A mesh tarp is used typically with materials or objects that do need some protection but can be exposed to some sunlight and water. One common use for a mesh tarp is as a truck tarp, and that can be as a flatbed truck tarp or as a dump truck tarp. Mesh tarps are used to transport materials like sand and gravel that can be exposed to sun and water, while materials that need protection from water are often covered with a polyethylene tarp.

A mesh tarp can be used around the home as a canopy and as a garden tarp – both of which would utilize a steel canopy frame. As a garden tarp, a mesh tarp is beneficial for outdoor plants that require only a small amount of sunlight. This can be for ferns, holly, bleeding hearts, and other outdoor plants that require shade to grow. As an outdoor canopy, a mesh tarp can be used instead of a polyester or polyethylene covering for a tent to allow some sunlight and air in but will still provide shade.

Mesh tarps are further used in the construction industry much like a truck tarp. But outside of simply covering materials that can be exposed to water, a heavy duty mesh tarp is used as a privacy fence tarp. This type of mesh tarp is constructed out of the came polypropylene knit as an ordinary mesh tarp, only the material blocks 80 percent of sunlight. These tarps typically line the fence of a construction site to keep materials from blowing out, which is particularly important for construction sites directly next to the sidewalk in urban areas. These privacy fence tarps are six feet tall and fifty feet long, and this size makes them ideal for protecting pedestrians and lining the edge of a fence.