K0TFU

FRS/GMRS Privacy Codes Demystified

I have a love/hate relationship with FRS/GMRS radios. They are inexpensive, and you can buy them practically anywhere. They are great for the kids to play with, and are very useful when camping, boating, hiking, off-roading, or driving in a convoy with your friends. But if you have radios from different brands, they can sometimes be difficult to get working with eath other if you want to use privacy codes.

When I initially published this guide in 2017, the most common FRS/GMRS radios were sold in pairs at big box retailers and online. They came from manufacturers like Midland, Cobra, and Motorola. At that time, there was a lot of variation in how the manufacturers implemented privacy codes. If you used radios from all the same manufacturer the privacy codes worked fine. If people in your group had different brands of radios, privacy codes could be a real challenge. This guide explains how privacy codes work, and gives you the information you’ll need to make them work across different brands of radios.

In 2025, GMRS radios are very popular and widely used. There are many more brands offering radios than there used to be, including BTECH, TIDRADIO, and Wouxun. Most of the GMRS radios from these newer brands are based on similar amateur radios they offer. These radios generally let you set a CTCSS frequency or DCS code directly. If all your radios allow setting CTCSS or DCS this way, you don’t need this page, just set them all to be the same thing and you are good to go. Some GMRS radios now include a tone scan feature, which can listen to an incoming signal and tell you what CTCSS or DCS tones are in use. If your radio has such a feature, you should probably use it instead of this guide.

The easiest way to make different manufacturer radios talk to each other is to put them on the same channel/frequency and turn off the privacy codes (or sub codes, or interference eliminator codes, or whatever your radio calls them). If you want to use a privacy code, keep in mind that they don’t give you any privacy. You can usually pick one that’s less than 38 and it will work. My guess is that you already tried it and it didn’t work, so you went a searching and found this page.

This page will probably help you out if:

  • You have GMRS or FRS radios from different manufacturers, you want to use privacy codes, and you can’t get them to talk to each other
  • You have a GMRS radio that sets CTCSS frequencies or DCS codes directly (i.e. Cobra HH450, Baofeng, TIDRADIO, Wouxun) and you want to communicate with other GMRS/FRS radios that use numbered privacy codes
  • You have an “unlocked” amateur radio and want to talk to a GMRS radio that uses privacy codes
  • You enjoy reading arcane radio related stuff

Channels and Frequencies

Many FRS and GMRS radios use channel numbers as a substitute for the frequency. The frequencies and channels are defined by the FCC. Note that while FRS and GMRS share the same frequencies and channels, FRS radios are limited to lower power output. A radio can only communicate with other radios that are set on the same frequency. If you have a radio that uses channel numbers, you can use this chart to see which frequency it represents.

Channel Frequency FRS
Power		 GMRS
Power
01 462.5625 2 W 5 W
02 462.5875 2 W 5 W
03 462.6125 2 W 5 W
04 462.6375 2 W 5 W
05 462.6625 2 W 5 W
06 462.6875 2 W 5 W
07 462.7125 2 W 5 W
08 467.5625 0.5 W 0.5 W
09 467.5875 0.5 W 0.5 W
10 467.6125 0.5 W 0.5 W
11 467.6375 0.5 W 0.5 W
12 467.6625 0.5 W 0.5 W
13 467.6875 0.5 W 0.5 W
14 467.7125 0.5 W 0.5 W
15 462.5500 2 W 50 W
16 462.5750 2 W 50 W
17 462.6000 2 W 50 W
18 462.6250 2 W 50 W
19 462.6500 2 W 50 W
20 462.6750 2 W 50 W
21 462.7000 2 W 50 W
22 462.7250 2 W 50 W
  467.5500   50 W
  467.5750   50 W
  467.6000   50 W
  467.6250   50 W
  467.6500   50 W
  467.6750   50 W
  467.7000   50 W
  467.7250   50 W

Many handheld FRS/GMRS radios do not transmit at the maximum power limit. For example, a Motorola T600 has a maximum transmit power of 1.5 W. My Cobra HH450 can transmit on GMRS at 1 W, 2 W, or 3 W.

In September 2017 the FCC combined and standardized the FRS and GMRS frequencies, which codified the common practice used by most manufacturers. Most radios built before September 2017 use the modern channel frequencies in the chart above. Some older GMRS only radios, like the Midland MXT105, don’t transmit on channels 8-14 because those channels were previously designated as FRS only. The good news is that most of those radios just omit those channels from their settings. Channel 20 on the MXT105 works with everybody else’s channel 20.

The last 8 frequencies in the chart, the ones without channel designations, are for use as repeater input frequencies. Many GMRS radios are designed for simplex operation only and can’t transmit on these frequencies.

What is Squelch Anyway?

Because the FCC defined channel numbers for FRS/GMRS frequencies, all manufacturers have adopted the same channel/frequency scheme. However, it’s not so smooth when it comes to the so called privacy codes. Motorola calls them interference eliminator codes. Uniden sometimes calls them sub codes. All these words are synonyms for either analog or digital squelch, and sometimes a synonym for both, which is unfortunate. If you are a ham radio operator, you probably know what squelch means. If the word squelch makes you think of that time you almost threw up and it went all the way up to the back of your throat, don’t worry, it’s not that. Here’s a metaphor to explain.

Say you have 10 friends all in the same room at the same time. You assign two of your friends code 1, two friends code 2, two friends code 3, and so forth. Everyone starts whispering except one person, who starts talking. It’s easier for you to listen to the person talking, because they are louder than everyone else. That’s squelch. Now, everyone starts talking at the same time. If you are assigned to code 4, you try really hard to only listen to the other person who is assigned to code 4. That’s tone squelch. But if you really want to listen to the conversation going on between the two people assigned to code 5, you could do that too. In other words, squelch just tells your radio what to listen for, it has nothing to do with what is transmitted.

You can test this out for yourself if you have two FRS/GMRS radios. Set them both to the same channel, and then set one of them to use privacy code 5. Turn off the privacy code, or set it to 0, on the other radio. When you transmit on the radio with privacy code 5, you will still be able to hear the transmission on the radio with the privacy codes off. But when you transmit on the radio with the privacy codes off, the radio set to privacy code 5 won’t be able to hear. It’s not that the transmission wasn’t sent, it’s just that the radio is ignoring all transmissions without privacy code 5.

There are three basic types of squelch. The first is based on signal strength. The signal received by your radio has to be of a certain strength in order for your radio to decide it’s important enough for you to hear it. Turn the squelch down and you will hear all kinds of fuzzy signals. Turn the squelch up and you will hear only the stronger signals. Some GMRS radios have this kind of squelch, some don’t.

The second type of squelch works by adding a low frequency tone to the transmission. The receiving radio ignores all signals that do not contain the specified tone. The tone is stripped out by the receiving radio before sending the signal to a speaker or headset. The real name for this method of transmission is Continuous Tone-Coded Squelch System or CTCSS. Most modern FRS and GMRS radios have CTCSS, but many of them don’t call it CTCSS.

Digital Coded Squelch or DCS is the third type, and it works by adding a sub-audible digital bitstream to the transmitted audio. The bitstream is used to transmit a code along with the audio. The radio ignores signals that do not include a bitstream with the specified code. Many FRS and GMRS radios, especially the higher end models, have DCS, but like CTCSS, many of these radios don’t call it DCS.

Privacy Codes

In an effort to avoid a long discussion like we just had about CTCSS and DCS, the FRS and GMRS radio manufacturers came up with different words to describe tone or digital squelch. Motorola uses “Private Line” or “PL” codes. They also use “interference eliminator codes”. Radio Shack (remember them?) used to call them “quiet codes”. Many manufacturers call them “privacy codes”, or “sub codes”. These consumer friendly terms refer to both CTCSS and DCS. Which makes everything confusing when trying to figure out how to make radios from different brands talk to each other. To make the description easier from here on out, we’ll just call them privacy codes. Just remember, they have nothing to do with privacy.

You don’t have to use privacy codes. The easiest way to make your different brand radios talk to each other is to turn the privacy codes off. On many radios you turn the privacy code off by setting it to 0.

There are very few radios that don’t have any kind of privacy code. The now discontinued Midland LXT118 was one of them. When using that radio, you hear every transmission on the selected channel, whether they use a privacy code or not. But it also means that nobody using a privacy code can hear you. They have to turn their codes off in order to listen to your transmission.

I love my Cobra HH450. It doesn’t have the FRS-only frequencies because it has a detachable antenna; the FCC doesn’t allow detachable antennas on FRS radios. It has the pre-2017 GMRS channels and it transmits and receives on the marine VHF channels. It’s submersible and receives NOAA weather broadcasts. It’s a great radio to take to the lake. Even better, it doesn’t have “privacy codes”. It has a way to turn on CTCSS and set the tone, or you can turn on DCS and set the code. This approach works great for a ham operator like me, but may be overwhelming for many who purchase these radios. So how do I know which privacy code to use on my Motorola MT351R when I set a CTCSS frequency of 88.5 Hz on the Cobra?

CTCSS-based Privacy Codes

CTCSS works by adding a low frequency tone to the transmitted signal. Radios configured to use CTCSS filter out any signals that don’t contain the designated low frequency tone. The EIA /TIA standardized the frequencies used for CTCSS. Many modern GMRS radios allow you to set the tone frequency directly. For those that don’t, the manufacturer represents the various tone frequencies with a single number “privacy code”, “sub code”, or similar moniker.

After compiling all the data from many brands, I’ve been able to classify the code/frequency mappings into three schemes, which I’ve named Azure, Indigo, and Crimson. As you might guess, the Azure scheme and the Indigo scheme are similar. The following brands use the Azure scheme:

  • Motorola
  • Cobra
  • Midland
  • Uniden
  • Backcountry Access
  • Rocky Talkie

The Indigo scheme is used by RuggedRadios and it shares the same 38 codes with the Azure scheme, but extends it with 13 more codes for a total of 51.

The Crimson scheme is used by:

  • Baofeng - most of their radios select the frequency directly, but some set it using a numbered code
  • Retevis
  • Radioddity

Some older brands have code/frequency mappings that are different than any of these 3 commonly used schemes. I couldn’t fit all these additional mappings onto a single web page without horizontal scrolling, which I dislike. There is a complete map in the CTCSS tab of this Google Sheet. These older brands and models include:

  • Radio Shack
  • Motorola PL - one of the earliest commercial implementations of tone squelch
  • Motorola Sport
  • Cherokee

Tone
Freq (Hz)		 Azure Indigo Crimson
62.5   39  
67.0 1 1 1
69.3   40 2
69.4      
71.9 2 2 3
74.4 3 3 4
77.0 4 4 5
79.7 5 5 6
82.5 6 6 7
85.4 7 7 8
88.5 8 8 9
91.5 9 9 10
94.8 10 10 11
97.4 11 11 12
100.0 12 12 13
103.5 13 13 14
107.2 14 14 15
110.9 15 15 16
114.8 16 16 17
118.8 17 17 18
123.0 18 18 19
127.3 19 19 20
131.8 20 20 21
136.5 21 21 22
141.3 22 22 23
146.2 23 23 24
151.4 24 24 25
156.7 25 25 26
159.8   41 27
162.2 26 26 28
165.5   42 29
167.9 27 27 30
171.3   43 31
173.8 28 28 32
177.3   44 33
177.8      
179.9 29 29 34
183.5   45 35
186.2 30 30 36
189.9   46 37
192.8 31 31 38
196.6   47 39
199.5   48 40
203.5 32 32 41
206.5   49 42
210.7 33 33 43
218.1 34 34 44
225.7 35 35 45
229.1   50 46
233.6 36 36 47
241.8 37 37 48
250.3 38 38 49
254.1   51 50

DCS-based Privacy Codes

Digital Coded Squelch works by transmitting a digital bitstream with the audio. The bitstream is encoded with error correction and can accommodate 512 different squelch codes. These codes are typically represented as an octal (base 8) number. Because it’s octal, the codes are always 3 numbers long, and the first digit can be a zero. Because of the way the codes are packed into the bitstream, there is a possibility of misalignment errors upon decoding. To reduce the potential for decoding errors, most manufacturers only use 83 of the 512 codes. Many brands allow you to set the DCS code directly. Sometimes it is prefaced with a D and followed by an N, like D114N, which is the same as 114

Some radios allow you to use inverted or negative DCS codes (too complicated to explain here), like D172I. Unless you know what inverted codes are, and have a good reason to use them, you should probably avoid them. Note that D071I is not the same as D071N.

Many radios allow you to choose DCS and set a DCS code directly. Some radios have one sequence of numbered privacy codes, and at some magic point in the numbering it switches from CTCSS to DCS. This is how my Motorola MT351R works. Privacy code 38 is CTCSS with a 250.3 Hz tone, privacy code 39 is DCS using code 023. The MT351R has 121 privacy codes 38 CTCSS tones, and 83 DCS codes. Other manufacturers like Midland and Cobra have a separate DCS mode, and the DCS privacy codes start at 1.

After compiling all the data from many brands, I’ve been able to classify the code/frequency mappings into four schemes, which I’ve named Amber, Lime, Jade, and Lilac. As you might guess, the Lime and Jade schemes are similar. The following brands use the Amber scheme:

  • Motorola
  • Uniden
  • Backcountry Access
  • Rocky Talkie

The Lime scheme is used by Cobra and has 83 codes. The Jade scheme shares the 83 codes with the Lime scheme, but extends it with 21 more codes for a total of 104. The Lime scheme is used by:

  • Midland
  • Rugged Radios

The Lilac scheme is used by:

  • Retevis
  • Radioddity - Um, it’s used by their GM-30 radio. Their DB40-G model uses a different map of numbers to DCS codes.

I maintain a detailed map with columns for every brand (and radio if you are Radioddity) in the DCS tab of this Google Sheet.

DCS Code Alternate Amber Lime Jade Lilac
023 D023N 39 1 1 1
025 D025N 40 2 2 2
026 D026N 41 3 3 3
031 D031N 42 4 4 4
032 D032N 43 5 5 5
036 D036N     84 6
043 D043N 44 6 6 7
047 D047N 45 7 7 8
051 D051N 46 8 8 9
053 D053N     85 10
054 D054N 47 9 9 11
065 D065N 48 10 10 12
071 D071N 49 11 11 13
072 D072N 50 12 12 14
073 D073N 51 13 13 15
074 D074N 52 14 14 16
114 D114N 53 15 15 17
115 D115N 54 16 16 18
116 D116N 55 17 17 19
122 D122N     86 20
125 D125N 56 18 18 21
131 D131N 57 19 19 22
132 D132N 58 20 20 23
134 D134N 59 21 21 24
143 D143N 60 22 22 25
145 D145N     87 26
152 D152N 61 23 23 27
155 D155N 62 24 24 28
156 D156N 63 25 25 29
162 D162N 64 26 26 30
165 D165N 65 27 27 31
172 D172N 66 28 28 32
174 D174N 67 29 29 33
205 D205N 68 30 30 34
212 D212N     88 35
223 D223N 69 31 31 36
225 D225N     89 37
226 D226N 70 32 32 38
243 D243N 71 33 33 39
244 D244N 72 34 34 40
245 D245N 73 35 35 41
246 D246N     90 42
251 D251N 74 36 36 43
252 D252N     91 44
255 D255N     92 45
261 D261N 75 37 37 46
263 D263N 76 38 38 47
265 D265N 77 39 39 48
266 D266N     93 49
271 D271N 78 40 40 50
274 D274N     94 51
306 D306N 79 41 41 52
311 D311N 80 42 42 53
315 D315N 81 43 43 54
325 D325N     95 55
331 D331N 82 44 44 56
332 D332N     96 57
343 D343N 83 45 45 58
346 D346N 84 46 46 59
351 D351N 85 47 47 60
356 D356N     97 61
364 D364N 86 48 48 62
365 D365N 87 49 49 63
371 D371N 88 50 50 64
411 D411N 89 51 51 65
412 D412N 90 52 52 66
413 D412N 91 53 53 67
423 D423N 92 54 54 68
431 D431N 93 55 55 69
432 D432N 94 56 56 70
445 D445N 95 57 57 71
446 D446N     98 72
452 D452N     99 73
454 D454N     100 74
455 D455N     101 75
462 D462N     102 76
464 D464N 96 58 58 77
465 D465N 97 59 59 78
466 D466N 98 60 60 79
503 D503N 99 61 61 80
506 D506N 100 62 62 81
516 D516N 101 63 63 82
523 D523N     103 83
526 D526N     104 84
532 D532N 102 64 64 85
546 D546N 103 65 65 86
565 D565N 104 66 66 87
606 D606N 105 67 67 88
612 D612N 106 68 68 89
624 D624N 107 69 69 90
627 D627N 108 70 70 91
631 D631N 109 71 71 92
632 D632N 110 72 72 93
645 D645N       94
654 D654N 111 73 73 95
662 D662N 112 74 74 96
664 D664N 113 75 75 97
703 D703N 114 76 76 98
712 D712N 115 77 77 99
718          
723 D723N 116 78 78 100
731 D731N 117 79 79 101
732 D732N 118 80 80 102
734 D734N 119 81 81 103
743 D743N 120 82 82 104
754 D754N 121 83 83 105

Some Midland radios, like the T70 series, only have 83 DCS privacy codes. Others, like the MXT105, have 104. The first 83 are the same across all Midland radios, but if you pick code 99 on your MXT105, most other radios will have to disable privacy codes in order to hear you.

Hopefully this helps make sense of the sometimes confusing so-called privacy codes on FRS and GMRS radios. If your radio isn’t listed here or if you can confirm or dispute any information on this page, I’d love to hear from you. Email correspondence, suggestions, corrections, or complaints to jared@k0tfu.org.

Changelog

16 Aug 2025

  • Fix error I introduced with CTCSS color scheme mappings. Thanks to Paul R for pointing out the mistake.

14 Aug 2025

  • Re-categorize CTCSS mappings into three schemes: Azure, Indigo, and Crimson
  • Re-categorize DCS mappings into four schemes: Amber, Lime, Jade, and Lilac
  • Extend and confirm all Retevis radios use same mapping as RB15
  • Add Rugged Radio mapping based on information from Tom R.
  • Re-validate Backcountry Access codes and mappings

9 Jun 2021

  • Add Retevis RB15 CTCSS and DCS mappings provided by Tom B.
  • Add Rockie Talkie mapping confirmed by Tom B.
  • Add the Wayback Machine link to Harold Melton’s original page. Thanks to Tim W for the link.

13 Dec 2019

  • Add Backcountry Access Link radios based on information received from Eric KI7WJP. He owns one of these radios, and verified the privacy codes are numbered the same way as Motorola.

Feedback and Sources

This page was inspired by work originally done by Harold Melton KV5R. Unfortunately, his original link no longer works and I can’t seem to find a replacement page on his site. However, his page is preserved by the The Wayback Machine.

I only have a couple of FRS/GMRS radios to test with and the original version of this article was mostly pieced together from owners manuals. Since then several people have written with additional information on new radios and tests with their own equipment. Thanks to everyone who has contributed.

I’ve collected all my data in this Google Sheet, including the simplified tables published in this post. I used Tableizer to create HTML tables because embedded Google Sheets look really terrible.

Contributors

  • Fred E for confirming Baofeng GMRS-V1 CTCSS frequencies.
  • Jared S for confirming Baofeng GMRS-V1 DCS and CTCSS interoperability with a Motorola T600 using these charts.
  • David M for confirming the Midland X-Talker T290 matches the tables in this article.
  • Tim W for the Wayback Machine link to Harold Melton’s original page.
  • Eric KI7WJP for providing verified Backcountry Access CTCSS and DCS codes.
  • Tom B for confirming Retevis RB15 and Rockie Talkie codes and providing links to owners manuals.
  • Tom R for confirming Rugged Radio mappings
  • Paul R for pointing out an error I introduced in Aug 2025

Owners Manuals

Other Sources