For families, ranches and overlanders

Plan your GMRS radios from the rules up

Licensing, channels, power limits, antenna height and repeaters, taken straight from the FCC’s Part 95 rules and manufacturer spec sheets, with every rule cited by section.

Get licensed Estimate your range

Photo: a pickup truck parked on a ridge road at golden hour with a short black antenna on the roof, wide open rural valley below. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable faces

License first: transmitting on GMRS requires an FCC license (47 CFR 95.1705). It’s $35 for 10 years, with no exam, and covers your immediate family. Check what you need.

Free planning tools

Each one shows its rules and math, and prints to a one-page summary.

License checklistEligibility, family coverage, ULS steps and the fee.Range & antenna height estimatorRadio-horizon math plus a power check by station and channel.Repeater offset & tone plannerInput/output pairs and CTCSS tones, ready to program.

Start here

New to GMRS, comparing radios, or setting up a repeater: pick your starting point.

Photo: a laptop on a kitchen table showing a generic online form with no readable text, a plain black handheld two-way radio beside it. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesLicensing & RulesHow to Get a GMRS License in 2026Step-by-step GMRS licensing from the FCC's own pages: eligibility under 47 CFR 95.1705, getting an FRN, applying in ULS, the $35 fee,…Photo: two plain unbranded handheld two-way radios side by side on a wooden picnic table, one small compact and one larger with a longer antenna. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesLicensing & RulesGMRS vs FRSGMRS vs FRS compared from the FCC rules: shared channels, power limits (2 W ERP vs up to 50 W), antennas, repeaters,…Photo: close-up of a plain unbranded handheld radio display area with abstract glowing segments and no readable numbers, shallow depth of field. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesLicensing & RulesGMRS Channels and Power LimitsAll 30 GMRS channels from 47 CFR 95.1763 with frequencies, which station types may transmit, power limits from 95.1767, bandwidths and repeater…Photo: a family hiking on a mountain trail with wide valley views, one person holding a plain handheld radio, faces not visible. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesAntennas & RangeGMRS Range ExplainedRealistic GMRS range from the FCC (1 to 25 miles) and the radio-horizon formula: antenna height, terrain, power, repeaters, with worked examples…Photo: a lattice radio tower with a white vertical antenna on a hilltop at sunrise, rolling hills below. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesRepeatersGMRS Repeaters ExplainedHow GMRS repeaters work under 47 CFR 95.1763 and 95.1767: 467 MHz input, 462 MHz output, +5 MHz pairs, 50 W, CTCSS/DCS…Photo: a plain unbranded compact mobile radio with a coiled hand microphone mounted under a truck dashboard next to a handheld radio on the seat. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesRadiosGMRS Handheld vs Mobile RadioHandheld, mobile and base GMRS radios compared using FCC power limits and Midland spec sheets (GXT67 Pro 5 W, MXT275 15 W,…

The short version

  1. Get licensedOne $35 license, a 10-year term, family included. How to apply
  2. Know your channels50 W only on main channels; 5 W ERP on 1–7; 0.5 W on 8–14. Channel chart
  3. Raise the antennaHeight beats watts on UHF. Antenna guide

Licensing & Rules

All licensing & rules

FCC Part 95E: who needs a license, channels, power and call signs.

Photo: a laptop on a kitchen table showing a generic online form with no readable text, a plain black handheld two-way radio beside it. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesLicensing & RulesHow to Get a GMRS License in 2026Photo: two plain unbranded handheld two-way radios side by side on a wooden picnic table, one small compact and one larger with a longer antenna. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesLicensing & RulesGMRS vs FRSPhoto: close-up of a plain unbranded handheld radio display area with abstract glowing segments and no readable numbers, shallow depth of field. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesLicensing & RulesGMRS Channels and Power LimitsPhoto: a person holding a plain black handheld radio near their mouth outdoors in a pine forest, face not visible, speaking. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesLicensing & RulesGMRS Call Signs and Station Identification

Radios

All radios

Handhelds, mobiles and base stations compared from spec sheets.

Photo: a plain unbranded compact mobile radio with a coiled hand microphone mounted under a truck dashboard next to a handheld radio on the seat. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesRadiosGMRS Handheld vs Mobile RadioPhoto: two plain unbranded small black vehicle radios of slightly different sizes side by side on a workbench with coiled microphones, no logos. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesRadiosMidland MXT275 vs MXT575

Antennas & Range

All antennas & range

Antenna height, gain, coax and realistic range.

Photo: a family hiking on a mountain trail with wide valley views, one person holding a plain handheld radio, faces not visible. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesAntennas & RangeGMRS Range ExplainedPhoto: a white fiberglass base station antenna mounted on a metal mast above a rural farmhouse roof against a blue sky. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesAntennas & RangeGMRS Antennas

Repeaters

All repeaters

How GMRS repeaters work and how to use one properly.

Photo: a lattice radio tower with a white vertical antenna on a hilltop at sunrise, rolling hills below. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesRepeatersGMRS Repeaters ExplainedPhoto: an off-road vehicle on a dirt track in the desert with a roof antenna, distant mountain with a small radio tower on top. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesRepeatersHow to Use a GMRS RepeaterPhoto: an emergency kit on a table: flashlight, first aid box, water bottles and a plain handheld two-way radio, soft window light. Photorealistic, no logos, no brand names, no readable text, no identifiable facesRepeatersGMRS for Emergencies

Cited to the rule

Every rule is linked to its section of 47 CFR Part 95. Radio specs link to the maker’s spec sheet.

Research, not test claims

We compile rules and published specs. We don’t run radio tests, and we never claim we did.

Independent

Where we may earn a commission, we say so. Commissions never decide a recommendation.

Printed from https://gmrsplanner.com/ · GMRS Planner (gmrsplanner.com). Sources are listed on the page.