Though location sharing might have seemed like a novelty a few years ago, it’s now an integral way of communicating with others using your iPhone. Whether you’re sending your current location to a family member or requesting someone’s location for walking directions, location sharing helps you stay connected online and in person.
Way back when, you might’ve only been able to share your location using a Maps app or a third-party program. Now, Apple has features like the Find My app built into its devices so you can share location data in the messages app and other programs.
From sending a location request to putting a person’s location into Maps, here’s what you need to know about how to share location on iPhone.
Location Sharing Types
There are several different ways to share your location on iPhone. You can tap Share in your Maps app, send location data to a group message, or send ongoing location data using the “Share My Location” feature.
Share a one-time location
For starters, if you’re in Messages or Maps, you can share your location on a single-use basis. This option is useful for getting a one-time view of your location and is helpful both when sharing your location and requesting someone else’s location.
Share an ETA
Within Messages and Maps, you can share your ETA with the person in your chat. Depending on the app, you can do this in several different ways.
In Maps, search for where you want to go, start navigating, and tap the Route card. At the bottom of this card, you’ll see the “Share ETA” card, which will also share your current location and turn-by-turn directions.
Set up a Check-In
If you’re in the Messages app, you can use the “Check In” feature to let friends and family know when you’ve arrived at a specific destination, though this won’t show your real-time location. You can also set up what a person will see if you don’t successfully complete a check-in. For instance, you can tap Settings to share your last location, battery level, signal strength, and much more.
Friends and family members in the Apple ecosystem can also turn on the “Check In” feature and share this data back with you.
Turn on Live Location sharing
Then, there’s ongoing sharing. Sometimes, when sharing your location, you want to provide accurate, real-time info that lets people know where you are and when. In the Apple Find My app and your Messages, you can tap Share Live Location Information and send that to a person in your contacts.
When you’re done, you can stop sharing your location when you tap Stop Sharing. This option gives you greater control over who can see your location.
Share your location in Maps on iPhone
There are location-sharing options in the built-in Maps app and the Google Maps application. With a quick tap request, you can send locations, pins, destinations, and real-time location information to your friends and family members.
To share your current location, press and hold the Maps icon on the Home Screen, then tap “Send My Location.” This will quickly send a location pin to the name of the person you select.
Using the built-in Maps option helps you share your immediate location with friends and family, and you can also share your estimated time of arrival separately with this method alongside turn-by-turn directions. Similarly, a friend, family member, or other person can share their location with you via Maps and you can use the app to navigate directly to the pin.
Share your real-time location via a text on your iPhone
Have you ever been in a messages conversation when suddenly, someone’s location appears in your chat window? That’s because they just shared their live location data. With newer iPhone models, iMessage has location data baked into the functionality.
Since iMessage incorporates location sharing directly into conversations, users can share their current or live locations for a specific duration with individual contacts or group chats. You can use these text message features to meet up, coordinate travel plans, or let others know where you are.
In a conversation or text message, tap the + button within the chat and tap Location. Then, tap the Map Pin button, select Send Pin, and include the Pin in your next message.
Note that this applies to iOS 16 or later. iOS 15 and earlier models could share your location by tapping the person’s name in a chat and selecting Send My Current Location.
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