One common problem iPhone users experience is the issue of ”No Location found” and ”Location Not Available”. Although both serve sound similar and are often used interchangeably by iPhone users, they differ in meaning and serve different purposes.
This article seeks to clarify the difference between ”No Location found” and ”Location Not Available” and help you understand the functionality of both features.
Apple integrates the ‘Find My Friends’ and ‘Find My iPhone’ applications into the ‘Find My’ app, and this helps iPhone users keep track of family and friends using their devices. ‘Find My’ is also an excellent tool that comes in handy when you misplace or lose your iPhone device.
Most times, iPhone users experience a ”No Location found” or ””Location Not Available”” and often ponder what could be the cause. A “No Location found”” or “Location Not Available” pop-up on your screen is entirely normal. It occurs due to several reasons ranging from the user turned on airplane mode, location services being off, or the phone going off due to low battery charge.
“No Location found” and “Location Not Available” are similar if you’re using the Find my app to track someone you’re sharing location with on your device.
“No Location found” on an iPhone occurs when you can’t access someone due to inactive location service. The term ‘Location Not Available’ is a temporary situation caused by poor internet coverage and other reasons.
For the scope of this article, we’ll further explain “No Location found” and “Location Not Available” and also analyze the difference between both features.
“No Location Found”
When you’re trying to access or track someone who shares a location with you, and you receive a “No Location found” response instead of seeing the person’s current location, it means that the person’s area is inaccessible.
Situations like this occur when location services or location sharing are inactive because the person has no Internet connection, their phone is inactive, or their “share my location” was disabled.
In cases of no location services, you’ll get a location service off message instead of “No Location found,” but there are times when you may see no locations found instead of location service off.
“No Location found” can also occur if the other person switches off their phone, as this would prevent ”share my location” and location services from being active.
“Location Not Available”
Unlike “No Location found,” when tracking someone on the Find my app, “Location Not Available” often pops up when the person’s current location is unavailable, as my app is still trying to update the current site.
During “No Location found,” the person’s area is entirely inaccessible, but when your device displays “Location Not Available,” the person’s current location may show after a while.
Reasons for ”No Location found” on iPhone
Several reasons could lead to your phone showing “No Location found” when trying to track someone on your iPhone device, and here’s a list of a few of those reasons.
1) User Turned On Airplane Mode: once you turn on airplane mode on your iPhone, your WiFi and cellular data automatically turn off, making it impossible for your device to track anyone’s location successfully
2) User Turned Off Location Services: Location services help provide your location, so once it’s turned off, it won’t deliver any results when searched on Find My app.
3) User Turned Off Device: once you turn off your device, it becomes impossible for your device to detect any location across the Find My App.
4) Application/Device not functioning correctly: your iPhone may give a “No Location found” signal once there’s an issue with the Find My App or the device itself. Cases like this may cause glitches in functions like your phone’s location settings and may require a restart of the device to function correctly.
5) iCloud Removed from Device: Share My Location option is only available to users who have their iCloud account connected to their device, so if someone manages to remove their iCloud account from their phone, it will delete all connections with the iPhone, which will, in turn, affect the Find My app.
Difference Between “No Location found” and “Location Not Available.”
As stated earlier, “No Location found” occurs when a person’s phone is switched off or placed in airplane mode, thereby restricting location service from being active. In contrast, “Location Not Available,” on the other hand, occurs when the Find my app tries to update the current location of the person you want to track.
Other dissimilarities between both features include
| No Location Found | Location Not Available, | |
| 1 | No location Found occurs when the person’s phone is in airplane mode or switched off. | Location Not Available Occurs when the Find my app is still trying to access and update the person’s current location. |
| 2 | No location Found occurs when there needs to be accessible to the internet. | Location Not Available can occur even when access to the internet exists. |
| 3 | No location Found leaves a blank color display on the person’s phone. | Location Not Available doesn’t leave a blank color on the person’s phone but instead displays a color that won’t be generic. |
| 4 | No Location Found doesn’t display the person’s location at all | Location Not Available would update the person’s current location after a few seconds or minutes. |
| 5 | No location Found often occurs when location services and share my location are inactive. | You can receive a “Location Not Available” signal when trying to track someone, even when location services and share my location are active. |
How to Solve the Problem of ‘”No Location found”‘ and ‘”Location Not Available”‘ on iPhone.
“No Location found” and “Location Not Available” are general problems all iPhone users experience when trying to track a friend, family, or another device that shares a location with you.
When these options pop up on our screens, we often ponder what to do and how best to tackle these issues. If you’re one of those faced with the challenge of “No Location found” and “Location Not Available,” and you’re yet to find a solution, today’s your lucky day as this article will uncover several ways to tackle the problem of “No Location found” and “Location Not Available.”
Several methods are available to solve both problems, and while some may apply to both, others aren’t, so endeavor to read through all the procedures and select the one that best suits your fancy.
Method 1: Switch off Airplane Mode on your iPhone device.
Most people wonder if “No Location found” indicates that the person’s phone died. While this is a viable option, it is only sometimes the case as, most times, it may just be that the person switched on airplane mode on their device.
Hence to avoid issues of “No Location found,” always ensure to turn off the airplane on your device, and this can be done by following the steps below:
1) Tap on ”Settings” app on your device, and you’ll find a submenu with several options
2) Among the options, you’ll find ‘Airplane Mode’ in the list; click on the toggle adjacent to the ”Airplane Mode” option to turn it off
Method 2: Restart your iPhone
You should restart your device if you keep receiving location error messages, even after trying other methods to resolve them.
Restarting your device takes care of all prevailing glitches within the device and helps your phone function more effectively.
Restarting iPhones varies based on models, but you don’t have to worry as we’ll guide you on how to restart your device regardless of the model you’re using.
iPhones with Home Button:
Restarting the iPhone device with the home button involves the following steps:
1) Hold the ‘Power’ button on the side of the device
2) A new screen pops up with a turn-off iPhone slider.
3) Slide to turn it off, and once off, use the Power button to start iPhone again.
iPhones Without Home Button:
1) Hold the power button and any of the volume buttons simultaneously until a slider screen appears
2) Slide through to turn off the device, wait a few seconds and start the device by holding the Power button for a few seconds.
Method 3: Checking the Apple’s System Status Page
Once you experience a problem of “No Location found” or “Location Not Available,” one of the ways to tackle such issues is to check the status of Find My through Apple’s System Status page.
Most times, you may be unable to access a person’s location due to a fault arising from Apple Servers.
If the service is not operational, you’ll see a yellow or red dot across it, affecting most of the apps in the system, including the Find My app.
Method 4: Turning On Precise Location on iPhone
Since most location issues arise from location settings, you can check the ‘Precise Location’ option to resolve location issues on your iPhone device.
To turn on the precise location on your iPhone, follow the steps outlined below:
1) Open the ”Settings” app on your iPhone, and find a list of options.
2) Search for the ”Privacy & Security” option within the menu. Next, redirect to the ”Location Services” section and turn it on by tapping the toggle.
3) Scroll down in the same section and locate the ‘Find My’ in the options, and ensure that the blue tick is across the ”Ask Time or When I Share” or ‘While Using the App’ options.
4) Ensure that you turn on the toggle of ‘Precise Location
Method 5: Adjust the Date and Time of your iPhone to make sure it’s correct
Something as insignificant as the date and phone play a significant role when defining an iPhone’s location.
Setting the correct date and time on your iPhone helps you avoid the problem of ‘”Location Not Available.”‘ Here’s a quick guide if you’re wondering how to set your date and time.
1) Click on the Settings app on your iPhone; you’ll see a list of options
2) Click on ‘General’ among the list of options, and you’ll find ”Date & Time” settings
3) Turn off the toggle adjacent to the ”Set Automatically” option.
4) Click on ‘Time Zone’ and locate the name of your city to specify the correct time.
Method 6: Turn On Location Services From iPhone Settings
Most people ask if “No Location found” means someone stopped sharing the Location; This may be true because most people turn off their Location Services for no reason. However, you can resolve this problem by following the steps below.
1) Tap the Settings app and select ‘Privacy & Securit.’
2) A screen pops up with a list of options, locates the ‘Location Services, and ensures that you turn on the toggle adjacent to the ‘Location Service.
Method 7: Change the Network Connections on Your iPhone Device
Network failure is one of the most common causes of “No Location found” on iPhone devices. Once you experience difficulty accessing a person’s location, check first to ensure you have a functional network.
If your iPhone is connected to a WiFi network when the error occurs, you can switch to a cellular data network or another WiFi network. Changing the network setting will help you tackle the problem if the error is due to network inefficiencies.
Frequently Asked Questions on “No Location found” and “Location Not Available.”
How Do You Know Someone Turns Off Their Location?
You can find out if someone turned off their location using your iPhone device. Once someone turns off their location, it will say location services off.
If you’re using the Find my app to track someone on an iPhone, or any Apple device, once the person turns off their share my location, your phone will indicate that it is off.
Tracking an iPhone or Apple device only works when the user turns on the location services and ”share my location.”
Will I Get a “No Location found” message When my iPhone is Off?
Absolutely yes; once the person’s device is off, you’ll receive a “No Location found” message as share my location and location services will both be inaccessible on finding my app.
Once your phone dies, Offline or without internet, Anybody you share your location with won’t be able to track you as they’ll receive a “No Location found” on their end.
Does “No Location found” Mean They Stopped Sharing locations?
No longer found isn’t an indication that someone stopped sharing the location with you. Once someone stops sharing their location with you, the best place to find out is on iMessage and Find My App.
You can also know if someone has stopped sharing their location with you when once you try to track them, you’ll see ”No longer sharing location.”