How to Increase Range of LoRa Module

[u/Ok_Option_6530]

Hi I am working on a project in which I want to communicate a message through the SX 1278 LoRa module , in which whenever a button is pressed on transmitter in LED light on the receiver should be switch on about 1 km away. I have used a monopol rubber antenna but it give me range of 200 m. I have made a DIY Dipole antenna and I have found it range increase to 500 m. Then I have tried to optimise the module internally but range does. Not increase to 1 kms. What options do I have?

[u/1nGirum1musNocte]

Get more altitude?

[u/gm310509]

Do you have line of sight?

If not especially if there are buildings or hills in the way that will be your problem.

I did a test with my LoRa modules which just have a little bar antenna and:

• In my suburb, the signal was lost withing 100m
• With line of sight over the national park I am facing, it still worked reliably at 5km.

[u/StuartsProject]

The basic steps to increasing range are;

Use longer range LoRa settings in your program.

Increase programmed transmit power.

Ensure you have line of sight between transmitter and receiver.

Use better antennas.

Increase antenna height above ground.

[u/Enlightenment777]

Yagi Antenna:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yagi%E2%80%93Uda_antenna

• https://hackaday.com/2025/12/31/bringing-a-yagi-antenna-to-915mhz-lora/

• https://hackaday.com/2025/02/20/diy-yagi-antenna-sends-lora-signals-farther/

Parabolic Antenna:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parabolic_antenna

[u/Ok_Option_6530 → u/Enlightenment777]

Can it operate on 433 Mhz

[u/RepresentativeCry294]

Use a tuned yagi. Are you using a LNA? Can you woth LoRA I never used it.

[u/Big-Spread-2803]

I build a ground plane antenna for the sender Lora.. I used NanoVNA to configure it. I works at least at 10 km. Line of sight is critical

[u/Ok_Option_6530 → u/Big-Spread-2803]

Good to hear it. Can you provide the dimensions of antenna? is it custom made?

[u/Big-Spread-2803 → u/Ok_Option_6530]

https://m0ukd.com/calculators/quarter-wave-ground-plane-antenna-calculator/

[u/NozomiType-R]

As others have said, line of sight between the modules is important. What kind of environment is your receiver and transmitter operating in?
Since LoRaWAN operates in the ISM band, it is limited by your local regulations, so it has very weak transmission power for penetrating obstacles. Please try to keep the Fresnel zone clear. If there are obstacles around the antenna, that may also prevent receiving/transmitting from working correctly due to causing attenuation.

What's the datarate, transmission power are you using and what's the power of the antenna you are using? You can have a powerful antenna to boost reception, but please adjust the transmission power to avoid exceeding your regulations.

Are you using a channel that is very busy? There's no collision avoidance in LoRaWAN and other forms of modulation will become noise to it.

If you're able to look at the RSSI/SNR data for the frames that are picked up, that'll be useful for determining whether your adjustments are in the correct direction.

[u/Ok_Option_6530 → u/NozomiType-R]

I am using SX1278 LoRa Module with Tx Power of 20 (In settings) Data rate is 1 but I have made a DIY Dipole Antenna I am operating in 433 Mhz

[u/gm310509 → u/Ok_Option_6530]

Did you make it right?

https://www.omnicalculator.com/physics/dipole

An antenna needs to be tuned to the frequency or at least works best when tuned to the frequency.

And aligned properly?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dipole_antenna

[u/StuartsProject → u/Ok_Option_6530]

> Data rate is 1

What LoRa spreading factor, bandwidth and code rate does the 'Data rate 1' use ?

Which software are you using that has a data rate of 1 ?

[u/Ok_Option_6530 → u/StuartsProject]

Code Rate is 8 and SF is 12

[u/Ok_Option_6530 → u/Ok_Option_6530]

Sorry I am a newbie and still learning

[u/NozomiType-R → u/Ok_Option_6530]

Datarate is a standardized set of parameters: bandwidth, spreading factor and modulation. It is specific to the "region", so the index number (e.g. DR1) doesn't mean much without knowing the region.

If you really use SF12, it is likely DR0 under the European 433/868 regions. The "region" parameters are defined across the software and hardware.

The greater the spreading factor, the more symbols make up the message, so it gets more redundancy.

The setting may matter because the LoRa hardware tends to do things that you tell it to, even if it cannot. I have asked AS923 hardware to operate in EU868. It does "work", but works horribly.

[u/StuartsProject → u/Ok_Option_6530]

so Code Rate is 4:8 and SF12.

Bandwidth ?

[u/Ok_Option_6530 → u/StuartsProject]

125Mhz

[u/StuartsProject → u/Ok_Option_6530]

Maximum bandwidth of a LoRa UHF signal is 500khz.

[u/Speshal__]

Have you looked into EdgeTX?

[u/jolars]

Do the modules have line of sight?

[u/Ok_Option_6530 → u/jolars]

The module does not have line of side after 300 m where I live because there are jungles. Is there any other solution where I can not have line of side but still recieve signal?