One of the best things about Apple AirPods is their true wireless design. Not a cord anywhere. But there is a flip side to that: The same cord-free design also makes it easier to lose one or both of your expensive earbuds.
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But unlike with other valuables like your wallet or your keys, your AirPods have a built-in way to find them when they go missing. When you pair them to your iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Apple Watch, or Mac, you can use Find My App to help you locate them if they’re lost or misplaced.
More good news: If you’ve paired your AirPods to an iPhone that already has theFind My iPhonefunction set up, the Find My AirPods capability is automatically enabled.
But to make the process easier, there are some settings that you should enable right now, before you lose your AirPods (or before you lose themagain).
Enabling Find My AirPods
Turning on the Find My Network setting allows you to locate your earbuds even when they’re offline. According to Apple, Find My Network is an encrypted, anonymous network of hundreds of millions of Apple devices that can help you locate your device. It works a bit like a Tile tracker or anApple AirTag.
To enable the Find My Network, go to Settings on your iPhone and tap your name at the top of the page. Then tap the Find My tab, then Find My Phone, and finally turn on the slider for Find My Network. On that same screen, you’ll also probably want to turn on the slider for Send Last Location, which will allow you to determine where your AirPods were before the battery died.
To enable this functionality, you’ll also want to turn on Location Services on your iPhone. Scroll down to Privacy and Security in the Settings menu. And see if Location Services, at the top of the list, is on. Tap the Location Services tab and scroll down to the Find My app.
Another option that’s mostly helpful if your AirPods are lost is Allow Location Access: While Using the App. You’ll also want to move the slider below to Precise Location. Understand that turning on Location Tracking means that you’re trading some measure ofdigital privacyfor a better chance of finding your lost AirPods. And note that these settings won’t actually mention your AirPods by name, but the settings can still help you find them if they’re lost or stolen.
Finally, if you have an iPhone 12 or newer, you can set up a Separation Alert that will warn you if you leave your newer AirPods behind. Open the Find My app, go to the Devices tab, choose your AirPods, and under Notifications, select Notify When Left Behind.
Getting a Bead on Your Lost Earbuds
If your AirPods go missing, you can find them by ascertaining their general location on a map on your iPhone or other Apple device, and zero in on them by pinging a sound.
The instructions to locate your AirPods on a map depend on the Apple device you’re using.
- On iPhone or iPad, open the Find My app, tap Devices, then tap the name of your AirPods. You can then see the location of your earbuds, and, if necessary, directions to the location.
- On an Apple Watch, go to the green Find Devices icon, and tap on the name of your AirPods.
- On a Mac computer, open the Find Map, click Devices, select your AirPods and you’ll get a map and direction.
- You can also find your AirPods through iCloud: Go to iCloud.com/find, sign in with your Apple ID, select All Devices, and select your AirPods.
If the map indicates that your AirPods are nearby, you can locate them by pinging them with a sound. To ping your AirPods, follow the directions above, and look for the Play Sound option. You may also get an indicator that will show you if you’re moving in the right direction toward the lost devices.
Note that for most AirPod models, you’ll need to locate your earbuds one at a time. First find one of your AirPods, then put it back in its case and refresh the map to locate the other one. If you have the latest generation AirPods Pro, you can see the location of each of your AirPods Pro and the charging case on the map in the Find My app; it can ping both the AirPods and the charging case.
If your AirPods are paired but currently offline, Find My can show the last time and place they were online. For third-generation AirPods, or AirPods Pro or AirPods Max, you can continue to see their updated location in the Find My app for up to 24 hours; after that, the Find My app shows the last time and place they were online.
For AirPods that aren’t connected to the internet, the sound plays the next time they connect to a Wi-Fi or cellular network.
And finally, if you’re convinced your AirPods are truly lost, rather than just misplaced, you can put them in Lost Mode. Got to the Devices tab on your iPhone, iPad, or iPhone Touch and choose your AirPods. Scroll to Mark as Lost and tap Activate. You’ll then have an option to supply contact information that will appear on the iPhone of anyone who finds the AirPods and attempts to pair them.
Allen St. John
Allen St. John has been a senior product editor at CR since 2016, focusing on digital privacy, audio devices, printers, and home products. He was a senior editor at Condé Nast and a contributing editor at publications including Road & Track and The Village Voice. A New York Times bestselling author, he's also written for The New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, and Rolling Stone. He lives in Montclair, N.J., with his wife, their two children, and their dog, Rugby.
