Life360’s $8 Pet Tag vs Pet GPS: What Every One Does

Life360 has launched a $7.99 Pet Tag that offers house owners a less expensive different to its Pet GPS tracker, however the two merchandise do very completely different jobs. The tag works solely after somebody finds a pet and scans its QR code, whereas Pet GPS can actively observe an animal that has wandered away.

Life360 introduced the Pet Tag on August 25 alongside new pet-care routines and Zoomies alerts. The corporate says greater than 8 million pets at the moment are registered on Life360.

Life360 Pet Tag vs Pet GPS at a look

The merchandise can complement one another, however house owners selecting just one ought to begin with a easy query: do they need assistance discovering the pet or primarily assist getting it house as soon as another person finds it?

The $7.99 Pet Tag works solely after somebody scans it

Life360’s Pet Tag help web page confirms that the tag is just not a GPS or Bluetooth tracker and doesn’t present ongoing location updates.

When a finder scans its QR code, the proprietor can obtain an app notification, inbox message, and electronic mail containing info the finder chooses to share. The finder may also depart a observe or share their location with out putting in Life360.

House owners handle the contact particulars hooked up to the tag by means of the pet’s Life360 profile. Life360 says the proprietor’s telephone quantity and electronic mail may be shared with the finder.

That makes the Pet Tag essentially completely different from Bluetooth merchandise trackers comparable to Google Pixel Tag and Apple’s AirTag, which may use close by gadgets to replace an merchandise’s location with out ready for someone to scan a code.

If a pet is lacking and no one has discovered it but, the Pet Tag can not inform the proprietor the place it’s. Its benefit is simplicity: no charging, no subscription, and no digital tracker hanging from the collar.

Pet GPS provides dwell monitoring and escape alerts

Life360 Pet GPS is designed for energetic monitoring. It combines GPS, LTE, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi and might ship an Escape Alert when a pet leaves a configured Place.

Life360 charges the rechargeable battery for as much as 14 days relying on use. Under 6%, the tracker can enter Bluetooth Reserve Mode, which the corporate says can hold it discoverable by means of close by gadgets for as much as six months.

The tracker weighs 28 grams, or 33.7 grams with its mount, based on Life360’s specs. That makes it considerably bulkier than a passive tag.

Pet GPS additionally connects to Life360’s Pet Finder Community. A Misplaced Pet Alert can notify eligible Life360 members close to the reported location, whereas Life360’s help documentation says the proprietor’s telephone quantity is shared with recipients and the alert stays seen for as much as 72 hours.

There’s a QR fallback too. A finder can take away the tracker from its collar mount and scan the “Scan Me If Discovered” code on the again to contact the proprietor with out putting in Life360.

For comparability, Apple’s $29 AirTag 2 makes use of the Discover My community quite than mobile GPS. It prices much less to take care of, however it doesn’t supply the identical dwell GPS monitoring or geofence-based escape alerts.

Pet GPS prices greater than the tracker worth

The $49.99 {hardware} worth doesn’t inform the entire story as a result of Pet GPS requires a qualifying Life360 membership.

Life360’s newer supplies promote a $99 Pet GPS supply that features one 12 months of Silver for eligible new or returning members. A present Life360 help article says Silver renews at $99.99 per 12 months until canceled and might help as much as two Pet GPS trackers within the paid Circle.

Gold and Platinum memberships additionally help Pet GPS, though some older Life360 assist pages nonetheless replicate the earlier Gold-or-Platinum-only setup.

Multi-pet households must also look ahead to activation prices. Life360’s present documentation says every extra Pet GPS added to a Circle requires a one-time mobile activation price, though it doesn’t publish the present quantity.

At launch in October 2025, Life360 mentioned the primary system’s activation price was waived and extra trackers price $79.99 to activate. Patrons including multiple tracker ought to verify the present price at checkout.

The Pet Tag collects much less location information, however it isn’t data-free

Life360’s privateness coverage particularly describes safety protections for Pet GPS, together with encryption of location information at relaxation and in transit.

These {hardware} protections don’t translate on to the Pet Tag as a result of the tag has no GPS radio, Bluetooth {hardware}, battery, or programmable electronics.

The related information begins when someone scans the QR code. Life360 says a finder can submit a observe and site whereas the proprietor’s contact info is used to reconnect them.

The corporate’s broader safety supplies say information despatched between gadgets and Life360 methods and saved in its major methods is encrypted. What its public Pet Tag documentation doesn’t specify is a tag-specific retention interval for scan data, finder-submitted areas, or messages.

That may be a narrower privateness query than the unique draft urged. The tag is just not silently monitoring a pet, however utilizing the QR service can nonetheless create account, contact, and finder-submitted information inside Life360’s methods.

Which Life360 pet product must you purchase?

The $7.99 Pet Tag makes extra sense for house owners who primarily need an updatable ID tag. It has no battery or subscription and provides a finder a easy route again to the household.

Pet GPS is healthier suited to pets that roam or escape incessantly. It provides dwell location, geofences, escape alerts, and Life360’s restoration community, however it requires extra {hardware} on the collar and an ongoing membership.

Utilizing each offers two restoration paths: Pet GPS will help find a lacking animal, whereas the Pet Tag offers whoever finds it first a fast option to contact the proprietor.

Comparable restoration networks have gotten extra frequent outdoors pet monitoring too. Google’s Discover Hub can use close by gadgets and momentary location sharing to assist house owners get well misplaced belongings.

Additionally learn: Some Android apps can move exact location information to promoting SDKs as soon as location permission has been granted, making data-flow disclosures one other consideration for linked companies.