GridTracker Setup: Map, Alerts and Call Roster for WSJT-X

FT8 is efficient but visually dull. WSJT-X shows you a scrolling list of decodes and a waterfall, and nothing about where those stations are, which of them you still need, or whether the band is opening towards a new country. A good GridTracker setup fixes that. GridTracker sits beside WSJT-X, listens to what the decoder is doing, and turns the text into a map, a sortable call roster and a set of alerts that tell you when something you want has appeared. This guide covers how the pieces connect, how to configure the link, how to read the display and how to tune the alerts so they help instead of nagging.

GridTracker is developed by an independent author and updated regularly, so menu names and options change between versions. Treat the steps below as the logic of the setup and check the official GridTracker site for its current documentation and downloads.

What GridTracker Actually Does

The project describes itself as a program that listens to traffic from WSJT-X and displays it on a map, and that can also load ADIF log files. That original idea is still the core, though the program has grown into a wider information display. The official feature list includes a customisable interactive map of live and historical contacts, overlays such as the grey line, the Moon position and reception reports, state, grid and county information, callsign lookups from popular databases, a Call Roster table of live activity, audio and visual alerts, and an offline mode intended for portable operating.

Two points are worth understanding before you install anything. First, GridTracker does not decode signals. WSJT-X (or a compatible decoder) does the decoding and GridTracker only reads what the decoder reports. If WSJT-X is not running or is not sending data, GridTracker has nothing to show. Second, GridTracker is not a logging program in the usual sense. It reads your existing log, shows what you have worked, and can hand contacts to a logger, but it works best as a companion to the program you already use. Our guide to ADIF and moving your log between programs explains the file format that makes that exchange possible.

How WSJT-X Talks to GridTracker

WSJT-X can broadcast its activity to other programs over a UDP network connection. In the WSJT-X settings, the Reporting tab contains a UDP Server section with an address and a port. The defaults are the local computer address, 127.0.0.1, and port 2237. Any program that listens on that address and port, GridTracker included, receives the stream of decodes, your transmit state, your frequency and mode, and the logged QSO messages.

This is a one-way broadcast in normal use, with one exception. If you enable the option that accepts UDP requests, a connected program may also send instructions back, which is how GridTracker can start a QSO when you click a station on the map or in the roster. Because this link carries real control information, keep it on your own computer or a trusted network. There is no reason to expose it to the internet.

The simplest working layout looks like this:

• WSJT-X and GridTracker run on the same computer.
• WSJT-X sends to 127.0.0.1 on port 2237, and GridTracker listens on the same address and port.
• The UDP request option in WSJT-X is enabled if you want click-to-call from GridTracker.
• Both programs use the same system clock, which has to be accurate for FT8 anyway. If decodes are sparse, read our guide to keeping your computer clock accurate for FT8 before blaming the new software.

If you need several programs to listen at once, for example GridTracker plus a logger plus a spotting uploader, a single local port can only be bound by one listener in the usual configuration. The common answer is a multicast address in the UDP Server field, which several programs can join together. The GridTracker help covers the exact addresses and the settings both ends need, and it is the correct place to confirm them for your version because the details differ between programs.

First Run: Settings That Matter

On first start GridTracker asks for a few facts about you. Most of them are worth getting right immediately, because the map, the distances and the alerts all depend on them.

1. Your callsign and grid square. Enter your station callsign and your four- or six-character Maidenhead locator. Distances and bearings on the map are measured from that point. If you are unsure of your locator, our article on grid squares and the Maidenhead locator system shows how to find it, and the Maidenhead system has a clear background explanation.
2. The WSJT-X link. Match the address and port described above. When the link works, decodes begin to appear on the map within a transmit cycle or two. Decodes come in 15-second periods for FT8, so wait at least half a minute before deciding it failed.
3. Your logbook. Point GridTracker at your log so it can show which grids, countries and states you have already worked. This is what turns the display from a curiosity into a tool, because it can then highlight what you still need.
4. Callsign lookup. If you want names and locations beyond what the grid in the decode gives you, configure a lookup source. Lookups are optional, and they require an account with the service you choose.
5. Units, time and appearance. Choose kilometres or miles, and decide whether to display UTC. Logging is always in UTC, so showing UTC avoids arithmetic in the middle of a pileup.

Reading the Map and the Call Roster

The map plots each decoded station at the centre of the grid square it reports. That is the right way to read it: a marker is a four-character grid, not an exact location. A station reported in a large rectangle of a few hundred kilometres can sit anywhere within it, so use the map to judge direction and rough distance, not precise bearing.

Colours and symbols show state at a glance. Typically you see stations calling CQ distinguished from stations replying, your own transmissions, and a different treatment for squares you have already worked, confirmed or still need. Look for the legend in the settings for the exact scheme in your version, and adjust the colours if they clash with your screen or if you have colour vision limits.

The Call Roster is the part most operators end up using constantly. It is a table of recent activity that you can sort and filter by band, distance, grid, country, whether the callsign is a new one, and whether the station is calling CQ. Instead of reading every line of the WSJT-X Band Activity window, you sort by what matters to you. For an award chaser, that is stations in countries or grids not yet confirmed. For a casual operator it might simply be the strongest signals that nobody else has answered.

Three practical habits make the roster work well:

• Filter on CQ. Replies between two other stations are interesting for propagation, but you can only call stations that are listening for new contacts.
• Sort by distance for DX, by signal for reliability. A weak decode of a rare station is worth a call. A strong decode of a nearby station is a fast contact when you only have a few minutes.
• Hide what you do not want. Filtering out stations you have already worked on the current band avoids accidental duplicates.

Setting Up Alerts That Help

Alerts are where a poorly tuned GridTracker setup becomes irritating. The program can notify you with sounds, text and highlights when a chosen type of station appears. If every new grid square triggers a chime, you will switch alerts off within a day. The rule that works is to alert on scarcity, and to keep each alert narrow.

• Specific callsigns. Add the callsign of an expedition or a station you have been trying to work. This is the highest-value alert.
• New DXCC entities. Alert only on entities you have not worked, and only on the bands you can actually use. Our article on how DXCC works explains why entity-level alerts are the useful ones.
• New grids on a single band. If you chase grids on 6 metres, restrict the alert to that band. Do not set grid alerts on every band at once.
• Special programmes. If you hunt park or island activators, you can alert on those references or on the calling patterns they use.

Test each alert once, deliberately. Add your own callsign, call CQ briefly and confirm that the notification fires when your own signal is decoded back by a reporting station. That single test shows you whether the sound is audible over your radio, whether the highlight is visible from your chair and whether the alert is firing on the right band.

GridTracker only knows what your own receiver hears. A rare station that is not decodable at your location will never trigger an alert. For those, an independent source of spots is useful, because a cluster node or a reporting network sees stations that your receiver cannot. The LY4A DX Reminder app is built for exactly that case. You tell it which callsign you are waiting for, on which bands and in which mode, and it watches five spot sources in the background (DXScape, DXSummit, DXHeat, PSK Reporter and the Reverse Beacon Network) and sounds an alarm when that callsign appears. GridTracker shows you what is happening on your own receiver, and a spot-based alert tells you when to go and look. For more on the spotting side, read automating DX spot alerts from cluster to notification.

Why the Map Stays Empty: Common Faults

Most GridTracker problems are connection problems, and they follow a short list.

Work through the table from top to bottom. The first row covers the majority of cases. If WSJT-X shows decodes and GridTracker shows nothing, the link is the problem. If neither shows decodes, the problem is upstream in the radio, audio or clock, and GridTracker is a bystander. Our guide to a WSJT-X and FT8 setup that works first time covers that earlier part of the chain.

Using GridTracker for Propagation, Not Just Contacts

A map of decodes is also a live propagation picture. Even when you do not make a contact, the pattern of which grids are being decoded, and from which directions, tells you how the band is behaving. If you are suddenly decoding a spread of stations to the south on 10 metres, the band is open that way. If your own transmissions are being reported by far-away stations, you can see where your signal is landing. The same idea is behind reception-report networks, which our article on PSK Reporter describes in detail.

The grey line overlay is particularly useful on the low bands. Along the line where day turns to night, signals often travel unusually well, and a map that shows you where that line is at this moment helps you decide which direction to call. Combine the overlay with the decode pattern and you can anticipate openings rather than discover them by accident.

Portable and Offline Use

GridTracker includes an offline mode intended for field day, park and summit work, and mobile operating. Offline operation means you do not rely on internet lookups or map tiles that must be downloaded on the fly. Before leaving home, run the program with a connection so it can cache what it needs, then test it with the network disabled. A setup that works only when the cell signal is good is not an offline setup.

For portable FT8 on a small laptop, remember the other limits: battery life, screen brightness in daylight and how much of the screen WSJT-X and GridTracker will need side by side. Our article on battery and power options for portable operating covers the power side. If the screen is small, run GridTracker only for the roster and a smaller map view rather than the full-screen display.

A Sensible Routine

Once the setup is stable, a short routine keeps it useful:

1. Start WSJT-X first, confirm decodes, then start GridTracker.
2. Check that the band in WSJT-X matches the band GridTracker shows. A mismatch usually means the link dropped.
3. Sort the roster by what you need today: a new entity, a new grid, or simply the nearest CQ.
4. Call using the roster or the map click, and let WSJT-X handle the exchange.
5. After the session, confirm that contacts reached your logbook and that your next upload to your confirmation service will include them.

That last step matters more than it looks. If your logger, GridTracker and WSJT-X each keep a separate record, you can end up with three slightly different logs. Choose one program as the master log and treat the others as readers.

The Bottom Line

A solid GridTracker setup has three parts: a working UDP link from WSJT-X, a correct callsign, grid and logbook so the display knows what you need, and a small set of narrow alerts that fire on scarcity. Get the link right first, because almost every problem traces back to it. Then spend your time on the roster filters and the handful of alerts you will actually obey. The map is attractive, but the sortable roster and the targeted alerts are what change how many new entities you work.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does GridTracker replace WSJT-X?

No. WSJT-X decodes and transmits. GridTracker listens to WSJT-X, plots what it reports on a map, builds a call roster and raises alerts. You still need WSJT-X, or a compatible decoder, running at the same time.

Which UDP address and port should I use?

A common starting point is the WSJT-X default of 127.0.0.1 and port 2237, with GridTracker listening on the same pair. If several programs must share the stream, use the multicast arrangement described in the GridTracker help, and set the same values in every program.

Why does GridTracker show decodes but click-to-call does nothing?

Click-to-call needs WSJT-X to accept instructions from another program. Enable the option that accepts UDP requests in the WSJT-X reporting settings, then try again. Also confirm that the two programs are using the same address and port.

Can I use GridTracker without internet access?

Yes, the program has an offline mode for portable use. Prepare it before you leave: run it online first so it can cache what it needs, then test it with the network off. Features that depend on live lookups will not update while you are offline.

Why are some stations placed in the wrong spot on the map?

Markers are positioned from the grid square in the decode, so each one sits at the centre of a rectangle. A station can be anywhere inside it. Stations that report no grid, or an incorrect one, cannot be placed correctly.

How many alerts should I set?

Start with two or three: a specific callsign you are chasing, new entities on the bands you can use, and perhaps one grid or award goal. Add more only when each one proves useful. Alerts that fire constantly teach you to ignore them.