You can request a location on Snapchat and even stop or allow people to request your location on Snapchat. Find out here!
Snapchat is becoming a digital compass. The Snap Maps feature takes social media to a whole new level to see your friends’ live locations. What’s more, Snapchat Compass for Friends now even forwards your location to you to your friend.
When Snap Maps launched last June, some privacy concerns were raised. However, the company got the right idea by turning off sharing for everyone by default.
Today Snapchat has a Snap Maps update that I would have liked to have included earlier. You can now request a location or share yours individually via chat. A long press on a friend’s name will give you the option to Request a Location or Send a Location.
This article will teach you how to get a friend’s whereabouts and how to block searches.
What is “Request a Location” on Snapchat?
Snapchat lets you see your friends’ locations on its map feature called Snap Maps. A Bitmoji avatar of the person indicates the location on Snap Maps. If you find that your friend doesn’t have the location listed in Snap Maps, you can manually ask them to share their location with you.
However, to share their location, the person must turn off ghost mode. This means that they will be visible to everyone (depending on your location’s privacy settings) on the map.
You can only request the location of someone who is not actively sharing their location on Snap Maps. Also, it will only ask for the location of someone who accepted your friend request. Both must be on the other’s friend list on Snapchat.
How to Request a Location on Snapchat
As mentioned above, you can only request the location of someone who doesn’t share their location on Snap Maps. The option is not available if the person is already actively visible in Snap Maps.
To find out where a friend is, launch the Snapchat app and navigate to their profile by tapping the Bitmoji avatar in the top left corner. Now tap on “My Friends” and find the person whose location you want to request.
Tap the person’s avatar next to their name. This will open your profile. In Snap Map, tap Request Location From (Name).
The person receives a message with the search request.
You can also find out where someone is while you chat with them. Just tap on the person’s avatar in the top right corner of your chat page and select “Request Location (Name)”.
Note: you don’t need to share your location to request someone else’s location. You can request the location even when ghost mode is enabled.
What if you ask About the Location; what Happens?
When you send a location query to someone, they will receive it as a message (blue) on Snapchat. Tap the conversation to see the message “(name) wants to see you on the map.”
You then have the choice between “Ignore” or “Share location”. Ignoring the search request will not notify the other person. However, the message remains in your conversation. If the person chooses “Share location”, they will receive a message (blue) informing them that the person has accepted their location request. Tap this message to open Snap Maps and view the person’s avatar on the map (their location).
How to Block Requests for Location
Location requests can be tedious because you don’t want to appear on Snap Maps if you don’t share your location. It is for this reason that Snapchat created an option for users that can block location requests. If you enable this setting, your friends will not be able to request your location from your profile.
To block searches, start the Snap Chat app and go to your profile. Now go to Settings by tapping the gear icon in the top right corner.
Under “Who Can …” tap, “see my location.” Now deactivate “My friends are allowed to request my location”.
Who can Request your Location on Snapchat?
Only people on your friends’ list can request the location. Both must have accepted the other’s requests. It should be noted that if you only share your location with specific people on Snap Maps, people who you don’t share your location with can request your location as well.
However, if you share your location with “My Friends Except,” the cropped people won’t be able to request your location.
Why can’t I see the Request for a location option?
- There could be several reasons why the option is not showing up.
- The person does not authorize searches.
- The person shares their position but has released you from consulting their position (My friends, except ).
- The person shares their position with everyone. In this case, all you have to do is visit the profile and tap the map to see the location.
- The person recently shared their location with you and is still in the same location. Snapchat doesn’t tell you how long it takes before you can submit another search query. However, we will assume that it will until the person’s location on the map changes.
How to Find Someone on Snap Maps
Finding a person on Snap Maps can be as simple as opening the map and scrolling until you see their avatar. However, if you don’t know where to look on the map, you can view the person’s profile. To find someone’s profile, go to profile> My Friends and tap the person’s avatar. Now tap on the map under “Align maps” to get to your location immediately.
Conclusion
This update makes it easier for you to quickly share your location. It will appear on the user’s Snap Maps and, in turn, yours.
You can only share the location with friends in both directions. This is an important note. And you can’t request or share your location with celebrities or influencers on the platform.
Snapchat is probably hoping this will inspire more people to use the feature. In the meantime, the original onboarding process for Snap Maps is still in place and set to private, also known as ghost mode, from the start. (You can remove a friend’s access to your location at any time in chat or Snap Maps.)
The feature has gotten a bit hot, especially in the past, which could suggest what activities you’ve been doing or where you’ve been traveling. A good rule of thumb is to only share with selected friends. Also note: if a user has shared their location but hasn’t opened the map within 8 hours, it will disappear from the map. And if you decide you don’t want your location to be visible, you can switch to ghost mode.
Snap Maps is approaching its first anniversary. We’ll be monitoring more features soon.