SimpleGPS vs OwnTracks
OwnTracks tracks your phone and needs your own MQTT server. SimpleGPS tracks the car with a fitted device, is hosted and just works - no servers and no dependence on the driver's charged phone.
OwnTracks is a great free open-source project - an iOS and Android app that sends your phone location to a server you stand up yourself (an MQTT or HTTP backend). It tracks a person (the phone), not a vehicle, and "free" here means your own server, broker configuration and maintenance.
SimpleGPS is the other approach: a device for the car (not a phone), an included SIM, ready listeners, a hosted platform and a modern interface. You host and maintain nothing - plug the device in and the car appears on the map.
Side by side
| SimpleGPS | OwnTracks | |
|---|---|---|
| Transparent public pricing (€) | Yes | Free (open source), but you pay for a server + your time |
| Modern app-style UI | Yes | No |
| Device included / sold with the service | Yes | No |
| Hosted - no own server needed | Yes | No - you host it yourself |
| Fits private individuals | Yes | Only if you are technical |
| Real-time tracking | Yes | Yes |
| No long-term contract | Yes | Yes |
| Self-serve online signup | Yes | DIY install and setup |
| Bulgarian support | Yes | No |
SimpleGPS keeps full route playback for 31 days, and routes, stops and statistics for 365. We state both numbers because we have them.
The differences in detail
Phone vs a device in the car
OwnTracks reports the phone location - if the driver leaves the car with the phone, or the battery dies, the trail stops. SimpleGPS uses a device wired to the car: it starts with the engine and depends on nobody keeping a phone charged.
MQTT broker vs a ready platform
To run OwnTracks you stand up and maintain your own MQTT or HTTP backend and point the app at it. With SimpleGPS there is nothing to host - the device talks straight to our hosted listener.
What you actually see
OwnTracks gives you raw points on a map. SimpleGPS turns them into trips, history, geofences, alerts and waybills - ready to use, without writing scripts over the data.
OwnTracks is great if you are technical, want to track your own phone and enjoy running your own MQTT server. If you want to see a vehicle (or several) on a map - with a device that does not depend on the driver keeping a phone charged - SimpleGPS is for you.
Bottom line
OwnTracks tracks a phone and needs your own server. SimpleGPS tracks the car with a device, is hosted and simply works - for a transparent monthly fee in euro