How to Stop Sharing Location Without Them Knowing

We have all gotten used to sharing our location with friends and family—knowing someone is aware of where you are can be reassuring. But sometimes, you just need a little privacy without raising any concerns. Maybe you want to keep a surprise under wraps or just want some personal space for the day.

Turning off location sharing can be tricky, especially since many apps automatically notify others when you make changes. If you suddenly turn off sharing and people get notified, it might raise alarm bells or spark questions you would rather avoid. There are ways to stop sharing without anyone knowing, giving you a little extra control over who can track your movements.

The most effective way to stop sharing without the other person receiving a notification depends on your device and how you want to appear to them. While apps like Apple’s Find My do not send a push notification when you tap “Stop Sharing My Location”, the other person will immediately notice you are missing from their map or see a “No Location Found” status. To completely hide your movements without raising suspicion, use the “ghost device” trick.

If you have an old iPhone or an iPad that stays at home, you can trick the system into broadcasting that device’s static location instead of your primary phone.

On your secondary device, open “Settings”. Tap your Apple ID name at the very top, then select “Find My”. Tap “Use This iPhone/iPad as My Location”. Make sure “Share My Location” is toggled on. To the other person, it will look like you are safely at home, even while you are out with your primary phone.

If you share your location via Google Maps, you can temporarily freeze it by going off the grid. Open the Google Maps app. Tap your profile picture in the top right corner. Tap Turn on Incognito Mode. While Incognito Mode is active, Google Maps will stop updating your live timeline.

It will not send an email or alert to the person you are sharing with. Turning off Location Services entirely will freeze your icon at your last known. It does not send an alert, but over time, the person may notice you have not updated.

For iPhone, open Settings and navigate to Privacy & Security, select Location Services, and toggle the master Location Services switch to Off.

For Android, swipe down from the top of your screen to access the Quick Settings panel and tap the Location icon to turn it off. One of the quickest ways to temporarily disable sharing is to turn on airplane mode. Airplane Mode shuts off all wireless connections on your device—cellular, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth, preventing your phone from sending it out.

If you only need to hide your location for a short period, turning on Airplane Mode is the fastest option. Swipe open your device’s Control Center/Quick Settings and tap the Airplane icon. This disconnects your phone from Wi-Fi and cellular networks.

By using Airplane Mode, the person you shared your location with will not receive any notifications about stopping sharing, and there is no alert indicating you have paused it. You will instantly freeze at the exact spot you were in right before you turned it on. No alerts are sent but you will not receive texts or calls until you turn Airplane Mode off.

However, if they look you up in an app like Find My, they will see your last known location listed as “xxx minutes/hours ago” rather than a “Live” update.

This method only works while Airplane Mode is active. As soon as you disable it, your location sharing will be re-enabled. You can stop sharing with specific people through the Messages app without turning off sharing entirely. This is perfect if you only want to stop sharing with one person but still share with others.

Tap the Messages app and open the conversation with the person you no longer want to share with. In the top-right corner of the conversation screen, tap the i (information) icon. Under the Location section, you will see the option Stop Sharing My Location.

Tap it, and your location will no longer be shared with that contact. After that, the person will no longer be able to see you in the conversation. However, they will not receive a notification that you have stopped sharing. Everyone has their reasons for wanting a little privacy, and they do not need to be complicated ones.

Whether you are planning a surprise or just want some breathing room, it is completely reasonable to want control over who can see where you are.

You can manage your privacy and ensure you only share when you choose to.