What is Live Location on Snapchat and How Does it Work?
Snapchat has always been at the forefront of connecting people in innovative ways. One of its standout features is the Live Location functionality, which enables users to share their whereabouts in real-time with friends. But what exactly is Live Location on Snapchat, and how does it operate? Let’s dive in.
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What is Live Location on Snapchat?
Live Location is a feature on Snapchat that allows users to share their current location with a specific friend or group of friends for a set period. Unlike the Snap Map, which shows your location when you open the app, Live Location continuously updates your position in real-time, even when you’re not actively using Snapchat.
This feature is particularly useful for meeting up with friends, ensuring someone knows where you are during your travels, or staying connected with loved ones for safety reasons.
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How Does Live Location Work?
Here’s a step-by-step breakdown of how Live Location operates:
- Enabling Live Location Sharing:
- To share your Live Location, open a chat with the friend you want to share it with.
- Tap on the person’s profile icon and select the “Share My Live Location” option.
- Choose the duration for which you’d like to share your location. Options typically include 15 minutes, 1 hour, or up to 8 hours.
- Real-Time Updates:
- Once enabled, your location is updated in real-time and shared only with the selected recipient(s). This is different from Snap Map, which only updates your location when the app is open.
- Privacy Settings:
- You have full control over who can see your Live Location. It’s not public and won’t be visible to all your Snapchat friends.
- You can stop sharing at any time by turning off Live Location in the chat or your settings.
- Notification System:
- The app sends notifications to remind you that your Live Location is active, ensuring you’re always aware of its status.
Benefits of Live Location on Snapchat
- Safety and Security:
- Live Location provides an added layer of security by allowing friends or family to track your whereabouts during commutes or in unfamiliar areas.
- Convenience:
- It’s an efficient way to coordinate meetups or share your location with friends without repeatedly updating them.
- Personalized Sharing:
- Unlike traditional GPS sharing apps, Snapchat’s Live Location is designed to be intuitive, easy to use, and customizable for short-term sharing.
Privacy and Safety Considerations
Snapchat takes user privacy seriously, and Live Location is no exception. The feature is opt-in and not enabled by default. Users have complete control over who they share their location with and for how long. Additionally, Snapchat encourages users to only share their location with trusted individuals.
To further protect your privacy:
- Regularly review your location-sharing settings.
- Avoid sharing your Live Location with strangers or people you don’t fully trust.
- Keep the app updated to ensure you benefit from Snapchat’s latest security features.
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Everything about Snapchat Live Location
In 2022, Snapchat introduced its “Live Location” feature so users can share their real-time location and activity status with friends and family on the Snap Map. Here are more information about Snapchat Live location:
Snapchat Live Location vs Current Location
In addition to sharing your live location on Snapchat, it also enables you to send your current location to specific contacts in the one-to-one conversation or group chat. In case you don’t know the difference between the two, here we will give you the answer.
Snapchat Live Location: Snapchat’s Live Location feature enables you to share your real-time whereabouts. As you move, your live location updates continuously to reflect your position.
Snapchat Current Location: This is static location information sent once to the recipient, and it will not update if you move.
Does Snapchat Live Location Update in the Background?
No. Snapchat’s live location doesn’t update in the background.
Although the official document claims that it displays and updates the live location if you grant “Always” for Snapchat location, my friends couldn’t see my location updates when I closed the Snapchat app or ran Snapchat in the background. However, the online status presented by Snap Map updates in the background.
That is to say, once you run Snapchat in the background, Snapchat shows your contact you are “Last seen here xxx minutes ago” or “Here xxx minutes ago.” But the location is where you were last when you used Snapchat, not your current real-time location.
How Often Does Snapchat Live Location Update?
Snapchat’s Live Location updates every few minutes while the app is open. During testing, I found that this feature was sometimes delayed by 1-3 minutes. Of course, the frequency at which these updates are sent is depending on these factors:
Battery Optimization: If you enabled the battery-saving mode, the app may slow down the frequency of asking for updates of the location to consume less power.
Network Conditions: Low internet speed or a weak strength in the GPS connection will delay this update.
Is Snapchat Live Location Accurate?
The answer depends on whether the Snapchat app is open.
When you see “Live” or “Here just now,” it means the contact is using Snapchat. This time, the location is accurate and can be updated to show where they are in real-time.
But if Snap Map displays “Last seen here xxx minutes ago” or “Here xxx minutes ago,” the live location is not accurate and outdated. In this case, you can only check the last active location the contact used Snapchat unless he reopened the Snapchat app.
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How to Share & Hide Live Location on Snapchat
Now, you may have a deep understanding of the Snapchat Live location feature. Here’s how to use this feature to share and hide your live location on Snapchat:
To Share Live Location on Snapchat
- Step 1. Access Snap Map from the bottom toolbar.
- Step 2. Tap on the “Settings” button.
- Step 3. Then, you can select who can see your live location.
To Hide Live Location on Snapchat
- Step 1. Start by heading to the Snap Map tab.
- Step 2. Select “Settings” and enable the option saying “Ghost Mode.”
- Step 3. This will ask you to choose how long you wish to stop sharing your location (3 hours, 24 hours, or indefinitely).
How to See Live Location Even If It’s Hidden on Snapchat
Want to see someone’s location, but it’s hidden on Snapchat? No worries! We have got you covered with a simple yet effective solution. AirDroid Location Tracker will help you trace your loved one’s location in real-time.
This app is best for parents who are always concerned about their kids’ safety while they are out of home. Once you preinstalled the companion app on your kid’s phone, it is easy to know where they are. You can even view where your child’s has been and set a geofence to receive alerts.
Now, let’s explore the simple steps to use AirDroid Location Tracker:
- Step 1. Start by installing AirDroid Parental Control it on your phone.
- Step 2. Open the app and follow the instructions to link the device you need to track.
- Step 3. Tap the GPS icon at the bottom of the AirDroid Parental Control dashboard to view the location of the tracked phone.
Final verdict
Snapchat’s Live Location feature is a practical and secure way to stay connected with friends and loved ones. Whether you’re navigating through a busy city, coordinating a meetup, or ensuring someone knows your whereabouts for safety reasons, Live Location on Snapchat simplifies real-time location sharing. By offering full control and privacy, Snapchat ensures that staying connected doesn’t come at the expense of your security.
