How to turn off location on iPhone: for every app, one app, people and photos

The short answer#

To turn off location on iPhone, open Settings, tap Privacy & Security, tap Location Services, and turn off the switch at the top. Confirm with Turn Off. Apps and system features then can't use your location in the foreground or the background.

That's the biggest switch, and often not the one you need. Most people want one of these instead:

Turn off Location Services completely#

1. 1

   Open Location Services

   Open Settings, tap Privacy & Security, then tap Location Services.
2. 2

   Turn off the top switch

   Tap Turn Off to confirm. The location arrow disappears from your status bar.

To turn it back on, return to the same screen and switch it on. Your per-app choices are kept.

Your iPhone may still share your location when you make an emergency call, regardless of this setting, so responders can find you.

Turn off location for one app#

This is the better option for most people: keep Maps working, cut off the apps that don't need to know where you are.

1. 1

   Open Location Services

   Settings, Privacy & Security, Location Services. Make sure the top switch is on.
2. 2

   Tap the app

   Scroll down the list of apps that have asked for your location.
3. 3

   Choose an option

   Pick one of the four settings below.

Apps set to Always are the ones to check first. Apple says iOS reminds you now and then when an app uses your location in the background, and shows the places on a map.

Share your rough area instead of your exact location

Weather or shopping apps rarely need your exact spot. On the same app screen, turn off Precise Location. The app then gets only your approximate area.

Stop sharing your location with people#

Location Services and location sharing are different things. Sharing is what lets family or friends see you in Find My, Messages, Maps and Contacts. You can stop it in a few ways.

1. 1

   Open Find My

   Open the Find My app.
2. 2

   Pause, stop for one person, or stop for everyone

   To pause: tap People, tap the person, then Hide Location. To stop for one person: tap People, tap the person, then Stop Sharing My Location. To stop for everyone: tap Me, then turn off Share My Location.

You can also stop sharing from Messages (open the conversation, tap the person's name, then Stop Sharing My Location) or from Contacts (tap the person, then Stop Sharing My Location).

Can you stop sharing your location without them knowing?

Not reliably, and it's better to know that up front. Apple says the people you shared with may notice that you've stopped, and on older software they may get a message saying so. Your location simply disappears from their Find My, Maps, Contacts and Messages.

Hide Location pauses sharing with one person, but Apple says sharing automatically resumes the next day.

Check who gets notified when you move

In Find My, tap Me and look for Notifications About You. If it's there, someone has set up an alert for when you arrive at or leave a place. Select a name to see it, and delete any you don't want.

Stop photos saving your location#

Every photo you take can record exactly where you took it, inside the file. Anyone you send the original photo to can see that location.

1. 1

   Open Location Services

   Settings, Privacy & Security, Location Services.
2. 2

   Tap Camera

   Choose Never. New photos won't record a location.

Photos you already took keep their location. To check one, use our free photo location finder, and to strip location and other details before sending, use the photo metadata remover. Both run in your browser, and your photo is never uploaded.

Turn off Significant Locations#

Your iPhone keeps a private list of places you visit often, used for things like traffic predictions and Memories in Photos. To see or clear it:

1. 1

   Open System Services

   Settings, Privacy & Security, Location Services, then scroll to the bottom and tap System Services.
2. 2

   Tap Significant Locations

   Unlock with Face ID or your passcode. You can clear the history and turn the feature off.

While you're in System Services, you can turn off other system uses of your location, such as location-based suggestions and alerts, if you don't use them.

Stop your iPhone being found when it's off#

When Find My iPhone is on, your iPhone can be located through the Find My network for up to 24 hours after it's powered off or disconnected. That's useful if it's stolen, but it also means someone with access to your Apple Account could see where it is.

To turn it off: open Settings, tap your name, then Find My, then Find My iPhone, and turn off Find My network. Apple warns that you then can't locate, lock or erase your iPhone if it's lost or stolen while powered off, so only do this if you need to.

Reset all location settings#

To start again, open Settings, tap General, then Transfer or Reset iPhone, tap Reset, then Reset Location & Privacy. Every app loses its location permission and has to ask again.

Frequently asked questions#

Does turning off Location Services stop sharing my location?

It stops your iPhone from working out where you are, so apps and Find My can't get your current location. It's a blunt way to do it: to stop people seeing you, it's clearer to stop sharing in Find My. Apple also suggests turning off Location Services if the Find My app has been deleted, to make sure your location isn't being shared.

How do I turn off location for one person without them knowing?

There's no guaranteed silent way. Apple says people may notice you've stopped sharing. Hide Location pauses sharing with one person, but it resumes automatically the next day.

Can someone still track my iPhone with location off?

Apps, including Find My, can't use Location Services to get your current location. Your carrier can still see which cell towers your iPhone connects to, and your location may be used for emergency calls.

Why is the location arrow still showing?

An app or system feature is using your location. Open Settings, Privacy & Security, Location Services to see which apps have used it recently.

How do I turn off location on photos?

Set Camera to Never in Settings, Privacy & Security, Location Services. For photos you've already taken, remove the location before sharing them.

What is Precise Location?

A per-app setting. With it off, the app gets only your approximate area instead of your exact spot.

The bottom line#

For most people, turning off location means setting the apps that don't need it to Never, turning off Precise Location for the rest, and setting Camera to Never so photos don't carry your location. To stop people seeing where you are, stop sharing in Find My, and expect that they may notice. Save the big Location Services switch for when you really need everything off.