How to share location from iPhone

With the Find My app, iPhone owners can share their location and find their friends who accept it. We explain how to share your location on iPhone

Smartphones have brought many advantages to our daily life, starting with the internet connection that is available anywhere, anytime. They also replaced maps thanks to the built-in GPS, which makes it possible to geolocate and find your way anywhere. You still have to know where you want to go, and when it comes to meeting friends, it’s not always easy to just enter a specific address to follow the direction.

This is why Apple introduces the Locate app, which was originally available in iOS 13. This replaces apps’Find my iPhone” And “find my friends»From previous versions to find in the same place … his iPhone and his friends. Maher! Note that this is also possible from an Android smartphone, but that is not the topic of this article.

One of the interests of this application is the ability to share its geolocation with another iPhone, Mac or iPad, thus allowing other people to join us without having to indicate the address. A very useful function for finding friends when you are lost in the middle of nowhere, or in the middle of a crowded beach, for example.

Here we explain how to share your location with your friends and make reunions easy!

How to share location from iPhone

To get started, open the app Locate from your iPhone. It installs as standard on iOS 13, so you won’t have to go through the App Store to get it.

When you open the app, Accept that he is accessing your site (Otherwise, it won’t be able to locate you, CQFD). Then it’s up to you whether or not you want them in the background too. If you decline, the app will only locate you when it’s open. If you agree, it can see where you are during the entire location sharing period and relay your location to your friends, even if you lock your iPhone or switch to another app. Please understand that if you decline this option, you will have to leave the app open until it is located.

When these actions are completed, the app takes you to its home screen and presents you with three tabs:

Unpaid invoice the people That is what interests us here. It allows you to share your current location with your iCloud contacts. To enable the feature, tap Share my site. Your contact list appears with a compatible device (iPhone, Mac, or iPad). Then select one or more and press Sends.

You must specify the time frame for participation: you have the choice between an hour, a day or an indefinite period. You can, of course, deactivate it yourself afterwards even if the chosen period has not completely expired. We’d be tempted to advise against the option.”indefinitelyEspecially if you have consented to the app accessing your location in the background, in order to avoid consuming too much battery.

When you choose the duration of the post, it will start and your friend will receive a notification. This will then be able to pinpoint your exact location on the map. This makes it easy to find or guide you.

Share your position by SMS from iPhone

It is also possible to share your location by SMS directly from the Messages app. Not only does this mean that you don’t have to switch apps if you’re already chatting with a friend, but it also lets you message your location to a contact who doesn’t have an iPhone.

To do this, open a discussion on Messages, click on your contact’s photo at the top of the window and click on “Submit my current locationDirectly below the connection options. A link to your location on Apple Maps will then be sent to your friend.

There are other ways to share your location, too. Many applications integrate this functionality. This is for example the case of messaging applications such as WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger, but also Google Maps that allow you to share a position or a trip.

Finally, note that you can activate real-time location sharing in the Family Sharing configuration for iOS 16 (and more). It’s easy to always know where your offspring are!

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