There’s no way around it: Losing your phone is stressful. Luckily, if you have an iPhone, you can view its location on another device even if it’s turned off. That’s because iPhones can leverage Apple’s Find My Network, which crowdsources other nearby Apple devices in an anonymous and encrypted way to relay your phone’s location to iCloud.
Offline finding isn’t new to the iPhone, but Apple has made improvements to its Find My service and its theft protection offerings over time. In last year’s iOS 17 update, for example, it introduced the ability to share Find My-supported devices, such as an AirTag, with up to five other people. Earlier this year, Apple launched Stolen Device Protection as an additional measure to prevent thieves that also know your passcode from accessing crucial information.
But it’s important to remember that not every iPhone supports offline finding; this capability is only available on the iPhone 11 and later (not including the 2020 and 2022 iPhone SE). These iPhones have an ultra wideband chip, which gives them better spatial awareness.
Here’s what to know about using the Find My app. As long as you’re signed into your Apple ID on the iPhone you plan to register to Find My, follow the steps below.
Turn on Find My and Find My Network
To find your phone when it’s offline, you’ll have to make sure Find My and Find My Network are set up. Open your iPhone’s Settings menu, tap on your name and choose Find My.
Tap Find My iPhone and make sure the switch is toggled on.
Below Find My iPhone, you’ll see two other options: Find My Network and Send Last Location. You should turn both of these on; the Find My Network is what allows you to locate your device when it’s offline, turned off or low on power. Send Last Location will automatically save your iPhone’s last location when the battery is running low.
How to turn on Find my network and Send Last Location on an iPhone
Tip: If you want to make sure your device is discoverable even when it’s off, hold the side and volume down button. Under the “slide to power off” switch, you should see a notice that says “iPhone Findable After Power Off.”
How to see your iPhone’s location when it’s turned off
If you’ve completed the steps above, you should be able to see the last location of your lost phone by signing into your iCloud account in a web browser or by using the Find My app on another Apple device. That can be either another Apple product registered to the same Apple ID or a family member’s device that you’ve shared your location with.
But there are a few exceptions. If your iPhone hasn’t sent its location to Apple through Find My in the last seven days, you’ll see “No location found” next to your device. If there’s an issue with your device’s location services, you also may not be able to locate your phone through Find My.
If you have another Apple device with the Find My app
Open the Find My app and locate your iPhone in the list under the Devices tab. As previously mentioned, you should see your iPhone in this list (even if it’s powered off) as long as you have the Find My iPhone, Find My Network and Send Last Location options enabled.
Tap your iPhone. You should see a menu that presents you with a few options for finding your phone or marking it as lost. You can make the device play a sound, get directions to the device’s last recorded location, mark it as lost or erase the device.
Screenshots showing how to see your iPhone’s location in the Find My app
If you don’t have another Apple device with the Find My app
You can also view your device’s location on the web by signing into your Apple ID. Start by going to icloud.com/find. Then sign in with your Apple ID.
Find your missing iPhone in the Devices list. From here, you’ll see the same options for playing a sound, marking your device as lost or erasing the device as you would in the app.
Screenshots showing how to locate your Find My devices through Apple’s iCloud website.
If you misplace your device and can’t recover it through Find My, or see that it’s in an unfamiliar location, it’s a good idea to put it in Lost Mode. This locks your device with a passcode and suspends payment cards and transportation passes saved to Apple Pay. You can also display a phone number and message so that the device can be easily returned once found.
Apple also launched another feature meant to protect against device theft earlier this year called Stolen Device Protection. It requires another layer of authentication for certain actions to prevent thieves from performing critical actions or accessing sensitive information on your phone even if they know your passcode. For example, an iPhone with Stolen Device Protection turned on might require Touch ID or Face ID to access credit cards and passwords without asking for passcode entry as a backup.
For more iPhone tips and advice, check out our guide to the Dynamic Island and how to block distracting websites.
