The Complete Guide to Geofencing for Fleet Management

Geofencing—creating virtual boundaries around real-world locations—is one of the most versatile features in modern fleet management. Yet many operators barely scratch the surface of what’s possible.

This guide covers everything you need to know to get maximum value from geofencing.

What is Geofencing?

A geofence is a virtual perimeter around a physical location. When a vehicle enters or exits this boundary, the system can trigger actions—sending alerts, logging timestamps, or updating status.

Think of geofences as invisible tripwires that give you automatic visibility into vehicle movements at key locations.

Common Use Cases

Job Site Monitoring

Use case: Track when vehicles arrive and depart from customer locations.

Benefits:

Automatic proof of service delivery
Accurate time-on-site reporting
Early warning when visits run long

How to set it up: Create geofences around each customer location. Set up entry/exit notifications for dispatchers and automatic timestamp logging for invoicing.

Unauthorized Use Detection

Use case: Get alerted when vehicles leave approved areas.

Benefits:

Prevent personal use of company vehicles
Catch theft attempts immediately
Ensure compliance with operating territories

How to set it up: Create large geofences around your approved operating area. Alert on exits during non-business hours or unauthorized times.

Yard Management

Use case: Know which vehicles are in the yard vs. on the road.

Benefits:

Real-time fleet availability
Automatic in/out logging
Simplified key and asset management

How to set it up: Create a geofence around your depot. Use the dashboard to see yard inventory at a glance.

Customer ETAs

Use case: Automatically notify customers when drivers are approaching.

Benefits:

Improved customer experience
Reduced “where’s my delivery?” calls
More accurate appointment windows

How to set it up: Create geofences at key distances from delivery points (e.g., 15 minutes away). Trigger automatic notifications via webhook integration.

Best Practices

Size Matters

Too small: You’ll get false negatives from GPS drift
Too large: You’ll get premature triggers
Just right: 50-100 meter radius for most applications

Layer Your Geofences

Create multiple zones around important locations:

Inner zone: “Arrived at destination”
Outer zone: “Approaching destination”

Use Descriptive Names

Good: “Customer - Acme Corp - 123 Main St” Bad: “Zone 47”

Your future self will thank you.

Review and Refine

Geofences aren’t “set and forget.” Review your alert history monthly:

Are you getting too many false positives?
Are geofences in the right locations?
Have customer locations changed?

Advanced Techniques

Time-Based Rules

Not all geofences should be active 24/7. Set up rules like:

Alert on warehouse entry after 8pm
Only track job site visits during business hours
Different rules for weekends vs. weekdays

Route Corridors

Instead of point-based geofences, create corridor geofences along expected routes. Alert when vehicles deviate from the approved path.

Integration Triggers

Use geofence events to trigger external systems:

Update CRM when arriving at customer
Start billing timer on job site entry
Send automatic dispatch of next stop

Getting Started with MUFE

We’re building MUFE to make geofencing simple:

Click anywhere on the map to create a geofence
Choose your shape (circle, polygon, or route)
Set up your alerts and integrations
You’re done!

Get early access and be among the first to try our geofencing features.

Interested in how geofencing could work for your fleet? Reach out — we’d love to hear your use case.