How Much Does LoJack Cost?

Updated on July 23, 2026 | Written by Alec Pow
This article was researched using 7 sources. See our methodology and corrections policy.

A new LoJack system does not have one publicly advertised national installation price. Current LoJack units are generally installed in vehicles through participating dealerships, with the hardware, activation, and initial service term included in a dealer-specific add-on. For budgeting, a new dealer-installed package may cost approximately $500 to $1,500+, but buyers should treat that as a planning range rather than an official LoJack price.

Current published renewal pricing is more transparent. LoJack lists a 12-month subscription at $10.75 per month, a two-year subscription at $8 per month, and a three-year subscription at $7.50 per month. Because each plan is billed in full, the standard totals are $129 for one year, $192 for two years, or $270 for three years, before any active discount shown at checkout.

Modern LoJack uses GPS and cellular technology with a smartphone app, vehicle alerts, location services, and stolen-vehicle recovery support. It should not be confused with the older radio-frequency LoJack system, which stopped accepting new activations on March 26, 2026.

Article Highlights

• New LoJack installation pricing is determined by the selling dealership.
• A reasonable dealer-add-on planning range is $500 to $1,500+ (at $30 per hour, earning that amount would take about 0.4 to 1.3 full-time workweeks, before taxes).
• A one-year renewal currently costs $129 when billed in full.
• A two-year renewal costs $192, equal to $96 per year.
• A three-year renewal costs $270, equal to $90 per year.
• The Classic LoJack radio-frequency network stopped accepting new activations on March 26, 2026.
• Current LoJack products use GPS, cellular communication, an app, and law-enforcement recovery tools.

How Much Does LoJack Cost?

LoJack Purchase	Current Cost	What the Price Represents
New dealer-installed LoJack	Dealer quote required	Hardware, installation, activation, and initial service vary
New-system planning range	$500 to $1,500+ (about 0.4 to 1.3 full-time workweeks at $30 per hour)	Editorial budget estimate, not an official retail price
12-month renewal	$129	$10.75 per month, billed upfront
Two-year renewal	$192	$8 per month, billed upfront
Three-year renewal	$270	$7.50 per month, billed upfront
One-year cost with 15% promotion	$109.65	Calculated only when the advertised discount applies
Two-year cost with 15% promotion	$163.20	Calculated promotional total
Three-year cost with 15% promotion	$229.50	Calculated promotional total

The official LoJack renewal store currently lists the three renewal terms and states that the complete subscription amount is charged at purchase. The advertised monthly figures should therefore not be mistaken for month-to-month billing.

The three-year plan has the lowest standard annual cost. Its $270 total equals $90 per year, compared with $96 per year for the two-year plan and $129 per year for the one-year option. Choosing three years saves $117 compared with buying three consecutive one-year renewals at the current standard rate.

New Installation Pricing

LoJack’s consumer site directs buyers toward vehicles already equipped with LoJack GPS technology rather than publishing a universal hardware price. The selling dealer may bundle the device with the vehicle, list it as a separate optional product, or include it in a connected-car package covering several years.

The final amount may depend on the dealership, service term, vehicle, package features, local competition, and whether the unit was installed before the customer selected the car. A quote should identify the LoJack charge separately and state the length of included service.

A buyer who sees a $995 (about 4.1 full-time workdays at $30 per hour) LoJack line item should ask whether it includes only the device or also covers installation and several years of connected service. If it includes three years, the published renewal value of that service is currently $270. The remaining $725 represents the dealer’s hardware, installation, activation, packaging, and markup rather than a published manufacturer breakdown.

The Dealer Add-On

A dealer-installed unit does not automatically mean the buyer must accept a separate LoJack charge. When LoJack is optional, the customer can ask for it to be removed from the purchase agreement or negotiate the add-on price. When it is required as part of the vehicle sale, the advertised vehicle price should account for the mandatory equipment rather than revealing it only after negotiations begin.

LoJack’s own discussion of current dealer advertising says that when the purchase is required, the advertised vehicle price should include the installed system. Its dealer-pricing guidance gives an example in which the advertised price includes the installed theft-recovery device while separately excluding normal government charges such as tax and registration.

Ask the salesperson or finance manager to identify whether the product is optional, whether it can be declined, how long the service lasts, and what happens when the initial subscription expires. A verbal statement that LoJack is “already installed” does not answer those questions.

Modern LoJack Features

The current LoJack system combines stolen-vehicle recovery with connected-car features. The official consumer product page lists vehicle location, driving-behavior alerts, geofences, trip history, and a financial guarantee on qualifying purchases.

The LoJack mobile app currently advertises real-time GPS tracking, speed alerts, low-battery alerts, and notifications when a vehicle enters or leaves a selected geographic boundary. The app can also show vehicle information needed when reporting a theft.

These connected features require active service and compatible installed hardware. A customer whose subscription expires may lose app-based functionality even though the physical device remains in the vehicle. Confirm the expiration date before buying a used car advertised as having LoJack.

How Recovery Works

When a current vehicle is stolen, the owner first files a police report. From the LoJack app, the owner can access vehicle identification information and contact the LoJack recovery concierge. LoJack then works with law enforcement using location data from the GPS-connected device.

The company’s current stolen-vehicle instructions distinguish vehicles purchased after May 2021 from older Classic LoJack systems. Current users generally begin the recovery process through the mobile app, while Classic owners follow the older reporting and activation procedure.

LoJack also provides a dedicated law-enforcement platform that can display the location of an activated stolen vehicle. The company states that agencies can use its law-enforcement recovery technology without paying LoJack access fees.

Vehicle recovery is not guaranteed. Device damage, loss of cellular or GPS communication, underground storage, delayed theft reporting, vehicle transport, law-enforcement priorities, and other circumstances can affect whether and when a vehicle is located.

The Classic System Ended

Classic LoJack used a hidden radio-frequency transmitter rather than the current GPS and cellular platform. When a participating law-enforcement agency entered a vehicle as stolen, the legacy system could be activated and tracked with compatible police equipment.

LoJack announced that the legacy RF system was discontinued effective March 26, 2026, with no new RF activations after that date. The company described the change as a move toward its next-generation GPS platform and LoJack LE law-enforcement application. See the official legacy RF retirement notice.

This change makes many older descriptions inaccurate. Current buyers should not be told that the new product depends on a short-range radio transmitter, receivers mounted in police vehicles, or a three-to-five-mile detection radius. Those details describe the retired Classic system rather than the product being sold in 2026.

Old Products Are Different

Older LoJack articles frequently combine the automotive system with laptop-recovery software, motorcycle packages, construction-equipment transmitters, cargo products, and services for locating vulnerable people. Those products came from different periods, business units, or technologies and should not be treated as one current consumer price list.

The current public consumer offering focuses on cars, trucks, and SUVs equipped through participating dealerships. LoJack also offers dealer inventory and lot-management products, but it does not publish one national price for dealership integration. Its dealer product page says costs depend on the package, dealership needs, installation volume, setup, and added services.

Owners looking for motorcycle, laptop, heavy-equipment, cargo, child, or dementia tracking should verify whether a current LoJack-branded product exists for that exact purpose. The pricing of a retired or unrelated product should not be included in the cost of today’s connected-car system.

The Recovery Guarantee

Current LoJack marketing states that qualifying customers may receive reimbursement of up to $10,000 when a covered vehicle is not recovered within 30 days. This is not the same as a guaranteed $10,000 payment for every LoJack owner.

The amount and eligibility depend on the particular guarantee, service agreement, purchase date, vehicle, dealer, exclusions, theft-reporting requirements, active subscription, and state-specific terms. Older products carried different warranty amounts, including guarantees of up to $5,000 under selected plans.

Read the contract issued with the vehicle rather than relying on the largest number displayed in an advertisement. Confirm whether the benefit is reimbursement, a limited warranty payment, dealership credit, deductible assistance, or another form of compensation.

The guarantee supplements insurance but does not replace comprehensive auto coverage. It may not pay the market value of the stolen vehicle, outstanding loan balance, rental car expenses, personal property, lost income, or damage caused before recovery.

Cost Models

Three-year dealer package: Assume a dealership charges $895 for a LoJack unit with three years of service. The current published value of a three-year renewal is $270. Subtracting that amount leaves $625 allocated to the installed device, activation, dealer handling, and markup.

Five-year ownership: Assume the initial purchase includes three years. Renewing for two more years at the current $192 rate brings the five-year LoJack cost to $1,087 when added to the modeled $895 dealer price. The average becomes $217.40 per year.

Higher dealer quote: A $1,500 package with three years included plus a two-year renewal of $192 produces a five-year total of $1,692, or $338.40 per year. The $605 difference from the first scenario comes entirely from the original dealer charge.

Renewal-only owner: A customer who already owns the hardware and buys the three-year renewal spends $270, or $7.50 per month. If the displayed 15% promotion applies, the calculated total falls to $229.50, equal to $6.38 per month.

The Hidden Price

The largest hidden cost is an unclear service term. A dealer may describe LoJack as a one-time purchase even when app access lasts only three, five, or seven years. The owner must renew when that prepaid period ends to continue the connected-car service.

Financing creates another cost. When a $1,200 LoJack add-on is rolled into a 72-month vehicle loan at a modeled 8% annual percentage rate, it creates a payment of roughly $21.04 per month. The buyer pays about $1,514.88 over the loan, adding roughly $314.88 in interest.

The add-on can also raise sales tax where taxable dealer-installed accessories are included in the vehicle transaction. Because the amount becomes part of the financed purchase, buyers may overlook both the tax and interest while focusing on a small change in the monthly car payment.

Compare the LoJack charge with the cost of a professionally installed car alarm system, an automaker’s connected-vehicle subscription, and insurance discounts. These products do different jobs, so a lower price does not make them direct replacements.

Before Signing

LoJack may make sense if:

• The vehicle does not include a comparable factory recovery service.
• Auto theft is common where the vehicle is parked.
• The dealer provides a competitive itemized price.
• The service term and renewal cost are clear.
• You value geofence, trip, battery, and driving alerts.

Consider declining or negotiating if:

• The dealer will not explain whether the product is optional.
• The charge appears only after the vehicle price is negotiated.
• The paperwork omits the service expiration date.
• The cost is being financed over a long vehicle loan.
• The vehicle already includes similar tracking and recovery features.

Ask whether the installed unit can be transferred to another owner, how a used-car buyer activates it, whether it can be removed, and what personal location data remains connected after the vehicle is sold. Update the LoJack account and remove app access before transferring ownership.

What We Verified

• Checked: The official store currently lists renewal totals equivalent to $129, $192, and $270.
• Confirmed: Modern LoJack uses GPS, cellular connectivity, an app, and law-enforcement recovery coordination.
• Cross-referenced: New consumer installation prices are dealer-specific and are not published as one national retail fee.
• Verified: The legacy LoJack RF system stopped accepting new activations on March 26, 2026.
• Checked: The current vehicle recovery page advertises reimbursement of up to $10,000, subject to the applicable contract.

Answers to Common Questions

How much does LoJack cost at a dealership?

LoJack does not publish one national dealer-installed price. A planning estimate is $500 to $1,500+, but buyers need an itemized dealer quote.

Does LoJack have a monthly fee?

Current subscriptions have an effective monthly cost, but renewals are billed upfront. Published plans equal $10.75, $8, or $7.50 per month, depending on term.

Can a dealership require LoJack?

A dealer can sell a vehicle with required installed equipment, but the mandatory cost should be reflected in the advertised vehicle price. Optional LoJack charges can be declined or negotiated.

Does LoJack still use radio signals?

New LoJack systems use GPS and cellular technology. The legacy radio-frequency system was discontinued for new activations on March 26, 2026.

Does LoJack guarantee vehicle recovery?

No system can guarantee recovery. Selected contracts may offer up to $10,000 in reimbursement when eligibility conditions are met and the vehicle is not recovered within 30 days.