To turn off Find My iPhone, open Settings, tap your name, tap Find My, tap Find My iPhone, and turn it off. Enter your Apple Account password when asked, then tap Turn Off. If Stolen Device Protection is on, you need to turn that off first. If you already sold or gave away the phone, use the remote transfer steps below. If it is lost or stolen, keep it in Find My and mark it as lost instead.
Turning off Find My also removes Activation Lock, which is why Apple asks you to do it before you sell, trade in, or send your iPhone for repair. Signing out of your Apple Account also turns off Find My on that device, as in signing out of an Apple Account on iPad.
If you only want to stop sharing your location
You can stop sharing with people while keeping Find My iPhone available for finding a lost device. In Find My › People, select a person and choose Stop Sharing My Location. To stop sharing your location with everyone, open Find My › Me and turn off Share My Location.
These controls are different from the device’s Find My iPhone switch. Deleting the Find My app does not stop location sharing. Google Maps keeps its own separate sharing list, explained in how location sharing works in Google Maps. Apple’s location-sharing instructions explain the options. To start sharing again later, see how to share your location on an iPhone.
How to Turn Off Find My on Your iPhone
These steps work on iOS 17, iOS 18, and later, and they match Apple’s guide to turning off Find My.
- Open the Settings app.
- Tap your name at the top of the screen.
- Tap Find My.
- Tap Find My iPhone.
- Turn off the Find My iPhone switch.
- Enter your Apple Account password, then tap Turn Off.
When the switch is off, your iPhone no longer shows up in the Find My app, and Activation Lock is removed.
Can’t Turn It Off? Check Stolen Device Protection
Apple says Find My must stay on while Stolen Device Protection is turned on. To turn it off:
- Open Settings and tap Face ID & Passcode (or Touch ID & Passcode).
- Enter your passcode.
- Tap Stolen Device Protection and turn it off.
A Security Delay can require Face ID or Touch ID, a one-hour wait, and another biometric check. This applies away from familiar locations, or everywhere if Require Security Delay is set to Always. Follow the onscreen prompts until Stolen Device Protection is actually off, then return to Find My. Simply waiting without completing the final authentication does not finish the change.
Other Reasons the Switch Is Grayed Out
- Screen Time restrictions: go to Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions and make sure account changes are allowed.
- A work or school iPhone: your organization may lock this setting. Ask your IT team.
- Wrong password: use your Apple Account password, not your iPhone passcode.
If You Already Sold or Gave Away the iPhone
Do not use these steps for a lost or stolen phone. Removing it from Find My removes Activation Lock. For a missing phone, follow Apple’s lost-device guidance and use Mark as Lost. Keep it in Find My even if you remotely erase it.
For a phone you deliberately transferred to someone else, Apple specifies an erase-then-remove process. Erasing deletes the phone’s contents, so confirm that any data you need is backed up before proceeding.
- Sign in to iCloud Find Devices with the Apple Account associated with the iPhone.
- Select the correct iPhone from the device list.
- If it has not been erased, choose Erase This Device and follow the prompts.
- Wait until the erase finishes. An offline phone must reconnect first; Apple sends an email when erasure is complete.
- Select Remove This Device after erasure to remove Activation Lock and let the new owner activate it.
For repair, the web interface may instead offer Ready for Repair or Trade In for an online device. That is a different state from completing an ownership transfer. Follow your service provider’s directions and Apple’s device-removal instructions.
Before You Sell or Trade In Your iPhone
- Back up the iPhone to iCloud or your computer.
- Turn off Find My using the steps above.
- Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone and tap Erase All Content and Settings.
Erasing the iPhone also signs you out of your Apple Account. For more on resetting, see how to factory reset an iPhone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does turning off Find My iPhone turn it off for my AirPods and Apple Watch?
Handle accessories separately before selling or giving them away. Apple recommends unpairing an Apple Watch from the iPhone to remove it from Find My. AirPods have their own device-removal process. Turning off Find My iPhone is not a complete transfer checklist for every paired accessory.
Will turning off Find My delete anything?
No. It doesn’t erase your photos, messages, or apps. It only stops the phone from being located and removes Activation Lock.
How do I turn Find My back on?
Go back to Settings > [your name] > Find My > Find My iPhone and turn the switch on. It’s also a good idea to turn on Send Last Location. Here’s how the Last Location option works.
Matthew Burleigh has been writing tech tutorials since 2008. His writing has appeared on dozens of different websites and been read hundreds of millions of times.
After receiving his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Computer Science he spent several years working in IT management for small businesses. However, he now works full time writing content online and creating websites.
His main writing topics include iPhones, Microsoft Office, Google Apps, Android, and Photoshop, but he has also written about many other tech topics as well.