Locate by phone number — once they say yes
Type a family member’s phone number and send them an invite by text. When they tap Join, their location appears on your map and yours on theirs. No codes to read out, nothing to set up first.
Add phone number
NameSamPhone number+1(555) 014-2267Send inviteLocation by phone number, in three taps
- Your phone
Enter their number
Open Invite family, tap Add phone number, and type their name and number. The invite is ready to send as a text.
- Their phone
They tap the link
The text opens your invite. They type their name and join — no password needed to start.
- Both phones
You see each other
Their pin appears on your map and yours on theirs. Either of you can pause at any time.
How to locate a phone by number, step by step
Use this when the phone belongs to someone in your family who wants to be on the map: a teen with a new phone, a parent who switched carriers, a partner on a trip. It’s the only way to locate by phone number that we think is fair.
- 1
Open the app
Install it on Android or iPhone, or open it in any browser.
- 2
Create your circle
Name it after your family. You’re its first member.
- 3
Add their phone number
Menu → Invite family → Add phone number. Send the invite by text from your phone.
- 4
Wait for Join
Once they accept, you won’t need to find location by phone number again: they stay on your map until they pause or leave.
What a phone number can and can’t do
You can
- Invite anyone whose number you have, on any carrier
- See their live location after they join
- Get arrival alerts for places you both care about
- Send the invite again if the first text got lost
You can’t
- See a location before they accept
- Look up a stranger’s location from a number
- Add a phone to a circle from your own phone
- Keep seeing them after they pause or leave
Phone number questions
Can I locate by phone number without the other person installing anything?
They can open your invite in a browser and join from there. For updates while their phone is in a pocket, they’ll want the Android or iPhone app.
Does location by phone number work in every country?
The invite is an ordinary text with a link, so it reaches any number that can receive texts. You can also send the same invite as a link in any chat or show it as a QR code.
Can I find location by phone number for someone who hasn’t joined?
No. A number only carries the invite. Location is shared by the person who owns the phone, after they accept, and they can stop at any time.
What if they change their number?
Nothing breaks. Membership belongs to their account, not their number, so they stay in your circle.
Send your first invite in under a minute
Answer five quick questions, then add their number in the app.