How to Turn On or Turn Off Location Tracking on Windows 10

For a better experience, Windows 10 lets you turn on or turn off location tracking service with just a few clicks. Here’s how to do it.

Unlike the older versions, Windows 10 has built-in location tracking. As long as the location service is turned on, Windows 10 and any installed applications in your system can track your approximate location. The accuracy depends on how tracking is done. For example, if your Windows 10 device has a GPS chip, the location information will be somewhat accurate. Otherwise, Windows 10 uses your IP address and other information to approximate your current location. Location tracking is generally used to provide a tailored experience.

If you have installed Windows 10 with all the default recommended settings, the location tracking is enabled automatically. The problem is, not everyone is comfortable sharing their location information unnecessarily. The good thing is, you can control the location services in Windows 10. i.e., you can either disable location services entirely or block certain apps from accessing location information.

In this quick Windows 10 guide, let me show the steps to turn off location service, block apps from accessing location information, and turn on location service when needed.

Turn off location service completely

You can turn off the Windows 10 location service from the Privacy section of the Settings app. Here is how to do it.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Click “Privacy.”
3. Select “Location” on the sidebar.
4. Click the “Change” button under the “Location for this device” heading.
5. Turn off the “Location for this device” option.
6. Close the Settings app.
7. With that, you have turned off the location service completely.

First, open the Settings app in Windows 10. You can do that by pressing the “Windows key + I” shortcut. As an alternative, you can also click the “All Settings” button in the Notification Center.

After opening the Settings app, click on the “Privacy” option and then select the “Location” tab on the sidebar. This is the page that hosts all the location service settings.

Here, click the “Change” button under the “Allow access to location on this device” section. Next, turn off the “Location for this device” option.

That is all. The changes will take effect immediately, and there is no need for system restart. With that, you have completely turned off location service in Windows 10.

Remember that if you are using Windows 10’s Find my Device feature, turning off location service will stop the feature from working. That is, you will not be able to locate the device in case of emergencies.

Block apps from accessing location information

If you don’t want to block location service entirely but want to control which apps can and cannot access your location, you can do that too. Here is how.

First, open the Settings app and go to the “Privacy -> Location” page. After that, make sure the “Allow apps to access your location” option is turned on.

Next, scroll down, find the app you want to allow, and turn it on. After that, turn off all other apps. For desktop apps, turn on the “Allow desktop apps to access your location” option.

That is it. With that, you have successfully allowed some apps and dis-allowed others from accessing location information.

Turn on location service on Windows 10

Turning on location service is just as easy as turn it off. Here is how.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Click “Privacy.”
3. Select “Location” on the sidebar.
4. Click the “Change” button under the “Location for this device” heading.
5. Turn on the “Location for this device” option.
6. Close the Settings app.
7. With that, you have turned on the location service completely.

That is all. It is that easy to turn off location service or turn it on.

I hope that helps.

If you are stuck or need some help, comment below, and I will try to help as much as possible.

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