Radio that works when nothing else does

Cell networks are miracles right up until the moment everyone needs them at once. Radio keeps working, whether one-way, license-free, or amateur. You don't need a bunker, a big budget, or years on the air: you need information flowing in, your household able to find each other, and a plan on paper. One afternoon, under $100. Start here.

The one-afternoon setup

Do them in order. If you do only one thing, do the first - it's free.

1. Print a family communication plan - out-of-area contact, meeting places, the radio channel. Build it in five minutes, free, nothing uploaded.
2. A weather radio with SAME alerting (~$30-50): find your county's frequency and code, program it, and hear the weekly test - so the tornado warning wakes you at 3 a.m. even when the power and cell towers are already gone. Our weather radio guide separates the features that matter from the fluff.
3. A pair of FRS radios (~$25-30): agree on a channel, write it on the plan, tape spare batteries to them - so your household can talk across the neighborhood when phones can't. No license needed. Or does your family need GMRS? →
4. Check your phone's satellite SOS (newer iPhones and Androids) - know whether you have it before you need it. It's in settings today.

Go deeper

The guide library covers the rest - what actually survives a disaster, how far radios really reach, what's worth buying, and the ham radio path. Three reads to begin with:

• When the cell network dies: what actually still works - the pecking order of what survives, from a licensed operator.
• How far will a VHF radio really reach? - line of sight, the horizon, and the atmospheric trick that breaks the rules.
• The Technician ham license: what it unlocks - 35 public questions, no Morse code, more capability than you'd guess.

Browse all the guides →