Since 2018, you are no longer limited to using only 8 channels with PMR446 transceivers/walkie talkies, but - thanks to an EU regulation - you can also use up to 16 channels, or even 32 channels if you have dPMR devices.
The table below shows which channel represents which frequency. For programming industrial PMR radios, this guide is particularly useful.
It is important to note that PMR446 radios have an output power of 0.5 W and a fixed, non-interchangeable antenna installed by the factory, and their frequency range cannot be modified.
ANALOGUE MODE
Analogue PMR446 channels range from 446,000 to 446,200 MHz with 12.5 kHz separation.
Channel number Frequency (MHz)
| 1 | 446.00625 |
| 2 | 446.01875 |
| 3 | 446.03125 |
| 4 | 446.04375 |
| 5 | 446.05625 |
| 6 | 446.06875 |
| 7 | 446.08125 |
| 8 | 446.09375 |
| 9 | 446.10625 |
| 10 | 446.11875 |
| 11 | 446.13125 |
| 12 | 446.14375 |
| 13 | 446.15625 |
| 14 | 446.16875 |
| 15 | 446.18125 |
| 16 | 446.19375 |
DMR SUMMARY
PMR446 DMR using Tier1 mode from 446.000 to 446.200 MHz with 12.5 kHz separation.
Channel number Frequency (MHz)
| 1 | 446.00625 |
| 2 | 446.01875 |
| 3 | 446.03125 |
| 4 | 446.04375 |
| 5 | 446.05625 |
| 6 | 446.06875 |
| 7 | 446.08125 |
| 8 | 446.09375 |
| 9 | 446.10625 |
| 10 | 446.11875 |
| 11 | 446.13125 |
| 12 | 446.14375 |
| 13 | 446.15625 |
| 14 | 446.16875 |
| 15 | 446.18125 |
| 16 | 446.19375 |
Digital PMR devices can also be operated in DMR mode, but only in Tier-1 mode.
dPMR SUMMARY
Digital PMR446 (dPMR) channels between 446.000 – 446.200 MHz with 6.25 kHz separation.
Channel number Frequency (MHz)
| 1 | 446.003125 |
| 2 | 446.009375 |
| 3 | 446.015625 |
| 4 | 446.021875 |
| 5 | 446.028125 |
| 6 | 446.034375 |
| 7 | 446.040625 |
| 8 | 446.046875 |
| 9 | 446.053125 |
| 10 | 446.059375 |
| 11 | 446.065625 |
| 12 | 446.071875 |
| 13 | 446.078125 |
| 14 | 446.084375 |
| 15 | 446.090625 |
| 16 | 446.096875 |
| 17 | 446.103125 |
| 18 | 446.109375 |
| 19 | 446.115625 |
| 20 | 446.121875 |
| 21 | 446.128125 |
| 22 | 446.134375 |
| 23 | 446.140625 |
| 24 | 446.146875 |
| 25 | 446.153125 |
| 26 | 446.159375 |
| 27 | 446.165625 |
| 28 | 446.171875 |
| 29 | 446.178125 |
| 30 | 446.184373 |
| 31 | 446.190625 |
| 32 | 446.196875 |
Due to the dPMR transmission mode, the channels are closer together, so 32 channels can be used instead of 16. Of course, dPMR radios can also operate in analogue mode, but in this case only 16 channels can be used.
DPMR radios have a lot of features that analogue radios do not have, such as encryption, SMS, talkgroups and ID identification.
Important: dPMR radios are not compatible with DMR radios. Furthermore, radios from different manufacturers may use different 4FSK dPMR modes (especially smaller radios from the Far East are not compatible with dPMR radios from Motorola or other larger manufacturers).
