Much of Australia is out of mobile range, and the distances are long. These apps help you call for help, know where you are and what is coming, and find signal. We built LastBar and say so.
First, the numbers
The emergency number is 000 (Triple Zero). Every mobile phone also treats 112 as an emergency number. If there is no mobile coverage on any network, a mobile phone cannot reach the emergency call service: that is when knowing where the nearest signal is matters.
Emergency+
Good for: calling Triple Zero and saying where you are
Made for Australia's emergency services: tap the service you need to call Triple Zero, and read out your location, including your what3words address, from the screen. You can drop a pin so the location does not drift while you talk. It also has the numbers of the SES and the Police Assistance Line.
Free
Hazards Near Me NSW
Good for: bush fire and flood warnings in New South Wales
Warnings from the NSW Rural Fire Service and the SES on one map, with watch zones that send you alerts, and fires in other states near the NSW border. Other states have their own warning apps.
Free
LastBar We built this
Good for: finding the nearest signal from which Triple Zero will go through
A map of where phones measured signal, and where they measured none, made by the people who use it, carrier by carrier. It keeps the map of the places around you and of the areas you save on your phone, so Find Signal can give you the distance and direction to the nearest signal with no connection: for an emergency call on any carrier, a call or SMS on your own, or data. It shows the emergency numbers of the country you are in, and water, shelter, clinics, police and fuel from OpenStreetMap. Android phones map signal in the background as you go; an iPhone maps while the app is open. Where nobody has been with it yet, the map is empty.
Android 8.0 and up, iPhone with iOS 16 and up ยท Free, with Pro bought once
what3words
Good for: an exact location to read out
Finds the three words of your 3-metre square offline. Australian emergency services accept them, and Emergency+ shows them for you.
Free
Organic Maps
Good for: free offline maps for the road and the bush
Offline maps, search and navigation on OpenStreetMap data, with hiking trails and contour lines.
Free, no ads
Out of range
- Save the area in LastBar before you lose signal, so Find Signal can guide you back to it.
- For remote travel, carry a personal locator beacon or a satellite messenger.
- Tell someone your route and when you will check in.
What each app does is as its own pages, its store listing or the pages of Australian emergency services said on 26 October 2026. Apps change; check before you rely on one.
