How to find out when a contact leaves or arrives in the Find My app

The Find My app, available on iOS and Mac, is a terrific tool for staying up to date on where your favorite people go and tracking down missing devices, all in one spot. With the host of features in the Find My app, one that stands out is the Notification function. You can receive an alert when someone else leaves or arrives at a location, as well as notify them when you leave or arrive at yours.

Not only are these notifications convenient for staying in the know, but they can help you and your loved ones have peace of mind. Here’s what you can do with the Notifications and how to set them up in the Find My app.

Create Notification in Find My on iPhone

Using Notifications in Find My

You can jump to a specific section for receiving, sending, editing, or deleting Notifications in Find My.

Receive notifications for people in Find My

You can set up notifications for People in the Find My app that share their location with you. This lets you know when they leave their current spot or a location that you add. Or, you can receive an alert when they arrive at a destination.

This is ideal for seeing when your child, family member, or significant other head out the door so that you know when to expect them. Or when they make it safely to their intended location.

On iPhone or iPad, select the People tab and then choose your contact.

1) Swipe up to expand the details at the bottom.

2) Under Notifications, tap Add.

3) Select Notify Me.

Notify Me in Find My on iPhone

On Mac, click People on the top left and pick your contact from the list.

1) Next to their name on the map, click the Information (small letter “i”) button.

2) Under Notifications, click Add.

3) Select Notify Me.

Notify Me in Find My on Mac

Customize the notifications

You’ll see a pop-up window that lets you customize the notification you’ll receive for that person.

  • Location-based notifications: Choose to receive an alert when the person arrives or leaves.
  • Locations: Pick your contact’s current location, your current location, or tap Add Location to enter a specific spot.
  • Receive notifications: When setting up notifications for others, you have just one option, and it’s Only Once.

Click or tap Add at the top when you finish.

Notify Me Customize in Find My on iPhone

Your contact will receive an alert that you have set up the notification.

Send notifications to people in Find My

You can also set up notifications for others to receive when you leave or arrive at a location as well. This is handy for alerting someone when you’re traveling far away or through an unfamiliar area because it lets your friends and family know when you leave and/or arrive.

On both iOS and Mac, follow the same steps above to Add a notification. But instead of selecting Notify Me, pick Notify [contact’s name].

Notify Contact in Find My on iPhone

You can then customize the alert in the same ways as for notifications you set up for others.

1) Choose from when you leave or arrive and pick the location or add a new one.

2) You have another option under Receive Notifications when you’re creating an alert for yourself; Every Time. So you can choose to alert your contact Only Once or Every Time you make this trip.

3) Click or tap Add at the top when you finish.

Notify Contact Customize in Find My on iPhone

Edit or delete notifications

Once you create a notification, whether for someone else or yourself, you can make changes to it if necessary or remove it altogether.

Access the notification on iOS or Mac by selecting the contact and viewing the details. You’ll see the alert you created under Notifications.

Pick the notification, make your changes, and click or tap Done. Or, move to the bottom, pick Delete Notification, and confirm that you want to delete it.

Delete Notification in Find My on iPhone

The notifications in the Find My app on iOS and Mac are convenient for many situations. Whether you have children and want to be sure they arrive at home or school or are traveling yourself and want to let your family know that you made it safely.

Are you going to take advantage of the Notifications feature in Find My? Let us know which situation you find it the most helpful for!

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