Apple introduced its first-generation item tracker, the AirTag, in 2021. This round accessory is made to be used on keychains, chunky wallets, luggage, backpacks, and other objects we might want to keep track of. Over the years, users have found different use cases for the AirTag, from hiding it in their vehicle in case it gets stolen or even attaching it to a Nintendo Switch 2 case.
The AirTag works in two ways: by using a Bluetooth signal from your iPhone and other Apple devices that rely on the Find My network function, or via the iPhone’s ultra-wideband chip, which can tell the location of your AirTag as long as you’re within 30 meters (or 100 feet) from it.
While this is one of the best item trackers on the market, especially due to the Find My network function — which has over a billion Apple devices on it and can potentially help you find your lost items — several users complain that the AirTag can be unreliable. While it’s true that the AirTag isn’t perfect, sometimes people have a misconception of how it works or what it can actually track. Here’s what you need to know about the AirTag’s reliability.
AirTags aren’t made for moving objects
When Apple unveiled the AirTag, it said that the item tracker shouldn’t be used to track people or pets. Privacy concerns aside on the subject of tracking people, the thing about the AirTag is that it doesn’t share its live location all the time — rather, it works as a Bluetooth beacon. In other words, it depends on devices connected to the Find My network to properly function: The AirTag should refresh its location every time it passes close to an Apple device connected to the Find My network.
That said, some users report that it was hard to locate an AirTag inside a vehicle in a parking lot, that it took forever to update the location of a kid’s backpack, and so on. In my experience, the AirTag has been reliable enough, and the best way to see this in action is putting the item tracker in (or attached to) luggage while taking a flight. The AirTag moves away from me as checked baggage, then I get a signal that it’s inside the plane, and finally — when I land at my destination — I can see that the AirTag is nearby. Then, the “Directions” option on the Find My app switches to “Find,” meaning my luggage (and AirTag) is about to arrive. In short, AirTag is reliable — as long as you use it as an item finder, not a live location tracker for moving objects.
