12 Family Location Apps People Actually Use in Spain (2026)

There's no single "best" for everyone. There's the best for supervising a young child, the best if you're all on iPhone, the best for a quick share, and the best for a whole family. Here they are, no fluff.

The Mi Estela teamOctober 14, 2026 · 9 min read

Illustrated map with place icons around a central point

If you search "best family location app" you'll find lists of fifteen apps, each with five stars. This isn't one of those. We looked at the ones people in Spain actually use, read their App Store listings, their websites and their press coverage (all as of October 14, 2026) and we're telling you who each one is for. We're one of the apps on the list, and we're upfront about it—that's why every claim has its source in the linked comparisons.

First: what do you actually need?

There are four different needs people lump together:

Supervising a young child's phone (apps, screen time, content). That's parental control.
Seeing where your family is, with arrival alerts and SOS. That's a family circle.
Sharing for a little while ("I'm on my way"). That's a temporary link.
Calling for police help. That's something else entirely, and in Spain it has a name: AlertCops.

The apps, one by one

1. Life360

The biggest (102 million monthly users). Circles, places, history, driving reports, crash detection and Tile. Free plan with 2 places, 2 days and ads; Silver €5.99/month and Gold €9.99/month in the EU. Its current privacy policy states it licenses precise geolocation to partners. For families who want "everything" and don't mind the ads or the driving reports. Comparison.

2. Apple Find My

Free, built into iPhone, encrypted. Share with friends and with Family Sharing (up to 6), arrival and departure alerts. No Android, no history, no chat. For 100% Apple families who just want to see each other on the map. Comparison.

3. Google Family Link

Free parental control from Google for supervised accounts (under 14 in Spain): apps, screen time, filters and location with alerts at "family places." Only supervises Android devices. For parents of young kids with Android. Comparison.

4. Google Maps (location sharing)

Free, Android and iPhone, 1 hour or until you turn it off, a link for people without an account (24 h) and up to 5 arrival alerts per person. It's not a circle, but it covers more than most people think.

5. WhatsApp (live location)

15 minutes, 1 hour or 8 hours inside a chat, end-to-end encrypted. No places, no alerts, no history. For "follow along for a bit." Comparison.

6. Glympse

The pioneer of the temporary link (2008): from 5 minutes to 12 hours, no account needed for the viewer. Today the company focuses mostly on enterprise solutions. Comparison.

7. GeoZilla

Circles, alerts, daily history, driving reports and crash detection, with weekly (€11.99–€12.99) and monthly (€13.99–€20.99) subscriptions according to Spain's App Store. For anyone looking for what Life360 offers under a different name. Comparison.

8. Find My Kids (Pingo)

For young children: the parent's app plus Pingo on the child's phone or a GPS watch. Zones, history, child SOS, app stats and "Sound Around" (listening through the child's microphone; the website says the child is notified). Plans at €39.99 and €54.99/year. Comparison.

9. iSharing

Generous free plan with ads, up to 365 days of history, walkie-talkie and an inactivity alert for seniors. Silver €4.99/month, Gold €6.99/month. Comparison.

10. FamiSafe (Wondershare)

Full parental control with location: screen time, apps, filters, content detection. No permanent free plan; $59.99/year on the website. Comparison.

11. Qustodio

The parental control born in Barcelona (now part of the Qoria group): screen time, apps, filters, AI-powered alerts and a locator with arrival notifications. Free plan for one device; Premium €59.99/year. Comparison.

12. AlertCops

The official, free app from Spain's Ministry of the Interior: police alerts with chat, SOS that records audio, Guardian, Walk With Me and Rescue. It's not a family circle—it's the police on your phone. Worth having alongside whichever other app you pick. What it does.

And Mi Estela

A symmetric family circle, made in Madrid, for iPhone and Android: a map with faces, arrival alerts for 3 places, SOS, chat, calls and video calls—all free forever with no ads. Ghost Mode, blurred or precise location; the Pact; Worlds (Camino de Santiago, Interrail, Erasmus, on the road); Senior Mode. It doesn't sell or license location data; servers in the EU. Premium for the whole circle at €9.99/month or €99.99/year, with a 14-day trial. From age 14 in Spain. What it doesn't do: parental control, driving reports, accounts for young children.

How to choose, in thirty seconds

Young child with their first Android phone: Family Link (free) or Qustodio.
Whole family on iPhone and you just want to see each other: Apple Find My.
Sharing for a little while with someone: WhatsApp or Google Maps.
Family with iPhones and Androids, teens 14 and up, grandparents, no ads and no surveillance: Mi Estela.
Driving reports and crash detection: Life360 or GeoZilla.
Calling the police for help: AlertCops, on top of whichever one you choose.

All sources are in the comparisons. If you spot an outdated price, drop us a line at hola@miestela.app and we'll fix it.

Written by the Mi Estela team. We talk about other apps with sources and dates; if you spot anything outdated, drop us a line at hola@miestela.app and we'll fix it. Brands and names mentioned belong to their respective owners.