google says Find Hub tags shouldn’t be used to track pets. A Bluetooth tag only updates when a phone passes by. A GPS pet tracker with its own mobile connection shows live location, but usually needs a subscription. Read AirTags and pets.

Item trackers aren’t designed for people, and their anti-stalking alerts may warn others nearby. For family members who agree to it, use the location-sharing built into phones — Apple’s Find My app, or Google Location Sharing, which Find Hub gives access to.

IATA’s 2026 guidance says bag tags and GPS tracking devices are not restricted. The CAA says spare lithium batteries must go in your cabin bag, and that airlines can set their own rules — so check with your airline. See using a tracker in your luggage.

Apple says more than 50 airlines accept Share Item Location links, naming British Airways and Virgin Atlantic among them. On iPhone (iOS 18.2 or later) you create a link in Find My and give it to the airline; it expires after seven days. Google offers a similar feature for Find Hub, but its airline list didn’t include a UK airline when we checked.

Prices change constantly and we haven’t lab-tested every tracker, so we don’t score them. We show what each maker says, with sources and the date we checked. The “View on Amazon.co.uk” buttons are affiliate links — see our affiliate disclosure.