[FAQ] Can You Track Airtag Miles Away? (Yes!)

The AirTag is the simplest standalone device Apple has ever made. And that’s solely for tracking purposes. If you’ve bought one for $29 or a pack of 4 AirTags for $99, you would think to yourself whether you can track AirTags from miles away. The answer is an exciting yes!

[Appleveteran’s Opinion]: How Justified Is The Use Of Apple AirTag To Track Someone?

See, AirTags work in a defined pattern. It’s very Apple-y because it works based on Crowd GPS: by the network of billions of Apple devices all around the world. The components inside the waterproof AirTag have the capability to transmit Bluetooth signal up to a range of 800 ft. And if any iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, or Apple Watch in that vicinity hears it, it immediately sends out the AirTag’s location data to the internet (thereby, to the owner).

So if you’ve lost your AirTag, not only you, but all the Apple devices in the world will be helping you find it. This means that you can track Airtag miles away. But, there’s a catch; if you’ve lost your AirTag in the middle of a lonely desert, you might not find it (unless an Apple user tours there). But if you lose it in the middle of an American city, where approx. 47% of smartphones are iPhones, you have a high chance of finding it.

So, yes you can track AirTag long distances. The AirTags themselves have no positional location capability – they do not contain GPS technology. Rather, they merely “ping” the nearest Bluetooth-enabled device and let that device’s location data do the rest.

If you’re wondering how far can AirTag track location, then it needs to be within Bluetooth range, so about 15 to 30 feet away, to use Precision Tracking. Otherwise, the Find My network wing ping the lost AirTag and update the owner of its last known location. So, in general you can locate an AirTag thats hundreds of miles away so long as somebody with an iPhone walks near it.