How to Turn Off Google Location History

To turn off Google Location History, open Google Maps, tap your profile picture, go to Your Timeline and its Location and privacy settings, then switch Location History off; on newer accounts this feature is now called Timeline and is stored on your device by default.

Google Location History quietly builds a map of everywhere your phone has been, then turns it into a personal Timeline of your trips. Some people find that useful. Many would rather Google not keep it at all. Since 2024, Google has been changing how this works: the feature is being renamed Timeline, and for updated accounts the data now lives on your device instead of in the cloud. Whichever version your account uses, you can switch the recording off in a couple of minutes, and this guide also covers how to erase the trail already saved.

Turn off Location History from Google Maps

1. Open the Google Maps app.
2. Tap your profile picture in the top right corner.
3. Select Your Timeline from the menu.
4. Tap the three-dot menu or open Location and privacy settings inside Timeline.
5. Find Location History (or Timeline on newer accounts) and switch it off.
6. Confirm when Google asks you to.

From this point on, Google stops adding new places to your Timeline. That is the key thing to understand: turning the setting off stops future recording but leaves everything already saved untouched.

Turn it off from your Google Account online

If you prefer the web, or you want to manage every device signed into your account at once, use the activity controls:

1. Go to myactivity.google.com and sign in.
2. Open the Location History (or Timeline) control.
3. Tap Turn off, and read the options Google offers, including turning it off and optionally deleting old data in the same step.

This online route is also where you set an auto-delete schedule, so any location data keeps itself trimmed to 3 months, 18 months, or 36 months automatically. Auto-delete is a good middle ground if you like the Timeline occasionally but do not want a years-long record sitting around.

Deleting the data you already have

Because switching the feature off does not erase your past Timeline, you should delete that separately if privacy is your goal:

1. In Google Maps, open Your Timeline.
2. Open Location and privacy settings.
3. Choose Delete all Location History (or delete a specific date range).
4. Confirm the deletion.

On accounts where Timeline is stored on your device, deleting it removes it locally, and you can also choose whether to keep an encrypted backup with Google or not. If you switch phones, that on-device storage is worth remembering, because the history does not automatically follow you unless you allow the backup.

Location History is not the same as your other activity

This is the point people most often get wrong. Google keeps several independent records, and turning one off does nothing to the others:

So if your real aim is a cleaner overall privacy footprint, switching off Location History is only one piece. To clear your searches and browsing as well, follow our guide on how to delete Google activity history, which covers the separate Web and App Activity control in detail.

What you lose and what you keep

Turning off Location History does not break Google Maps. You still get live directions, live traffic, and your current location while navigating. What you give up is the automatic Timeline of past trips and a handful of personalised suggestions based on places you have visited before. For most people that is a fair trade.

It also has a small side benefit: less background location logging can mean slightly lighter battery and data use. If you are tidying up your phone generally, it pairs well with knowing how to free up storage on your phone and clearing out old app data with how to clear cache on Android. Location is also just one part of staying safe online, and if you use Google for payments, our guide on how to use Google Pay safely covers the habits that matter most.

Finally, remember to repeat the check on every device signed into your Google account. Because the setting is tied to your account and, on newer setups, to each device, an old tablet or second phone could still be recording unless you turn it off there too. A two-minute sweep across your devices is the only way to be sure the trail has truly stopped.

Location History versus your phone’s location setting

It is worth separating two things that sound alike. Turning off Google Location History stops Google from building your Timeline, but it does not switch off Location on the phone itself. Apps you actively use, such as ride-hailing or food delivery, still see your location while open, because that is controlled per app under Settings and then Location. If you want a stricter setup, review each app’s location permission there and change any set to Allow all the time down to Allow only while using the app. That way navigation and deliveries keep working, but no app or Google service is tracking you in the background.

A quick recap

To sum up, open Google Maps Timeline or myactivity.google.com, switch Location History or Timeline off, then separately delete or auto-delete the data already saved. Repeat on every signed-in device, and tighten per-app location permissions if you want to go further. Those few minutes give you a phone that helps you navigate without quietly keeping a diary of everywhere you go.