Community LoRa network · Puerto Rico
Stays connected when everything else goes down.
Meshtastic Puerto Rico is a community-built radio network that lets you send messages without cell service, Wi-Fi, or the internet. You pair a small, affordable radio with an app on your phone — that radio talks directly to nearby radios, relaying your message from one to the next until it reaches its destination.
Simple enough for any age to set up and use for fun day to day — which means it's already working the moment cell service isn't.
Some devices even have their own screen and keyboard, so you don't need a phone at all. No towers, no company, no monthly bill.
What is Meshtastic?
Radios that talk to each other, not to a tower.
Meshtastic is open-source firmware for LoRa radios, and every node that joins does more than send its own messages — it extends the reach of everyone else's too, relaying traffic across the island one radio at a time.
Puerto Rico has already lived through weeks without cell service after Hurricane María and Fiona. This mesh exists so the next outage doesn't mean total silence.
See how it actually works →Why Meshtastic PR
- Independent, community-run — no company, no subscription
- Built for Puerto Rico's terrain, climate, and hurricane risk
- Open documentation so anyone can join, configure, and contribute
- Useful today for hikers and boaters, critical during outages
Why it works
Off-grid, low-cost, and built together
- Without a towerOff-Grid Communication
- Communicate using LoRa radios without relying on cellular networks or internet access.
- Without permissionBuild the Mesh
- Add a node anywhere useful — home, rooftop, or trail — to extend coverage for everyone nearby.
- Without a contractLow Cost
- Start experimenting for the price of a nice dinner, with hardware that keeps working for years.
- Without a companyCommunity Powered
- Learn, experiment, and improve the network together — no company decides how it's used.
Getting started
Five steps to your first message
- 01
Get a compatible device
Pick hardware sized to how you'll use it — see the guide organized by use case, not spec sheets.
- 02
Install the app
Android, iOS, or the web/desktop client over USB. Update to current firmware before configuring.
- 03
Configure your device
Set the correct region and a role that matches how the node will be used.
- 04
Connect to the mesh
Send a test message on the default channel, then find other operators nearby.
- 05
Help expand the network
A well-placed node — even a modest one — extends coverage for everyone around you.
Live coverage
The mesh, right now.
Real node positions, pulled from the Puerto Rico network monitor at the last site build — not a mockup.
39onlineof 113 nodes
Community
Join the community
Meet other Meshtastic users in Puerto Rico. Share knowledge, compare antennas and configurations, and help extend coverage together.
Join the CommunityGetting started
Not on the mesh yet?
Pick hardware, install the app, and send your first message — the full walkthrough takes about twenty minutes.
Get StartedFrom the blog
Latest from Meshtastic PR
- Field ReportsYour Stationary Node Is Talking Too MuchThe single most common misconfiguration on the Puerto Rico mesh — a fixed rooftop node broadcasting on mobile-node timers — and the airtime math that explains why it quietly degrades everyone's range.
- TutorialsThe Channel You Moved Wasn't a Channel — It Was Your FrequencyIn Meshtastic there is no "channel order" to change — index 0 is the primary, its name hashes to your LoRa frequency slot, and one added channel or imported QR can silently move you eight megahertz off the regional mesh. When pinning the slot is the right call, and when it isn't.
- TutorialsGetting Your Node Onto the Puerto Rico Mesh MapWhat actually has to be true for your node to show up on the PR coverage map — the MQTT root topic msh/US/PR, OK to MQTT, uplink-only, and the position settings that decide whether you appear at all.
Every node makes the mesh stronger.
Whether it's a $30 handheld in your backpack or a solar repeater on a ridge, your radio helps carry the next message across Puerto Rico.