LoRa basics
LoRa (short for “long range”) is a way of sending radio signals that reaches very far using very little power. It was developed by Semtech, which also makes most LoRa radio chips.
The catch is speed. LoRa is slow, measured in hundreds or thousands of bits per second, so it carries short text messages, GPS positions and sensor readings, not photos, voice or video.
How it reaches so far
Section titled “How it reaches so far”A normal radio signal sits on one frequency. LoRa sends each piece of data as a chirp, a tone that sweeps up or down across a range of frequencies. A receiver that knows what chirp to listen for can pick it out even when it’s weaker than the background noise. That’s why a pocket radio with the power of a small flashlight can reach a hilltop many miles away.
LoRa is not LoRaWAN
Section titled “LoRa is not LoRaWAN”You’ll see both terms. They’re different things:
- LoRa is the radio signal itself (the “physical layer”).
- LoRaWAN is a separate networking standard, run by the LoRa Alliance, where sensors talk to internet-connected gateways in a star pattern.
Meshtastic and MeshCore use LoRa radios, but not LoRaWAN. They run their own mesh protocols where radios talk to each other directly.
The three settings that trade range for speed
Section titled “The three settings that trade range for speed”Every LoRa link uses three settings. Both radios must match.
| Setting | What it does | Turn it up and… |
|---|---|---|
| Spreading factor (SF) | How long each chirp lasts | Range goes up, speed goes down. Each step doubles airtime and adds about 2.5 dB of link budget. |
| Bandwidth (BW) | How wide a slice of spectrum each chirp sweeps | Speed goes up, range goes down. Each halving of bandwidth gains almost 3 dB. |
| Coding rate (CR) | How much error-correction data is added | Reliability goes up, speed goes down (from 1.25× overhead at 4/5 to 2× at 4/8). |
Firmware bundles these into presets with friendly names, so you rarely set them by hand.
Go deeper: Meshtastic’s presets
Link budgets below assume 22 dBm transmit power and a 0 dBi antenna. A higher link budget means the signal can lose more strength on the way and still arrive.
| Preset | Data rate | SF | CR | BW | Link budget |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short Turbo | 21.88 kbps | 7 | 4/5 | 500 kHz | 140 dB |
| Short Fast | 10.94 kbps | 7 | 4/5 | 250 kHz | 143 dB |
| Short Slow | 6.25 kbps | 8 | 4/5 | 250 kHz | 145.5 dB |
| Medium Turbo | 7.03 kbps | 9 | 4/5 | 500 kHz | 145 dB |
| Medium Fast | 3.52 kbps | 9 | 4/5 | 250 kHz | 148 dB |
| Medium Slow | 1.95 kbps | 10 | 4/5 | 250 kHz | 150.5 dB |
| Long Turbo | 1.34 kbps | 11 | 4/8 | 500 kHz | 150 dB |
| Long Fast (default) | 1.07 kbps | 11 | 4/5 | 250 kHz | 153 dB |
| Long Moderate | 0.34 kbps | 11 | 4/8 | 125 kHz | 156 dB |
Turbo presets use 500 kHz bandwidth, which isn’t legal in every region. SF5 and SF6 work only on second-generation LoRa chips.
Next: Meshtastic vs MeshCore
Sources
Checked on October 18, 2026.