Snapchat’s location sharing feature allows you to share your real-time location with your friends on the app. While this can be fun and useful at times, you may not always want specific people to know where you are. Fortunately, Snapchat gives you options to control who can see your location and even turn it off completely.
In this article, we’ll explain how Snapchat’s location sharing works and how to turn it off without notifying your Snapchat connections. We’ll cover how to disable location sharing for individual friends, restrict it to certain groups of friends, or turn it off globally so no one on Snapchat can view your location.
How Does Location Sharing Work on Snapchat?
When you opt into location sharing on Snapchat, it allows your friends to see your real-time location on a map within the app. This lets friends know where you are and view your location when you’re hanging out.
There are a couple different ways location can be shared on Snapchat:
- Location sharing through the map – You can actively choose to share with all friends.
- Location sharing through snaps – Your location is automatically shared when you take a snap, unless you disable this in settings.
In both cases, your friends will be able to see an Actionmoji of your Bitmoji avatar pointing to your location on a map. They can tap to view the exact address.
Your friends can view your location for as long as you have location turned on. The moment you turn off location sharing, they will no longer be able to see where you are.
How Long is Location Sharing Enabled For?
When you share your location through the Snap Map, there are a few time limits:
- 15 minutes – If you share for a friend for the first time.
- 8 hours – If you share for a frequently contacted friend.
- 24 hours – This is the maximum time you can share location.
So location sharing will automatically turn off after the preset time period for that friend runs out. But you can always manually turn it off sooner if desired.
Can You Turn Off Location Without Them Knowing?
Yes, Snapchat allows you to disable location sharing without explicitly notifying your friends.
When you turn off location sharing, your friends will not get notified about it through a snap or alert. Your location will simply disappear from their map.
The steps to disable location sharing privately depend on whether you want to turn it off for specific friends vs. globally.
Turning Off Location for Specific Friends
If you only want to prevent certain friends from seeing your location, you can control that right from the Snap Map.
Here’s how to turn off location sharing for individual friends:
- Open Snapchat and tap on the Snap Map bitmoji icon in the top left.
- Tap the settings gear icon in the top right.
- Under “Who Can See My Location”, tap My Friends.
- This will open your friends list. Tap on any friend you want to stop sharing location with.
- Toggle the “View My Location” setting off for that friend.
- Repeat steps 4-5 for any other friends you want to restrict.
When you toggle view location access off for a specific friend, they will no longer see your whereabouts on the map. And they will not receive any notification that you did this.
You can toggle view location back on anytime for any friends that you had previously restricted. Access resets after 7 days if left off.
Disabling Location Viewing for Groups
Rather than individually control location access for each friend, you can also restrict it for groups of friends on Snapchat.
Here is how to turn off location sharing for groups:
- Go to your Snap Map and tap the settings icon.
- Tap “My Friends”.
- Tap “Edit” next to My Friends to manage groups.
- Tap the group you want to restrict.
- Toggle “View My Location” off for that group.
- Repeat steps 4-5 for any other groups you want to disable.
This will prevent all friends belonging to that group from seeing your location on the map.
You can create custom friend groups in Snapchat to better manage who gets access to your location and snaps.
Turning Off Location for Everyone
If you want to completely turn off location sharing across Snapchat, you can do that by:
- Going to your Snap Map.
- Tapping the settings gear icon.
- Toggling the “Ghost Mode” setting on.
Enabling Ghost Mode prevents all your Snapchat friends from viewing your location until you turn it back off.
You can toggle Ghost Mode on and off at any time. Your friends will not receive alerts when you enter or exit Ghost Mode.
Disabling Location in Snaps
In addition to the Snap Map, your friends can also see your location if it’s attached to snaps you send them.
To prevent your location from automatically displaying with snaps:
- Go to your profile by tapping the Bitmoji icon.
- Tap the gear icon to access settings.
- Tap “See My Location”.
- Toggle off “Allow My Location in Snaps”.
This will stop your device location from attaching to any new snaps until you toggle the setting back on.
How To Know If Location Sharing Is Really Off
Once you’ve disabled location services through one of the above methods, how can you confirm it worked?
Here are a couple ways to verify location sharing is off for a particular friend:
- Have the friend try viewing your location on the Snap Map. It should not show anything.
- Send the friend a snap. They should not see a location pin if you disabled it in snap settings.
- On your Snapchat map, check that the friend no longer has a “View My Location” switch toggled on.
As long as your location does not display for that friend through either the map or snaps, then you have successfully disabled sharing.
Does Turning Off Location Notify Friends?
No, Snapchat does not notify your friends when you turn location sharing off or restrict access. The friend will simply no longer see your location on their Snap Map.
Unlike when you unfriend or block someone on Snapchat, they are not alerted if you disable location sharing through Ghost Mode or the map settings. Your location simply disappears from their view.
The one exception is if you stop sharing location while a friend is actively viewing your live location. In that case, Snapchat sends an alert saying location sharing stopped. But there is no warning if they try looking at your location after you’ve already turned sharing off.
Can You View Location History?
Unfortunately, Snapchat does not provide a history or map showing past locations. The Snap Map only displays your current location in real-time when location sharing is enabled.
Once you turn location services off, there is no record available of where you have been previously. Snapchat’s approach focuses more on ephemeral sharing of your location in the moment.
If you need to view your historical location data, it’s better to use other apps like Google Timeline that actively log locations you have been to. But Snapchat itself provides no location history or tracking capability after that point in time.
Does Turning Off Location Delete Existing Snaps?
Importantly, disabling location services does not retroactively remove your location from snaps or stories you’ve already sent to friends. Anything already viewed by friends will still display your location.
Going forward, new snaps will not include a location after you disable the setting. But existing snaps and stories remain unchanged. So disabling location only prevents friends from seeing your location in new, future snaps.
If you need to delete snaps or stories that already revealed your location, that would require deleting the specific snaps from particular friends’ phones where they may have been saved.
Can Friends Re-Share Your Location Snaps?
Yes, disabling location only prevents your location from being visible in new snaps. But friends who you’ve previously sent location snaps to can take screenshots or recordings of those snaps. And they could then share the location with others outside Snapchat.
Unfortunately, there is no way to delete or remove a snap from someone’s phone after sending it. The only way to guarantee a disappeared snap is not re-shared is to not put sensitive content in it in the first place.
So always be cautious when sharing your location on any platform where recipients can save or record that information outside of your control. Disable ongoing location sharing if concerned about re-sharing.
Is There a Time Limit on Location Access?
Snapchat does limit how long other users can view your real-time location by default. However, the time limits depend on your interactions with each friend:
- 15 minutes – If you’re sharing your location with a friend for the first time.
- 1-8 hours – For friends you chat with more regularly, up to 8 hours maximum.
- 24 hours – For your best friends on Snapchat only.
So Snapchat does impose limits based on friend closeness. But you can manually turn off location sooner than the auto time expiration if desired.
The 24 hour limit prevents best friends from indefinitely tracking your location. But you need to manage sharing carefully regardless, disabling access when comfort dictates.
Can You Tell if Someone is Tracking Your Location?
Unfortunately, Snapchat does not send notifications or alerts when someone views your shared location. So there is no definitive way to know for sure when a specific friend checks your location.
However, if you notice a friend viewing your location at multiple times throughout the day or constantly, that may indicate frequent tracking. Pay attention to any patterns in friends checking.
Also note the Snap Map shows when friends are active and looking at the map over the last few hours. If you see one friend active often, they may be checking for your location updates.
While not foolproof, being aware of map activity can give clues on who may be watching your location more closely than others. Disable sharing if uncertain.
Is There a Way to Share Fake Location?
Snapchat’s Snap Map shows your actual location in real-time based on your mobile device GPS. There is no native way to fake or spoof your location within Snapchat.
However, some third-party apps claim the ability to fake GPS location on phones, which could then display an incorrect location in Snapchat. But use caution with unverified apps that may carry security and privacy risks.
An alternative solution is to share location strategically. For example, you could enable sharing only in certain places where you are comfortable being seen by friends.
Overall, if you need to actively fake locations, it’s better to reconsider whether to be sharing live data with those friends at all. Restricting access or timed sharing may be safer approaches than trying to spoof locations.
Can You Tell Who Views Your Location?
Unfortunately Snapchat does not notify you when specific friends view your real-time location on the map. There is no built-in way to get notifications or see logs when your location has been accessed.
The app provides no data on the name, time, or frequency of friends who check your location. Your location is simply visible to permitted friends whenever they open the Snap Map.
If you need to know who has viewed a particular location, Snapchat lacks the transparency to inform you. You would have to ask the friends directly if they looked. But this visibility limitation makes Snapchat less ideal for tracking who checks your location versus other apps that log views.
Should Kids Use Snapchat Location Services?
Snapchat recommends users be at least 13 years old to create an account. However, even 13 is very young to be sharing real-time location given privacy and safety risks.
It’s wise for parents to restrict location access for children under 18:
- Don’t permit teen accounts to include their Snapchat on public profiles.
- Create a private “Favorites” list and only share location with those trusted contacts.
- Regularly check their friend list and location sharing status.
- Consider disabling Snapchat location entirely for young teen accounts if monitoring is difficult.
While challenging, establishing family rules and occasionally checking settings can help protect kids from potential location tracking or stalking from strangers viewing their Snap Map. Monitoring use and limiting sharing is crucial for parents.
Conclusion
Snapchat can let you have fun sharing your location and seeing where friends are hanging out. However, the same visibility that enables dynamic connections also poses privacy risks if the wrong people gain access.
Being able to toggle location sharing off for specific friends or groups gives you control. Disable access for contacts anytime you don’t want them seeing your live whereabouts. Just be aware Snapchat doesn’t notify friends when you turn off location.
Overall, think carefully before broadcasting your real-time location, even if just briefly. Always keep tabs on who can view your location, and restrict access for anyone that makes you uncomfortable. Keep personal safety at the core of your location sharing approach.