{"slug": "meshcore", "name": "MeshCore", "category": "networking", "category_name": "Networking and VPN", "description": "", "recommenders": 3, "commenters": 6, "warners": 2, "score": 1.136, "rising": -0.98, "first": "2026-01-31", "latest": "2026-07-15", "why": "Meshtastic, AnoNet, Reticulum, MeshCore, etc are all evidence of that", "why_is_quote": true, "has_verdict": false, "sentiment": {"recommend": 3, "neutral": 0, "compare": 1, "warn": 2}, "spark": [0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0], "listed": true, "loved": [], "caveat": "", "short_quote": "Meshtastic, AnoNet, Reticulum, MeshCore, etc are all evidence of that", "icon": true, "domain": null, "github_repo": null, "official_url": "https://meshcore.co.uk", "pricing": "", "aliases": ["MeshCore", "Meshcore"], "verdict": null, "praise": [{"label": "", "summary": "", "quotes": [{"id": 782825040, "item_id": 48926565, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48926565", "by": "marssaxman", "date": "2026-07-15", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "MeshCore is growing rapidly.", "excerpt": "MeshCore is growing rapidly. Check out this map of CascadiaMesh - connectivity all the way from Vancouver down to Klamath Falls, and now east to Spokane: https://cascadiamesh.org/map/", "context": "", "use_case": "mesh networking messaging", "switched_from": "", "story": "Briar Is in Maintenance Mode"}, {"id": 772864864, "item_id": 48304054, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48304054", "by": "smlacy", "date": "2026-05-27", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "If I lose power, the mesh still works.", "excerpt": "IMHO this article misses a couple really important points. First, if the mesh can use Internet or other transports then it will, and it will be built out in a way where these become a necessity. If all you want is a silly new way to text your friends, then something like reticulum will be ok. But if you want a serious solution for emergency response and free communication -- free as in \"no one can stop me or control ", "context": "", "use_case": "emergency mesh networking", "switched_from": "", "story": "I'm Getting into Mesh Networks (Meshtastic, MeshCore, and Reticulum)"}, {"id": 765250850, "item_id": 47828178, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47828178", "by": "culi", "date": "2026-04-19", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Meshtastic, AnoNet, Reticulum, MeshCore, etc are all evidence of that", "excerpt": "> How I wish we could have a new generation of network engineers who just say \"fuck this shit\" and build their own internet. There are plenty of anarchists and disaster aid groups interested in building a more decentralized alternative to the internet. Meshtastic, AnoNet, Reticulum, MeshCore, etc are all evidence of that Then there's also stuff like Dave Ackley's robust-first computing that's looking towards a comple", "context": "", "use_case": "decentralized networking", "switched_from": "", "story": "The world in which IPv6 was a good design"}]}], "caveats": [{"label": "", "summary": "", "quotes": [{"id": 776791297, "item_id": 48549456, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48549456", "by": "subscribed", "date": "2026-06-15", "stance": "warn", "quote": "Meshtastic / meshcore at this point look like a dead end of the development.", "excerpt": "Meshtastic / meshcore at this point look like a dead end of the development. Take a look at HaLow if you insist, but in general if a bulb has esp32 then you could likely replace the module for one with LoRA capabilities.", "context": "", "use_case": "mesh networking", "switched_from": "", "story": "Banned Book Library in a Wi-Fi Smart Light Bulb"}, {"id": 749489312, "item_id": 46843082, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46843082", "by": "bastawhiz", "date": "2026-01-31", "stance": "warn", "quote": "meshcore doesn't do a fantastic job of protecting metadata.", "excerpt": "This isn't great advice if it's supposed to be an alternative to text messaging with a carrier. For one, meshcore doesn't do a fantastic job of protecting metadata. Advertisements include your public key, and if I'm reading this[0] right, your GPS coordinates. Second, the default public channel uses effectively no encryption at all. Moreover, the network doesn't exhaustively prevent someone who intercepts a packet fr", "context": "", "use_case": "mesh messaging", "switched_from": "", "story": "Mobile carriers can get your GPS location"}]}], "who": [], "tags": [], "use_cases": ["mesh networking messaging", "mesh networking", "emergency mesh networking", "decentralized networking", "off-grid mesh messaging", "mesh messaging"], "compared": [{"slug": "meshtastic", "name": "Meshtastic", "co": 5, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}, {"slug": "reticulum", "name": "Reticulum", "co": 3, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}], "makers": [], "threads": [{"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48919869", "title": "Briar Is in Maintenance Mode", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48547985", "title": "Banned Book Library in a Wi-Fi Smart Light Bulb", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48299638", "title": "I'm Getting into Mesh Networks (Meshtastic, MeshCore, and Reticulum)", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47821429", "title": "The world in which IPv6 was a good design", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47023734", "title": "We Need Apocalypse-Proof Software", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46838597", "title": "Mobile carriers can get your GPS location", "mentions": 1}], "sentiment_by_month": {"2025-11": {}, "2025-12": {}, "2026-01": {"warn": 1}, "2026-02": {"compare": 1}, "2026-03": {}, "2026-04": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-05": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-06": {"warn": 1}, "2026-07": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-08": {}, "2026-09": {}, "2026-10": {}}, "quotes": [{"id": 782825040, "item_id": 48926565, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48926565", "by": "marssaxman", "date": "2026-07-15", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "MeshCore is growing rapidly.", "excerpt": "MeshCore is growing rapidly. Check out this map of CascadiaMesh - connectivity all the way from Vancouver down to Klamath Falls, and now east to Spokane: https://cascadiamesh.org/map/", "context": "", "use_case": "mesh networking messaging", "switched_from": "", "story": "Briar Is in Maintenance Mode"}, {"id": 776791297, "item_id": 48549456, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48549456", "by": "subscribed", "date": "2026-06-15", "stance": "warn", "quote": "Meshtastic / meshcore at this point look like a dead end of the development.", "excerpt": "Meshtastic / meshcore at this point look like a dead end of the development. Take a look at HaLow if you insist, but in general if a bulb has esp32 then you could likely replace the module for one with LoRA capabilities.", "context": "", "use_case": "mesh networking", "switched_from": "", "story": "Banned Book Library in a Wi-Fi Smart Light Bulb"}, {"id": 772864864, "item_id": 48304054, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48304054", "by": "smlacy", "date": "2026-05-27", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "If I lose power, the mesh still works.", "excerpt": "IMHO this article misses a couple really important points. First, if the mesh can use Internet or other transports then it will, and it will be built out in a way where these become a necessity. If all you want is a silly new way to text your friends, then something like reticulum will be ok. But if you want a serious solution for emergency response and free communication -- free as in \"no one can stop me or control ", "context": "", "use_case": "emergency mesh networking", "switched_from": "", "story": "I'm Getting into Mesh Networks (Meshtastic, MeshCore, and Reticulum)"}, {"id": 765250850, "item_id": 47828178, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47828178", "by": "culi", "date": "2026-04-19", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Meshtastic, AnoNet, Reticulum, MeshCore, etc are all evidence of that", "excerpt": "> How I wish we could have a new generation of network engineers who just say \"fuck this shit\" and build their own internet. There are plenty of anarchists and disaster aid groups interested in building a more decentralized alternative to the internet. Meshtastic, AnoNet, Reticulum, MeshCore, etc are all evidence of that Then there's also stuff like Dave Ackley's robust-first computing that's looking towards a comple", "context": "", "use_case": "decentralized networking", "switched_from": "", "story": "The world in which IPv6 was a good design"}, {"id": 752638228, "item_id": 47039889, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47039889", "by": "celsoazevedo", "date": "2026-02-16", "stance": "compare", "quote": "Meshcore works better here in London, but their coverage isn't great", "excerpt": "For offline maps, I switched to CoMaps when they forked Organic Maps. Development seemed to be moving faster there. I still have Google Maps and Here Maps installed, both with offline maps of the areas I'm usually at or to where I'm travelling. Too much redundancy perhaps, but no service/data source is good everywhere and I have a lot of free space on my phone, so it's not a problem for me. For communications, I've b", "context": "", "use_case": "off-grid mesh messaging", "switched_from": "", "story": "We Need Apocalypse-Proof Software"}, {"id": 749489312, "item_id": 46843082, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46843082", "by": "bastawhiz", "date": "2026-01-31", "stance": "warn", "quote": "meshcore doesn't do a fantastic job of protecting metadata.", "excerpt": "This isn't great advice if it's supposed to be an alternative to text messaging with a carrier. For one, meshcore doesn't do a fantastic job of protecting metadata. Advertisements include your public key, and if I'm reading this[0] right, your GPS coordinates. Second, the default public channel uses effectively no encryption at all. Moreover, the network doesn't exhaustively prevent someone who intercepts a packet fr", "context": "", "use_case": "mesh messaging", "switched_from": "", "story": "Mobile carriers can get your GPS location"}]}