{"id":687,"date":"2026-06-08T05:45:04","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T09:45:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thezoo2.com\/?p=687"},"modified":"2026-06-08T05:45:34","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T09:45:34","slug":"meshtastic-vs-meshcore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thezoo2.com\/?p=687","title":{"rendered":"Meshtastic Vs. MeshCore"},"content":{"rendered":"
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So, not too long ago I decided to delve into the world of Meshtastic. Being the sort of guys we are, a legally encrypted way of texting via LoRa (short for long range, which is somewhat a misnomer, more on that later) and a dedicated texting “app” that works well with each other sounded like it was right up my alley. So, I pulled out some of the LoRa containing experimental boards I had laying around from days that I was attempting to figure out an application for them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first LoRa boards I purchased were when Semtec introduced LoRa, and Adafruit placed their transceivers onto a Raspberry Pi hat. During that time, I ran into the TTGO ESP32 V2 LoRa boards and experimented for a while with using them for Smart Home applications. I found they were far too weak for this, as they couldn’t carry enough information and the information they could carry lent itself more to the application of reading meters or sensors as they weren’t fast enough to work (at the time) with switching applications that I began to try to build. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not to tell you my entire life story, but at the time I had been working with the LoRa boards, I discovered Home Assistant, and found that they recommended Z-Wave and Zigbee products, which worked on the 2.4GHz band and were well established in the home automation that I was interested in. So, the V2 boards I had went into the ‘spare parts’ bin, to hopefully lend themselves to another project one day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fast forward a few years, and there were rumblings of a new project called Meshtastic. I became interested in Meshtastic, watching from afar as the developers began to refine their programming, the ‘boards’ that were being used, and their approach to the freedom that their project gave us all from having to rely on cellular telephone networking to communicate. The encryption really got me interested, though not for what one would assume as I don’t really have anything I wish to hide from anyone, however, I have always felt like the technology sword cut both ways. Cellular providers and other corporations that deal in data tend to see our privacy as a mere nuisance and the fourth amendment to The United States of America’s Constitution as more of a suggestion due to the fact they aren’t the government. So, Meshtastic spun up in me an interest that has grown since their early days. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I watched the developers grown their network(s) and share the technology for free. So free, in fact, that there spun off a project called Meshcore, which is a separate and almost identical in function form of communication via LoRa radio, and mesh networking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meshcore developers did a great job at developing an easier software package to use, a better (in my opinion) GUI (graphical user interface), and a much cleaner application of the project all the way around. It should be noted that with any device we use in the HAM radio world, each has its own quirks, and neither Meshtastic nor Meshcore are without their quirks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One major quirk with Meshcore is that the team that built it included a ‘developer,’ if he can be called that, who I will not name publicly here, who decided that he would attempt to trademark Meshcore out from under the original developers. Upon him attempting to do so, it was found out that he had been heavily reliant on AI to write the code that he ‘contributed’ to the project, which, in my opinion, makes him less of a developer and more of a, well, cheat. Attempting to trademark MeshCore out from under the original developers should have proven that label enough, but to use AI to write your code isn’t just lazy, it’s giving the secrets of the project away to the owners of the AI platform through the unfettered access he gave them by having their AI write his code. This became worrisome to me and still is. With that said, the actual MeshCore developers have retained control, however, it should be noted that it is easy to confuse the other MeshCore for the real MeshCore. That’s right, he separated from them via the proverbial boot to the tailpipe, but he then registered a domain using Meshcore as it’s main address. The difference is the .co.uk instead of the .io which remains the official MeshCore website. He’s even gone so far as to continue to copy the look and feel of their website, which is theft, but hey, its a free product, so I suppose he doesn’t see it that way. The official MeshCore website url is https:\/\/meshcore.io\/<\/a> . If you see the tm symbol behind Meshcore, you’ve gone to the wrong page, and I don’t recommend, in fact I highly advise you not to use anything he or his ‘team’ has put out. Supporting that type of behavior encourages it, so I stand behind the original developers all the way. For what I can tell, the trademark is only good in the UK, and he has no real claim to the entirety of MeshCore, however, I wouldn’t be surprised if they decided to rename the project, though they shouldn’t have to. I’d love to see them team up with Meshtastic and leave him in the dust, which would make for a really amazing team, in my opinion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having gone down that rabbit hole leads me right back to Meshtastic. It seems the developers of Meshtastic have had a better grip on their development team remaining happy and loyal, so it’s not without thought that I have decided to remain loyal to Meshtastic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This post is not a tutorial, however, I am working on tutorials for both Meshtastic and Meshcore, so that everyone in the club can make up their minds which they wish to use, and how to use them if and when they decide to. This post is to simply share my opinion on both. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pros of Meshtastic and MeshCore are equal except for a couple of things, but I’ll give you the equality first. <\/p>\n\n\n\n