(Original post from 2015, updated December 2019)
Now that I’ve been using iOS family sharing features for a while, I’m finding it isn’t quite as bad as I thought it would be. I wrote earlier about the “Pros and Cons” of iOS Family Sharing. This post builds upon that one, but focuses on one feature in particular that I’ve found useful: location sharing. With location sharing, you can check the location of family members, without the need for an extra app on your device or theirs.
First, a quick review. Family Sharing was introduced with iOS 8. With family sharing, family members with different Apple ID’s can group their accounts together and share music, books, photos, calendars, and their locations. Most of this works well, and there are only a few things that I think could work better, all of which is outlined in my earlier article.
But now on to Family Location sharing. I know I know, based on comments I receive daily on other articles, some people are going to say, “That’s spying! Don’t stalk your kids’ every move!” And some might say “gee, now my spouse can track my whereabouts, I don’t think I like that very much”. These are valid points and certainly something to think about before using this feature. Whether you want to use it will certainly be based on your parenting style, how old your children are, whether they are out of the home without you for long periods of time, and whether they are driving.
As mentioned in a comment left on another post recently, “Trust is earned…but verified.” (Thanks Bonus Dad). Using family sharing and location sharing doesn’t mean I don’t trust my daughter; it’s just convenient to know I can verify her whereabouts if needed.
How to use Location Sharing as part of iOS Family Sharing
(These instructions have been updated to reflect how things work in iOS 13).
- First, set up family sharing (Settings> Your Name > Set up Family Sharing). Invite your family members. Once set up it should look like:
- Then Enable “Share My Location” – go to Settings> Your Name > Find My, select “Share My Location”. If you have more than one device that uses your Apple ID, you can choose which device (for example, iPhone or iPad).
Now that you’ve enabled location sharing, family members (those you’ve added in step 1) can view your location from Messages or from the “Find My” app. Make sure all family members have accepted your invitation and have turned on their location sharing as well.
Share and View Locations in Messages
You can now use iMessage to view a family member’s location. Select a recent iMessage from a family member, select their name at the top under their photo and then click “info”. If this person has turned on their location sharing, you’ll see their location on a map.
Tip: you can also share your location with someone who is NOT in your family, just by clicking Send My Current Location, or Share My Location. You can choose how long they can view your location…use this one judiciously if not a close friend!
Share and View Locations in the new “Find My” app.
Prior to iOS 13, you would first have to download “Find My Friends” from the app store. Starting with iOS 13, “Find My Phone” and “Find My Friends” have been combined into one app called “Find My”. This comes with iOS 13 so there is nothing to download.
You’ll see each family member’s location on a map as long as their device is turned on and connected to Wi-Fi or 3G/4G.
Receive a notification when a family member leaves or arrives at a location
Once you see your family member on a map, select their name for more options. You can bring up their contact information, get directions to their current location, and set up Notifications.
I find “Notify Me” a useful feature. You can set up a notification when someone leaves their current location, or arrives at another location. Click Add to set up a notification, and then “Notify Me”:
In this example, I’ll get a notification when Zoe arrives in New York City. (No, I am no longer tracking my college-aged daughter with this method – just using these screenshots for demonstration purposes!)
You can also:
- Edit a Location name for a specific location, such as “Home” or “School”. This makes it easier to quickly set up notifications in the future, such as “Notify me when Chippy arrives at School”.
- Set up a “reverse” notification of sorts by clicking “Notify (family member’s name) and then your family member will receive a notification when YOU leave a particular location. You can even set this up to Repeat each time you arrive at a certain location
How to Stop Sharing Your Location
“This is all great, but I’m on a secret mission and don’t want anyone to find me! Can I turn off Location Sharing? “
Sure! If you want to disable Location Sharing, just go back to Settings > Your Name > Find My, and turn the feature off.
With iOS 13, the consolidated “Find My” app makes keeping track of your family’s location easy, with no additional programs to download. For previous versions of iOS, you can still use Family Sharing with “Find My Friends” to keep track of your family’s whereabouts.
