If you want to share photos with friends and family on your iPhone, but don’t want them to be able to see where you were when you took the photo, there are a few ways to remove location data from photos before sharing.
- Open the Photos app and select a photo. Tap on the three lines in the top left corner of the screen. This will open the Edit menu.
- Select “Remove Location.” The photo will be removed from any shared albums or groups, but it will still be accessible in your Camera Roll. ..
If you have Location Services enabled for the Camera app on your iPhone or iPad, every photo you take includes GPS info about where it was taken. Starting with iOS 13, though, you can choose to share photos without location data.
Turn Off Location Data When Sharing One Photo (or Group of Photos)
To get started, open the Photos app and browse to a photo (or photos) you want to share without location data. To share multiple photos, select and tap each one, and then tap the Share button. To share a single photo, tap it, and then tap the Share button at the bottom left.
In the Share menu that appears, tap “Options” at the top of the screen (it’s under the number of photos you selected).
If you see “Location Included” next to “Options,” this means location data is currently enabled for that photo or photos. We’re about to change that, though.
In the Options menu that appears, look for the “Include” section. Toggle-Off the “Location” option for the selected photos.
If you don’t see the “Location” option here, then either location data is turned off for the Camera app (see below), or no location data is associated with that particular photo.
Tap “Done” to return to the Share menu. You should now see “No Location” under the photo selection message.
Now, whether you share your photo via SMS, email, or on an app, no location data will be included.
Keep in mind, however, this method will only work for this one instance. The photo’s location info is still stored on your iPhone. If you want to share it again in the future without location info, you’ll have to repeat the process above.
RELATED: How to See Which Apps Are Tracking Your Location on iPhone
Even Better: Turn Off Location in the Camera App
If you find yourself frequently disabling the location data before sharing photos, you might want to consider turning it off in the Camera app. This way, none of your new photos will include location data.
To turn off Camera location access, open “Settings,” and then navigate to Privacy > Camera. In the “Allow Location Access” section, tap “Never.”
Note, however, that you won’t be able to take advantage of any features that rely on location data after you do this. For example, the Photos app won’t be able to show where you took your photos on a map or group photos you’ve taken by location.
While any photos you take in the future won’t include GPS metadata, all of those you took before turning off this feature will still include it.
If you want to permanently remove location data from photos you’ve already taken, you’ll have to use a utility that will allow you to modify or remove each photo’s EXIF metadata. This process can be confusing, so it’s usually best left as a last resort for situations in which maintaining privacy is extremely important.
Stay safe, and good luck!
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