Find My Notifications: Get Alerts When Someone Arrives

Location alerts are the most useful part of location sharing: instead of opening a map to see if someone got home, your phone tells you. Apple's Find My calls them location notifications. Here's how to set them up in both directions, the rules Apple applies, and fixes. Steps from Apple's iPhone User Guide (iOS 27; iOS 26 reads the same), checked 7 November 2026.

Before you start

The person must share their location with you in Find My.
Apple: "In order to receive a notification when your friend's location changes, make sure you allow notifications for the Find My app" (Apple). Check Settings > Notifications > Find My.
Recurring alerts work only for friends who have two-factor authentication turned on.

Get notified when a friend arrives or leaves

Open Find My and tap People.
Tap the person, then the more button.
Below Notify Me, tap Add Location Alert.
Choose whether to be notified when they arrive at or leave a location.
Choose a location, or tap New Location and set a radius. "With a larger radius, you're notified when your friend is near the location instead of right at the location."
Choose only once or every time.
Tap the confirm button, then OK (Apple).

Apple: "Your friend gets an alert after you set the notification. If you set a recurring notification, your friend must approve it before it's set. They get an alert asking for approval when they arrive at or leave the location you chose for the first time."

Get notified when a friend isn't somewhere

Apple added a schedule-based alert, for example "if your child isn't at school during school hours":

In People, tap the person > more > Add Location Alert below Notify Me.
Below When, tap [friend's name] Is Not At.
Pick a location and radius.
Set the Time (start and end) and Days.
Confirm. "Your friend must approve the notification before it's set."

Notify a friend when you arrive or leave

The other direction: let someone know automatically when you get home.

In People, tap the person you want to notify, then the more button.
Below Notify [friend's name], tap Add Location Alert.
Choose arrive or leave, a location and radius, and once or every time.
Confirm (Apple).

See and delete alerts about you

Find My > Me: the people notified about your location appear below Alerts on My Location / Notifications About You.
To delete one: select the name, tap the notification, Delete Notification, then Delete Notification again. Apple: "You can turn off any location notification about you. This includes notifications you set and notifications your friends create."

Change or delete an alert you set

People > the person > more > tap the notification > change details and confirm, or Delete Notification twice. Apple's limit: "You can create up to 25 Notify Me notifications."

On Apple Watch

In Find My on the Watch: People > the friend > scroll to Notify Me or Notify [friend's name] > Add Location Alert (Apple). Guide: share location on Apple Watch.

On Android: Google Maps notifications

Google Maps lets people you share with add a notification and see your "arrival and departure time" (Google), and for each person you share with "you can choose whether they're allowed to create notifications about you" (Google). Find Hub also lets you "set up notifications for when people who share their location with you arrive at or leave specific places" (Google).

Find My notifications not working? Fixes

Problem	Fix
No alert arrives	Allow notifications for Find My; check the friend is sharing with you
Recurring alert never activates	They must approve it on first arrival or departure; they need two-factor authentication
Alert fires late or early	Adjust the radius; a larger radius triggers when "near"
Can't add more alerts	Apple's limit is 25 Notify Me notifications
Alert stopped working	They stopped sharing; Apple says stopping sharing turns off notifications they created about you (Apple)
Friend has Android	Find My doesn't include Android; use Google Maps or Warden

Warden (top pick): arrival alerts for the whole circle, any phone

Find My alerts are set person by person and only work between Apple devices. Warden builds them into the circle:

Add places once (home, work, school, the gym). Unlimited places.
The circle gets an alert when anyone who shares arrives at or leaves a place, on iPhone and Android.
A "hasn't moved" alert tells the circle if someone who shares stays in one spot for a long time outside your places during the day.
Low-battery alerts show when a phone is about to go quiet.
Everyone switches sharing on themselves and can pause anytime; the circle sees "Paused".

No medical or fall detection, and SOS reaches the circle, not emergency services. More: geofence alerts app.

FAQ

How do I get notified when someone arrives home on iPhone?

In Find My, tap People, the person, the more button, then Add Location Alert below Notify Me. Choose arrives, pick their home, and choose once or every time.

Does the other person know I set a Find My notification?

Yes. Apple says your friend gets an alert after you set the notification, and recurring notifications need their approval.

How do I notify someone when I arrive?

In Find My, tap People, the person, the more button, then Add Location Alert below Notify [their name], and choose arrive and a place.

How many Find My notifications can I set?

Apple says you can create up to 25 Notify Me notifications.

Why am I not getting Find My notifications?

Notifications for Find My may be off, the friend may not share with you, or a recurring alert hasn't been approved yet. They also need two-factor authentication for recurring alerts.

Can I get notified when someone leaves a location?

Yes. When adding the alert, choose leaves instead of arrives.

How do I turn off Find My notifications about me?

Open Find My, tap Me, select a name under the notifications about you, tap the notification and tap Delete Notification twice.