1
Pick Your Protocol Path
Both run on similar LoRa hardware, but they behave differently on-air. Choose based on your deployment goals.
Meshtastic
Best for quick setup, mobile nodes, and broad community tooling.
- Plug‑and‑play: Devices auto‑form a mesh with no planning required.
- Peer‑to‑peer flood routing: Every radio helps relay messages to neighbors.
- Great for ad‑hoc use: Excellent for hiking, small groups, events, and spontaneous coverage.
- Large community & tool ecosystem: Apps, mapping, telemetry, and guides available.
Consider Meshtastic if:
- You want quick setup with minimal configuration.
- You’re building a mobile or informal mesh.
- You value well‑documented tools and support.
- You want frequent status and GPS telemetry.
MeshCore
Best for structured routing, planned repeaters, and scalable community backbones.
- Intelligent routing: Messages follow known paths rather than everyone rebroadcasting.
- Role‑based network: Personal radios connect through repeaters that handle forwarding.
- Optimized for larger networks: Reduces airtime and interference as more nodes join.
- Higher hop limits: Can scale to 64 hops* for larger coverage.
- Lower network chatter: Keeps airtime efficient as the network grows.
Consider MeshCore if:
- You plan a community backbone with fixed repeaters.
- You want better scaling and performance in dense areas.
- You prefer controlled routing behavior over constant flood broadcasts.
2
Shared Pre-Flight Checklist
Before protocol-specific setup, complete these common preparation steps.
- Use US915-capable LoRa hardware (or your local regional equivalent).
- Attach the correct antenna before transmitting.
- Prepare USB cable and stable power for flashing.
- Plan one local test node to verify message flow after setup.
3
Open the Full Protocol Guide
The detailed flashing, pairing, roles, and configuration steps now live in each dedicated guide.