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We know urbanization is changing pet ownership. It’s pushing pet owners to keep beloved pets safe and healthy. It’s bringing new technology into the space such as smart pet GPS trackers, real-time pet location tracking, and IoT tracking devices for pets. Now, IoT is coming to pet tracking and safety. Can it revolutionize the way we track beloved pets on the move?
In Europe, 49% of households own one or more pets, representing 299 million pets across European households. In the U.S., an estimated 71% of households (about 94 million) own a pet. At the same time, the pet tech market is projected to grow significantly, and will reach $23.8 billion by 2030. IoT pet trackers are now bringing pet tracking and monitoring into the future.
What is an IoT pet tracker?
An IoT pet tracker is a connected tracking device, usually a GPS pet tracker collar or pet tracking tag, that combines:
- Location or proximity sensing (GPS, BLE, Wi-Fi, etc.)
- Connectivity (BLE, LoRaWAN, cellular)
- Cloud platform for data processing, geofencing, and location history
- App or dashboard for alerts, sharing, reporting, and device status
With IoT pet trackers, monitoring becomes much easier and more affordable. Like other GPS solutions, IoT pet trackers enable an active system. They illuminate what goes on during a pet’s journey by providing real-time location updates, lost pet tracking, and automated alerts. Triggers and automated alerts will be required to achieve maximum efficiency in pet tracking, and IoT will be increasingly common in this space. The market is becoming more experience-driven, and users now expect more features.
Connectivity options for IoT pet trackers (when to use each)
Pet tracking, much like asset tracking, commonly uses GPS, WiFi, or Bluetooth and LPWAN (like LoRaWAN) for active tracking. Each type of pet tracking device has pros and cons, and we’ve listed several different technologies below. You can decide which technology is best for you based on your conditions and needs. The factors include where you live, how good the cell network is in your area, what your budget is, what features you want, and how far away you’d like to be able to track your pet.
The most common tracking device is Bluetooth pet tracking devices that are attached to a pet collar and interact with a smartphone or BLE gateway of the pet owner. BLE can be a strong option for indoor pet tracking (proximity and zone-level tracking) with low power consumption, but its direct range is limited unless a phone or a gateway is present.
For lost pet recovery in cities, some products rely on crowdsourced networks such as Apple Find My: the tag broadcasts a Bluetooth signal, which is picked up by other nearby Apple devices and relay an encrypted location report to the owner. This enhances the chances of recovery in densely populated locations, although this is not the case with real-time GPS pet tracking, and performance relies on a network of devices that are participating.
Wi-Fi positioning / Wi-Fi assist
WiFi can also be used for pet tracking devices. This method can be useful in Wi-Fi dense indoor environments, but it relies too much on nearby wireless networks. So, WiFi is often used to improve indoor location accuracy and location confidence in some scenarios.
GPS + cellular (LTE-M / NB-IoT, etc.)
GPS is a solution for outdoor tracking that transmits location information to your pet owners’ smartphone. It covers a wide area and is limited by GPS signals, so GPS-based tracking devices are perfect for wide-area outdoor pet tracking and real-time pet GPS tracking. The monthly subscription fee is also an essential expense. In addition, its battery drains quickly due to frequent updates especially with lost mode tracking.
LoRaWAN (project-based)
LPWAN technology has been deployed worldwide and this long-range low-power technology is the ideal solution for pet tracking in farms, ranches, and campuses. It’s often used in broader livestock tracking deployments as well.
Hybrid Pet Tracking
A single solution usually cannot meet all aims, so a hybrid tracking solution integrates Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, and LoRaWAN is often a better solution. GPS and LoRaWAN can track pets outdoors, and when indoors, the tracker depends on WiFi or Bluetooth to improve continuity and precision. Additional functionality can be achieved by using accelerometer sensors that provide insight into a pet’s behavior by tracking its daily activities and health trends.
Need a recommendation for your scenario (indoor/outdoor/hybrid)? Share your target coverage + update interval + battery target, and we’ll suggest a reference architecture for your pet tracking system.
Top pet tracking use cases and buyer requirements
As pet care continues to evolve, technologies like IoT are becoming indispensable tools in safeguarding pet safety.
IoT pet trackers for real-time location tracking
Pets love to explore; they run to corners of the house, hide under furniture, or sometimes slip farther than expected. They don’t “tell you” where they’re going, and that’s exactly why location visibility matters. Smart collars work to empower owners to keep pets safe by having the ability to locate their pets’ positions. The BLE tags on the collar support proximity-based tracking to provide valuable data on activity needs and allow owners to monitor their pets for better coordination.
Multi-pet identification (shelter/boarding / clinic)
When you need to manage a lot of pets, you can assign Bluetooth beacons to each one of them, and through background recognition, you can easily identify them and get other information you want, like quantity, location, and activities.
This becomes extremely useful in environments like shelters, boarding facilities, and veterinary clinics where accuracy and workflow consistency matter every day.
Geofence/zone alerting
When a pet leaves a designated safe zone, the system logs this activity in real-time, recording the exact location and time. Smart tags compatible with pet ID collars prevent pets from wandering into restricted areas or leaving the property without authorization. Alerts signal owners to intervene before a pet escapes or puts themselves in danger by entering a dangerous zone.
Health monitoring
Beyond simply knowing where their pets are, pet owners care more about their pets’ health than anything else. To meet this need, the IoT market has launched solutions similar to human health monitoring.
Trackers can be equipped with different sensors that remotely inform pet owners about activity levels, rest patterns and behavioral changes in monitored pets. It should be noted that the application of this solution is not limited to pet technology, but could also be applied to other livestock, such as cattle, sheep, horses and other farm animals.
Behavior monitoring (heat maps and movement insights)
If you’ve ever walked in to find a mess or worse, an injured pet in your home, it’s natural to wonder what your pet is up to when nobody is watching.
With indoor BLE tracking plus gateways, you can analyze movement patterns to understand your pet’s routines, detect unusual behavior, and reduce repeat incidents.
Training assistance
IoT can also report on pet behavior patterns and activity throughout the day. It can also enable owners to identify stress triggers, monitor exercise routines, and track training progress, all while maintaining pet wellbeing.
This turns tracking into something more meaningful than “where are they?” It becomes “how are they doing?”
Owner peace of mind
When pets wander too far or, worse, are in need of immediate assistance due to injury or danger, having a GPS-enabled smart collar means they are less likely to be truly lost, even in a large park or unfamiliar neighborhood. The device can alert owners with precise information about the pet’s location (lost mode, last-seen, alerts) and reduce the time it takes to respond.
How to build a reliable IoT pet tracking solution
To build the right pet tracking solution for yourself or a client, you should start by understanding the specific requirements and use case.
Match the tracking goal to the right tech
Indoor “which room/zone” → BLE tags + gateways; outdoor wide-area → GPS + cellular; farms/campus → GPS + LoRaWAN; best continuity → hybrid pet tracking.
Define update strategy (this decides battery + experience)
Support multiple modes such as stationary / moving / lost mode, with configurable default intervals. Ideally, intervals can be tuned per customer based on movement detection, geofence triggers, or battery-saving rules.
Validate real-world performance (not just spec)
Coverage, accuracy and hardware performance should be tested by doing walkthroughs with the tracking devices. For zone-based deployment, avoid placing gateways so close together that the signals overlap, resulting in incorrect zone detection or battery drain. Define push logic to provide clear status messaging.
Good documentation and support
Both clear hardware and the mobile app configuration to be provided are needed to train staff and assist pet owners. Plus documentation about device management, battery visibility, firmware updates (DFU/OTA), and more.
Typical costs for pet tracking solutions
The biggest difference between IoT pet trackers and other solutions? Cost. The hardware can create a very large divide in terms of cost, but buyers should evaluate the total cost of ownership. The price depends on the pet tracker brand and the types of technology, as different types may have different pros and cons.
The cost of a typical pet tracking solution includes the hardware and platform. As a general market expectation, GPS+cellular products often have higher ongoing costs (subscription), and a traditional GPS tracker will cost between $80 and $500. BLE tracking solutions are much more affordable, as a typical pet tracking tag usually has a <$50 price point. BLE+gateway or LoRaWAN project models shift more cost into deployment/infrastructure.
How MOKOSmart can help pet tracking devices
The pet IoT market is growing and will contribute more convenience and entertainment for pet owners in the future. If you are in the market for developing pet tracking solutions or adding new features, MOKOSmart can be a reliable hardware partner, providing a variety of IoT pet tracking devices, BLE tags and Bluetooth gateways! We can help you evaluate the right approach and device options for your product goals. Don’t hesitate to contact us now!
