Precise vs. Approximate Location on Android

Android lets you decide how exactly an app can see where you are. Android approximate location gives an app an area, while precise location can pinpoint your device.

This guide explains the difference, how Android location permissions work, how to turn off precise location for an app, and what Android 17 changes. Every instruction follows Google's own documentation, checked on October 10, 2026.

The short answer

Choose approximate location unless a feature needs your exact position right now. Weather, news and broad nearby searches work with an area. Turn-by-turn directions usually need precise location.

For a full audit of every permission on your phone, use our guide to which Android app permissions to turn off.

Precise and approximate location compared

Feature	Precise location	Approximate location
What the app learns	Where your device is, as accurately as Android can tell	An estimate of the area your device is in
Accuracy, per Android's documentation	Usually within about 50 meters (160 feet), sometimes a few meters or better	About 3 square kilometers (1.2 square miles), sized differently on Android 17
Permission the app declares	ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION	ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION
Setting you see	Use precise location on	Use precise location off
Works well for	Turn-by-turn navigation, sharing an exact spot	Weather, local news, broad nearby searches

Those figures come from Android's developer documentation and describe location produced by the system's location services. Treat them as typical, not guaranteed for every app, phone or Android version.

Approximate location accuracy: what Android documents

Android's developer documentation says approximate location is accurate to within about 3 square kilometers, and precise location is usually within about 50 meters, sometimes a few meters or better.

Those figures apply when the estimate comes from LocationManagerService or FusedLocationProvider. Android defines precise location as the most accurate estimate available, not a fixed distance.

The Android Developers Blog describes the older approximate method as a static grid 2 kilometers wide. Android 17 replaces it with an area sized by local population density, so sparsely populated places get a larger area.

Google documents no new figure for Android 17, so treat 3 square kilometers as the documented figure for the older approach, not a prediction for Android 17.

Four settings people confuse

Setting	What it controls	Examples	What it does not control
Precise or approximate	The accuracy an app can get	Use precise location on or off	When or how long the app can use location
Permission duration	When an app can use location	While using the app, Only this time, Ask every time	How accurate the location is
Background access	Whether an app can use location when you are not using it	Allow all the time	The accuracy level
Location Accuracy	How your phone works out its position, including Wi-Fi scanning	Google Location Accuracy, also called Google Location Services	Which apps have permission, which is set per app

Changing one of these does not change the others. An app set to approximate with Allow all the time still has background access, just at lower accuracy.

How Android location permissions work

On Android 12 and higher, the permission dialog lets you pick Precise or Approximate, then a duration such as While using the app or Only this time. Google's developer codelab documents this flow.

If you choose approximate, the app can later ask you to upgrade to precise. You can decline and stay on approximate.

Google's help page lists four choices for each app. They control when an app can see your location, which is a different question from how exactly.

Android's developer documentation describes the same split. Every location permission combines a category, foreground or background, with an accuracy level, precise or approximate.

How to turn off precise location on Android

1. Touch and hold the app icon, then tap App info.
2. Tap Permissions, then Location.
3. Choose Allow only while using the app, or Ask every time.
4. Turn Use precise location off.

To see every app at once, open Settings, tap Location, then App location permissions. Google's help page groups apps under Allowed all the time, Allowed only while in use, Ask every time or allow when I share, and Not allowed.

Permission manager shows every app that holds location in one view. Our guide to Android's Permission manager walks through the audit step by step.

When approximate location is enough

Use approximate location when a feature only needs the general area you are in. These are examples, not rules.

Approximate location is a sensible privacy default. Some features genuinely need an exact position and may be limited or ask you to upgrade, though Android's developer guidance says apps should still work with approximate access where they can.

When precise location is justified

Precise location makes sense when a feature depends on your exact position at the moment you use it. Treat these as typical cases, not fixed rules.

A simple way to decide

1. Check what the feature does with your location.
2. Choose approximate if it only needs an area.
3. Choose precise only when the feature needs your exact position.
4. Limit precise access to Only this time or While using the app.
5. Review the app list every few months under Settings, Location, App location permissions.

Reserve all-the-time access for apps built around background features, such as family location sharing, which Android's documentation uses as an example.

Approximate does not mean anonymous

Approximate location hides your exact position, not your presence. It still tells an app roughly which part of a city, or which region, you are in.

Repeated readings can show where you usually are, depending on how often an app reads location and what else it knows. Google's blog says a fixed grid may not be private enough in low-population areas.

None of that makes the permission controls meaningless. Approximate access, a short duration and no background access each reduce what an app can learn.

What Android 17 changes

Android 17 was announced by Google on June 16, 2026. It is rolling out first to Pixel phones, with other eligible Android devices following throughout 2026, according to Google's release post.

The post describes a new option to give an app temporary access to your precise location.

That matches the location button described in Android's guide, though what you see depends on your phone's update and on apps that integrate it.

The other changes below come from Google's Beta 3 announcement, and the release post does not list them. We could not confirm each one in the stable build, so check your own phone.

The location button is a system element that lets you give an app precise location for one session.

The app developer has to integrate it, so it is not a switch you can turn on in Settings, and it will not appear in every app.

It is similar to Only this time in that precise access is temporary, but it works differently. You tap a system button instead of answering the permission dialog, which Android's guide says reduces repeated Only this time prompts.

On Android 16 or lower, apps that use Google's Jetpack library show the standard location prompt instead. Google's help page says access through the button lasts for the session or until you close the app.

Google's help page adds that after you allow or deny sharing a few times, the prompt stops and the app remembers your choice. You can change that in the app's location settings.

The Android Developers Blog announced a redesigned location dialog so Precise and Approximate are easier to tell apart, plus a persistent indicator whenever a non-system app accesses your location.

Tapping the indicator opens a Recent app use dialog where you can manage those permissions, Google says. The density-based approximate areas covered earlier were announced in the same post.

Google Play's policy preview, effective January 27, 2027, covers apps targeting Android 17 (SDK 37) or higher. If such an app needs precise location only for one-time, user-initiated actions, it must use the location button.

It does not require every app to use the button. Apps whose features need more than a one-time precise fix can still request fine location, if the button or approximate location cannot adequately support them.

That is a developer deadline, separate from the Android 17 release date and from when you may first see the button.

Older apps behave differently

Google's developer codelab says the new precise and approximate options are not visible to apps that target Android 11, API level 30, or lower. Those apps may therefore present location choices differently.

Android's runtime documentation adds that on Android 12 or higher you can set the preferred accuracy for any app in system settings, whatever its target SDK. How a given older app copes depends on how it was written.

If an old app behaves strangely after a permission change, check for an update from its developer before assuming your settings are wrong.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between precise and approximate location on Android?

Precise location is the most accurate estimate available, usually within about 50 meters. Approximate location gives an area, documented at about 3 square kilometers. See the accuracy section for the Android 17 change.

How do I turn off precise location on Android?

Open an app's Location permission page and turn Use precise location off. You can also open Settings, tap Location, then App location permissions to find the app.

Which Android versions let me choose?

Android 12, API level 31, and higher let you choose accuracy, according to Google's developer codelab. Earlier versions decide accuracy by which permission an app requests.

Can an app get precise location if I choose approximate?

No, not unless you upgrade. If you grant approximate location, the app only has approximate access, regardless of the permissions it declares.

What is the location button?

A system button, added in Android 17, that lets an app that integrates it request precise location for one session. It does not appear in every app, and Android 16 or lower shows the normal prompt instead.

Does approximate location protect my privacy completely?

No. It shares an area, not nothing, and repeated readings can still show where you usually are.

A quick checklist

• Open Settings, tap Location, then App location permissions.
• Question every app under Allowed all the time.
• Turn Use precise location off where an area is enough.
• Choose Only this time or Ask every time for apps that need precise location rarely.
• Check Location Accuracy and Wi-Fi scanning if location feels wrong.

Up nextAndroid's 'Only this time' permission, explainedChoosing Only this time is one of the best ways to limit precise location. Our guide explains what it does, how long it lasts, and where it differs from While using the app.→