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Set up the app

Think of this as a quick pre-flight check, not homework. FreqMapper is designed for low-rate, intentional coverage mapping—not continuous packet flooding. The best trips start with a radio that is already behaving normally on the local Meshtastic mesh.

What you will need

  • An iPhone or Android phone with precise location permission enabled.
  • A Meshtastic radio connected and synchronized with the phone.
  • A region invite key from your region administrator. See Join a mapping region.
  • A safe driving plan. If you can, have a passenger run the app.
  • A local FreqMapper region with active watchers. A trip can be recorded anywhere, but it needs independent receipts before coverage can be verified.

Set up your phone and radio

  1. Install FreqMapper through the TestFlight invitation supplied by the FreqMapper team.
  2. Open the Radio tab, allow Bluetooth access, select your Meshtastic radio, and wait for its identity and channels to synchronize.
  3. Open Settings, enter the region invite key, and apply it while that radio is connected.
  4. Still in Settings, use Set up shared wardriving channel only after FreqMapper confirms that the radio has a free secondary slot. It never replaces a configured channel.
  1. Install the current FreqMapper Android build and allow Bluetooth and precise-location permissions.
  2. Open the Radio tab, connect to your Meshtastic radio, and wait for synchronization to finish.
  3. Open Settings, enter the region invite key, and apply it while that radio is connected.
  4. FreqMapper prepares the shared wardriving channel for the enrolled radio. It uses an available secondary slot and does not overwrite one of your existing channels.

Before leaving

  1. Connect your radio in the app and wait for it to synchronize.
  2. Apply your region invite key in Settings if this radio is not enrolled yet, then finish shared-channel setup if the app asks you to.
  3. Open the map and confirm the region you expect to travel through.
  4. Check the Watchers panel. Positioned Watchers appear with an eye icon; unpositioned Watchers may still be listening and can still verify coverage.
  5. Confirm the phone has a current GPS fix before you move.
  6. Review the region's packet-rate guidance before sending any mapping tests.

Safe and fair mapping

  • Never operate the app while driving if it distracts you.
  • Use low-rate tests. More packets do not automatically make better coverage data.
  • Do not chase repeaters, private property, emergency activity, or restricted roads. A good map is never worth making someone uncomfortable or putting yourself in a bad spot.
  • Respect local channel customs. Mapping is a community measurement activity, not a stress test for the network.
  • Stop the trip when you are done; it keeps your personal trip history easier to review and delete.

What the app will record

For a mapping trip, the important location is the phone's location when the tagged packet was sent. FreqMapper does not use a feeder's location, the nearest airport, or a sender's ordinary Position Packet as the wardriver's location.

If things feel rushed, pause the trip and get settled first. There is no prize for squeezing in one more sample. See Privacy and data for what is shared and what stays private.

Last updated: 2026-08-26