Most people use their phone for everything — messages, photos, banking, email — without ever thinking about what happens if it is stolen or lost. Taking a few minutes now to set up your phone’s finding service could save you a great deal of distress later.
What the phone-finding services actually do
Android phones and iPhones each have a built-in finding service, but they are separate services with separate sign-ins. On Android it is called Find My Device, and on an iPhone it is called Find My. When it is switched on and your phone goes missing, you can log into a website from any other device — a computer, a tablet, a friend’s phone — and see where your phone is on a map. You can also make it ring loudly even if the volume is turned down, which is useful when you have simply misplaced it at home. If the phone is genuinely stolen, you can lock it remotely so no one can get in. Before you erase all your personal data, check that you have a copy somewhere else, such as in your cloud account or on an external drive. Erasing cannot be undone, and location tracking stops afterwards, so use erase only as a last resort, when getting the phone back is no longer realistic.
Setting it up on an Android phone
On most Android phones, Find My Device is already on by default if you are signed in with a Google account. To check:
- Open Settings on your phone.
- Scroll down and tap Security or Security and Privacy.
- Look for Find My Device and make sure it is switched on.
To test it, go to android.com/find on a computer and sign in with the same Google account you use on your phone. You should see your phone listed there.
Menu names and places differ between Android versions and phone makers. If the names on your phone are different, look for something with a similar name.
Setting it up on an iPhone
On an iPhone the feature is called Find My. To check it is on:
- Open Settings and tap your name at the top.
- Tap Find My.
- Tap Find My iPhone and make sure it is switched on.
- Also turn on Send Last Location — this sends your phone’s last known location to Apple just before the battery dies.
To use it, go to icloud.com/find on a computer or use the Find My app on another Apple device. If Find My is on, you should see your iPhone listed there once you sign in with the same Apple account.
What you need for it to work
Find My Device only works when the phone has mobile data or Wi-Fi and the battery is not completely dead. This is why keeping your phone charged and connected matters. If you turn the phone off or someone puts it in aeroplane mode, the location will only show the last known position.
One more thing to do now
Write down your phone’s IMEI number and keep it somewhere safe. You can find it by dialling *#06# on your phone. The number should appear on your screen. If your phone is stolen, you can give this number to your mobile network so they can block it from being used on any network.
Last updated: October 9, 2026