Among the many advanced features of WhatsApp, an interesting feature is you can share your location with others on WhatsApp. You can share your live location with your loved ones and colleagues wherever you are currently present.
To share your location with others on WhatsApp, you can open the chatbox of the specific person and tap the attachment icon at the bottom right of the screen. Then, tap on the location icon from the list of options displayed. After that, you can share either live location, current location, or any specific location by tapping on the available option.
Location sharing is a special feature available in messaging applications.
What Is The Location Sharing Feature?
Have you ever felt unsafe while traveling or confused while providing a friend with the right location? The location-sharing feature addresses all your security problems and address sharing issues. Using the location sharing feature, you can easily inform your loved ones about your whereabouts.
The location-sharing feature is an inbuilt feature of WhatsApp that enables active WhatsApp users to share locations with others on WhatsApp. In addition, you can choose a nearby location on your map and share it with your friends. The location-sharing feature acts as a guide that people can follow to reach their destination.
Moreover, you can share your current locations and a nearby location with your friends on WhatsApp. In addition, you can share live location with your contacts on WhatsApp. Live location means your friends or family can track your whereabouts every moment. It allows sharing location with others on WhatsApp based on GPS location.
The Live location keeps on updating along with the user’s movement. Therefore, it is easier for your parents and friends to precisely track your location.
How To Share Location With Others On WhatsApp On iPhone?
All active users of WhatsApp can share locations with others on WhatsApp on all versions of iPhone. To share your location with others on WhatsApp, you should install a WhatsApp app easily available in App Store.
All the active users can share locations with others on WhatsApp on iPhone by following some easy steps:
- Firstly, open the WhatsApp app from the App drawer.
- Then, open the chat of the contact you want to send your location.
Once you open the chat, a plus sign appears at the bottom left of the chat.
Tap the plus sign to open additional options. - After you tap the plus sign, Location appears in the listed option. Tap on the Location tab to open a pop-up window.
- Then, on the pop-up window, allow WhatsApp to use your location. Tap on “Allow While Using App” to grant WhatsApp permission to access your location.
- After you allow the permission, you can select a nearby location or tap on the Send Your Current Location tab.
Then, the window automatically redirects you to the chatbox. Your location is shared with the contact immediately.
The steps mentioned earlier work best to share location with others on WhatsApp on an iPhone. But, remember, before sharing the location, make sure that you have enabled the location for WhatsApp on your phone’s settings. Otherwise, you cannot share your location with others on WhatsApp.
How To Enable Location Sharing option on iPhone?
To share current and exact locations, sometimes users need to enable the location for WhatsApp using the iPhone settings. When you share your location with others on WhatsApp for the first time, you might have to enable location reading for WhatsApp.
Thus, to share location with others on WhatsApp, firstly:
- Go to the Settings and search for Privacy.
- Once you tap the Privacy setting, you will find the Location Services at the top of the screen. Tap on Location Services to move onto the location settings.
- After you open location services, enable the location sharing option by tapping Location Services.
- Then, scroll to the bottom to search for WhatsApp.Once you find WhatsApp, tap on it.
- A new window will appear. Tap on the “While using this app” option on the new window.
Now, open the WhatsApp App and follow the above-mentioned process to share your location with others on WhatsApp.
Thus, using the WhatsApp location sharing feature, you can share your location with others on WhatsApp without worrying about privacy and safety.
How To Share Location With Others On WhatsApp on Android?
Users can share locations with others on WhatsApp on Android using the updated version of the WhatsApp app. However, before sharing the location, make sure you have an active WhatsApp app on your smartphone.
Follow the following steps to share your location with others on WhatsApp on Android:
- Firstly, open the WhatsApp app from the App drawer.
- Then, go to the contact chatbox where you want to send the desired location.
- Then, tap the paper clip icon on the third icon on the bottom right of the screen on the chatbox.
- Once you tap the icon, a variety of options appear. First, tap on the Location option, which is green in color.
- As you tap Location, a message will appear to ask permission to access your location. Tap Continue in the given message.
- Then after granting WhatsApp permission to access your location, a window will pop up where you can either select a nearby location or tap on the Send Your Current Location tab.
Finally, your desired location is sent to the consigned contact. But remember, to share your location with others on WhatsApp, you must enable the GPS option.
How To Enable Location Sharing option on Android?
Sometimes the phone setting for access to the location is disabled by default. Furthermore, you need to grant WhatsApp and the phone’s GPS to access your location before sharing your location with others on WhatsApp.
To grant location services permission to share location with others on WhatsApp, follow the following steps:
- Firstly, open the Settings from the App drawer.
- Then, on Settings, look for the search option and search for Location.
- Upon searching, the Location settings appear on the screen. Tap on the Location tab to open the options under location settings.
- First, enable the Location by tapping on it in the location setting options.
- Then, search for App access to the Location option by scrolling the location settings options.
Open the App access to Location and search for the WhatsApp app. - Once you find the WhatsApp app, tap on the App and tap Allow Only While Using the App option.
You can go to WhatsApp and follow the earlier steps to share your location with others without hindrance. First-time users need to allow location permission to share location with others on WhatsApp on an Android device.
How To Share Live Location With Others On WhatsApp On iPhone and Android?
In WhatsApp, users can even share live locations with others in their chat. Sharing your live location will allow the users to see your real-time location. The location updates on the map according to your movement.
Users can share Live Location on Android and iOS by following the earlier steps. In the final step, while choosing the location option,
- First, tap on the Share live location option below the displayed map.
- Upon tapping, a list of time duration options is displayed on the screen. Tap on the desired time duration; you want the contact to see your live location.
You can also add comments on the location by typing on the text box given. - Then, after choosing the necessary options, tap on the Send icon at the bottom right.
Finally, your live or real-time location is shared with the contact.
WhatsApp will share the location until the selected time duration. Users can stop sharing locations even before the selected time duration.
How To Stop Live Location Sharing With Others On WhatsApp?
WhatsApp continues to share your real-time location once you start the live location sharing option. Generally, the phone’s movement updates every second on the map.
Users may desire to stop sharing locations before the selected time duration. To do so,
- First, open WhatsApp and go to the chat where you have started sharing live locations.
- Then, search for the message where you shared your live location in the messages thread.
On the message, the Stop sharing option is available.
- Once you tap the Stop sharing option, a pop-up box will appear. Tap on STOP on the pop-up message to confirm the selection.
Finally, the live location sharing is stopped, and the participant can no longer see your location.
FAQs
The location-sharing feature of WhatsApp is a new embedded feature in WhatsApp. Some of the questions related to location-sharing features are answered below.
Is Location Sharing End-to-End Encrypted?
Yes, location sharing on WhatsApp is end-to-end encrypted. Therefore, only the users who send and receive the location link have access to the location.
Not even WhatsApp has access to see the location exchanged between the users. Thus, users can share locations without worrying about privacy and security concerns. The location-sharing feature on WhatsApp is a safe and secure way of sending your current locations.
Do All Smartphones Enable Location Sharing On WhatsApp?
Almost all smartphones that support WhatsApp and have a GPS in their software can share location with Others On WhatsApp.
Some of the older versions of WhatsApp need an update to enable the location sharing option. Otherwise, every smartphone with the recent versions of software support location sharing.
Can You Share Location With Others On WhatsApp on your Laptop?
The laptop WhatsApp app does not allow users to share locations with others on WhatsApp. It is because the location-sharing feature of WhatsApp is lacking in laptop apps. Therefore you can only share your location from a smartphone WhatsApp app.
What is different between live location sharing and current location sharing?
Live location sharing means sharing the location live for a certain time duration. The users can see every monument of the other user through the specified time duration.
Users can stop sharing the location according to their wishes. But, when you share your current location with anyone, the receiver can only view your current location. The user will not be able to track your every move.
Only the sent location is displayed to the users, and the location does not keep on updating with the sender’s movement, unlike the live location.
How Long Can You Share Live Location On WhatsApp?
Users can share live locations for a specified time duration. For example, when you turn on the live location, WhatsApp displays three-time duration options. Therefore, users can choose from 15 minutes, 1 hour, and even 8 hours.
Can You Share Location To Non-WhatsApp Users?
No, WhatsApp chats and calls are only between active WhatsApp users. As real-time and current locations both is sent in the chatbox, the users must have an active WhatsApp account.
Non-WhatsApp users cannot receive or send location or any file. Furthermore, before sharing a location, both the user and the receiver must have an updated WhatsApp account.
Can You Share Location With Others On WhatsApp Without Internet Connection?
No, users cannot exchange any information on WhatsApp without an internet connection. Moreover, to assess your current location, GPS needs an internet connection.
So your smartphone needs to be connected with either data or WiFi to share your location with others on WhatsApp.Likewise, a strong internet connection is needed to access your location. A poor internet connection with low internet speed cannot access your location efficiently.
Can Users Delete The Shared Location From Both Sides Of The Chat?
Yes, users can delete the shared location from both sides of the contact, but within one hour. Within one hour Delete for Everyone option is unavailable for users.
Go to the chatbox to delete the shared location from both sides of the chatbox. Then, tap-hold on the shared location message. Once you tap-hold the shared location, a delete option will appear on the top right of the screen.
As you tap on the delete icon, a pop-up window will appear with a list of delete options. On the pop-up window, tap on Delete For Everyone option to clear the shared location from both sides of the chatbox.
Does Location Sharing Interfere With The Privacy Of The User?
No, location setting does not hinder the privacy of the users. But, users need not send locations to suspicious contact or unknown numbers.
Furthermore, the location-sharing feature is end-to-end encrypted, which means only the chat participants can see the location you have shared. Not even WhatsApp can track your shared location.
Can You Share Location With Others On WhatsApp In Group Chat?
Yes, users can share their location with others on WhatsApp in a group chat. The group chat allows sharing locations with more than one contact, up to 200 participants.
Thus, you can share your location with your friends and colleagues to send the venue of your meeting or meet-ups.
Can You Share Location On WhatsApp Status?
Yes, you can share your location on WhatsApp contact. Though WhatsApp has no inbuilt option to share location on WhatsApp status, users can use Google Maps.
To share a location on WhatsApp status, go to Maps from the App drawer. Then, tap on the You are here icon to display sharing option. Then, tap on the Share Location tab and search for the WhatsApp app under the sharing option.
As you tap on the WhatsApp app icon, it will redirect you to the WhatsApp page.
Tap on the My Status at the top of the contact list. Now your location will share as a link on your status. Anyone viewing the status can tap on the link to see the shared location.
How To Update WhatsApp Live Location?
Normally WhatsApp automatically updates the live location. Before sharing your location, ensure you have enabled the location services on the phone’s settings.
Several factors might have affected the update if your live location is not updating. To fix the updating issue, check your internet connection. A poor, unstable internet connection will not allow live location updates.
Besides the internet connection, make sure your phone is synced with an accurate date and time. Inaccurate time and date will result in errors in updating your live location, thus before you share your location with others on WhatsApp.
Can You Add a Message Along With The Location Sharing?
Yes, users can add notes or messages while sharing live locations. However, unlike live location-sharing, users cannot send messages along with the current location.
While live location-sharing, a text box is provided wherein you can type the message you desire and send a caption of the location. Thus, you can share locations with others on WhatsApp and add a location description in the text box.
Conclusion
Overall, the location-sharing feature in WhatsApp is very useful for WhatsApp users on a day-to-day basis. All active users can share their location with others on WhatsApp from any smartphone which supports GPS.
Thus, users can easily share locations with friends and family to keep updated about their current location by following simple and easy steps.
