Sharing your location on an iPhone lets friends or family see where you are, either as a one-time drop or an ongoing update. You can do it from Messages, the Find My app, or Maps depending on what you need.
What you'll need
- Your iPhone
- Location Services turned on
- The other person's contact
Step by step
- Turn on Location ServicesOpen Settings, go to Privacy and Security, then Location Services, and make sure it is switched on so sharing can work.
- Share from MessagesOpen a conversation, tap the contact name at the top, then choose Share My Location and pick one hour, until end of day, or indefinitely.
- Or use the Find My appOpen Find My, go to the People tab, tap Share My Location, enter the person, and send. They can then see you on their map.
- Send a one-time pin from MapsIn Maps, tap your blue location dot, choose Share My Location, and pick an app to send a single snapshot of where you are now.
- Stop sharing when doneReturn to the same contact in Messages or Find My and choose Stop Sharing My Location to end ongoing updates.
Handy tips
- Ongoing sharing updates as you move, while a Maps pin is a fixed one-time location.
- The other person can share back so you both see each other on the map.
- Set sharing to one hour when you only need it for meeting up, so it ends on its own.
Heads up
- Sharing indefinitely keeps broadcasting your location until you manually turn it off. Review who you are sharing with periodically.
FAQ
Can the other person tell when I stop sharing?
They are not sent a specific alert, but your location simply disappears from their Find My or Messages view once you stop.
Does sharing my location drain the battery?
It uses some battery because it relies on GPS, but the effect is usually small. Turning off ongoing sharing when you no longer need it helps.
Can I share my location with someone who has an Android phone?
Find My and Messages location sharing work between Apple devices. To share with an Android user, send a pin through Google Maps or a similar cross-platform app.