Decision sheet — What a tracker can do
Live versus last-known location
A location on a map is almost never a live feed. Find My, Find Hub and SmartThings Find all show the last position the phone reported, and the timestamp beside it tells you how old that point is. If it reads "a few minutes ago" the phone is online and the dot is close to current; if it reads hours or days, you are looking at a last-known point and the phone has gone quiet. Read the time before you act on the place.
- Read6–8 min read
- You needYour own Apple, Google or Samsung account
- Works onFind My (iOS) · Find Hub (Android) · SmartThings Find (Galaxy)
Verified: October 2026 against Apple, Google and Samsung official support.
A finder displays the last position it received, not a continuously updated track. The update time matters as much as the pin: it is the only thing that tells you whether the phone is reporting now or went offline hours ago.
How to tell a live point from a last-known one
- Find the update time. In the Find My app and on iCloud.com/find it sits under the device name; in Find Hub it is the “last updated” line beside the device or person; in SmartThings Find it is the timestamp shown on the map card. A fresh “just now / a few minutes ago” means the phone is online; hours or days means last-known.
- Press Refresh and watch the time. On iCloud.com dragging the map does not update anything — only the device reporting in moves the timestamp. In Find Hub, if the “last updated” time does not change after a refresh, the location was not retrieved, usually because the phone is offline or powered off.
- Read the accuracy ring, not just the dot. The circle Find Hub and Google Maps draw around the pin is a confidence indicator, not a boundary the person is inside. A large circle means the system is unsure; a small one means it is more certain. Outdoors, GPS is typically good to roughly 20 metres — a building, not a person.
- Check battery, connectivity and whether finding was enabled before the phone went missing. A phone that is dead, out of signal, or never had Find My / offline finding turned on cannot send a current point, so any dot you see is historical.
- Label the point in your own decision. If the time is old, treat the place as “where it last was,” not “where it is.”
What does your app show right now?
Pick the state that matches the device, and read the honest expectation.
Close to live.
The phone is powered on, has signal and finding is enabled. The dot is the current position within the accuracy ring. Press Refresh to force a new fix; the timestamp should jump to “just now.”
Do this: Trust the place, but still read the ring for how precise it is.
Last-known, probably still useful.
The phone reported recently but is not refreshing now — it may have lost signal, locked, or dropped to a weak connection. The point is where it last checked in, not necessarily where it is now.
Do this: Refresh a few times; if the time never moves, treat it as offline.
Last-known only.
With no data or Wi-Fi the phone cannot send a live fix. Find My keeps the last point for up to 7 days in the app (24 hours on iCloud.com); Find Hub stores only the single most recent encrypted location; SmartThings Find shows the last point before it lost connection.
Do this: Use offline-finding networks (below) and watch for the time to update.
Last-known, and a short window on newer phones.
A supported iPhone (11 and later, iOS 15+) stays findable for up to 24 hours after power-off, or up to 5 hours in power reserve, via the Find My network. Galaxy phones emit an offline-finding signal about 30 minutes after going offline. Otherwise you only have the last reported point.
Do this: Rely on the last timestamp; do not read the old point as current.
No location at all.
If Find My, Find Hub or offline finding was off before the phone went missing, it will not appear on the map — there is no stored point to show, live or last-known.
Do this: Turn finding on now on your other devices so the next phone is covered.
Edge cases — when the time stops moving
- Phone is off (Apple)
- Find My shows the last known location for up to 7 days in the app and up to 24 hours on iCloud.com. After more than 7 days without a report it shows “No location found.” Send Last Location uploads the final position automatically when the battery is critically low.
- Phone is off (Android / Galaxy)
- Find Hub keeps only the most recent encrypted location your phone sent while online. SmartThings Find shows the last point before the phone lost connection, and a Galaxy phone starts emitting an offline-finding signal roughly 30 minutes after going offline so nearby Galaxy devices can relay a point.
- Offline-finding networks
- Apple's Find My network and Google's Find Hub network relay a point through other people's nearby phones over Bluetooth, encrypted and anonymous. The owner only sees an aggregated location once several devices have detected the phone — it can be minutes to hours old.
- No signal or location services off
- No data, no Wi-Fi, or location turned off means no new fix. The map falls back to the last stored point and the timestamp freezes.
- “Track” vs a single fix
- SmartThings Find's Track location mode (for a moving vehicle or suspected theft) pushes a fresh position about every 15 minutes; a normal view is a single fix you refresh by hand.
How each finder treats live vs last-known
| Find My (Apple) | Find Hub (Google) | SmartThings Find (Samsung) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where the time shows | Under the device name (app & iCloud.com) | “Last updated” line by the device/person | Timestamp on the map card |
| Refresh behaviour | Timestamp moves only when the phone reports; dragging the map does nothing | If “last updated” doesn't change, the fix wasn't retrieved | Refresh re-checks; Track mode updates ~every 15 min |
| Last-known when offline | Yes — last online point | Yes — only the single most recent stored point | Yes — point before it lost connection |
| How long last-known is kept | 7 days in app / 24 h on iCloud.com, then “No location found” | Most recent encrypted location only | Last point before disconnect (no fixed window published) |
| Accuracy shown as | Dot on map | Confidence ring around the pin | Map with address + timestamp |
| After power-off | Up to 24 h (iPhone 11+, iOS 15+), 5 h in power reserve | Supported Pixels: a few hours via network | Offline-finding signal ~30 min after going offline |
| Needs prior setup | Find My + Find My network on | Find Hub + offline finding on | Offline finding on (default, verify it) |
If the point looks wrong
The time is old
You are looking at a last-known point. Refresh, and if the time won't move, the phone is offline or off — plan around where it last was.
The dot jumps around
A wide accuracy ring or indoor GPS can scatter the fix. Trust a small ring over a precise-looking address; read the circle, not the street.
It says ‘No location found’
On Apple that means more than 7 days since the last report. On Android the most recent stored point may have aged out or finding was off.
These tools only work on a device signed in to your own Apple, Google or Samsung account, or one shared with you. No website or app can pull a person's live location from just a phone number: carriers can locate a handset only on a lawful request, and services that advertise live location “by number” are scams or empty subscriptions. This page is about reading your own finder honestly, not finding strangers.
Official sources (checked October 2026)
- Apple — Use Find My to locate your lost Apple device or AirTag
- Apple — Add your iPhone to Find My (findable after power off)
- Google — How Find Hub protects your data (stored location, network)
- Google — Find, secure, or erase a lost Android device
- Samsung — How to locate your lost Samsung Galaxy phone or tablet
Questions people ask
Why does the location say “3 minutes ago” instead of showing live movement?
Because finders are not a live stream. The phone sends its position when it reaches the network, and the app shows that last report with its time. “3 minutes ago” means it checked in 3 minutes ago; it is close to current but not a moving track.
Is the blue dot exactly where the phone is?
No. The dot is an estimate and the ring around it shows how confident the system is. Outdoors GPS is usually good to about 20 metres; indoors or on a weak signal the ring widens. Treat it as an area, not a street address.
The time won't update when I press refresh — what does that mean?
The phone is not reporting. In Find Hub, an unchanged “last updated” time after a refresh means the fix wasn't retrieved, usually because the device is offline or powered off. You are seeing a last-known point.
How long does a last-known location stay visible?
On Apple, up to 7 days in the Find My app and up to 24 hours on iCloud.com, then “No location found.” Find Hub keeps only the single most recent encrypted location. Samsung shows the last point before the phone lost connection.
Can I see where a phone is after it's switched off?
Sometimes, briefly. A supported iPhone (11 and later, iOS 15+) stays findable for up to 24 hours after power-off, or 5 hours in power reserve, via the Find My network. A Galaxy phone emits an offline-finding signal about 30 minutes after going offline. Otherwise you only have the last reported point.
Does offline finding give a live location?
No. It relays a point through other people's nearby phones over encrypted Bluetooth, and you only get an aggregated location once several devices have detected the phone. It can be minutes to hours old — last-known, not live.
Can I get someone's real-time location from their phone number here?
No. None of these tools, and no legitimate website, locates a person from a phone number. The finder needs the device signed in to an account you own or that is shared with you. Services that promise live tracking by number are scams.
Why is Samsung's ‘find a powered-off phone’ unclear?
Samsung's own documentation is ambiguous about locating a fully powered-off phone, so we do not claim it works — it is not confirmed by the manufacturer. What is documented is the offline-finding signal that starts about 30 minutes after the phone goes offline while it still has power.