How To Locate Someone Else's Iphone

You can track an iPhone using any iteration of the Find My app, which gives you the last known location of your iPhone.
The Find My or Find My iPhone app is installed on every iPhone and iPad by default, and you can also access the feature through the iCloud website.
Using a Find My app, you can track up to five Apple devices, including your iPhone, iPad, and even Apple Watch.
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Thanks to the Find My feature (an iOS 13 combination of the apps Find My iPhone and Find My Friends), it's possible to know exactly where your iPhone is at any time — which is great for those occasions when you misplace your phone, but is even more critical if it's ever stolen.

And phone tracking isn't limited to your own iPhone. Using Family Sharing, you can check on the location of up to five important people in your life as well. If that prospect sounds a bit creepy, don't worry; everyone has to opt into this feature, so you can't track a spouse or kid without their permission.

Here's how to set up and use Find My and Family Sharing to track your iPhone, no matter which iOS version you have.

How to track your iPhone using the Find My app iterations

In iOS 13 or later

1.Open the Settings app.

2. Tap your name at the top of the page to open your Apple ID page.

3. Tap the tab that reads "Find My."

iOS 13 changed the way to set up iPhone tracking.

4. On the next page, tap the switch next to "Share My Location" so it turns green.

5. Tap the the "Find My iPhone" tab at the top of the screen.

Make sure to start sharing your location.

6. On the next page, tap the switch next to "Find My iPhone" to activate it and reveal two more options.

7. Tap the switches next to "Enable Offline Finding" and "Send Last Location."

Enable all these settings if you want to have the most information about where your iPhone is.

You'll now be able to track your iPhone using the Find My app on another Apple device, or iCloud's website (as depicted below).

In iOS 12 and earlier

1. Open the Settings app.

2. Tap your name at the top of the screen.

3. Tap "iCloud" and then tap "Find My iPhone."

You'll need to go through your iCloud settings.

4. Tap "Find My iPhone" to turn the feature on.

5. Make sure that "Send Last Location" is also turned on.

Be sure to enable "Send Last Location" so that you can find your phone even if the battery dies.

Now that Find My iPhone is turned on, you can see the location of your phone in the Find My iPhone app on another one of your iOS devices, or in any web browser. By turning on Send Last Location, you'll be able to see the phone's last known location even if it was turned off or the battery died.

How to find your iPhone using iCloud's website

1. In any web browser, navigate to https://www.icloud.com/#find. You may need to log in with your Apple ID and password, but you won't need to enter a two-factor authentication code, because the intent here is that you don't have the phone and therefore can't retrieve the code.

2. Click "All Devices" to see a list of all of your devices.

3. Click your lost device to see where it's located.

You can track the location of your phone from any device, as long as you can get to a web browser.

At this point, you can zoom in or out on the map to get a better look at the location, or you can use the controls on-screen to play a sound (if the phone is powered on, it will play a siren-like sound), enter Lost Mode (which can display a message on the screen for anyone who finds it) or erase the phone's contents (which you'll only want to do if it's stolen or presumed lost forever).

How to track someone else's iPhone with Family Sharing

With their permission, you can track the phones of up to five other people using Family Sharing. This is handy to keep tabs on kids or for partners to quickly see where the other person is. Setting it up is easy, but whoever you track will need to perform some steps and enter their password.

1. On your iPhone, tap the Settings app.

2. Tap your name at the top of the screen.

3. Tap "Family Sharing."

After you turn on Family Sharing, you can track the phones of any anyone you add to your family group.

4. Tap "Add Family Member…" and then choose how you want to invite them to be tracked. "Invite via iMessage" is easy and takes place over text messages. If you choose "Invite in Person," your family member will be invited to enter their Apple ID and password directly into your iPhone.

After accepting the invitation, your family member will also need to turn on Location Sharing (they'll be prompted to do this).

Now, everyone whom you have added to your Family Sharing list will appear when you use the Find My or Find My iPhone app or website.

You can track everyone in your Family Group from the same map.

Related coverage from Tech Reference:

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How to log into iCloud on your iPhone with an Apple ID, to access and manage your iCloud account
How to remove the Apple ID from your iPhone in 2 different ways, to wipe your data and information from the device

Dave Johnson

Freelance Writer

Dave Johnson is a technology journalist who writes about consumer tech and how the industry is transforming the speculative world of science fiction into modern-day real life. Dave grew up in New Jersey before entering the Air Force to operate satellites, teach space operations, and do space launch planning. He then spent eight years as a content lead on the Windows team at Microsoft. As a photographer, Dave has photographed wolves in their natural environment; he's also a scuba instructor and co-host of several podcasts. Dave is the author of more than two dozen books and has contributed to many sites and publications including CNET, Forbes, PC World, How To Geek, and Insider.