How to Share Your Live Location with Friends on Google Maps

Coordinating a meet-up at a crowded music festival or trying to find a friend in a sprawling city centre often involves a frustrating series of text messages like “Where are you?” and “I’m near the big tree.” Instead of constantly texting updates, you can use Google Maps to share your exact, real-time GPS location. This feature temporarily transmits your live location to your friend’s phone, allowing them to see your icon moving dynamically across their Google Map as you walk or drive toward them.

How to Share Your Live Location

Location sharing is built directly into the Google Maps app and works seamlessly between iPhones and Android devices.

1. Open the Google Maps app on your smartphone.
2. Ensure your GPS is active (your blue dot should be visible on the map).
3. Tap your circular Profile picture or initial in the top right corner of the search bar.
4. Select Location sharing from the menu.
5. Tap the blue Share location (or “New share”) button.

Setting the Duration and Choosing a Contact

Before transmitting your location, Google Maps asks you to define exactly how long the tracking link should remain active. This is a crucial privacy feature.

1. At the top of the screen, you will see the duration setting, which defaults to “For 1 hour”.
2. You can use the + and – buttons to adjust this time (from 15 minutes up to 24 hours), or you can select “Until you turn this off” if you want the link to remain permanently active.
3. Below the duration setting, you will see a list of your frequent Google contacts. If your friend has a Google account, tap their name. They will receive a notification directly within their Google Maps app.
4. If your friend does not have a Google account, or if you prefer to send a standard text, tap the More options button and select your preferred messaging app (like WhatsApp, iMessage, or SMS). Google Maps will generate a private hyperlink and paste it into the message.

How to View Someone’s Live Location

When your friend taps the link you sent them (or taps the notification in their app), Google Maps will open on their phone.

Your profile picture will appear on their map, dynamically updating as you move. At the bottom of their screen, a panel will display your exact distance from them, the battery percentage of your phone (so they know if you are about to lose power), and a button to get driving or walking directions directly to your moving icon.

How to Stop Sharing Your Location

If you selected a specific duration (like 1 hour), the location sharing will automatically expire and turn itself off when the timer runs out. However, if you meet up early and want to manually kill the tracker:

1. Open Google Maps.
2. Tap your Profile picture and select Location sharing.
3. At the bottom of the screen, you will see a list of the people currently tracking you.
4. Tap the person’s name.
5. Tap the Stop button. Your icon will instantly disappear from their map.