inReach Messenger - Recent Threads

Garmin Messenger won't connect to my inReach Messenger since the latest app update

Steve_Peake — Sat, 28 Feb 2026 10:31:58 GMT

There was an update to the Garmin Messenger app recently (I use a Pixel 7 on Android 16). When I tried to send a message while out on the trail yesterday, the Messenger app can no longer connect to the inReach Messenger.

By chance I was in an area with ok phone signal, so I could use alternate messaging methods - but it is still annoying/worrying to lose this service for which I pay a high monthly fee.

The Device screen marks the device as "Not Paired". If I tap "Pair Device", and put the device in pairing mode, the device reports "Pairing Successul" after a second or two (as it is stil paired to my phone), but the app just stays on the "Searching for Devices" screen.

On the "All Devices", my inReach Messenger shows as:

Needs Attention
Connected

I've tried:

forgeting the Bluetooth paring on my phone
rebooting both my phone and the inReach
uninstalling and re-installing the app

Nothing changes the result.

Anyone else seeing this since the recent app update?

The one thing I haven't tried yet is resetting the inReach. It is currently still working as a tracking device, so I don't want to risk losing this function if I still can't connect to the app.

Thanks

Steve

Inreach emailaddress doesn't work - mailserver timed out

8421767 — Fri, 14 Nov 2025 23:27:29 GMT

Hello,

I am trying to reach my Garmin Inreach account on my Montana 700i. I sent an email to <username> at inreach.garmin.com from GMail:

The response was:

The recipient server did not accept our requests to connect. For more information, go to https://support.google.com/mail/answer/7720 [inreach.garmin.com 104.18.110.111: timed out] [inreach.garmin.com 104.18.109.111: timed out]

-KT

My garmin inreach got too wet to save. I have another. How do I just keep my account and make the other one work?

6318098 — Tue, 09 Sep 2025 14:06:06 GMT

It is an older Garmin inReachse but never been used.

Cost to send TO an InReach internationally

5185550 — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 17:37:11 GMT

Dear All, I have an InReach Mini2 that I will be using on remote trips abroad during fieldwork. I know how pricing works from MY end, but how about on the OTHER end? Normally, we communicate via iMessage, which is free to use iPhone-to-iPhone, even internationally. Do the people sending/receiving my texts from the InReach get charged to send international texts to me? Or does my subscription cover the costs? Thank you!

Messages sent from Garmin app to phone number only goes to email. It never shows up as a text. I would prefer it be a text.

6964116 — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 03:46:52 GMT

Messages sent from Garmin app to phone number only goes to email. It never shows up as a text. I would prefer it be a text.

Confusing Control Handoff Between Explore and Messenger – Preset Message Frustration

3794451 — Sun, 06 Jul 2025 17:46:56 GMT

Hi Garmin team,

I’m writing to share my experience as a long-time inReach user (GPSMAP 66i) with both the Explore and Messenger apps. I recently spent hours trying to edit my preset messages (including recipients), and I ran into a frustrating problem I now realize many others have faced.

Years ago, I was able to set up my preset messages using Garmin Explore — no issues. At the time, I had both Explore and Messenger installed on my phone, and everything worked together fine. But recently, after reinstalling Messenger, I lost the ability to edit preset message recipients in both the app and the website. It took me a long time to realize that Messenger had silently taken control of the messaging system, which blocks Explore from managing presets at all.

To make things worse:

Messenger only shows the 3 preset messages, but doesn’t let you edit recipients.
Explore loses access to presets entirely when Messenger is active.
There’s no warning or option to switch control back.
You have to uninstall Messenger just to restore functionality in Explore.

It’s not clear to users that messaging control can silently transfer between systems. And it’s not acceptable that one app lets you use preset messages but not configure them, while the other can configure them but not use them unless the other app is deleted.

This needs to be addressed. Please:

Make this handoff between apps transparent
Add preset message editing to Messenger
Or let us choose which app controls messaging

I rely on this system in the field, and preset message management should not be this confusing or fragile.

Thank you.

Hakim Schepis

Device: GPSMAP 66i

US InReach with a UK subscription

Hamish — Sat, 14 Jun 2025 09:26:41 GMT

I'm probably buying an InReach Messenger in the UK. One purchase option is Amazon UK but it's a US import. Are there any issues with registering a US sourced InReach device with a UK based subscription plan?

have a garmin inreach messenger. if my phone is turned off when message comes thru will i still be able to view it on my phone when turned back on?

2836808 — Thu, 12 Jun 2025 22:09:53 GMT

have a garmin inreach messenger. if my phone is turned off when message comes thru will i still be able to view it on my phone when turned back on?

additional PIN

skyeye — Wed, 04 Jun 2025 00:42:01 GMT

I am just having hard time to set up messenger

One thing ist strange: when I aktivate the device and couple it with the phone and connect the messenger app to the phone number, all works apparently, but few minutes later I am getting an SMS with some PIN, however I have no idea whre to enter this pin

Can someone enlight me?

Transition from Annual plan to Monthly plan after expiration date

4138188 — Sat, 24 May 2025 18:54:13 GMT

I’m currently on an annual contract plan that expires on June 8. Since annual plans are being phased out, I’d like to switch to the Basic InReach Enabled monthly plan after that date.
Is it possible to select this plan now so that my account transitions to it automatically on June 8? Or would the change take effect immediately and would I be charged the monthly fee right away, even though I still paid until June 8 for my annual contract plan? Or would I be reimbursed for the remaining fraction of the annual plan?

Trouble Assigning Account to user

2971414 — Tue, 20 May 2025 22:19:19 GMT

I am having trouble assigning users to some Messenger devices. See the photo below—the message says the current email is already in use by another user. Could this be because the user already has a personal Garmin account linked to the same phone number? These are work devices, but we're using our personal cell phones. Can you confirm if that's causing the issue?

InReach Messenger Software Version v4.05

Garmin-Christopher — Thu, 15 May 2025 15:36:17 GMT

Change Log

Improved message thread performance
Updated inReach Weather to a single request type
Removed Facebook and Twitter support

messenger and explore app on android

skyeye — Sun, 04 May 2025 23:32:45 GMT

I was just playing lot with messenger plus devices and there it is useful to have explore app installed as well on the phone, as this will then handle geo information.

Just took my messenger standard now, made SW update, and see that this one can be connected to the messenger app, but not to explore app.

Is it really so or am I doing something wrong?

create a second account for my device

3803446 — Wed, 02 Apr 2025 18:17:18 GMT

I have two inReach devices and would like to be able to use them separately

Messaging with InReach Messenger and Fenix 8 without taking your smartphone to training.

Mierzej87 — Wed, 12 Mar 2025 17:00:00 GMT

Hello.

Is there a chance that the InReach Pilot will be added as a compatible application on the Fenix 8 to support the InReach Messenger? I was hoping that I would finally be able to train without a phone because the InReach communicator is much smaller, but there is no option to handle messages from the Fenix 8.

The InReach Pilot application installed on the Fenix 8 does nothing at all, you can't load messages or check-ins, or choose your own. However, the Garmin Messenger application requires a connection to the phone. This is the bottleneck that I would like to avoid. The InReach Messenger itself has the ability to write messages, but the screen is so small and the writing system so inconvenient that it is easier from the watch.

Apart from mountain expeditions, I also train running and cycling. It is easy to hide the phone on a bike, but when running it interferes terribly.

I ask the administration for suggestions whether I can count on some possibility of using the Communicator from the watch position?

Tread Overland Edition Compass Bug?

monzttr — Sat, 25 Jan 2025 18:57:31 GMT

What am I missing here? Shouldn't the arrow be on the opposite side of the circle? The arrow is correct when heading north or south but not east to west. I recalibrated the compass to no avail.

What is Garmin ID? Same as inReach address?

5510004 — Thu, 16 Jan 2025 20:59:51 GMT

I'm trying to setup my inReach for an event, and it's asking for a Garmin ID. My inReach address is name123@inreach.garmin.com, so would my Garmin ID would be name123? Thank you

battery percent not displayed

skyeye — Mon, 06 Jan 2025 12:38:32 GMT

I observed in recent days that the battery percent is apparently not transmitted continuously via BT to the associated phone.

When I reboot both messenger and the phone, pair the two, it displays the battery percent. After few hours this information is lost, it can be rad on the messenger, but not on the phone in messenger app.

FW 4.04

App 2.2.1

does someone observe same?

Why do I get "an error occurred while processing your request"

1104296 — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 15:59:25 GMT

We haven't had this Messenger for very long, and I'm trying to create some basic steps for our field staff to use it. Every attempt to use the Messenger App on my phone, such as to set up Quick Messages or click on Position Reporting, gives me "An error occurred while processing your request." What does that mean? The device is connected, I'm signed in as the device owner, etc.

Mapshare not working properly

5157017 — Sat, 26 Oct 2024 11:02:34 GMT

Mapshare only working intermittently.

Maybe there's a setting that I am missing but mapshare appears and disappears with no changes from myyy side

Internet check in message sent to one of 3 recipients when on satellite only.

4140185 — Wed, 23 Oct 2024 06:48:58 GMT

I use the standard “everything is OK” check in message with family simultaneously. Last trip although the kids got their satellite message my wife was only sent an internet message which of course never got to her. How do I prevent Messenger from sending internet messages which don’t work?

Showing position as xx°yy.z' N / S / W / E instead of decimal

2449916 — Sat, 12 Oct 2024 12:05:18 GMT

Is it possible to change the format of a position from decimal xx°yyyy to showing position as xx°yy.z' N / S / W / E ?

I know there might be a battle as many people on land might actually prefer the decimal format, but at sea it is very inconvenient. We do operate in degrees and minutes for navigational reasons. It is not hugely difficult to recalculate in my head, but it would be great to have it as an editable option.

Testing Galileo and Beidou

2449916 — Sat, 12 Oct 2024 12:00:18 GMT

Can I test acquiring a position from Galileo or Beidou on inReach Messenger, while ignoring GPS signal? I would really love to be able to test it occasionally. The ability to use these GNSS was one of the winning factors for me to pick inReach messenger against any other communicator. There are more and more cases of GPS jamming, so having alternative GNSS is a big plus. Also, I'm planning to use my inReach when crossing the ocean by boat, as a secondary source of position - if main chartplotter dies, or GPS fails, and before resorting to celestial navigation.

Tracking record not showing

5157017 — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 06:56:59 GMT

My past tracks have suddenly disappeared from mapshare

Tracks on map: check-ins create a parallel route

2449916 — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 19:14:58 GMT

I'm sailing at the moment and my Inreach messenger is logging my position every hour. At the same time, I'm trying to send check-in messages (started a leg, all ok and ended a leg of the trip) to enrich my communications with the family. Strangely enough, my map (shareable link) shows 2 separate tracks instead of enriching the only one with additional information. This blows my mind. Until recently I was using Spot devices and they log continuously - only some dots on the route have extra information on them where I added some texts.