Odometer vs GPS RUC Devices: Which One Fits Your Needs?

Date 12/08/2025 time 8:56pm

As New Zealand prepares to roll out a universal Road User Charges (RUC) system, every eligible driver will face an important decision: what kind of device will you trust to record your distance?

On paper, both odometer-based and GPS-based devices will keep you compliant. In reality, the choice will shape how much control you keep over your data, how much you pay in ongoing costs, and how complex RUC management becomes for you.

Two Technologies, Two Very Different Approaches

Odometer-based devices do exactly what their name suggests, they read your vehicle’s odometer through the OBD port and transmit only the total distance travelled. No location logs. No route history. Just the bare minimum needed for compliance. For private drivers, this can mean less complexity, lower costs, and a stronger layer of privacy.

GPS-based devices, by contrast, calculate distance using satellite tracking. They don’t just know how far you’ve travelled, they know where you went, when you went there, and often how fast you were going. Over time, that builds a detailed profile of your movements. For fleet operators, this can be invaluable. For a private driver, it’s worth asking whether all that data serves your needs, or someone else’s.

Why GPS Dominates the Market

The most established names in the RUC device market, EROAD, Teletrac Navman, Coretex, Argus Tracking, built their reputations in fleet management. Their systems are designed to keep logistics operations running smoothly: live tracking, driver behaviour monitoring, fuel usage analytics, automated off-road RUC rebate claims, and more.

It’s powerful technology, but it’s also built with corporate priorities in mind. A single-vehicle household doesn’t have the same operational demands as a freight company. Yet the market has been slow to produce devices purpose-built for private drivers, leaving many people with the choice between overbuilt GPS systems or going without automation altogether.

The Privacy Gap

With an odometer device, the information that leaves your car is simple: distance travelled, tied to your vehicle ID. With a GPS device, the information leaving your car is far more detailed, and once that data is collected, it exists somewhere. It may be stored for months or years. It may be processed overseas. It may be used for more than just compliance.

Even if every safeguard is in place, the more you collect, the more there is to protect, and the greater the risk if something goes wrong. That’s why privacy advocates consistently point out that limiting data collection in the first place is often the safest policy.

Cost and Complexity

Odometer-based devices tend to be plug-and-play. Install it in your OBD port, and it quietly does its job. You don’t have to learn a fleet portal, pay monthly dashboard fees, or sift through reports you never asked for. You’re paying for compliance, not for an enterprise-level control centre you’ll never use.

GPS-based devices usually come bundled with subscriptions, reporting suites, and extra features. That can be great for businesses where every efficiency gain matters, but for a commuter car or family SUV, it’s easy to end up paying for bells and whistles that don’t make your life any easier.

Local Companies Taking a Different Approach

Not every RUC provider is chasing the fleet market. Bonnet, a New Zealand-owned business, offers reminder tools for RUC, WOF, rego, and servicing without heavy tracking. They’ve shown there’s a real appetite for compliance tools that don’t double as tracking systems.

But when it comes to a full NZTA-compliant RUC device that keeps things simple and private, that’s where Loopie comes in.

Loopie’s Place in the Market

Loopie, based in Dunedin, is building an odometer-based RUC device designed specifically for everyday New Zealand drivers. Our device reads only what’s required, your odometer, and nothing more.

That means no GPS logs, no route maps, no unnecessary data harvesting. Paired with the Loopie app, drivers can buy and renew RUC licences, view usage, and handle payments in just a few taps. The app uses plain language and keeps things approachable, so you don’t feel like you need a fleet manager’s training manual just to stay compliant.

We know some drivers will still choose GPS, especially those running commercial operations. That’s fine. But for everyone else, Loopie is proof that you can have automation without surrendering your privacy to a constant stream of tracking data.

Choosing the Right Device For You

• If you manage a fleet or claim regular off-road rebates, GPS tracking might genuinely save you time and money.
• If you’re a tradesperson with one work vehicle or a household running a couple of cars, odometer-based is likely all you need, and it’ll keep your travel private.
• If you want a simple setup, minimal ongoing cost, and no unnecessary data in someone else’s database, a privacy-first odometer device like Loopie’s is the obvious choice.

The Decision That Stays With You

When universal RUC arrives, the device you choose won’t just be a piece of hardware, it will be a decision about how much of your driving life you’re willing to share. GPS devices have their place, but they’re not the only option.

Loopie offers a different path: NZTA-compliant automation that respects your privacy, avoids corporate overreach, and keeps control of your driving data where it belongs, with you.