The Best GPS Tracking Systems for Trucks in 2023

We previously reviewed the best GPS trackers for fleet managers. Since then, we took a closer look at geo tracking devices for truckers, and found Verizon Connect is ahead of the game.

Verizon's system has great truck management features like fuel management and vehicle diagnostics. It also provides highly-rated tracking features, suited to tracking trucks, as it provides real-time alerts and route optimization.

Rising fuel costs has led to greater emphasis on better fuel management and efficiency. When choosing a fleet management system for trucks, businesses usually consider three main factors: cost, features, and ease of use. Our independent research team has scored each provider across a number of areas including price, driver management, and vehicle management.

Trucking fleets carry almost three-quarters (72.5%) of America’s freight by weight. That goes to show how vital trucks and HGVs are in the modern logistics sector. Yet meeting customer demand is a growing concern for fleet managers, according to the Verizon Fleet Technology Trends Report 2023.

With hot competition on the roads, you need to ensure your trucks are:

• Arriving on time
• Avoiding road safety violations
• Using fuel in a cost-effective way
• Taking the best routes to your customers

GPS tracking and related telematics equipment are vital in beating the competition and offering top trucking services.

What is GPS tracking?

GPS tracking includes reports on important fleet management data, including fuel consumption, route efficiency, and driver performance. You'll need to install both GPS tracking devices on the fleet and vehicle tracking software. The software will help fleet manager monitor and manage all the data the GPS drivers transmit.

What are the different types of GPS tracking systems for trucks?

There are two main types of GPS tracking for trucks: passive and active.

Passive tracking

Passive trackers stores the GPS data which is then downloaded once the vehicle returns to the office or base. With passive systems there is no transmitter to send information back to the system while the vehicle is on the road.

The pros of a passive tracking system include providing exact records of vehicle location, monthly reports, and its cheaper as you don't need a subscription fee. However, a passive tracker cannot provide instant feedback or stats, you can't monitor a driver or vehicle in real-time and you can't track a stolen or missing truck.

Active tracking

An active GPS tracker can record, store, and transmit information about a vehicle in real-time. Transmission time will depend on each system but some of the better systems will transmit every 60 seconds.

The pros of an active tracker is that you receive real-time data so fleet managers can plan better routes at short notice and monitor risky driver behaviour. Plus, deliveries and stolen or missing vehicles can be tracked.

However, active trackers are more expensive than passive trackers as it typically includes a monthly fee on top of transmission and real-time data fees.

What are the key features to look for in GPS tracking systems for trucks?

There are some important features to look for when choosing a GPS system for trucks, these include:

• Real-time tracking: real-time trackers send vehicle data back to the system as it happens. These trackers provide better insight, updates, and information that fleet managers can use to update customers, quickly amend routes, and efficiently manage fuel costs.
• Geofencing: this defines a geographical area that sends an alert if a truck enters or leaves this specific area.
• Traffic alerts: typically the software will provide this via Google earth mapping. Traffic alerts help drivers quickly change route to avoid delays.

How can GPS tracking systems for trucks improve fleet management?

GPS tracking systems provide features such as the ability to schedule and dispatch drivers, schedule maintenance, and manage fuel usage.

Fleet managers can collect data and analyze it to reduce vehicle idle time and increase the businesses revenue. Tracking systems provide a number of features to reduce fuel costs like more efficient route planning, improved driver behaviour, and less idling.

GPS tracking systems help improve fleet security as you can set up a geofence for drivers, for example, a predetermined area for drivers to rest. The real-time data contributes to better customer satisfaction as you can provide customers with up to date reliable information on their deliveries.

To find the right vehicle tracking system for your fleet, use our free quote comparison tool. We'll match you with trusted providers than will contact you with obligation-free quotes.

1. Verizon Connect – Best for closely monitoring your trucks

Verizon Connect has the highest score in our research with a 4.7/5. With location data refreshing every 90 seconds (not the fastest on the market, but still pretty snappy), its live tracking dashboard is informative and easy to follow, with a color-coded map. Meanwhile, its customizable daily summary reports highlight the data that you need to see, from transit times and stop durations to speeds and idling events.

Securing the top spot in our best fleet management companies list, Verizon has integrated AI route optimization. The software makes your fleet operations more cost-effective by scheduling efficient routes for available drivers. This makes Verizon a better choice than the Teletrac TN360, which has limited route management features and relies much more on human decision-making for journey planning.

One of our favorite things about Verizon Connect, though, is its alerting system, which we believe to be the best on the market. Entirely customizable, you can set up real-time notifications for pretty much anything, from a truck arriving at its destination to a speed limit violation.

Verizon Connect – key questions for trucking fleets:

Verizon Connect’s pricing

Scoring a 2.5/5 for pricing Verizon will only reveal its pricing after a conversation with a sales rep. You'll land a custom price based on the needs of your specific business, so we can't tell you exactly what you'll pay.

However, we understand Verizon charges many customers somewhere between $50 and $250 per vehicle, per month. That's on the higher end of the vehicle tracking price scale, as it's a premium product suite.

2. Samsara – Best for route optimization

Scoring a 4.6/5 overall, Samsara offers automated route planning and optimization, making it a better choice for effective navigation than Spireon, which doesn't offer any such features. Samsara's AI route optimization takes traffic and weather into account when planning journeys for your drivers.

Handily, Samsara can show your truckers’ progress, color-coding their routes so you can easily see when they’re on time, running late, or skipping a stop altogether. You’ll also be able to choose from a variety of real-time alerts, though you’ll need to code these in yourself (Samsara provides code snippets, but manual configuration is still required).

As of April 2023, Samsara also offers a Sustainable Fleet Management package, which includes fuel efficiency reporting tools. For example, Route Playback enables you to spot opportunities for improved fuel use based on your drivers' behavior.

Samsara – key questions for trucking fleets:

Samsara’s pricing

Scoring a low 2.5/5 for price, Samsara's price plans vary depending on which equipment you need, and how long your license deal is. For instance, you can get Samsara's Vehicle Gateway system (with GPS, diagnostics and ELD data) for $1584 upfront. This works out at roughly $44 per month for a three year license. 

If you want the dual-facing dash cam, the Samsara CM32 starts at $2160 upfront. That's equivalent to around $60 per month for a three year license.

If you’d like a little help finding the right price for the right GPS tracking product, look no further – that’s what we’re here for! Answer a few quick questions about your fleet of trucks, and we’ll match you up with GPS tracking suppliers that can provide everything you need. They’ll then be in touch directly with no-obligation quotes that are tailored to you. It’s a fast, easy, reliable way to compare the options that are best for your trucking operation.

3. Teletrac Navman – Best for customized reporting

Teletrac scores a 4.6/5 overall and its BYOR (Build Your Own Report) function enables you to build custom reports and dashboards, selecting data sets and applying a range of filters and segmentations. For this reason, the TN360 offers far more detailed data insights than Azuga, a solution that doesn't allow you to customize reports.

Since it first released its AI telematics system in 2020, Teletrac has now added natural language processing to its software. That means you can search your data dashboard by typing in questions such as “Which drivers had the most harsh braking events this month?” and the system will accurately interpret your request. You certainly won't get that with Azuga.

Plus, Teletrac’s ‘Adaptive Intelligence’ module integrates your system with other apps, uniting data from multiple sources so you can see all of your business data in one place. It can integrate with ProMiles software – helping you comply with IFTA regulations by showing total interstate and intrastate mileage for your trucks – and offers weather telematics so you can avoid adverse weather conditions. This is a workaround for the TN360's lack of in-built weather updates.

Just be wary that if you want to get the most out of this system, you’ll need to pay for one of the more expensive plans – its cheapest plan, for instance, doesn't include customizable alerts or driver behavior and safety analytics.

Teletrac Navman – key questions for trucking fleets:

Teletrac Navman’s pricing

With one of the higher pricing scores on this page (3.4/5) Teletrac Navman offers three pricing plans – Essential, Professional, and Enterprise – however, we’ve been unable to uncover just how much these cost. In order to find out, you’ll need to request a bespoke quote from the company.

Despite the lack of transparency around pricing, we do know that generally Teletrac is cheaper than other provides like Verizon or Samsara.

Alternatively, we can help you find a variety of tailored GPS tracking quotes quickly and easily, so you can compare the right options for your trucks with clarity. Simply answer a few questions about your trucking fleet, and we’ll matchmake you with leading GPS tracking suppliers that can cater to your unique needs. They’ll then be in touch directly with custom no-obligation quotes, just for you. Our service is free, reliable, and fast – why not try it out?

4. Azuga – Best for trucker safety

Azuga is an excellent option for those looking to simplify their GPS truck tracking, with a solid range of uncustomizable reports for fleet managers who want to be presented with the necessary data without complication.

More than that, though, we’re excited by Azuga’s range of features designed to protect the safety of your truckers. Its Drivesafe add-on enables you to block smartphone distractions – such as texting and app use – when a truck is in motion, while the AzugaCoach add-on provides personalized video coaching to drivers who need it. When your truckers drive well, Azuga’s one-click rewards function can help you to incentivize that behavior quickly and easily, and when they drive dangerously, it’ll be captured by integrated SafetyCams (if you’ve paid for them).

Azuga's built-in fuel management tool relies on AI tech to analyze and improve fuel consumption. This helps fleet managers reduce costs and improve efficiency as fuel theft or excessive idling can be quickly picked up.

We also like Azuga’s uniquely customizable data refresh times, which let you choose whether you want fresh data every 30 seconds, every 59 minutes, or somewhere in between. That's a feature which sets it apart from Samsara, which has an automatic data refresh rate of 30 seconds to one minute.

Azuga – key questions for trucking fleets:

Azuga’s pricing

Azuga offers two simple pricing plans, and the one that’s right for you will depend on whether you’d like to cover the cost of your GPS tracking devices upfront or not.

Azuga’s price plans look like this:

5. Spireon – Best for fast updates

Spireon's best feature comes in the form of its refresh rate. While most vehicle tracking software will take 30-60 seconds to refresh your vehicles' locations on your map, Spireon has options for 60, 30, and 15 second refresh rates. That is the fastest rate we found, and perfect for businesses who need a lot of oversight on their fleets.

Spireon's FleetLocate system uses AI technology to predict when vehicle maintenance will be needed. This helps fleet managers schedule maintenance efficiently, and reduce breakdowns. By contrast, Azuga's fleet maintenance capability is limited to scheduling alerts to remind you when each vehicle should go in for repairs. This is less accurate than Spireon's AI-based system.

Fleet managers can setup automatic alerts for dangerous driving incidents, however, these alerts won't be sent to the driver making it harder to curtail risky driving in the moment.

Spireon's pricing

Spireon scores a 2.5/5 and only provides bespoke packages. The pricing is dependent on factors like fleet size, contract length, and features.

How Did We Find the Best Vehicle Tracking Software for Trucks?

Our independent researcher compares twenty vehicle tracking providers to find the best on the market. We've managed to whittle this down to the best 5 GPS tracking systems for trucks.

The research focused on various criteria including:

• Price – How much is the software? Is it bespoke or fixed? Are there any extra fees?
• Tracking – How long is the refresh time? Are there alerts and notifications? Does the software provide automatic route optimization?
• Driver management – Does the software include driver ID, driving style data, messaging, and history?
• Vehicle management – Is there fuel management, vehicle diagnostics, maintenance scheduling, or fleet maintenance records?

Each provider was scored in each area and these scores were combined to produce an overall score.