Location sharing apps that work across iPhone and Android
Not every location app works both ways between iPhone and Android. Here is which of the well-known options actually are cross-platform.
If your family or friend group mixes iPhone and Android, the app you pick has to work on both, or someone gets left out. That single requirement rules out one of the most obvious options.
The cross-platform problem
Apple’s Find My is built into every iPhone, which makes it the default choice for iPhone-only groups - but it has no Android app. Anyone on Android simply can’t be added the same way. Life360 and Google Maps both work across iOS and Android, and so does glancy, so the comparison below focuses on what differs once cross-platform support is a given: notifications, access logs, and how long a share lasts.
| Feature | glancy | Find My | Life360 | Google Maps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notifies on view | Yes | No | No | No |
| Access log | Yes | No | No | No |
| iOS ↔ Android | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Approximate location | Yes | Partial* | Partial* | No |
| Time-limited sharing | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Scheduled sharing | Yes | No | No | No |
| Pause sharing | Yes | Partial* | Yes | Partial* |
| Mutual connection required | Yes | Yes | Yes | not stated |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
* see sources below
Sources
Find My
Life360
Google Maps
