[7 Solutions] How To Fix iPhone Location Jumps Around?

Updated by Brian Davis on Jan 19, 2026 • Category: Fix iPhone Issues
5 mins read

"After losing the iPhone somewhere in my home, I decided to locate it via Find My iPhone. However, the Find My iPhone location always keeps changing, and I have no clue why it happened."

Find My iPhone feature is one of the best features of Apple that allows you to track down a lost iOS device regardless of where your iOS device is currently in. Unfortunately, things could become annoying when you struggle with issues. As frustrating as this issue might be, fixing this issue is simple. Dive into this post to know why does iPhone location jumps around and how to fix this issue.

fix iphone location jumps around

Part 1: Why Does iPhone Location Jumps Around?

The iPhone location jumping around might be caused due to below written reasons.

Poor GPS Signal: GPS signal plays a significant role in helping you find the iPhone's location. Unfortunately, a poor GPS signal can lead you to the Find My iPhone keeps jumping around issue.

Physical Barriers: Environmental factors, including the tunnels, mountains, buildings, and other structures, could also become the main culprit behind the issue.

Software issues: A software bug might affect the functionality of an iOS device, and it might force the iOS device to display outdated or incorrect location data.

Low Battery: Low Power Mode or aggressive background restrictions reduce GPS sampling. The phone snaps to new estimates instead of tracking smoothly.

App-side smoothing or bugs: Some apps update location infrequently or don't smooth movement well. This can cause sudden jumps even when the raw GPS data is stable.

Motion & calibration issues: If the compass or motion sensors are slightly off, direction-based apps (Maps, fitness, AR) may jitter. This is more noticeable when standing still.

Part 2: How to Fix Find My iPhone Location Jumps Around?

If you're having the ''Find My iPhone location jumps around'' issue, you can look at the methods mentioned below to fix the problem. You can try these fixes one by one.

Method 1. Restart iPhone

The best way to fix the issue is to restart the iPhone. Restarting the iOS device eliminates several iOS bugs that might be halting the functionality of the iOS device. Giving the iPhone a fresh start will look past all the iOS bugs and fix Find My iPhone location keeps changing.

Here's how to do it.

For iPhone X and Later: Press the iPhone's Volume and Side buttons until the power slider apps. Move the power off slider to the right before turning iPhone off. Switch your iOS device again by pressing and holding its Side button until the Apple logo appears.

restart iphone x and later

For iPhone 8/7/6: Click and keep on holding the side button until the Apple logo appears. After pushing the slider to the right side and turning the iPhone off, you'll need to press and hold the side button until the Apple logo appears to turn on the device.

restart iphone 6/7/8/se2nd/se3rd

For iPhone SE or Earlier Version: Press the iPhone's Top button until the power off comes out. Drag the slider to the right and get the iPhone turned off. Turn on the current iOS device by pressing and holding its side button until the Apple logo appears.

restart iphone 5/se(1st)/earlier

Method 2. Reset Network Setting

Another way to fix the why does iPhone location jumps around issue is to reset the iPhone settings. Doing so restores all the iPhone network settings, but it doesn't cause data loss. Before resetting the network settings, you'll need to ensure to remember the WiFi password and other settings attributes.

Here's how to reset the Network settings.

Step 1. Click on the iPhone Settings app and press on the General icon, and select Transfer or Reset iPhone.

Step 2. After pressing the Reset icon, you must hit the ''Reset Network Setting'' icon. Confirm again when a pop-up box appears. After the reset, your iPhone will reboot, Then you can set up your network again.

reset network settings

Method 3. Disable and Enable Location

The best thing you can do here is to navigate to an open in various locations courtesy of the Signal being an important factor for GPS performance. Moreover, various factors also vary signal strength from location to location. After going into the location, you can try doing the following operations.

Step 1. Click on iPhone Settings app and press on the Privacy & Security icon. After finding the Location Services, you'll need to turn it off and wait for 15 before enabling it again.

location service on iphone

Step 2. Launch the iPhone settings and enable Airplane Mode. You can disable the Airplane Mode after 15 seconds.

Step 3. Navigate to WLAN after launching the iPhone settings and turn it off. Turn the WLAN again after 15 seconds.

Step 4. Click on the Cellular Data icon after launching the iPhone settings. Turn it off in the first place before turning it off after a few seconds.

airplane mode off

Method 4. Enable Fetch New Data

If Find My iPhone fails to track your iOS device's location and you continue to have the Find My iPhone location keeps changing issue, you'll need to enable the Fetch New Data. Find My iPhone will be required the constantly update the location information. If you don't enable the Fetch New Data, the iOS device won't refresh the information of ''Find My''.

Here's how to do it.

Step 1. Launch the iPhone Settings app and click the Mail icon before hitting the Accounts tab.

mail in settings

Step 2. Enable the Push icon after tapping the ''Fetch New Data'' icon.

fetch new data

Step 3. Click on the Automatically icon to finish the process you're working on.

fetch automatically

Method 5. Reset Location and Privacy

Despite following various things, if the issue persists, you can try resetting the Location and Privacy. When you opt for this way, apps won't be able to use the location except for some apps you have granted special access to.

Here's how to reset the Location and Policy and get rid of the Find My iPhone location jumps around problem.

Step 1. Open the iPhone Settings app before pushing the General button.

Step 2. Tap Transfer or Reset iPhone at the bottom of the screen, then tap Reset. Select the ''Reset Location & Privacy'' option from the list.

reset location and privacy

Method 6. Turn On Radio Features

Turning on the radio features, including Bluetooth, WiFi, or internet service, might help you to have a more accurate GPU location. Hence, you'll need to ensure you've enabled the radio features before using the location-utilizing apps, including Apple or Google Maps.

turn on the radio features

Some iPhone 13 series users complain that their location service remains accurate at home, but it goes unreliable and haywire when they travel. Therefore, you can use the 5G, 4G, or LTE service while going out, it helps you improve the location service accuracy.

enable 5g

Method 7. Fix iPhone Locations Keeps Changing Via TunesKit iOS System Recovery

Some software issues might prompt the Find My iPhone location keeps changing issue. You can take the TunesKit iOS System Recovery services to fix that software issue. Apart from fixing the 150 iOS bugs like iPhone stuck on Emergency SOS mode, iPhone stuck on boot loop, and iPhone keeps uninstalling apps, etc. This remarkable tool doesn't bother causing data loss, and it can fix the iOS issue within simple clicks.

It offers a 100% success rate and doesn't threaten the iPhone. TunesKit iOS System Recovery has an effortless and intuitive user interface, making it simple for newcomers. By supporting all the iOS models and versions, TunesKit aims to provide users with the best experience.

Why Use TunesKit iOS System Recovery?

TunesKit iOS System Recovery fixes iPhone location jumping issues by repairing iOS system errors without data loss.

Try It Free safe 600,000+ Downloads

A step-by-step guide to repairing iOS devices through TunesKit iOS System Recovery:

Step 1Connect your iPhone

Download and install the TunesKit iOS System Recovery and launch the software afterward. Next, you'll need to connect the iOS device to PC and click on the iOS System Repair icon, and click the Start button to proceed to the next step.

connect ios device

Step 2Choose a mode

After visiting the TunesKit iOS System Recovery timeline, you must tap the Standard Repair icon, as it doesn't cause data loss. Only use the Deep Repair if the Standard Repair failed.

select a mode

Step 3Download the firmware package

Press the Download icon after ensuring that the information on the screen is related to your iOS device.

download firmware

Step 4Fix iPhone location jumps around

Press the Repair button before waiting a few seconds to complete your job. After repair, your iPhone should back to normal, and the error should be fixed.

fix iphone locations keeps changing

Part 3. Conclusion

This post perfectly answers the most asked question ''why does iPhone location jumps around'' issue. Apart from revealing the root causes of the ''Find My iPhone location jumps around'' issue, we have mentioned the most appropriate ways to fix the issue. All the solutions we've listed in this post make sense, but looking at the TunesKit iOS System Recovery seems to be the most effective and reliable way as it comes up with a 100% success rate.

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