How to Share Your Location With Family on an iPhone
Sharing your location lets a trusted person see where you are on a map. Many families find it a comfort during a trip, a drive in bad weather or a walk to a new place. You choose who sees it, and you can stop at any time. These steps are for the Find My app on a recent iPhone. Screens may look a little different on older versions of iOS.
How to Share Your Location
- Open the Find My app.
- Tap People.
- Tap the Add button (a plus sign), then choose Share My Location.
- In the To field, type the person’s name, or tap the add-contact button and pick them from your contacts.
- Tap Send or Done, then choose how long to share your location.
Apple says that to set an end time, you can choose Custom and adjust the fields. If the app asks, make sure Location Services is turned on for Find My in Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services.
How to Stop Sharing
- Open Find My and tap People.
- Tap the person’s name.
- Tap Stop Sharing My Location, then confirm.
To hide your location from everyone at once, tap Me and turn off Share My Location.
A Few Cautions
- Share only with people you know and trust. Anyone you add can see where you are.
- Never share your location with someone who contacted you out of the blue, even if they claim to be from a bank, a company or the government.
- Check your list now and then, and remove anyone who no longer needs to see it.
Android phones have location sharing too. Google’s help pages explain that it is off by default and that you pick who can see it. Check support.google.com for the steps for your phone.
While you are in the Find My app, you can also set it up to help find a lost phone. See our guide: How to Find a Lost iPhone or Android Phone.
