Various papers and professional literature describe plenty of methods of locating the exact place of the earth fault in a compensated medium-voltage (MV) network. However, the usability of these methods is very polemic – from the perspective of achieved accuracy, as well as extreme investment demands. Information on practical experience and results from the actual operation are rarely published at all. Handheld earth fault location finder (device) is an innovative and highly functional alternative to static earth fault locators for overhead MV lines. The device enables a contactless determination of the relative earth fault location in relation to the specific place of measurement. With sequential measurements in right positions, it is possible to get to the fault location very quickly. This study describes the function and possibilities of the handheld device, as well as practical experience with locating both the actual and the experimental earth faults in the MV network.