How to Track a Cell Phone Location Without Installing Software

Gone are the days when only tech experts were able to track someone’s phone without them knowing. Today, mobile phone tracking isn’t rocket science. It’s easy for anyone to monitor the location of most internet-enabled handsets. All you need is the appropriate app and adequate tracking knowledge.

Surveillance comes in handy when you need to locate a lost device. For example, if you’re a parent, you probably also want to know where your kids are. As we’ll see here, there are several other occasions when cell phone tracking is necessary.

So, then how does one go about tracking a person’s phone without installing software on target phone?

Reasons to Track Someone’s Cell Phone

Digital monitoring has, on occasion, raised eyebrows. The rise of unethical online surveillance by people with nefarious motives makes some individuals skeptical about the possibility of digital tracking being used for good.

It’s one of the basic requirements of being a parent – you ought to know your child’s whereabouts at all times. Being able to track your child’s movement and all-day activities makes it easier for you to keep them safe.

If, for instance, you track your child’s phone and realize that they are stuck somewhere unsafe, you can just swoop in and rescue them.

Employers might also want to keep tabs on their employees’ location. Tracking your staff makes them accountable and increases productivity.

Not everyone in your team works diligently without supervision. You, for instance, can’t be sure that one of your workers won’t sneak off to somewhere else when on official duty, business tour, or even during work hours.

Trust is given to those who earn it. Romantic partners often struggle with trust issues. It’s easier to trust someone if you know that they are where they say they are.

You can simply confirm your partner’s location if you track their mobile phone’s location. A person who’s always honest about their whereabouts is probably a person who deserves your trust. Let’s see the best ways to track cell phone location without installing software.

Tracking a Cell Phone Location Without Access to Target Phone or Using Software

Most phones don’t come with inbuilt location-tracking apps, and it’s hard to find a free cell phone tracker without installing on target phone. Third-party spying applications are thus the most commonly-used options for monitoring mobile devices. Unfortunately, you have to install the app on the device you wish to track. This might be challenging, especially when you don’t have unlimited access to the target device.

The good news, nevertheless, is that third-party mobile spy apps aren’t the only way to monitor a phone’s location. This actually is a good thing because third-party surveillance apps tend to be quite invasive. And people often exploit their invasiveness for unconstructive purposes.

The cell phone tracking methods explained here aren’t quite as invasive as common third-party surveillance applications. They allow you to track someone’s phone without them knowing and invading too much into their privacy.

With the tracking options listed here, you do not require to install any stealth apps. So, you neither need to have access to the person of interest’s phone nor does the phone have to be rooted or jailbroken to support tracking.

Thus, tracking without installing additional software is easy and convenient even for those who aren’t very tech-savvy.

Can You Track a Cell Phone Without Installing Software?

Most phones lack dedicated inbuilt apps to monitor everything on them remotely. However, you can perform a few remote functions through phone solutions such as Google Maps timeline, including location tracking.

GEOfinder – Best Way of Tracking a Phone Without Installing Software

A phone number is just what you need to find a person’s location with this fun tracking service. So, in essence, the options of whom you can track are virtually limitless. GEOfinder lets you track any cell phone in your phonebook and even random people.

Essentially, GEOfinder doesn’t track the targeted device. The app tracks the SIM card inside the device. The technical term for this is mobile number tracking.

One major advantage of mobile number tracking is precise location tags. GEOfinder lets you know a person’s actual location with an accuracy of as much as 10-20 feet. When you are very close to the target, the app points you in the person’s direction.

Creating an account to use GEOfinder is pretty much straightforward, which is one of the reasons why people love the app. Additionally, you can unlock all of the application’s features with a single payment plan.

The only downside to using GEOfinder is that the app doesn’t give you many details about the target device besides location tracking. On top of that, the app doesn’t provide free or trial plans to try out its features.

Google Maps Timeline – Free Solution To Track Cell Phone Location

Want to track a cell phone location without installing software for free? Google Maps is undoubtedly one of the modern world’s most innovative features. However, Google uses it to track your everyday movements.

If Google can use maps to track your movements, you can also use Google Maps to track other people’s movements. Normally, Google locks a person’s timeline to their account. To access this info, you only need to gain access to that account.

The timeline feature on Google Maps lets you see a location history of every place visited by the person of interest. This makes it a great way to track Android as well as track iPhone.

Google Maps Timeline gives you insight into the places a person has been to in the past as well as the routes they took to get there. Additional information is provided about the time spent getting to a particular place as well as the amount of time spent there.

Since Google allows tracking a cell phone without an app, no installation needed or any additional surveillance apps on the target phone to monitor their movement.

Getting to see a person’s timeline is easy peasy if you know the person’s Google account login credentials. All you do is go to Maps using their Google account. From there, you can choose to view their timeline and share it with your account.

If you are a privacy-conscious individual, you don’t need telling that this is a feature that you need to look into so that other people don’t also use it to track your movements. It’s a great way to locate cell phone without app.

SpyBubble – More Then Location Tracker

Want to track a cell phone without installing software? Well, SpyBubble is a perfect choice since it’s among the best location tracking app options in the market. Unlike the two apps discussed above, SpyBubble does much more than just tracking the location of a mobile device. Indeed, it is a cut above similar applications because of its impressive delivery of the essential features most people desire when tracking devices.

This convenient phone tracker was designed to catch unfaithful spouses. With its excellent screenshot reporting and real-time tracking, SpyBubble lets you keep up-to-date tabs on any person of interest.

SpyBubble covers all the bases of cell phone monitoring. The app can track SMS, GPS tracker, social apps, and more. It does this so well that its online reputation is incredible. Parents particularly praise SpyBubble for allowing them to keep real-time tabs on their kids’ activity even when they use private/incognito modes.

No installation is required for iOS-powered devices, making it perfect for iPhone tracking. All you’ll require is an iCloud ID and password. The app additionally gives you a 14-day money-back guarantee.

The shortcomings of SpyBubble include its limited tracking capabilities on MacOS and its inability to record calls. You can read our full SpyBubble review to learn more about it’s features and pricing plans.

How to Track a Phone Without an App

Phone tracker apps are great, but sometimes it may not be possible to install the app on someone’s phone without their knowledge, or if it’s your phone, you want to set up a tracking system using some other feature because you’re not a big fan of tracking apps. So, it is best to know how to track a phone without an application, and yes, it is possible.

Phones come with built-in tracking features, but unfortunately, many of us don’t use these qualities because we rely too much on free applications. Here’s how to track phone without app.

iCloud – Easiest Way To Track iPhone Without an App

You can track your iPhone or iPad using the Find my iPhone available on the iCloud. But before you can track your phone, there are a few things you must do.

How to enable Find My iPhone:

You have to turn on Find My iPhone in your phone settings.
Go to Settings and click on your profile image. Now scroll down, click on Find My and then activate Find My iPhone.
You should also enable the Send Last Location option, which automatically shares the phone’s location to Apple when the battery is low. It may not be helpful in case of theft, but at least you would see your phone’s last location.

Once Find My iPhone is enabled, you can track your phone.

How to track your phone with iCloud:

You need to go to icloud.com/find and log in with your Apple ID and password.
After that, click on Find My iPhone and then select All Devices.
Select your device from the select, and you will be able to see its current position or the last location if the battery is dead.

You can also perform the following commands:

Play a loud pinging sound to help you find your phone.
Lock your phone.
Erase all your data and apps.

Use Android Device Manager For Tracking Android Phone Without App

Android has its own Find My Device software to track phones. Like iPhone, the Android’s Find My Device must be activated in the phone’s Security settings. Once it is triggered, the device can be traced and located.

How to enable Android Device Manager:

Go to Settings and click on Security.
Scroll down till you find Device Administrators.
Click on that, and you will see an option Android Device Manager. This option needs to be activated.

How to track your phone with Google Device Manager:

Navigate to www.google.com/android/devicemanager and sign in with your Google Account.
It will scan for your registered phone and display it on the map if it is on and connected to the internet.

With the three available options, you can:

Ring your device at maximum volume for 5 minutes.
Lock your phone with a custom screen message informing you that this phone is lost, and leave a contact number.
Erase all the data on your phone.

Samsung Find My Mobile

With Samsung’s Find My Mobile, you can easily track your lost phone and keep a watchful eye on your loved ones, and track phone without installing app.

The feature provides additional benefits along with the phone tracking option, such as securing the apps and the data stored on the phone.

How to enable Samsung Find My Mobile:

You must activate this service first before you can use it. The following steps will guide you on how to enable Find My Mobile.

Open settings and click on Biometrics and Security.
Click on Find My Mobile. The option is disabled by default.
In the Find My Mobile screen, enable the option. It will allow you to locate and control your phone remotely.
You would have to log in to your Samsung Account to proceed.
Another feature you should enable is the Send Last Location. When the battery runs low, the phone will automatically send its last location to the Find My Mobile server.
Another cool feature you should consider is Offline Finding. You can locate your phone if it is offline, not connected to a network, and help others find their lost device.

How to track your phone with Samsung Find My Mobile Service:

Go to https://findmymobile.samsung.com/ and log in with your account.
It will automatically locate your registered device and show its location on the map.
Some other use phone stats will be displayed, such as battery life and network connectivity.

Using a few extra options, you can locate and secure your lost device.

Automatically ring your phone at the highest volume.
Lock your device. In this way, it can’t be used by anyone.
Lock the power off button. It will prevent your phone from being turned off.
Display a message reading “This phone is lost” along with your contact info.
With the Track Location option, you will get an update of your phone’s location every 15 minutes in real-time.
If you can’t retrieve your device, you can erase all your data or create a backup. The drawback of erasing data is that your Samsung Account will be deleted from your phone, and you will not be able to track your phone anymore.

Conclusion

Here are some great ways to track a phone without using software. Whether you want to use an app or not, we hope now you have the answer to the best steps for you. All that’s left to do is choose the best tracking app for Android or iOS and get started!

FAQ

How can I track a cell phone location without installing software?

There is no need to download an app on the phone you wish to track. You can use various online services to do it. For some methods, you must activate the Find My option on that phone.

Is there a way to track a phone without access to it?

Using a reliable third-party tracking tool, you can keep an eye on the phone’s location and the data on the phone without having to ever touch or install an app on their phone. Such services are usually used by parents to monitor their kids.

How to track someone’s location with phone number?

With some web apps, you can track a person by only entering their phone number and a few other details when creating an account. For instance, with the GEOfinder anonymous tracker, you can send a message or a picture with a tracking link to a target device and get access to the person’s location when they click on the link.

Is there any free cell phone tracker without installing it on the target phone?

With some web apps, you can track a person without ever having to touch or install any app on their phone – GEOfinder is one of them.

Cheryl Bourassa

Cheryl Bourassa is a top-tier specialist with in-depth knowledge of spy practices and methods. She’s been active in the tracking field for a decade. Cheryl is a successful tracking consultant who provides services to dozens of high-level clients worldwide that need world-class tracking services.