Disabling Find My iPhone without the device itself
You can turn off Find My iPhone from another device or a computer, even if you don't have the phone in your hands. The fastest way is to sign into iCloud.com from any web browser, find the phone in your list of devices, and remove it. You can also do this from another Apple device using the Find My app. If you've forgotten your Apple ID password, you'll need to reset it first — Apple will walk you through that process before letting you access your account.
The reason you might need to do this: you're selling or giving away an iPhone, you've lost it and want to stop the tracking, or you're switching to a different phone and need to clean up your old device remotely. Find My iPhone stays linked to your Apple ID until you actively remove it, so the previous owner or someone with access to your account could theoretically locate the phone even after you own it.
Key Takeaways
- Go to iCloud.com from any computer or browser, sign in with your Apple ID, and select Find My iPhone to see all your devices.
- Click the phone you want to remove, then select "Remove from Account" — this disables Find My iPhone permanently on that device.
- If you don't remember your Apple ID password, use the password reset option on the iCloud login page before you can access your devices.
- You can also remove a device from another iPhone, iPad, or Mac by opening the Find My app, selecting the device, and choosing remove.
- Once removed, the phone will no longer appear in Find My or be trackable through your Apple ID account.
Using iCloud.com on a computer or browser
Open any web browser — Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge — and go to iCloud.com. Sign in with the Apple ID and password that the iPhone is linked to. If you're doing this for a phone you're selling or giving away, you'll need the original owner's Apple ID credentials, not your own.
Once you're logged in, look for the grid icon (usually nine dots) in the top left corner and click it. Select "Find My iPhone" from the menu. You'll see a list of all devices connected to that Apple ID account — iPhones, iPads, Macs, Apple Watches, and AirPods. Find the phone you want to disable in the list and click it.
A panel will open on the right side showing the device's details and location. At the bottom of that panel, you'll see an option that says "Remove from Account" or sometimes just "Remove." Click it. Apple will ask you to confirm — click again to finalize. The phone is now disconnected from Find My iPhone and will no longer be trackable through that Apple ID.
Using Find My app on another Apple device
If you have an iPad, Mac, or another iPhone, you can remove the device from the Find My app instead of using a web browser. Open Find My on the device you're using, then tap or click the "Devices" tab at the bottom (on iPhone or iPad) or in the sidebar (on Mac).
You'll see a list of all devices on your Apple ID account. Tap or click the name of the phone you want to remove. A detail screen will appear. Scroll down or look for the "Remove from Account" button and tap or click it. Confirm the removal when prompted. The phone will be removed from Find My when ready.
What to do if you've forgotten your Apple ID password
If you don't remember the password for the Apple ID linked to the iPhone, you won't be able to sign into iCloud.com or access Find My. You'll need to reset the password first. Go to iCloud.com and click "Forgot Apple ID or password?" on the login page.
Apple will ask you to enter the email address associated with the Apple ID. Then you'll choose a recovery method — usually a trusted phone number or a recovery email address. Apple will send a code to that number or email. Enter the code, and you'll be able to create a new password. Once your password is reset, sign back into iCloud.com and follow the steps above to remove the device from Find My iPhone.
If you don't have access to the recovery phone number or email, the process takes longer. Apple will ask you to verify your identity using other information — like the last four digits of a credit card on file or answers to security questions you set up when you created the account. Be honest about what you remember; if you can't verify your identity, Apple may not be able to help you regain access.
Removing a device you no longer own
If you're buying a used iPhone, the previous owner should remove it from their Find My account before handing it to you. Ask them to do this step before the sale is final — it takes less than a minute and prevents problems later. If they've already given you the phone and didn't remove it, contact them and ask for their Apple ID password, or ask them to remove it themselves using iCloud.com or Find My on their own device.
If you can't reach the previous owner, you have two options. First, try signing into the phone with your own Apple ID — during setup, the phone will ask if you want to use a different Apple ID, and you can proceed from there. The old Find My account will still technically be linked, but the phone will be usable on your account. Second, you can perform a factory reset on the phone, which erases everything and removes the old Apple ID link — but this also erases any data on the phone, so only do this if you're sure there's nothing you need to keep.
What happens after you remove the device
Once you remove an iPhone from Find My, it will no longer appear in the Find My app or on iCloud.com for that Apple ID. If someone tries to locate the phone using that account, they won't see it anymore. The phone itself will still work normally — removing it from Find My doesn't disable the phone or erase its data.
If the phone is later set up with a new Apple ID (either yours or someone else's), it will appear in that new account's Find My list instead. This is why it's important to remove a device before selling it — the new owner will set it up with their own Apple ID, and you won't be able to track it anymore.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I remove Find My iPhone if I don't know the Apple ID password?
No, you'll need to reset the password first using the "Forgot Apple ID or password?" link on iCloud.com. Apple will verify your identity using a recovery phone number, recovery email, or security questions before letting you create a new password. Once you've reset it, you can sign in and remove the device.
What if the phone is lost or stolen?
If you've lost the phone and want to stop tracking it, you can remove it from Find My using iCloud.com or another device. If you think it's stolen and want to protect your data, consider changing your Apple ID password first so the thief can't access your account. You can also use Find My to remotely erase the phone before removing it.
Will removing the device erase it?
No. Removing a device from Find My only disconnects it from your Apple ID account — it doesn't erase any data on the phone itself. The phone will still have all its photos, messages, and settings. If you want to erase the phone remotely, use the "Erase This Device" option in Find My before you remove it.
Can I remove a device if I'm not the original owner?
Only the person whose Apple ID is linked to the device can remove it from Find My. If you bought a used phone, the previous owner must remove it using their own Apple ID. If they won't or can't, you can factory reset the phone during setup, which will clear the old Apple ID link and let you set it up with your own.
How long does it take for the device to disappear from Find My?
The removal is when ready. As soon as you click "Remove from Account" and confirm, the device will no longer appear in Find My or on iCloud.com. If you're looking at the Find My app on another device, you may need to close and reopen the app to see the updated list.