Changing the location on your iPhone or Android device involves tricking your phone into telling apps that you’re located somewhere you're not. In most cases, when you spoof your GPS location, every location-based app on your phone will be fooled. Show This might seem like a weird thing to do, since most of us use GPS for tasks that need our real location, like when finding directions and weather updates. However, there are legitimate reasons to change your phone's location to a fake one. Unfortunately, doing so isn't very straightforward. There isn’t a “fake GPS location” setting built in to either iOS or Android, and neither do most apps let you spoof your location through a simple option. Setting up your phone to use fake GPS only affects your location. It doesn't change your phone number, hide your IP address, or alter other things you do from your device. Android Location SpoofingSearch for "fake GPS" on Google Play, and you'll find tons of options, some free and others not, and some that require your phone to be rooted. One app that doesn't need your phone to be rooted—so long as you're using Android 6.0 or newer—is called FakeGPS Free, and it's really easy to use it to fake your Android phone location. The information below should apply no matter who made your Android phone: Samsung, Google, Huawei, Xiaomi, etc.
If you're interested in trying a different Android location spoofer, we've confirmed that the following free location changing apps work much like FakeGPS Free: Fake GPS, Fly GPS, and Fake GPS Location. Another method is to use Xposed Framework. You can install an app, such as Fake My GPS, to let certain apps use the pretend location and others use your real location. You can find similar modules by searching through the Xposed Module Repository on your computer or the Xposed Installer app on your phone. iPhone Location SpoofingFaking your iPhone location isn't as easy as it is on an Android device—you can't just download an app for it. However, software makers have built desktop programs that make this easy. Fake iPhone or iPad Location With 3uTools3uTools is the best way to fake your iPhone or iPad location because the software is free, and we've confirmed that it works with iOS and iPadOS 16.
Fake iPhone or iPad Location With iToolsAnother way to spoof your iPhone's location without jailbreaking is with iTools from ThinkSky. Unlike 3uTools, it also runs on macOS and can simulate movement, but it's free only for a limited time and is said to work up through only iOS 12.
Why Would You Fake Your Location?There are lots of situations where you might set up a fake GPS location, both for fun and for other reasons. Maybe you want to change your location so that something like a dating app thinks you’re a hundred miles away, perfect if you’re planning to move somewhere and want to get ahead of the dating game. Spoofing your location might also come into play when using a location-based game like Pokémon GO. Instead of having to actually travel several miles away to pick up a different Pokémon type, you could trick your phone into telling the game that you’re already there, and it will assume your fake location is accurate. Lifewire / Tim Liedtke Other reasons to set up a mock GPS location might be if you want to "travel" to Dubai and check-in to a restaurant you've never actually been to, or visit a famous landmark to trick your Facebook friends into thinking you're on an extravagant vacation. You can also use your fake GPS location to fool your family or friends in your location-sharing app, to hide your real location from apps that request it, and even to set your real location if GPS satellites aren't doing a great job at finding it for you. GPS Spoofing ProblemsBefore getting started, please know that although it can be a lot of fun to fake your location, it’s not always helpful. Plus, because GPS spoofing isn’t a built-in option, it isn’t just a click away to get it going, and location fakers don’t always work for every app that reads your location. If you install a fake GPS location app on your phone to use it for, say, a video game, you’ll find that other apps that you want to use your real location with will also use the fake location. For example, the game might very well use your spoofed address to your advantage, but if you open your navigation app to get directions somewhere, you’ll have to either turn off the location spoofer or manually adjust your starting location. The same is true for other things like checking in to restaurants, staying current on your family-based GPS locator, checking the surrounding weather, etc. If you’re tricking your location system-wide for everything on your phone, it will, obviously, affect the location in all your location-based apps. Some websites falsely claim that using a VPN will change your GPS location. This is not true for most VPN apps because their primary purpose is to hide your public IP address. Relatively few VPNs also include a GPS override function. The 5 Best GPS Trackers for Hiking, Cars and More in 2022 FAQ
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