Keys and bags take a small tag and wallets take a flat card, but which Bluetooth trackers work for you depends on your phone: an iPhone, a Samsung Galaxy or another Android phone. Get the AirTag (2nd generation) for an iPhone, the Galaxy SmartTag2 for a Galaxy, and a Tile for most other Android phones or a home that has both.
| Tracker | Works with | Battery | Range and ring | Also needs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple AirTag (2nd Generation) | iPhone on iOS 26 or later, through Find My | CR2032 you replace, more than a year | Range not published | An Apple Account, plus a holder or key ring sold separately |
| Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2 (4-Pack) | Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets on Android 11 or later, through SmartThings Find | CR2032 you replace, up to 500 days | 120 meters | A Samsung account |
| Life360 Tile Pro Bluetooth Tracker (2-Pack) | iPhone on iOS 16 or newer, Android 9.0 or newer, through the Tile app | Coin cell you replace, up to a year | 500 feet, 110 dB | Tile Premium for left-behind alerts |
| Life360 Tile Starter Pack (Mate + Slim) | iPhone on iOS 16 or newer, Android 9.0 or newer, through the Tile app | Sealed, 3 years | 350 feet, 100 dB (Mate) and 104 dB (Slim) | Tile Premium for left-behind alerts |
| KIUP Tracker Tags for Android and iPhone | Android 9 and above through Find Hub, or iPhone through Find My, not Huawei | Not serviceable, up to 2 years | 100 meters, 105 dB | Nothing, it uses your phone’s own finding app |
| UGREEN FineTrack Tracker Tags (4-Pack) | iPhone and iPad only, through Find My | Coin cell you replace, up to 2 years | Range not published | Nothing beyond Find My |
| SPOTMINDERS Wallet Tracker Card | iPhone through Find My, not Android | Rechargeable | 300 feet, 100 dB | A wireless charger, not included |
Start with what you lose, then match your phone
Find the thing you misplace most. Then pick from the Bluetooth trackers that work with your phone.
- On keys: the AirTag with an iPhone, the Galaxy SmartTag2 with a Galaxy, and a Tile Mate or KIUP tag with other Android phones.
- In a bag: the Tile Pro on most iPhones and Android phones, or an AirTag in checked luggage for iPhone flyers.
- Wallets: the SPOTMINDERS card with an iPhone, or the Tile Slim with an Android phone.
- A home mixing iPhones and Android: Tile, whose app runs on both.
Which Bluetooth tracker should go on your keys?
For keys, the right tag follows your phone: the SmartTag2 for a Galaxy, the AirTag for an iPhone, and a Tile Mate or KIUP tag for most other Android phones. How it hangs on the ring matters too. A Bluetooth tracker for keys spends all day on that ring, so a tag that needs a holder means one more thing to buy.
Galaxy SmartTag2: made to hang from a ring
Samsung built the Galaxy SmartTag2 around a large metal loop. A key ring or clip goes straight through it. But it works only with Samsung Galaxy devices. Samsung’s SmartThings Find app needs Android 11 or later, 3GB of free RAM and a Samsung account. For a Galaxy owner, that makes it the simplest Bluetooth key tracker here.
On a Galaxy with Ultra Wideband, such as the Galaxy S23 Ultra, Compass View points an arrow at the tag and shows how far away it is. Without that chip, the tracker still reaches 120 meters over Bluetooth. That’s about 390 feet. You can also make the tag ring.
Inside is a CR2032 coin cell rated for up to 500 days, or up to 700 in Power Saving Mode. The tag is rated IP67. Samsung tested that in fresh water at 1 meter for 30 minutes. Keep it away from the beach, the pool and soapy water, which Samsung advises against. Four in a box covers your keys and three bags. Skip it if you carry an iPhone or a non-Samsung Android phone, because neither can find it.
AirTag (2nd generation): the iPhone pick, plus a holder
The AirTag (2nd generation) needs an iPhone on iOS 26 or later. Expanded Precision Finding works with the iPhone Air and the iPhone 15 or later, except the 16e and 17e. It leads you to the tag from up to 50% farther than the first AirTag did. Apple also made the speaker 50% louder and says you can hear it from up to twice as far.
Nothing to attach it comes in the box, though. Apple lists only the AirTag and its documentation. It sells holders such as the FineWoven Key Ring separately. If this Bluetooth tracker is going on your keys, add a holder to your order. When your iPhone asks, you swap the CR2032 cell yourself. The tag is rated IP67. Skip it on Android, or on an iPhone that can’t update to iOS 26.
Tile Mate and KIUP: key trackers for other Android phones
The Tile Mate comes in the Life360 Tile Starter Pack (Mate + Slim), with a Slim card for your wallet. Because the Tile app supports iOS 16 or newer and Android 9.0 or newer, the Mate is a Bluetooth tracker for your keys that works on most iPhones and Android phones. It reaches up to 350 feet and rings at 100 dB. Its battery is sealed in. Tile rates it for three years. You can also use the tag to ring your phone, even when it’s on silent.
The KIUP Tracker Tags for Android and iPhone skip the extra app. Instead, they use the finding app already on your phone: Google’s Find Hub on Android 9 and above, or Apple’s Find My on an iPhone. Huawei phones are out. Each tag rings at up to 105 dB and carries an IP65 rating for rain and splashes. It runs up to two years on a battery that can’t be serviced. KIUP never says a single tag shows in both apps at once, so pair each tag with whoever will search for it.
Which Bluetooth tracker works best in a bag or suitcase?
For bags, the Tile Pro is the pick on most iPhones and Android phones. iPhone owners who fly should also drop an AirTag into the checked suitcase. In a bag, trackers sit under everything else you packed, so choose on volume and Bluetooth range before size.
Tile Pro: the biggest published numbers
The Tile Pro reaches up to 500 feet and rings at 110 dB. None of the other trackers here publishes a higher Bluetooth range or volume figure. Its battery lasts up to a year. You swap the coin cell yourself instead of replacing the tracker. Tile rates the 2024 Pro IP68, and every Tile can take a 1-meter dunk for 30 minutes.
Left-behind warnings cost extra. Tile’s Smart Alerts need a Premium or Premium Protect plan, and they arrive 5 to 10 minutes after your phone leaves the area. They fire only when your phone is the one that leaves, so they’ll catch a bag you walked away from but won’t flag one someone carries off while you sit still. On an iPhone, the UGREEN and SPOTMINDERS listings say Find My sends that kind of alert with no subscription.
AirTag in a checked suitcase
Flying with an iPhone? Put the AirTag in the suitcase. Apple’s Share Item Location can pass its position to more than 50 partner airlines, and the shared link switches off once you have the bag back or after seven days.
UGREEN FineTrack: four Find My tags in one box
The UGREEN FineTrack Tracker Tags (4-Pack) cover a backpack, a carry-on and a checked bag, with the fourth Bluetooth tracker left for your keys. They pair with an iPhone or iPad only. A Mac can view their location but can’t add them. Each tag runs up to two years on a coin cell you replace. There’s no subscription. Skip them on Android, since UGREEN states they won’t work there.
Which Bluetooth tracker card fits in a wallet?
Both card-shaped Bluetooth trackers here fit a wallet, but the SPOTMINDERS card is thinner, at 1.8 mm against the Tile Slim’s 2.5 mm, and it works only with an iPhone. That’s 0.7 mm less, or 28% thinner. The Tile Slim works with iPhones and Android phones alike.
SPOTMINDERS: the iPhone card
The SPOTMINDERS Wallet Tracker Card is credit card sized, 3.34 by 2.12 inches. It slides into a card slot next to your real cards, and setup happens in Find My on an iPhone, so there’s nothing to install. It won’t work with Android. Precision Finding isn’t supported on it either. Its speaker reaches 100 dB, the tracker’s Bluetooth range runs up to 300 feet, and it’s rated IP68.
Charging is the trade-off. You top it up on a wireless charger in 1 to 2 hours, and no charger comes with it. The listing gives two figures for one charge. It says up to 8 months in one place and 5 months in another, so plan around the shorter one. Buying it as a present? It’s one of our tech stocking stuffers, with what to add before wrapping.
Tile Slim: the card for iPhone or Android
The Tile Slim is the second tracker in the Starter Pack. It measures 53.9 by 85.4 mm and works on any phone the Tile app supports. It rings at 104 dB and reaches 350 feet. The battery is sealed and rated for three years, so there’s nothing to charge. When it runs out, you replace the card.
Which Bluetooth trackers work on Android phones that aren’t Samsung?
Three of the seven do: the Tile Pro, the Tile Starter Pack and the KIUP tags. The SmartTag2 needs a Galaxy. The AirTag, the UGREEN tags and the SPOTMINDERS card need an iPhone or iPad.
Both Android options draw the same line at Android 9. Tile officially supports Android 9.0 or newer, and Google says its Find Hub network, which the KIUP tags use, requires Android 9 or later too. Tile also leaves out Huawei and Honor phones because of US restrictions on Google services, and KIUP rules out Huawei as well. So a Huawei owner can’t use any tracker here.
Far from home, a tracker is only as good as the phones around it. Samsung says a SmartTag2 out of Bluetooth range is found through its Find Network, so accuracy depends on opted-in Galaxy users nearby. The KIUP tags lean on Google’s Find Hub network instead. It uses other people’s Android devices to locate your things, and it needs Bluetooth and location services turned on. If you want to know how each network, Tile’s included, spots a tag you left miles away, read how Bluetooth trackers work, network by network.
How many batteries do these Bluetooth trackers use in three years?
Over three years, the SmartTag2, Tile Pro and UGREEN tags each need at least one fresh coin cell, while the KIUP tags get replaced whole and the SPOTMINDERS card only needs charging. Three years is 1,095 days. Each line uses the battery figure the maker or its listing gives.
- Galaxy SmartTag2: 1,095 divided by 500 is 2.19, so the cell in the box plus at least two more. Power Saving Mode, at 700 days, cuts that to at least one more.
- Tile Pro: up to a year per cell, so you’ll need at least two replacements.
- AirTag (2nd generation): more than a year per cell, so two replacements at most.
- UGREEN FineTrack: up to two years per cell, so at least one per tag, or four across the pack.
- Tile Mate and Tile Slim: sealed and rated for three years, which ends right at the three-year mark.
- KIUP: up to two years with no way to change the battery, so expect new tags before year three.
For a Bluetooth tracker on keys you’ll keep for years, a swappable coin cell keeps one tag going. A sealed Tile asks nothing of you for three years. Then it asks for a new tracker.
Quick answers before you order
Do older AirTag holders fit the new AirTag?
Yes, older AirTag holders fit the AirTag (2nd generation). Apple kept the same form factor as the original and says the new AirTag works with all existing AirTag accessories. So a holder left over from a first-generation AirTag can carry the new one without changes.
Do Bluetooth trackers work with tablets?
Several trackers here work with a tablet, but the brand decides which one. The AirTag works with an iPad on iPadOS 26 or later, and the SmartTag2 works with Samsung Galaxy tablets as well as phones. Tile’s app runs on iPads with iPadOS 16 or newer, but it doesn’t support Android tablets.
Can two people track the same tag?
Two people can’t both own one AirTag, SmartTag2 or UGREEN tag. An AirTag belongs to one Apple Account, a SmartTag2 to one SmartThings Find account at a time, and a UGREEN tag stays tied to one phone until it’s unlinked. The AirTag and UGREEN listings offer location sharing instead.