Are you in a situation where you must share your location with your friends or family? Are you worried about doing it unnecessarily? Is sharing your location between your iPhone and a friend’s Android challenging? If yes, then this article contains the solution to the above challenge.
How to Enable Location Sharing Between Apple iOS And Android devices?
We’ll have experienced a situation where we must guide our distant relative or friend to a destination (home). The situation becomes more complex when the other party owns a different smartphone. So if you’re trying to share location from iPhone to Android or vice-versa, you’ll find that there isn’t any corresponding feature or option.
Fortunately, multiple apps are available now that help us to share our exact location in real-time. This article will focus primarily on the three most popular apps-
- Google Maps.
- WhatsApp Messenger
- Facebook Messenger.
These apps provide us with various features such as sharing real-time locations, searching for a spot to share, or manually sharing a static place.
- Share your Location from iPhone to Android with Google Maps App.
- Share your Location from iPhone to Android With WhatsApp
- Share your Location from iPhone to Android with Facebook Messenger App
Additionally, this article will shed some light on some popular third-party apps. These apps are a great addition, especially if you have kids or teenagers in your house.
Using Google Maps is the most reliable method of location sharing between an iPhone and an Android smartphone. Almost all Android phones come pre-installed with this software, but iOS users can also get it. You can quickly enable the location sharing option to share your location with someone else in real-time.
Since Google Maps and Android come from the same source, there isn’t much to say about the app being the default navigation app on Android phones. But Apple iOS devices don’t have the Google Maps app pre-installed, as iPhones or any other Apple devices have their map navigation app.
However, there is no restriction on downloading the Google Maps app for Apple users. The great thing about Google Maps, apart from its accuracy, is safety. You can determine the duration you want your location to be visible to another person.
Let’s look at the steps using which you can share location from iPhone to Android devices with your family and friends.
- First, download and install the Google Maps app from the Apple App Store.
- Now launch the app from the app drawer. Tap “Allow while using the app” when prompted.
- To access the location sharing feature, you must access your current location. For iOS devices, tap on the “Blue Arrow” icon in the bottom-right corner. For Android devices, tap on the “cross-hair” icon in the bottom right corner of the screen.
- You’ll see an eye-catching “blue dot” on the map. This blue dot indicates your current location. Tap on it.
- Tap “Share your location.”
- Now specify the duration (minimum of 15 minutes and maximum of 1 day) you want to share your location with someone. You can also choose the “Until you turn this off” option for permanent sharing.
- Select the person (name with Gmail address) you want to share your location with. You can do this easily by tapping on the person’s name or contact info in the list, as shown in the below image.
- Or you can also share a link with the concerned person. Select an app via which you want to share the link. Then, tap Share.
Note- To share location from iPhone to Android, you must have the recipient’s Google Account.
Alternatively, you can share the location tracking link with someone who doesn’t have a Google account.
- Launch the “Google Maps” app.
- Tap your profile picture in the top right corner of the screen.
- Select “Location sharing.”
- Tap on the New Share icon in the bottom right corner of the screen.
- Specify the duration, and select the person you want to share your location with.
- Tap “Share.”
Whatsapp is the most popular instant messaging app worldwide. With approx. 2 billion monthly users, it’s in the 1st position of the ranking.
With Whatsapp, you can enjoy various features like sharing files (images, documents, audio, and video clips), group chats, etc.
Besides this, Whatsapp also allows users to share their position/location with others.
And the best thing about WhatsApp is its compatibility with multiple platforms. This cross-platform feature allows users to share their location with family and friends, regardless of whether it is an iPhone or Android device.
Let’s look at the steps that enable you to share location from iPhone to Android.
- Download and install WhatsApp from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store.
- Navigate to the Chats tab.
- Tap on the individual chat or group chat icon you want to share your location with.
- If you’re using an iPhone, tap the “plus” icon in the screen’s bottom-left corner. For Android users, tap on the “paperclip” icon in the bottom right corner.
- Select “location.”
- Enable the Location Services permissions for WhatsApp. You can choose “Always allow access to your location” or “Allow only when using the app.”
- Choose “share Live location,” then tap Continue.
- Specify the duration you want your location to be visible to the concerned person.
- Now tap the green button in the bottom right corner to enable the location sharing feature.
- After completing the previous step, you can see your location appearing in the chat. Please tap on the location and open it on Google Maps.
- To disable the location sharing feature, tap “Stop Sharing.”
Facebook Messenger app is as famous as the WhatsApp instant messaging app. It is even more so in the North American region. Besides instant messaging and sharing features, the app allows users to share their live location.
The Facebook Messenger app gives you access to many advanced features to share your location with your friends and family. And like WhatsApp, the Facebook Messenger app is also a cross-platform service. With this feature, you can easily share location from iPhone to Android or vice-versa.
Let’s look at some of the options that this app provides us with.
- Use the search bar and enter a location. You can then share this location with others. This feature works great when you want to share a different place from your current location.
- Manually share a static location using the Facebook Messenger app. You can use this feature if you don’t want to share your live location with the other party. Tap the “pin” icon in the bottom right corner. Drag the pin on the map and release it to a place of your choice. Finally, tap the “Send Location” button.
- If you want to share your current location in real-time, tap on the “Start Sharing Live Location” button at the bottom of the list.
Let’s look at the steps that allow you to share your current location using the Facebook Messenger app on an iPhone.
- Launch the Messenger app on your iPhone. Download and install the app from App Store if you don’t have it.
- Navigate to the “Chats” section.
- Tap on the chat or conversion with the concerned person you want to share your location with.
- Tap on the plus icon in the bottom left corner of the app.
- Go to the location tab by tapping on the “diagonal arrow” icon.
- Tap “Allow When Using App.”
- Now you’ll have three options- “Start Sharing Live Location,” search for a spot to share, or share your current location. Here, tap “Start Sharing Live Location.”
- Select “Stop Sharing Location” to disable the location sharing feature.
You can follow the instructions below if you want to share your location using the Messenger app on Android.
- Launch the Messenger app on your Android. Download and install the app from Google Play Store if you don’t have it.
- Navigate to the “Chats” tab.
- Tap on the chat or conversation of the concerned person you want to share your location with.
- Tap on the four circles icon in the bottom left corner of the screen.
- Tap “Location.”
- Tap “Allow Location Access” and “Allow While Using App.”
- Select “Start Sharing Live Location.”
In this section, you’ll learn about a popular third-party app that allows you to share locations from iPhone to Android. With this app, you can easily keep track of the locations of your family members and share real-time locations with friends and colleagues.
Life360 is a popular family-based app primarily focusing on keeping track of family members. This app allows users to create a virtual family group and share real-time locations with other members. This app is free. You can also avail of additional features like unlimited place alerts and 30-day history with a bare minimum of $4.99 per month.
The features of Life360 are:
- Location sharing.
- Place alerts.
- One-tap direction.
- Driver reports.
- Estimated time of arrival to destination.
Conclusion
Sharing location, especially between Apple iOS and Android devices, is very difficult. We all have experienced a situation where we want to provide accurate guides or navigation to a destination. And it becomes more complex if the two parties use two different OS.
Fortunately, multiple free apps and services allow you to share your real-time location. The most reliable of these apps is Google Maps. Every Android smartphone has this app pre-installed. Also, iPhones have no restrictions for downloading and installing the Google Maps app.
Besides the Google Maps navigation app, you can also use the WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger apps. These two apps are the most popular instant messaging and social media apps. And virtually everyone around you has WhatsApp or Messenger app installed on their smartphones.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
If you want to permanently share your location from iPhone to Android using Google Maps, select the “Until you turn this off” option under the time selector. Launch the Google Maps app, then tap on your Profile picture.
Navigate to Location Sharing-> New Share. Select the second option (“until you turn this off”) when you specify the time. Choose the recipient from the contacts list and tap Share.
How Do You Track Someone Else’s iPhone?
Apple’s “Find my iPhone” feature is an excellent choice for tracking someone else’s iPhone. The prerequisites are enabling the “Find my iPhone” feature and Apple ID credentials. Open your Safari browser and navigate to https://www.icloud.com/find. Enter or log in with Apple ID you want to track. Go to App Store and select “All Devices.” Now choose the device you are looking for and want to follow.
Can I Track My Child’s iPhone Without Them Knowing?
Yes, you can track your child’s iPhone without them knowing. Using Apple’s “Find my iPhone,” you can quietly tap your child’s real-time location. Apart from this, plenty of parental control apps are available for your choice.
A parental control app can track your child’s GPS location, browsing history, text messages, call logs, etc.
It’s challenging to share locations from iPhone to Android due to the difference in OS. You can’t share your location without installing dedicated apps.
The three most reliable and secure apps are Google Maps, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger. Apart from sharing your location in real-time, you can manually share a static site or search for a place to share.
