How To Pause Location On Life360

Published: January 29, 2025

Life360 is one of the biggest location sharing apps in the world, with 1 in 11 people in the U.S. relying on it to stay safe by sharing real-time location updates. It’s a tool designed to provide safety and peace of mind, but while it can be beneficial in many situations, in others it can also feel like an invasion of privacy.

Whether you’re dealing with overbearing monitoring or simply want to maintain personal space, you might find yourself looking for ways to pause Life360’s location tracking.

It’s important to note that Life360 is a legitimate app that’s transparent about its features. However, in the wrong hands, the app could be used in ways that cross personal boundaries or even violate your consent. If you feel uneasy about being tracked, this guide is here to help.

We’ll walk you through practical, discreet methods for pausing or disabling location sharing on Life360.

Let’s explore your options and regain control over your privacy.

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What is Life360?
7 Ways to Pause Location Sharing on Life 360
Final Thoughts

What is Life360?

As mentioned above, Life360 is a family location-sharing app designed to help families and groups stay connected.

It offers features that include real-time location tracking, driving reports, and safety alerts. The app is ideal for keeping track of your kids’ whereabouts or coordinating plans with friends.

However, this level of transparency can sometimes feel invasive, especially if the app is used in ways that overstep personal boundaries.

Source: Life360

Why would someone want to turn off their location on Life360?

While Life360 offers numerous benefits, there are valid reasons why someone might want to disable location access:

To maintain privacy in certain situations. Everyone deserves personal space, and there are moments when sharing your exact location might not feel appropriate.
Concerns about over-monitoring or misuse of tracking. Sometimes, those using the app can exert excessive control or track someone without explicit consent.

Whatever the reason, it’s important to know your options for responsibly managing location sharing on Life360. Below, we’ll discuss how you can turn your Life360 location off.

Unfortunately, Life360 is designed to notify Circle members when location sharing is paused or disabled. If you turn off location services, enable Airplane Mode, or toggle off location sharing within the app, Circle members will see a “Location Sharing Paused” notification in the app.

7 Ways to Pause Location Sharing on Life 360

1. Disable Circle’s location sharing

Disabling location sharing within a specific Circle in Life360 allows you to maintain privacy without affecting other Circles. Here’s how to do it on both iPhone and Android phones:

Launch the Life360 app on your phone.
Tap the Settings icon, typically located in the upper-left corner.
Tap on Location Sharing.
Choose the Circle for which you want to disable location sharing.
Switch the Location Sharing toggle to the Off position.

Fig 1. Disabling location sharing in the Life360 app.

If you’re in multiple Circles, you’ll need to pause the location-sharing feature for each Circle individually. Simply repeat the steps above for every Circle where you want to disable location sharing.

2. Turn On Airplane Mode

If you need to turn location sharing off quickly, a good option is to enable Airplane mode. Enabling airplane mode cuts off all cellular data to your mobile device. Here’s how to turn on Airplane Mode:

On iPhone:

To open the Control Center, swipe down from the top right corner (on iPhone X or later) or swipe up from the bottom (on iPhone 8 or earlier).
Look for the airplane icon (✈️) and tap it. When it turns orange, Airplane Mode is on, and your iPhone will disconnect from cellular, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth networks.

Fig 2. Enabling Airplane Mode on iPhone.

On Android:

Swipe down from the top of the screen to open the Quick Settings panel. On some devices, you may need to swipe down twice to see all options.
Tap the Airplane Mode icon (✈️). The icon should change color or style to indicate it’s active.

Fig 3. Enabling Airplane Mode on Android.

What happens when airplane mode is on?

Wi-Fi, mobile data, and Bluetooth are disabled. This means no internet or phone connectivity.
GPS tracking may also stop working temporarily, which can prevent apps like Life360 from updating your location.
If needed, you can manually turn Wi-Fi or Bluetooth back on while Airplane Mode is active.

This method is simple and quick, making it one of the easiest ways to pause location sharing without changing app settings.

3. Turn off location services

Turning off this feature on your smartphone stops the device from sharing your location information with Life360. Here’s how to do this:

On iPhone:

Open the Settings app.
Scroll down and select Privacy & Security.
Tap Location Services at the top of the list.
Scroll down to locate Life360. Tap on it and choose one of the following options.
- Never: Prevents Life360 from accessing your location entirely.
- Ask Next Time or When I Share: Prompts you to allow or deny location access when the app is used
- While Using the App: This option only enables location access when you have Life360 open on your screen.

Quick tip: If you don’t want Life360 to know your exact location, toggle Precise Location to Off.

Fig 4. Disabling Location Services for Life360 on iPhone.

On Android:

Open the Settings app.
Go to Apps > Manage Apps and find Life360.
Tap Life360 then tap Permissions.
Tap Location and change its location access to one of the following:
- Don’t Allow: Completely disables location access for Life360.
- Ask Every Time: Prompts you each time the app requests your location.
- Allow Only While Using the App: Grants location access only when Life360 is open and in use.

Quick tip: If you want to restrict Life360 further, ensure the app cannot access your location in the background. You can adjust this under App Permissions.

Fig 5. Disabling location access for Life360 on Android.

What happens when location services are turned off for Life360?

Life360 can no longer track your location. The app will display a “Location Sharing Paused” message for Circle members.
Other apps are unaffected. Only Life360’s access to your location is disabled, ensuring other GPS location-dependent apps continue working as usual.

4. Enable low-power mode

Low Power Mode is designed to conserve battery by limiting background activities and app functionality, including location tracking. When enabled, it reduces the ability of apps like Life360 to track your real-time location continuously.

Here’s how to enable it on both iPhone and Android devices:

On iPhone:

Tap on the Settings app on your iPhone.
Scroll down and select Battery.
Toggle the Low Power Mode switch to the On position. When enabled, the battery icon in the status bar will turn yellow, indicating that Low Power Mode is active.

Fig 6. Enabling low-power mode on iPhone.

On Android:

Swipe down from the top of the screen to open the Quick Settings panel.
Swipe down again to view more options
Tap the Battery Saver or Power Saving Mode icon to enable it instantly.

Fig 7. Enabling low-power mode on Android.

What happens when low-power mode is enabled?

Background app refresh is paused. Apps like Life360 can’t update your location in the background.
Push notifications may be delayed. Notifications from Life360 and other apps might not be delivered instantly.
Reduced app activity. Features requiring high power consumption, such as GPS tracking, are limited or paused.
Battery conservation is prioritized. Your phone’s performance is optimized for longer battery life.

5. Turn off background app refresh

Background app refresh allows apps like Life360 to update their data in the background, even when you’re not actively using the app.

By disabling this feature for Life360, you can stop the app from accessing your current location or updating in the background, effectively pausing its tracking capabilities without completely disabling the app.

On iPhone:

Open the Settings app.
Scroll down and select General.
Tap Background App Refresh to view a list of apps with this feature enabled.
Scroll through the list to find Life360 and toggle the switch to the Off position. This prevents Life360 from refreshing its data in the background while keeping the feature active for other apps.

Fig 8. Turning-off background app refresh for Life360 on iPhone.

On Android:

Open the Settings app.
Navigate to Apps or Application Manager (this may vary by device).
Scroll through the list of installed apps and select Life360.
Tap on Mobile Data & Wi-Fi (or a similar option).
Toggle Allow Background Data Usage or Background Data to the Off position. This stops Life360 from using data when not actively open.

Fig 9. Turning-off background app refresh for Life360 on Android.

What happens when background app refresh is disabled?

Location tracking is paused when the app isn’t in use. Life360 won’t be able to update your location while running in the background.
Real-time updates are delayed. Location data and notifications may not refresh until you manually open the app.
Preserves battery and data usage. This method also helps conserve battery life and reduce mobile data consumption.

6. Delete your account

If you want to stop Life360 from tracking your location, deleting your account is an effective solution. Doing so will remove your account from all Circles, and Life360 will no longer have access to your location. However, note that the app may display your smartphone’s last known location before the account was deleted.

Open the Life360 app.
Tap the Settings icon in the top-left corner then tap Account.
Tap Delete Account
Confirm the deletion and follow the on-screen prompts to confirm your choice.
Once your account is deleted, uninstall the Life360 app from your device by following these steps:
- On iPhone: Long-press the app icon, tap Remove App, then select Delete App.
- On Android: Long-press the app icon and drag it to the Uninstall option or tap Uninstall from the menu.

What happens after you delete your account?

Location tracking stops. Life360 will no longer update your location.
Account removal. Your account will be erased from all Circles you were part of.
Last known location. Circle members may still see your last known location before deletion.

Pro Tip: If you have a paid subscription, cancel it to avoid future charges. Deleting the app alone does not cancel your membership.

7. Bonus tip: Download the Certo app

Certo’s apps for iPhone and Android help you take back control of your privacy by checking your device for threats. It’s a great way to help secure your device if you think your location is being monitored without your consent.

Why Certo?

Detect hidden trackers: Identifies apps or settings monitoring your location.
Simple and effective: Easy-to-use interface with actionable recommendations.
Peace of mind: Ensures your location data stays private.

Fig 10. Detecting spyware with Certo for Android.

Final Thoughts

Life360 is a powerful tool for staying connected, but it’s equally important to have control over your privacy when needed. Whether making a setting adjustment, enabling airplane mode, or simply deleting the app, there are many ways to pause or manage location sharing effectively.

With the methods outlined in this guide, you can confidently take control of your location sharing while ensuring your personal space and security.