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Features accurate, real-time location alerts
Easy to setup and use on iOS and Android devices
All About Cookies is an independent, advertising-supported website. Some of the offers that appear on this site are from third-party advertisers from which All About Cookies receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear).
All About Cookies does not include all financial or credit offers that might be available to consumers nor do we include all companies or all available products. Information is accurate as of the publishing date and has not been provided or endorsed by the advertiser.
The All About Cookies editorial team strives to provide accurate, in-depth information and reviews to help you, our reader, make online privacy decisions with confidence. Here's what you can expect from us:
Life360 focuses on real-time location sharing, not content monitoring, and our testing found it ran smoothly and was quick to set up on both iOS and Android. Alerts arrived promptly, and it's a practical option for families or small groups who want to stay connected without extra settings to manage.
It won't suit parents looking for deeper oversight, though. Life360 doesn't monitor messages, screen time, or online activity, so it works best alongside a dedicated parental control app if that's what you need.
We break down Life360's pros and cons, and who it's best suited for, in our complete review below.
| Price | Starts at $8.25/mo |
| Free trial | Yes — 7 days |
| Number of people in a Circle | Up to 99 |
| Content filtering | No |
| Conversation monitoring | No |
| Screen time management | No |
| Location tracking | Yes |
| Activity reports | No |
| Remote lock | No |
| Supported devices | None |
| Learn more | Get Life360 |
Our team has conducted hands-on testing on 10+ parental control apps over several years using a consistent process. We install each app on multiple devices and create both parent and child accounts, evaluating the experience from both perspectives. We also deliberately attempt to bypass restrictions to ensure the apps actually work.
Then, we evaluate each product across eight areas:
We retest all parental control apps at least once a year. To learn more about how we test, read our full parental control testing methodology here.
Parental controls app with per-app screen time limits, app blocking, and ability to pause internet access instantly across all devices
Filters inappropriate web content and monitors YouTube searches and viewing habits in real time
Panic Button lets kids instantly alert trusted contacts with their location from their Android device
Setting up Life360 was quick: after inputting our name, phone number, email, and age, Life360 walked us through account creation. The app prompts for a phone number or email, confirmed with a code sent by text or email. Once verified, it asks for your name and an optional profile photo.
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From there, Life360 explained permissions for location, critical alerts, SOS practice, and push notifications. If you're setting this up on an iPhone, the process feels similar to setting up parental controls on iOS.
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For children under 13, a parent or guardian has to complete extra verification, uploading an ID and taking a selfie.
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The one hiccup: verification emails took longer than expected to arrive during testing, and resending codes sometimes caused emails to overlap or texted codes to never show up at all.
After setup, you can join an existing Circle with an invite code or start a new one. In our test, joining worked on the first try, and a confirmation screen immediately showed who was already connected.
Then, Life360 suggested adding Places like "Home" or "School," so notifications go out (within seconds, in our testing) whenever someone arrives or leaves. We also added a pet for GPS tracking and activated a Tile to track a physical item, both covered in more detail below.
Life360 feels built for cooperation more than control. Once you're in a Circle, everyone can see each other's general location right away, though the Bubbles feature, which we cover below, lets you soften that if you want a bit of space.
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We tested Life360 on an iPhone 14 Pro and a Google Pixel 5, and both apps ran quickly and felt stable throughout. Alerts popped up promptly, location updates were accurate, and we didn't run into lag or freezes. The dashboard makes it easy to see where everyone in a Circle is and check who's low on battery, and reviewing past locations is available on paid plans.
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Life360's driving features add real value. Crash Detection activates automatically, and Emergency Dispatch connects users to local responders on Gold and Platinum plans. SOS alerts and roadside assistance extend coverage on the road, while identity and theft protection on higher tiers push Life360 past being just a tracker.
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Compared to heavier parental control apps, Life360 keeps things simple. It's built around communication, not restriction.
Life360’s plans start with a limited free version and offer premium subscriptions that range from $8.25-$24.99/mo. These plans offer the flexibility for different family sizes and safety needs. Every Life360 plan supports up to 99 members per Circle, making it one of the most scalable family safety apps available.
Note: Life360 recommends keeping Circles to 10 members for optimal functionality.
| Life360 Free | Silver | Gold | Platinum | |
| Annual price | Free | $8.25/mo | $14.17/mo | $20.83/mo |
| Number of devices | 99 | 99 | 99 | 99 |
| Crash detection | ||||
| SOS help alert | ||||
| No show alerts | ||||
| Individual driver reports | No — but has family driving summary) | No — but has family driving summary) | ||
| Place alerts | 2 place alerts | 5 place alerts | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Location history | 2 days | 7 days | 30 days | 30 days |
| Emergency dispatch (for SOS +crash detection) | ||||
| Roadside assistance | ||||
| Free towing | Up to 5 miles | Up to 50 miles | ||
| Stolen phone protection | Up to $100 | Up to $250 | Up to $500 | |
| Stolen funds reimbursement | Up to $25,000 | Up to $1,000,000 | ||
| ID theft protection | ||||
| Crime reports | ||||
| Credit monitoring | ||||
| Data breach reports | ||||
| Disaster response | ||||
| Medical assistance | ||||
| Travel support | ||||
| Learn more | View plan | View plan | View plan | View plan |
Life360 Free covers the essentials like real-time location sharing and crash detection, which would be perfect for a couple. Life 360 Silver adds a few quality-of-life upgrades with more location history and place alerts.
Life360 Gold is where the app becomes a complete safety companion, introducing individual driver reports, roadside assistance, and emergency dispatch. Life 360 Platinum expands even further with medical support, identity protection, and reimbursement for stolen funds and devices.
The main difference between plans is scope. Free and Silver focus on awareness, while Gold and Platinum focus on response. Gold offers the best value for most households because it delivers the features that matter most in daily use without the higher Platinum cost. It’s beneficial for families with young drivers, where crash detection, emergency dispatch, and detailed driving reports can make a measurable difference in safety.
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Life360 focuses on location awareness and real-world safety rather than digital supervision. Its tools are designed to keep families connected, aware, and supported when something unexpected happens. While it doesn’t monitor content or limit screen time, it delivers practical protections that work in the background with minimal effort from the user.
Location tracking worked consistently throughout testing. Places took almost no time to set up. Life360 updated our movements in real time and rarely misplaced a pin. This is a very helpful feature for families trying to coordinate pickups or friend groups on a night out.
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Circle members can ask others to check in or send a check-in to notify others of their location. It’s a simple feature, but it feels reassuring; it also feels less intrusive than making a phone call or sending a text. The app also has a built-in chat feature that lets Circle members message each other.
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The Bubbles feature masks a Circle member’s precise location while still showing the device's general area. We liked how it gave just enough space without cutting off communication entirely. It’s a good middle ground for families, teaching kids how to be responsible.
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Adding and managing Circle members was straightforward. Each new member needed only an invite code to join, and permissions were easy to adjust. Members of the Circle can also set their “role,” like Mom, Dad, Spouse, Friend, or the non-committal Other.
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Holding the SOS alert button activated a countdown, giving time to cancel if triggered accidentally. Once sent, it notifies selected contacts with the device’s location and, for paid accounts, notifies Life360’s 24/7 emergency dispatch center. During testing, the SOS promptly alerted everyone in the circle, allowing us time to cancel the dispatch request if needed.
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With Tile tracker, you can put "tiles" on items to view them on your map. Objects like keys, wallets, phones, and even bikes are worth tracking. The downside is that you have to purchase a physical Tile Bluetooth Device separately, starting at about $24.99 per Tile. The upside is you don't need a separate app to set up and manage Tiles because Life360 lets you do it directly in-app now. This includes tile features like forgotten item notifications and item location history.
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With Life360, you can also add your fur family to your circle. There's an option to add profiles for dogs, cats, or other animals. Setting up took about 15 seconds, including adding our pet's name, physical details, and photo.
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Next, we needed to link a tracker to Life360 by enabling Bluetooth. Then, to track our cat's location in real time, we were prompted to buy a Life360 GPS tracker. Having to buy another Life360 accessory isn't ideal, but with sales, the price of a Life360 Pet GPS drops from $49.99 to $9.99.
Accessories aside, there's a nice feature that sends out a lost pet alert to the Life360 Pet Finder Network when enabled.
| Support type | Life360 Support |
| Email or live chat | Yes – live chat (Monday - Sunday 5 am to 7 pm PST)
support@life360.com |
| Phone | Yes: +1 (866) 277-2233 |
| Online guides or forums | Yes – help center |
Life360 customer support was easy enough to reach when we tried it. The chat starts with a bot, which can handle basic setup questions or send links to the help center. If you dig deeper, the guides themselves are written clearly and are short enough to skim. We didn’t need hands-on support during testing, but it’s good to know the resources are there if something breaks.
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Life360 isn’t built for digital supervision, so families who want content filters or screen time controls might want to look elsewhere. Bark, Aura Parental Controls, and Qustodio are some of the best parental controls we’ve tested. These monitoring tools focus more on online behavior than real-world tracking. Some also include specific features for platforms like TikTok or Discord, which can help parents address the social side of digital safety.
| Service |  Qustodio |
 Aura Parental Controls |
 Bark |
| Best for | Best for location tracking | Best for teens | Best for social media monitoring |
| Star rating | |||
| Starting price | Free or $4.99/mo | $8.25/mo | $8.25/mo |
| Max # of people covered | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Screen time management | |||
| Content filtering | |||
| Conversation monitoring | |||
| Location tracking | |||
| Details | Get Qustodio | Get Aura | Get Bark |
Learn more about how Life360 compares to Bark.
Yes, Life360 is a dependable choice for families who want to stay connected and aware of one another’s locations. It’s easy to set up, runs smoothly across devices, and sends accurate alerts without unnecessary complexity.
Its focus on real-world safety (rather than app or content restrictions) sets it apart from most parental control tools. Families who want deeper digital oversight can pair it with another option from our best parental control app guide. For us, though, Life360 is worth the cost for its simplicity, accuracy, and peace of mind it provides in daily life.
Yes, Life360 is safe for kids to use because each Circle is private, so only approved members can see locations. You can also turn sharing off at any time, which helps maintain some privacy.
Life360 Free sticks to basics like crash detection and short location history. Paid plans stretch that out with more extended history, more alerts, and extras like emergency dispatch and ID protection.
Life360 also offers a seven-day free trial on paid plans, and Tile purchases come with a money-back guarantee if you're not satisfied.
Life360 sends an alert when the app is disabled by a Circle member. You’ll see their last known spot on the map, and the app will note that location updates have stopped. Usually, that means the app’s closed or their sharing is paused.
No. Life360 focuses on location tracking and safety alerts, not content filtering or screen time management. Based on our testing, we wouldn't rely on Life360 to protect a child online, since that isn't what the app is built to do.
It's a better fit paired with a top-rated parental control app like Aura, which doesn’t offer Life360's geo-fencing or location tools.
Life360 has a free plan and three paid tiers: Silver ($8.25/mo), Gold ($14.17/mo), and Platinum ($20.83/mo). The free plan covers real-time location sharing and crash detection.
Paid plans add features like extended location history, emergency dispatch, and identity theft protection.
Location-tracking apps run in the background, so they typically use more battery than apps you only open occasionally. Life360 has built in optimizations to limit this, but heavy background use, like continuous Driving Reports or frequent Check-Ins, can still add up over a full day.
Features accurate, real-time location alerts
Easy to setup and use on iOS and Android devices
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