How to Find a Lost Android Phone

Losing your phone is a nightmare, but you might be able to find it back. Here are some ways to track and locate a lost Android phone.

Lost your phone? There is no need to panic. Unlike in the past, there are multiple ways to locate your misplaced or lost phone. And you don’t even need to install an app on your Android phone. All Android devices launched in the last few years have a built-in anti-theft system that allows you to track them if they are ever misplaced or lost.

How to find your lost Android phone

All Android phones and tablets come with Google’s Find My Device integration. This feature allows you to track your phone’s location or play a sound so it can be easily tracked if it is misplaced or stolen.

You don’t have to do anything to set up Find My Device on your Android phone. It will be set up automatically in the background when you sign in to your Google account on the phone for the first time. If it’s the first time you’ve misplaced your phone, see what you should do if your phone is stolen or lost.

Your lost Android phone must be connected to Wi-Fi or mobile data for Find My Device location to work. Without internet access you can only view the last known location of the phone.

1. Open the Find My Device app on another Android phone.
   1. If it’s your device, select your Google account and sign in.
   2. You can also use your friend’s or family’s Android phone to track the stolen phone. Use the Sign in as a guest option in the Find My Device app and sign in with the Google account associated with your lost Android phone.
   3. If you have multiple devices linked to the account, select the phone you want to track at the top of the tab.
2. The Find My Device app tries to locate your lost Android phone. If the device is unreachable, its last approximate location is displayed. Tap the I Button next to device name to get IMEI number and last seen date.
3. If your phone is misplaced, use the play sound Option to make it ring so you can find it. Your device will ring for five minutes even in silent mode.
4. Use the Safe device Option to lock the device, sign out of your Google account and show a message on the lock screen.

Do not disable location access on your Android phone as Find My Device relies on it. Without location access, it cannot provide an accurate location for your phone.

There are several ways to locate a lost iPhone, including Apple’s excellent Find My app. The feature even works offline, so the chances of recovering your lost iPhone are higher than an Android device.

How to Track Your Lost Phone Using Your PC

You can access Google’s Find My Device over the internet on your PC or laptop to locate your lost phone.

1. Open the Find My Device website on your PC. Sign in with the Google Account associated with your stolen or lost phone.
2. From the tab bar at the top, select the device you want to track. By default, Find My Device shows the location of your last used device.
3. You can track your phone’s location or play a sound to locate it. If you cannot physically reach your lost Android phone, use the Safe device possibility to lock it. This prevents a thief from accessing your data stored on the phone.
4. If there is little chance of getting your lost Android phone back or there is sensitive data that shouldn’t fall into unknown hands, use the Delete device Option to delete. You must enter your Google account password to confirm this step. However, your device will only be erased when it connects to the internet.

Phones aside, you can use Find My Device to track Wear OS watches and Android tablets.

How to track your lost Samsung phone

Samsung phones have their own anti-theft and tracking mechanism called Find My Mobile. It’s similar to Google’s Find My Device service, but with certain benefits.

Find My Mobile requires you to sign in to your Samsung account on your Galaxy device.

1. Navigate to the Find My Mobile website on your PC or phone.
2. Sign in with the same Samsung account you use on your lost phone.
3. A sidebar on the left shows all devices linked to your account. Select your lost phone here.
4. The map will then automatically update to show the phone’s last known location.
5. When the phone moves, you can use the track location Possibility to check its location every 15 minutes.

Compared to Google’s Find My Device, Samsung’s Find My Mobile anti-theft system also has some advanced features. You can retrieve calls and messages from your lost phone, track its location, and even put it on maximum power saving mode to save battery life so you can track it for longer.

On newer Samsung phones, Find My Mobile even supports offline searching. This allows your phone to broadcast its location remotely, even when it’s not connected to Wi-Fi or mobile data. The feature works by pinging other nearby Galaxy phones via Bluetooth and broadcasting the lost phone’s location with them.

Can you find your lost Android phone by phone number?

Unfortunately the answer is no. There are no online tools available to track your lost phone by phone number. Only law enforcement agencies have this ability, otherwise it would pose a privacy risk. Even if you lose your phone with your SIM card in it, you won’t be able to track it.

Likewise, you cannot use a phone’s IMEI number to track it down. You can try contacting your carrier or law enforcement agencies as they have the tools to make this happen.

You can’t always track your lost phone

Thanks to Find My Device you can locate your lost or misplaced Android phone. However, since the feature requires an active Wi-Fi or mobile data connection in order to work, it’s not foolproof. A thief can remove the SIM card after stealing your phone, making tracking more difficult.

It is therefore always recommended that you keep your phone safe in your pocket and do not leave it anywhere in public.