To deliver the most relevant information, the iPhone uses your location and GPS position.
Some of this information is utilized by applications to notify you of nearby restaurants or to provide driving directions, as well as to ensure that your time is shown appropriately based on your time zone.
You do not, however, need to keep your location enabled, and you can use the device even when it is turned off.
You may turn off location services on an iPhone by going to Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services and unchecking the Location Services option.
For more information on this topic, watch this video on how to turn off location on iPhone.
Summary – How to Turn Off or Turn On Location Services on an iPhone
- Go to the Settings menu.
- Choose Privacy & Security.
- Choose Location Services.
- Disable Location Services.
- To confirm, select Turn Off.
Our explanation of how to turn off location on iPhone continues below with further information, including screenshots.
The location data that your iPhone collects as you travel the world can help to improve the experience of the various apps that you use on the device.
When you supply accurate location data to such apps, several features of your smartphone improve.
You can, however, restrict some of that location access if you are concerned about others knowing your location or if you do not want your apps to know where you travel.
We’ll show you how to change these iPhone location settings so you can control who sees your location and when they see it.
Related: How to Enable iMessage on iPhone 13
Video Instructions for Disabling iPhone Location Services
Shut Off iPhone Location
The methods in this post were tested on an iPhone 13 running iOS 16, but they should work on the majority of other iPhone models and iOS versions as well.
Step 1: On your iPhone, open the Settings app.
Step 2: Scroll to the bottom and pick Privacy & Security.
Step 3: At the top of the screen, tap the Location Services menu item.
Step 4: To the right, tap the Location Services button.
Step 5: Tap Turn Off to confirm that you want to disable the location and GPS services on your iPhone.
According to the pop-up, if you use the Find My iPhone app to try to locate your device, your iPhone will be able to temporarily restore Location Services.
You can use this option now that you know how to turn off location on iPhone if you don’t want your device or apps to use your location information for anything.
If you have already shared your location with others, the following section will show you how to turn off the location sharing feature.
How to Turn Off iPhone Location Sharing
If you browsed around the Location Services menu, you could have noticed a “Share My Location” option.
This menu option pertains to the precise sharing privileges that you have provided to other contacts in order for them to view your GPS location.
Follow the instructions below to disable this function, which will prevent others from seeing where you are.
Step 1: Launch the Settings application.
Step 2: Go to the Privacy & Security section.
Step 3: Select Location Services.
Step 4: Select the option to Share My Location.
Step 5: Turn off Share My Location.
If you’ve given others permission to view your location, a list of people with whom you’ve previously shared your location will appear beneath this button.
The next section shows how to revoke location access for a specific app.
How to Disable Location Services on an iPhone for a Specific App
Many iPhone apps want to know where you are.
Several of these apps will not work properly unless you grant this permission. Google Maps, for example, will not function effectively without location access.
Other apps, on the other hand, may request your location data but are not compelled to utilize it. You may want to restrict location access to social networking apps such as Instagram and Facebook. You can accomplish this by following the procedures outlined below.
- Select the Settings option.
- Select Privacy and Security.
- Choose Location Services.
- Choose an app.
- To withdraw permissions, select Never.
There is also a “Precise Location” option in this menu. You can disable this if you just want to provide the app with broad details about your data rather than the more specific location information that it may create.
You will be able to better regulate the apps and services that view that data now that you know how to turn off location on iPhone and all of the many techniques for removing location access.