inReach Messenger - Recent Threads

Can't add a Contact as a recipient on Live Tracking

4598399 — Thu, 15 Oct 2026 17:44:48 GMT

Hi, I'm tying to set up a new inReach Messenger to use Live Tracking but I can't add a recipient.

I did not import contacts from my phone but I did manually add Contacts within the Messenger app. The Add Recipient screen for Live Tracking gives me tabs for Connect and Phone. No Contact entries are preloaded and a search doesn't find any Contacts.

The manual and videos indicate that Contacts in the Messenger app should be selectable as a Recipient - what am I missing?

Using an Android phone and the latest updates on the Messenger app and device. Thanks

Tread Notes Snap to Road

1141413 — Thu, 10 Sep 2026 03:37:18 GMT

I am trying to drive a route offroad and put notes down as I go. The problem is if I am not on a labeled road, when I place a note it snaps to the nearest labeled road which can be up to a mile away. Is there anyway to disable notes snapping to a point and just have it place at my current GPS coordinate other than manually placing it every time?

RE: Tread Notes Snap to Road

Garmin - AL — Sat, 12 Sep 2026 17:14:25 GMT

It looks like this may be in the incorrect place. When you add notes are you adding them on your device, or in an app? If so which app/device are you using? If you are seeing this occur on an app I recommend deleting this thread, and reposting in Apps and Software: Apps & Software

If this is on a device please attach some screenshots, along with the type of device you are using.

InReach Messenger Software version v 4.11

Garmin-Christopher — Tue, 08 Sep 2026 21:23:27 GMT

Change Log
: Miscellaneous bug fixes and improvements.

Best way to clip this little thing to my belt

Tigersfan1982 — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 06:24:34 GMT

Any suggestions?! The retractable lanyard lets it dangle too much and bob around. Can the messenger actually work if its in a pants pocket?

RE: Best way to clip this little thing to my belt

Volker — Sun, 06 Sep 2026 05:58:38 GMT

Garmin - AL: with which accessory from your link will a user be able to attach a Garmin Messenger comfortable to a belt?

RE: Best way to clip this little thing to my belt

Garmin - AL — Fri, 04 Sep 2026 21:38:22 GMT

We also have other options available on our website that you can review here: https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/pn/010-02602-00/#accessories

RE: Best way to clip this little thing to my belt

Volker — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 10:48:52 GMT

Perhaps this:

www.amazon.de/.../ref=sr_1_6

Yes, the messenger can actually work if its in a pants pocket.

RE: Setting up my Garmin Inreach 3 plus but getting stuck on "Processing your purchase screen"

Garmin - MR — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 02:02:36 GMT

9257542 Let's try some troubleshooting steps to get your account properly activated.

Since you did not receive an email receipt or subscription confirmation, the payment may not have completed successfully.

Log in to your Garmin account at explore.garmin.com or account.garmin.com.
Check:
- Subscriptions/Plans
- Order History
- Billing History
See whether the inReach Mini 3 appears with an active plan.

If no active plan exists, the activation process may be waiting for a subscription that was never created.

If you can tell me:

Whether you see an active plan in your Garmin account,
Whether a charge appears on your card, and
Whether you're activating through Garmin Messenger or Garmin Explore

I can help narrow down what may be causing that message to appear on your inReach 3 Plus.

Setting up my Garmin Inreach 3 plus but getting stuck on "Processing your purchase screen"

9257542 — Fri, 24 Jul 2026 17:26:41 GMT

My android phone is stuck on the "Processing your payment" screen but if I press the X button or "close" on the top left I get navigated to a screen that says "Activation in progress".

When I press actiavte on my inreach 3 mini plus, it is stuck in "sending request" screen. I also did not get any garmin subscription payment confirmation or receipt through email.

Not sure if garmin servers are down or this is some other issue

email links no longer work

5663440 — Thu, 23 Jul 2026 17:56:42 GMT

I began using my Garmin Inreach SE+ in 2020. To help me keep track of precisely where I have been on my treks through the mountains, I would send a message with the Inreach to my own email address. Later, when I'm sitting at my computer, I can pull up these messages and see exactly where I've been. These messages give me a precise location on an online topo map. This has been so helpful for future trip planning, as well as being enjoyable for seeing where I've been.. I've been accessing these points for the past six years. Suddenly these email message links no longer work. They give me an invalid link error message. I have chatted with Garmin, and they have told me that all of my links are no longer accessible. I entrusted Garmin to keep this data, which I would describe as intellectual property, accessible. Surely I'm not the only Garmin customer who values the information contained in messages. Is anyone else having this problem or able to comment or advise? Thank you

RE: Changing phones for Garmin inReach Messenger

JungleJim — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 18:19:19 GMT

See https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=SEfsZyYvZH7uVEaWbhWr38 for info about lending your inReach Messenger device to someone else.

Changing phones for Garmin inReach Messenger

2325437 — Sun, 28 Jun 2026 13:58:31 GMT

Hello,

How easy is to change the phone being used for Garmin inReach Messenger? Will you need the original phone still?
I am sending my messenger to my son who is in a different city and want him to be able to use it.
Wondering if that is possible?

Appreciate any info

Thanks

Raj

Cannot pair messenger with InReach Explorer+

4584785 — Sat, 27 Jun 2026 04:23:28 GMT

I am at a loss. I cannot get Garmin Messenger to pair with my InReach Explorer+

I am using an iPhone 12 and download the Garmin app. I put my InReach in pair mode and then select the "Add Device" in messenger.

Messenger will then stall on the "searching for devices screen" and the InReach will tell me that the pairing failed and ask to try again.

I can pair the InReach with the phone through Bluetooth settings but then the Messenger App still won't show the inReach as an available device.

I have tried rebooting the phone and the InReach.

I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling messenger but nothing seems to work.

Any ideas?

RE: Cannot pair messenger with InReach Explorer+

Garmin - AL — Sat, 27 Jun 2026 18:52:48 GMT

The Garmin Messenger app is not compatible with the InReach Explore+. Review the following article for compatible devices: Pairing and Activation Instructions for Garmin Messenger App Compatible inReach Devices

If you are referring to the inReach Messenger device there is not an option to pair the Explore+ to this device.

RE: 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.

6330358 — Thu, 28 May 2026 17:47:42 GMT

Hallo

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.

InReach Messenger Software Version 4.10

Garmin-Christopher — Wed, 27 May 2026 18:59:34 GMT

Change Log
: Added support for displaying SOS threads by device
Added Messenger account phone number to about page
Added sender device to message details
Updated translations

RE: 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.

skyeye — Sat, 09 May 2026 18:00:15 GMT

some providers are kind of reluctant to deliver messages where a link is contained. Try just simple text without position etc.

And also better report the problem directly to garmin as well.

RE: 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.

DenisC — Sat, 09 May 2026 17:29:34 GMT

I’ve got the same problem. If I sent a message with Garmin Message to an e-mail, the message is delivered, while if I sent a message to a phone number it never arrives. I uninstall the App and try from the scratch, no way.

RE: Inreach msgs not being received on Verizon phones - support no help

RJBLOOM — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 00:37:10 GMT

I found this useful. I finally found that my wife's Verizon phone was blocking my texts. Google msg app, select yourown icon (it is settings) spam and blocked.

Inreach msgs not being received on Verizon phones - support no help

DOCTAPOW — Wed, 06 Sep 2023 16:55:23 GMT

I am able to send msgs and receive replies only when using email addresses.

I have several contacts that I have tried to reach using text messages to their phone numbers and none of them have received them.

I contacted support thru chat and gave them an example of my wife's phone which is on Verizon. Their reply was that the message was delivered to the carrier and the issue is with Verizon.

Problem is I have no idea how to reach out to Verizon or what to ask them? This seems like a very common problem so I was hoping Garmin would have some guidance on at least where to start with Verizon or the other carriers (since I don't even think everyone I have tried is on Verizon).

Has anyone else found a solution for this (recently?) Most messages I searched were from 3-4 years ago.

thanks again,

james

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

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

Steve_Peake — Mon, 02 Mar 2026 15:58:40 GMT

There was a new app update over the weekend, which has fixed my connection problem.

Profile->App Info shows:

App Version: 2.7.3

Check what you currently have installed - hopefully this might fix it for you as well.

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

Steve_Peake — Sun, 01 Mar 2026 10:24:44 GMT

Thanks for the tip-off about the very-recent update. This has fixed my connection problem as soon as it was downloaded.

It looks like we must have been some of the first to report this.

It would have been a good experience (reporting a problem, and a new app release within 24 hours), if Garmin Support hadn't kept me locked into an online chat for an hour yesterday. They made me go through everything I had already tried multiple times. I had covered all of their suggestions in my initial report, and kept having to type "As I have already said above..."
They need an option were you can say "I know what I'm doing, let's get straight to the diagnostic files", instead of assuming everyone is new at this. I'm an embedded software engineer, and regularly work on Bluetooth comms. I knew it wasn't a Bluetooth problem, but something in their new app release.