Most of the dating apps actually work primarily on where you are located since most people prefer local relationships to long-distance ones. It makes sense that the info has to be out there, but it is a very legitimate reason to be nervous about stalkers, or even the government knowing exactly where you are.
Does Tinder Update Location When App is Closed?
No! Tinder will only update your location when you have the app running with access to your location-enabled. Tinder can also update your location when you have the app open in the background, even if you’re not currently using the app. If you don’t want Tinder to update your location, it is possible to turn this feature off in the application settings, but you will need to have an active paid subscription to do this. If you are already paying for a subscription, or you’re using the free trial, you can use this feature. Here’s how;
- Go to ‘Edit Profile’.
- Located at the bottom of the page, you should see ‘Hide Distance’ and ‘Hide Age’.
- Press ‘Hide Distance’. Your location should now be hidden on your Tinder profile.
Does Tinder Location Update Automatically
Yes, your Tinder location will, in fact, update and change automatically as long as you have the app running and aren’t using the passport or ‘Hide Distance’ feature. You don’t even have to be on the app for this to happen; as long as it’s running, even if it’s in the background, your location will update automatically.
How Does Tinder Location Work
By default, your Tinder location is tracked through your devices GPS, meaning a VPN will not change this location. It tracks your location through GPS when the app is running, and automatically updates your location to Tinder. However, there is a way to spoof your GPS location, for free, without jailbreaking your device! Using a third-party application, it makes this process simple and will save you money, as you won’t have to buy Tinder Gold or Platinum for this feature. If you’re interested, here’s a step-by-step tutorial.
When Does Tinder Update Your Location?
Since Tinder only knows when you’re online whilst you’re on the app and it doesn’t track in the background, Tinder updates your location when you go on your app. Tinder can only display your last known location which is the last place you were in when you last opened the app. Once you’re in a new location and you open the Tinder app, then your location on the Tinder app will be updated right away. Tinder also doesn’t update your location without opening the app. If your location changes and you don’t open Tinder, then our location won’t be updated. If you don’t go on Tinder, your location won’t update. For example, if you were in Westminister, London, and you decided to go on Tinder, Tinder will register that you’re in Westminister and it’ll display it to everyone on the app who views your profile. If you then go off the app and take an Uber ride to Kensington, London without opening the app, Tinder won’t show that you’re in Kensington because you haven’t opened the app yet. Once you open Tinder because you’ve taken a trip to Kensington from Westminister, it’ll register your location change and Kensignton will now be your new location on the app.
How to Change your Tinder Location for Free
For iPhone: In order to use this app on iPhone, you will need to download a program on either your PC or Mac.
- Download AnyGo.
- Connect your iPhone to your computer. Open Anygo, and click “Start” in the main window.
- Now, a map will pop up, showing your phones current location. If the displayed location is inaccurate, click ‘Center On’ to get the right one. This button will be located on the bottom right of your screen, above the zoom buttons.
- Once your location is accurate according to you, click the ‘Teleport’ icon, located in the top-right of your screen. Next, in the search bar, enter the location you’d like to teleport to. Now, click ‘Search’.
- AnyGo will now record the new preferred location you entered. All you need to do now is click ‘Go’ to teleport your Tinder location. The ‘Go’ button should be located in the window that comes up after entering the desired location. Your tinder location should now be updated accordingly! Congratulations, you saved $14.99 and still got to use a premium feature! For Android: For Android, this process is slightly less complicated. This app you’ll be downloading off the Google Play Store, and connecting your phone to a computer is unnecessary! Here’s how to change your Tinder location for Android devices;
- Open the Google Play Store.
- Search ‘Fake GPS Location – GPS JoyStick’ and download.
- Open your device’s ‘Settings’. Next, tap ‘About’ and then locate ‘Build Number’.
- Tap rapidly on the Build Number label to activate Developer Mode.
- Find ‘simulated locations’ or ‘allow mock locations’ option (label may differ depending on device) and switch it on.
- Now, open the Fake GPS app you downloaded. Set the desired location and apply. Now, on Tinder, your location should be set to whatever you entered in the GPS app. The reason this will work over a VPN is simple; VPNs change the location based on cellular data, while GPS is a chip in your device. A VPN does not effect your GPS location, only the IP Address. A GPS Spoofer, however, changes the GPS Data and fools it into thinking you are somewhere you aren’t. Tinder uses the information from the GPS to track your location; therefore only a GPS spoofer will work for Tinder. If you can’t be bothered to go through this process, you can just use the built in feature in the Tinder app. If you already have a paid subscription, you’re good to go. However, if you don’t and you have not yet used your free trial, you should be able to activate it! All you need to do for the free trial is simply purchase an upgrade; you will not be charged until 3 days after, meaning you have 3 free days of Tinder Gold! As long as you cancel the subscription before the 3 days is up, you will not be charged. On the Tinder app, simply press the ‘Upgrade to Gold’ button and choose your plan. You’ll be asked to enter your card details, but again, as long as you cancel before the three days are up, you won’t be charged and you’ll get to use Tinder Gold for 3 days!
Does Tinder Location Update Without Opening App
No, your location on your Tinder profile will only update upon opening the app. This means you can go to another state or even country; if you don’t open the app while you’re away, your Tinder profile’s location will stay where you last opened the app.
How Accurate Is Tinder’s Location?
Tinder has been around for a few years now and its location tracking seems to be fairly accurate. It seems that the app can tell where you are without a problem. The search results that you see first to swipe right or left will most likely be the closest users to your location. After Tinder takes location into account the popularity of a profile also goes into which photos pop up first in your possible match list. Profiles that people seem to like and swipe right seem to show up more often and earlier in the list than people’s profiles that get turned down more. Sometimes Tinder’s location is wrong because it can’t register the difference between one town and another. Say you live in a town that’s close to another town, Tinder might incorrectly show your location as the town you’re close to but not in. So in terms of a city, it’s almost never wrong, but it can be wrong by a few miles when it comes to your location.
Why Does Tinder Only Show City?
Tinder only shows your city when a user hasn’t visited the app in a while, so the information isn’t updated and accurate. Tinder can’t go off a specific town it register weeks ago but there’s a chance that the user won’t be in the same place anymore. Therefore, they’ll only show you their city because they’re still likely to be in the same city, but not in the same town that it was registered previously. Tinder might also only show the city someone is in if their device has been turned off for a while or they have deleted the app. Another reason why Tinder is only showing you someone’s city is that it isn’t able to determine the correct town someone is it so it can only display their city. If someone lives in an unknown city that Tinder isn’t able to determine, then they’ll only show you the city that they’re in.
Tinder Location Not Showing Miles
You might notice that sometimes Tinder doesn’t show the miles that someone is away from you but they still show you their location. If the user is away from the distance radius that they’ve selected in Tinders settings, the miles or km will not show up as well. For instance, for users that go past 50+ miles, their miles won’t show up but their location will. Tinder can’t show a user’s miles because it isn’t able to get the user’s exact location due to it being out of the location radius.
Why Does Their Tinder Location Keep Changing?
After matching with someone, you may notice their location changes often. This could be for a few different reasons, some more likely than others. Here are possible reasons a Tinder match’s location could be changing so much;
1. They’re Actually Always In A Different Location
If the location changes, for example, from the US to China, back to the US in a matter of hours, this is unlikely. But, if the location changes are realistic, it’s entirely possible they are actually just moving that much. For example, if their location is changing state to state, they could be on a road trip.
2. They’re Using the Passport Feature
It’s also possible, and very likely, they are using the Tinder Passport feature. Tinder Passport allows you to set any location on your profile instantly to find matches in places they otherwise wouldn’t. The main advantage of Tinder Passport is to find matches in other locations, whether that be a different state or even country. This feature is for paid subscriptions only, so if you know this person isn’t using a free trial or subscription and isn’t travelling, (or using a GPS changer) its also possible that;
3. Tinder Is Glitching
If nothing makes sense, it’s also possible Tinder could be malfunctioning. This could happen for many reasons; the Tinder servers could be going down or malfunctioning, their account may be compromised, or their GPS itself is malfunctioning causing the rapid location changes. Whatever the case, if you believe this is unintentional on their end, you could always let them know and ask if they know why it’s happening. If they say your location is also rapidly changing, then it’s probably a problem on Tinder’s end, and there’s nothing you can really do about it. Don’t worry, the problem should be resolved within hours and your location will be set right back to where it should be by the end of it!
Does Tinder Track Your Location When Not Active
No, Tinder will not track your location when you are not using the app. If you notice, whenever you open the map, it asks for your location. It will only update once you allow Tinder access to your location. So, if you aren’t using the app, your profile location will stay in the same place you last opened the app at. If you’re using the passport feature, even when you do allow location access, it will not change from what you have the location set as. Basically, if you’re out and don’t want your Tinder location to change, simply don’t open the app until you get back home. This way, your Tinder location will appear the same the whole time.
How Often Does Tinder Update Location?
Tinder only updates your location as frequently as you visit the app and your location has changed. If you continuously visit the app but your location doesn’t change, then Tinder won’t be updating your location as frequently as you open the app. But if you always change your location and visit the app each time you’ve changed your location, then you’ll notice that Tinder will be updating your location frequently to other users.
Can You Turn Off Tinder’s Geotracking?
The short answer to this is no. You can, however, block Tinder from knowing where your actual location is. The app will take some kind of location from your device. There is no method to block Tinder from knowing your location and still have full functionality in the app. In the past, you were able to turn off the geolocation function in Tinder, but sadly, not anymore. The app has taken away the users’ ability to do this.
Manual Settings and Automatic Settings
Tinder does let you choose the distance range for your matches. It allows you to switch anywhere between 3 and 100 miles from your location. Tinder is different from Tinder though. Premium Tinder tiers let you select a different location for when you are going on a trip or vacation. Tinder doesn’t let you do this. You can, however, turn your location services off on your device when you don’t want to show up in a city that you are visiting or going to for business. You will want to turn the location services back on when you get to a place you want to be seen on the app because if you don’t you won’t be able to receive any new matches or messages from the app. The whole app requires you to have your location services on and won’t work without the location services being on. If you decide to be seen in a different city, you will need to turn the location services off and back on in the city you want to be seen. This will give you a different group of users to look at and a different group of users looking at you.
Conclusion
To sum it all up, Tinder will only update your location when you have the app open and allow Tinder to access your location. There are ways to spoof your location with Tinder Passport, which you can use for free if you take advantage of the 3 day free trial. Furthermore, you can use third party apps like GPS Joystick or AnyGo to change your GPS location for free. If you see someone’s location changing drastically, they could be using one of these features or workarounds, or Tinder could just be malfunctioning. If you really want to know, you can simply try and ask the person if they know why it’s happening, but either way – now you know why this could be happening and how to do it yourself!
