Antennas 101: choose, connect and place

BeginnerMeshtasticMeshCoreAbout 20 minutes

You'll need

Your radio
A 915 MHz antenna with the right connector

1. Get the right antenna

Frequency: made for 915 MHz (US). An antenna tuned for another band can leave you unable to talk to anyone.
Connector: most radios use SMA; some use RP-SMA, and bare boards often use a tiny IPEX/U.FL plug with a pigtail. SMA and RP-SMA look alike but don’t mate.
Impedance: 50 ohms (standard).
Quality: cheap antennas vary a lot. Check the community antenna test reports before buying.

2. Understand gain

Gain doesn’t add power; it reshapes where the signal goes.

Low-gain omni (2–3 dBi): a fat donut that covers up and down. Good for handhelds and hilly terrain.
Higher-gain omni (5–6 dBi): a flatter donut that reaches farther toward the horizon. Good for a base station on flat ground or a high site looking out.
Directional (Yagi, panel): reaches much farther in one direction but has to be aimed. Good for a fixed link between two sites.

In the US, antennas over 6 dBi mean you must turn transmit power down by the extra gain (FCC §15.247). See Legal basics.

3. Place it well

Height beats everything. Even a few meters higher can make a dramatic difference.
Outside beats inside. Walls absorb signal. Putting the whole node outside usually beats running a long cable from an indoor node.
Keep cables short. Coax loses signal over any real length.
Stand it up straight, away from metal and walls. Stubby antennas often need a ground plane.
Clear the path: see Plan coverage.

Sources

Checked on October 18, 2026.