Communication at the retreat, off the grid, or on the farm is essential and does not have to be extremely expensive or overly complicated.
For less than the cost of a decent dinner out for two people a full-featured short to medium distance communication tool – the Baofeng UV-5R – can be purchased. Extremely popular, the Baofeng is a compact, handheld radio capable of transmitting with 4 watts of power across 136-174 MHz and 400-480 MHz frequencies. It can be programmed with up to 128 channels.
The Baofeng is a ham radio. Transmitting on this radio requires a license in order to do so legally. There are lots of places on the ‘net to get more information on that. The purpose of this post is to provide an assortment of useful frequencies the Baofeng can be programmed for.
Did you know the Baofeng also receives FM radio? Pretty cool and useful.
For the money, the Baofeng UV-5R and similar models are a great deal.
FRS/GMRS Frequencies
MURS Radio Frequencies
151.820 Mhz
151.880 Mhz
151.940 Mhz
154.570 Mhz
154.600 Mhz
NOAA Weather Radio Frequencies
WX1 -- 162.550
WX2 -- 162.400
WX3 -- 162.475
WX4 -- 162.425
WX5 -- 162.450
WX6 -- 162.500
WX7 -- 162.525
Commercial “DOT” Frequencies
151.625 Red Dot
154.570 Blue Dot
154.600 Green Dot
151.955 Purple Dot
464.550 Yellow Dot
464.500 Brown Dot
467.7625 J Dot
467.8125 KDot
467.8500 Silver Star
467.8750 Gold Star
467.9000 Red Star
467.9250 Blue Star
| Marine VHF Designated Frequencies | |||
| Channel Number | Ship Transmit MHz |
Ship Receive MHz |
Intended And Designated Use |
| 01A | 156.050 | 156.050 | Port Operations and Commercial, VTS. Available only in New Orleans / Lower Mississippi area. |
| 05A | 156.250 | 156.250 | Port Operations or VTS in the Houston, New Orleans and Seattle areas. |
| 06 | 156.300 | 156.300 | Intership Safety |
| 07A | 156.350 | 156.350 | Commercial |
| 08 | 156.400 | 156.400 | Commercial (Intership only) |
| 09 | 156.450 | 156.450 | Boater Calling. Commercial and Non-Commercial. |
| 10 | 156.500 | 156.500 | Commercial |
| 11 | 156.550 | 156.550 | Commercial. VTS in selected areas. |
| 12 | 156.600 | 156.600 | Port Operations. VTS in selected areas. |
| 13 | 156.650 | 156.650 | Intership Navigation Safety (Bridge-to-bridge). Ships >20m length maintain a listening watch on this channel in US waters. |
| 14 | 156.700 | 156.700 | Port Operations. VTS in selected areas. |
| 15 | — | 156.750 | Environmental (Receive only). Used by Class C EPIRBs. |
| 16 | 156.800 | 156.800 | International Distress, Safety and Calling. Ships required to carry radio, USCG, and most coast stations maintain a listening watch on this channel. |
| 17 | 156.850 | 156.850 | State Control |
| 18A | 156.900 | 156.900 | Commercial |
| 19A | 156.950 | 156.950 | Commercial |
| 20 | 157.000 | 161.600 | Port Operations (duplex) |
| 20A | 157.000 | 157.000 | Port Operations |
| 21A | 157.050 | 157.050 | U.S. Coast Guard only |
| 22A | 157.100 | 157.100 | Coast Guard Liaison and Maritime Safety Information Broadcasts. Broadcasts announced on channel 16. |
| 23A | 157.150 | 157.150 | U.S. Coast Guard only |
| 24 | 157.200 | 161.800 | Public Correspondence (Marine Operator) |
| 25 | 157.250 | 161.850 | Public Correspondence (Marine Operator) |
| 26 | 157.300 | 161.900 | Public Correspondence (Marine Operator) |
| 27 | 157.350 | 161.950 | Public Correspondence (Marine Operator) |
| 28 | 157.400 | 162.000 | Public Correspondence (Marine Operator) |
| 63A | 156.175 | 156.175 | Port Operations and Commercial, VTS. Available only in New Orleans / Lower Mississippi area. |
| 65A | 156.275 | 156.275 | Port Operations |
| 66A | 156.325 | 156.325 | Port Operations |
| 67 | 156.375 | 156.375 | Commercial. Used for Bridge-to-bridge communications in lower Mississippi River. Intership only. |
| 68 | 156.425 | 156.425 | Non-Commercial |
| 69 | 156.475 | 156.475 | Non-Commercial |
| 70 | 156.525 | 156.525 | Digital Selective Calling (voice communications not allowed) |
| 71 | 156.575 | 156.575 | Non-Commercial |
| 72 | 156.625 | 156.625 | Non-Commercial (Intership only) |
| 73 | 156.675 | 156.675 | Port Operations |
| 74 | 156.725 | 156.725 | Port Operations |
| 77 | 156.875 | 156.875 | Port Operations (Intership only) |
| 78A | 156.925 | 156.925 | Non-Commercial |
| 79A | 156.975 | 156.975 | Commercial. Non-Commercial in Great Lakes only |
| 80A | 157.025 | 157.025 | Commercial. Non-Commercial in Great Lakes only |
| 81A | 157.075 | 157.075 | U.S. Government only – Environmental protection operations. |
| 82A | 157.125 | 157.125 | U.S. Government only |
| 83A | 157.175 | 157.175 | U.S. Coast Guard only |
| 84 | 157.225 | 161.825 | Public Correspondence (Marine Operator) |
| 85 | 157.275 | 161.875 | Public Correspondence (Marine Operator) |
| 86 | 157.325 | 161.925 | Public Correspondence (Marine Operator) |
| 87 | 157.375 | 161.975 | Public Correspondence (Marine Operator) |
| AIS 1 | 161.975 | 161.975 | Automatic Identification System #1 (AIS) – Special equipment required! |
| 88 | 157.425 | 162.025 | Public Correspondence only near Canadian border. |
| AIS 2 | 162.025 | 162.025 | Automatic Identification System #2 (AIS) – Special equipment required! |
| 88A | 157.425 | 157.425 | Commercial, Intership only. |
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Red Dawn(1984) – a classic.
THEM – a classic monster flick from the 50’s. Love this movie.
The Last Ship – TV series
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Except for the Commercial “DOT” Frequencies, I use the same ones along with some local Ham frequencies that have repeaters.
Oh, I also use the BaoFeng UV-5R
re:
Red Dawn
I said it a hundred times… RD84 is a classic. Wolverines!
And I said it a thousand times… only commies or crossdressers don’t like RD84.
Legal issues for those who own this radio:
This is a detailed answer for those who are interested in the associated regulations governing the use of these radios (i.e. not just answering these types of questions with “THAT’S ILLEGAL!”). Others have answered this question very well (DaveH), but I at one point had done some research to verify the legal use of this radio for myself. I’ve posted a summary of this research on questions for another UV-5R listing, but apparently this is the primary product listing now, since it is the first result when you search. I’ve provided the verbiage from the United States Code of Federal Regulations and the Federal Communications Commission website to clear up any confusion. This answer applies to those who live in the United States.
GMRS/FRS/MURS:
“Each [GMRS/FRS/MURS] transmitter…must be [certificated/certified for use].” (CFR Title 47, Part 95, Section 95.603)
This radio is not certified for GMRS/FRS/MURS use.
GMRS:
“Before any station transmits on any channel authorized in the GMRS from any point…the responsible party must obtain a license…” (CFR Title 47, Part 95, Section 95.3)
You can’t use GMRS without a license.
FRS:
“You may not attach any antenna…to an FRS unit that has not been FCC certified as part of that FRS unit…” (CFR Title 47, Part 95, Section 95.194-c)
You can’t use FRS with a detachable antenna. This radio has a detachable antenna.
“FRS devices have a maximum power of ½ watt.” (http://www.fcc.gov/encyclopedia/family-radio-service-frs)
You can’t use FRS with more than ½ watt. This radio has a low power setting of 1 watt.
MURS:
“A certified MURS device has an identifying label placed on it by the manufacturer.” (http://www.fcc.gov/encyclopedia/multi-use-radio-service-murs-0)
This radio does not have such a label because it is not certified for MURS use.
Marine:
“…maritime station transmitters…must provide for selection of only maritime channels for which the maritime station is authorized. Such transmitters must not be capable of being programmed by station operators using external controls to transmit on channels other than those programmed by the manufacturer…” (CFR Title 47, Part 80, Section 80.203-b)
A marine radio must be pre-programmed with only the marine frequencies and can’t have the ability to be programmed to transmit on other frequencies, as the UV-5R can.
Summary:
The only frequencies with which this radio can legally transmit are the business and amateur radio frequencies. Business use requires a license that includes a detailed application that entails the types and number of stations that will be used for the business (CFR Title 47, Part 90, Subpart G). Amateur radio operation requires a license. “The station apparatus must be under the physical control of a person named in an amateur station license grant.” (CFR Title 47, Part 97, Section 97.5-a)
TL;DR: This radio can only legally transmit in the business and amateur radio frequency bands, and both of those require a license.
Basically, just realize that this radio has the capacity to do way more than it legally can, and you should take care not to put yourself at risk for FCC enforcement actions. see less
By Jared on January 11, 2016
The Baofeng UV-5rR is certainly popular, affordable and reliable. I use the Baofeng BF-F9 V2+, which has a higher RF power and the dual band FM frequencies are 136MHz-174MHz and 400MHz-520MHz, which provides additional frequencies in the UHF range. Bother Baofeng models allow you to swa out the antenna with one that provides higher gain.
Because I live several hundred miles inland from coastal/shipping areas, I have programmed some of the maritime frequencies for pure SHTF use, since it is entirely unlikely that I would interfere with their use for shipping traffic.
Another frequency that would be worth consideration is VHF 146.520 (2 meter NCF) which is, ideally, a monitored emergency channel.
your FRS/GMRS info is now outdated
FCC changed the Rules
Here’s the updated info:
FRS-GMRS (No license needed for FRS, but license required for GMRS)
Frequency(MHz) FRSPower FRS Bandwidth GMRSPowerGMRSBandwidth Notes
FRS GMRS
1) 462.5625 FRS> 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 5 W 25kHz (1)
2) 462.5875 FRS> 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 5 W 25kHz (1)
3) 462.6125 2 W 12.5kHz 5 W 25kHz (1)
4) 462.6375 2 W 12.5kHz 5 W 25kHz (1)
5) 462.6625 2 W 12.5kHz 5 W 25kHz (1)
6) 462.6875 2 W 12.5kHz 5 W 25kHz (1)
7) 462.7125 2 W 12.5kHz 5 W 25kHz (1)
8) 467.5625 0.5 W 12.5kHz 0.5 W 12.5kHz (1)
9) 467.5875 0.5 W 12.5kHz 0.5 W 12.5kHz (1)
10) 467.6125 0.5 W 12.5kHz 0.5 W 12.5kHz (1)
11) 467.6375 0.5 W 12.5kHz 0.5 W 12.5kHz (1)
12) 467.6625 0.5 W 12.5kHz 0.5 W 12.5kHz (1)
13) 467.6875 0.5 W 12.5kHz 0.5 W 12.5kHz (1)
14) 467.7125 0.5 W 12.5kHz 0.5 W 12.5kHz (1)
Notes (1) Shared FRS and GMRS simplex.
15) 462.5500 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 50 W 25kHz (2)
16) 462.5750 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 50 W 25kHz (2)
17) 462.6000 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 50 W 25kHz (2)
18) 462.6250 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 50 W 25kHz (2)
19) 462.6500 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 50 W 25kHz (2) )
20) 462.6750 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 50 W 25kHz (2)
21) 462.7000 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 50 W 25kHz (2) )
22) 462.7250 2 W 12.5kHz GMRS 50 W 25kHz (2)
Notes (2) Shared FRS and GMRS simplex (and GMRS repeater Outputs if GMRS repeaters are used.)
————————————————————
GMRS-ONLY repeater inputs…outputs are channels 15-22 above (which are also simplex usage FRS/GMRS)
467.5500 50 W 25kHz (3)
467.5750 50 W 25kHz (3)
467.6000 50 W 25kHz (3)
467.6250 50 W 25kHz (3)
467.6500 50 W 25kHz (3)
467.6750 50 W 25kHz (3)
467.7000 50 W 25kHz (3)
467.7250 50 W 25kHz (3)
Notes (3) GMRS repeater inputs for channels 15-22 above if GMRS repeaters are used.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Mobile_Radio_Service
Notes (1) Shared FRS and GMRS simplex. (2) Shared FRS and GMRS simplex, GMRS repeater output. (3) GMRS repeater input.
Pat,
Any FRS, GMRS, LMRS transceiver capable of transmitting 2 watts or more REQUIRES A FCC LICENSE. So do not claim you can operate these transceivers on FRS without a license.
Transceivers for use on FRS, GMRS, LMRS cannot be user programmable.
Meaning if you can purchase readily available programming software or can program frequencies directly on the keypad, that transceiver CANNOT BE LEGALLY USED on the above radio services.
So again these transceivers cannot be legally used on FRS, GMRS, LMRS or any other random frequencies you choose unless by a Licensed Amateur Radio operator.
what was that again?
While technically illegal – so isn’t jaywalking.
I’m brand new to ham. That being said, I have no idea what the capabilities are with this radio. I need a dummies book I guess. I want to set up chirp. Hope it’s as easy as they say.
Hmmm interesting perspective. I like your comments.
I’m just got this radio, it’s manual leaves something to be desired. Is there a step by step for setting up the church freqs? If so can someone tell me, I got this radio to start getting my ham licence but would like to use it for hunting on the church band. HELP PLEASE
Sorry for the mistakes, it’s not church its cb. Frequencies.
right
and which of these are unlicensed for use by normies without a ham license?
murs
For those commenting about the laws, rules and regulations concerning the use of these radios, keep in mind, that during the time(s) of war, possibly nuclear, a severe natural disaster, complete meltdown of society, NONE of the licensing matters!…..these are forms of communication in those events….and to the one that mentioned about the radios being more capable than should be( ” just realize that this radio has the capacity to do way more than it legally can ” )..your point is?…..a Corvette is more capable than a Honda civic….so, there’s no comparison……just because it is more capable, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be able to use or own it.
For all you idiot HAM operators out there, before making comments about the legality of using a Baofeng radio you should read 47 CFR section 97.405 Station in Distress and 47 CFR section 97.403 Safety of life and the Protection of Property. So please STFU
FYI: These radios widely used in many armed conflicts around the world. They are not great, but, in some instances it has better reputation , than Motorola which transmission is very vulnerable
Good information, i got my all solutions about here.
I agree with several here, about others citing FCC regulations…STFU, most of you were wrong, to start with. First off, you CAN apply for a ‘no-test’ FRS/GMRS license that covers up to 5-units, for ANY USER in your household or immediate area, and increases your allowed power to 50-watts. Cost? Apply and pay $80…and wait for 5-years, to do it again!
As for ’emergency radio’, there are allowances for ’emergency use’ as well as ‘who’s going to enforce it after that next ‘Monkey-zbola-haunta outbreak’? Laws are for civilization…I don’t expect enforcement, when the ‘new method of payment’ involves ‘beans and bandages’ in trade.
Oh, and as for maritime radio…really is a whole other world, and yes, vessels are limited to the radios they can install and generally operate. Once again, emergency overrules law, so if you SEE a catastrophe about to happen, don’t expect a ticket for calling in to a lock or bridge with a pending impact headed their way…now, if you’re hacking SDR to talk 151 Mhz (and impersonating law enforcement personnel, in the process)…don’t be surprised when you learn what ‘triangulation’ is, and how fast it can happen.
Personally, I’ve reported a nearby factory a dozen times to the FCC for running over-powered cell phone jammers (that can occasionally, reach the highway…and my house)…and the FCC has done NOTHING to them for it! So, again, enforcement is usually a joke, anyhow. Probably because due to most workers there being illegals, they figure its the only way to get them off their phone, and back to work.
Thanks Lance. Really appreciate your sharing your thoughts and ideas. Thx!
hello i alwats use my baofeng on my boat or in my car for emergency all the time keep my baofeng with me everyday .
thank you for ythe list of freq from baofeng uvr-5
Good evening
I dont’s know if I could get some help here it’s worth a try.
I bought four “Baofeng BF-5R uhf” radios in AliExpress last year and I tried to reach the seller but I don’t get any answers.
The radio it’self has a very good quality/price ratio: about 13 Euros a piece, with 5 Watt with, a good coverage in the open, a very good penetration in closed buildings, quite robust, altought not watter proff. I bought four pieces.
The announced range of frequencies is from 400-470 MHz but the radio itself indicates 430-440 MHz (different from the PMR range in europe, I’m from Portugal).
The doubth is this: There are 16 channels programed by default and I would like to know the frequencies for each one. Where can I find them?
Thank you.
These radios are not for beginners. Only real OG OM’s will get this.
can Bafofeng vr5 be programed to listen to police fire ems
Generally yes. You just have to get the frequency codes for the local area which are available. Here is a site I have used.
https://www.radioreference.com
Radioreference.com is a top-notch site. Especially if your interested in trunking with an SDR. There are certain applications that you can use your login to import settings without the hassle of manually programming your freqs. As for the UV-5R radio, I’m completely new to handheld radios but purchased some for SHTF use only. Unless a dire emergency, I doubt they will ever have the button pressed (I know you should be proficient in the ability to use your equipment but due to legality…). But in the event of a total downfall of civilization, what would be the best band/freq range to use that would not be interfering with other common government communications? Any help is much appreciated.