Assessment of Low-Cost GNSS Receiver Performance in Urban Environments

Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) enables positioning accuracies ranging from meter-level to sub-centimeter, traditionally achieved using geodetic-grade receivers. However, the high cost of such instruments still limits their accessibility in many practical applications. In this context, the recent development of multi-frequency, multi-constellation low-cost GNSS receivers has opened new perspectives for cost-effective high-precision positioning, although their performance in challenging environments remains to be fully assessed. This study evaluates the performance of a multi-frequency low-cost (LC) GNSS receiver (u-blox ZED-F9P with ANN-MB-00 patch antenna) in comparison with a geodetic-grade device (GD), Trimble R12. Experiments were conducted in two representative urban environments: a semi-open area (ST1) and an obstructed area characterized by buildings and vegetation (ST2). Both static relative positioning and Network Real-Time Kinematic (NRTK) techniques were investigated, using the geodetic receiver as a reference. Signal quality was assessed in terms of carrier-to-noise ratio (C/N0) and multipath (MP) errors. In static positioning, millimeter-level agreement with the geodetic solution is achieved in horizontal components under favorable conditions, while errors increase to the centimeter level in obstructed environments. The NRTK results confirm this behavior, with sub-centimeter horizontal dispersion in semi-open conditions and a degradation up to the centimeter level in the obstructed environment. The vertical component consistently exhibits the largest errors, with systematic biases and higher variability, confirming its greater sensitivity to environmental effects. Overall, the results highlight the potential of multi-frequency LC GNSS receivers for high-precision applications under favorable conditions, while emphasizing their sensitivity to multipath and signal obstruction in urban environments. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2027.