How to enter coordinates and navigate to a point in the field
You have a coordinate and need to find it in the field. The key is entering it in the right CRS and checking tolerance.
Field takeaways
- Know whether coordinates are degrees or metres.
- TUREF/TM, UTM, ED50 and WGS84 must not be mixed.
- Phone GPS can guide roughly; precise stake-out needs RTK or total station.
- Tolerance, control and photo records matter.
- MapLab Survey keeps target points, guidance, notes and exports together.
Before you set off
Check the coordinate system of the target. A correct coordinate in the wrong system will take you confidently to the wrong place.
Approaching
Use the distance readout as the main guide. In the last few metres walk slowly: the position settles better when moving steadily than when turning on the spot.
When to stop
Stop when you are inside the agreed tolerance, not when the screen shows zero. Record the point you reached and its difference from the target.
When the reading will not settle
Near walls, trees and pylons the position jumps several metres while you stand still. Step away from the obstruction, let it stabilise, then return to the point.
See it in action
MapLab Survey | Professional Mobile GIS, GPS Surveying & Land Measurement App
Visit the YouTube channel ->Try these steps on your own phone.
MapLab Survey handles RTK/GNSS point capture, drawing, area and volume calculations and coordinate conversion, then exports to DXF, KML/KMZ, GeoJSON, Shapefile, GeoPackage, NCZ or CSV. Capture, calculation and export work offline. Live NTRIP corrections and online basemaps need a connection.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the point in the wrong place?
Usually the CRS or coordinate unit is wrong.
Can a phone navigate to a coordinate?
For rough approach yes; precise stake-out needs RTK or total station.
What should be recorded?
Target coordinate, residual, tolerance, control, date, crew and photo.
Technical references
The field guidance in this article is aligned with the technical and official references below.
Related: Stake-out · Stake-out report · TUREF, UTM, ITRF selection · MapLab Survey