You can even find these iPhones when they are turned off

Lost iPhone with empty battery

Find my iPhone helps you find your iPhone or iPad if it’s lost or stolen. But how do you do that when your battery is (almost) empty? Starting with iOS 15, some devices can report their location even when they are turned off. If your iPhone is not yet suitable for this, there is another solution: just before the battery of the iPhone or iPad runs out, the device can automatically send the last known location. And maybe ‘know-it-all’ Google can even help you. That way you know where to look!

• iPhone lost and battery empty
• Request last known location
• Find last location with Google Maps

Lost your iPhone and run out of battery? You can do this

Is your iPhone missing? Then you can find it with the Find My app. The Devices tab lists all iPhones, iPads, and Macs on the map. This concerns all devices registered to your Apple ID. They transmit their location live. But what if a device is off?

From iOS 15, you can find a lost iPhone in the Find My app, even if the device is turned off or the battery is empty. This only works with newer models.

“Find your devices with the Find My network, even if they’re turned off,” says Apple. “This can help you find a lost device with a low battery or that has been disabled by a thief.” Hundreds of millions of Apple devices worldwide will then help you find your lost device. This also works if your device is not connected to the internet. The location data is then passed on via devices of others. This concerns a very small amount of data and only in cases where a device is lost.

You can find these iPhones when they are turned off

Retrieving a disabled iPhone only works on models with a U1 chip. This concerns the following iPhones:

• iPhone 13 series

• iPhone 12 series

• iPhone 11 series

These devices contain a U1 chip for Ultra Wideband technology (UWB), which makes it possible to locate an iPhone. UWB is very energy efficient and is also active when the device is completely switched off.

Also useful with iOS 15 and later is that you can find an iPhone after it has been erased. If you’ve lost your iPhone and are worried about others snooping into your personal information, you’ve always had the option of remote wiping. The biggest disadvantage of this is that the location of the iPhone can no longer be traced from that moment on. From iOS 15, you can continue to see the location, even if the iPhone is remotely erased or turned off.

Request last known location

If you don’t have an iPhone with a U1 chip, there is another way to find your iPhone or iPad, even if the battery is empty. If you use Find My, the device will provide the last known location, just before the battery dies. You can then see exactly where to look on the map.

This is how you enable it:

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap your account at the top of the screen.
3. Tap Find My > Find My iPhone.
4. Make sure all switches on this screen are on, including Send Last Location.

If your battery is low, your iPhone or iPad will forward your location to iCloud, provided you have a working internet connection. Again, the Find My network can be used, where others help you to pass on the location.

Find last location with Google

Don’t use Find My on your iPhone, or can’t find anything at the specified location? Google may still be able to help you. Some people have enabled Google Maps to record their location history. With that you can see what the last location of your iPhone was, just before the battery died.

1. Go to www.google.com/maps/timeline.
2. Sign in to the correct Google account.
3. Select the date you lost your iPhone.
4. See which location was last registered.