Change Life360 Circle Radius: What You Can Adjust

Updated 5 November 2026 · Standard formula, shown below

You can change the radius used for a Life360 Place’s arrival and departure alerts by editing that Place in the app; you cannot set a general radius around a Circle member’s live location. The Place radius is a geofence: it determines how close a member must get before Life360 treats them as having arrived or left.

What “radius” means in Life360

Life360 uses “Places” for saved locations such as Home, school, or work. A Place has a boundary around its map location. When a Circle member enters or exits that boundary, Life360 may send a Place alert to other members, depending on the Place’s alert settings and the member’s notification permissions.

This is different from the location dot shown on the map. The dot represents the location Life360 currently receives from a member’s device; changing a Place radius does not make that location more precise, change how often it updates, or create a private boundary around that member. If you want to adjust the area used for a saved location’s alerts, edit the Place. If you want to see a member’s location, the app’s location-sharing and device settings are relevant instead.

How to change a Place radius

Menu wording and layout can vary with the app version, but the usual process is to open the saved Place and edit its map boundary:

Open Life360 and select the Circle that contains the Place.
Open the map or Places list, then select the saved Place whose boundary you want to change.
Choose the edit option for that Place. Look for a map with a circle or boundary around the location.
Adjust the boundary using the map control, if available. Some versions show a radius control or let you resize the circle on the map.
Save the changes, then check that the Place’s arrival and departure notifications are enabled for the people who should receive them.

If you cannot find a radius control, update the app and check the Place’s edit screen again. The control may be presented differently or may not be available in the same way in every app version. Avoid deleting a Place just to change its radius unless you are prepared to recreate its details and alert settings.

Choosing a useful boundary

A smaller boundary can make arrival or departure alerts feel more immediate, but it can also make alerts less dependable. GPS and network location are estimates, not exact measurements. A phone may appear to cross a small boundary repeatedly when its reported position shifts, or it may not register an entry at the moment someone reaches a building.

A larger boundary can reduce missed transitions when a location has poor reception or a sprawling site, but it may alert before someone reaches the door. For example, a tight circle around a house might work well in an open neighborhood, while a school campus, shopping center, or large workplace may need a broader area to represent a meaningful arrival.

Choose the place that matches the alert: use a home address for “near home,” not a nearby intersection or a large neighborhood.
Consider the surroundings: nearby roads, apartment buildings, or adjacent businesses can make a very small boundary confusing.
Test the result: after saving, check whether the alerts match what the Circle needs. Adjust gradually rather than making the boundary extremely small.
Be clear with Circle members: a Place alert indicates that the app detected a boundary crossing; it does not prove a person entered a building or completed an activity.

Why a radius change may not seem to work

Changing a Place boundary affects the geofence, but notifications also depend on settings and device behavior. If alerts do not arrive—or arrive at unexpected times—check the following before repeatedly changing the radius:

Place alerts: verify that arrival or departure notifications are enabled for the relevant Place and Circle members.
Phone permissions: Life360 needs the location permissions and background access permitted by the phone’s operating system for location features to work reliably. Menu names differ between iPhone and Android.
Network and power settings: weak connectivity, battery-saving features, or restricted background activity can delay location updates.
Correct Circle and Place: confirm you edited the Place in the Circle members are using, especially if you belong to more than one Circle.
Saved changes: reopen the Place’s edit screen to confirm the new boundary was saved rather than discarded.

Location alerts can be delayed or inaccurate, and a phone that is off, disconnected, or restricted may not report a boundary crossing promptly. A radius adjustment cannot correct every cause of an inaccurate map position.

Can you change the radius around a person?

Life360 does not generally offer a setting that draws a custom-radius zone around a Circle member’s live map position and notifies you whenever they leave it. Place alerts work around saved locations, such as a home or school. If the goal is to be notified when someone arrives at or leaves a particular area, create or edit a Place for that area and set its alerts.

This distinction also addresses a common misconception: a Place radius is not a tracking-range setting. It does not limit how far a member can be seen, determine how often their location refreshes, or change their phone’s GPS accuracy. Those behaviors depend on location sharing, device permissions, connectivity, and other app or operating-system conditions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I change the Life360 radius for a Circle member?
No general custom radius can be set around a member’s live location. You can adjust the boundary for a saved Place and use its arrival or departure alerts.

Where do I edit a Life360 Place radius?
Select the Circle, open the relevant Place, and choose its edit control. Adjust the map boundary if the option is available, then save and check the Place alert settings.

Why can’t I see the radius option?
The app’s layout and available controls can vary. Make sure Life360 is current, open the Place’s edit screen, and look for a boundary or map control. If it is not offered, consult the app’s current help resources.

Will a smaller radius make Life360 more accurate?
Not necessarily. The radius changes the boundary used for Place alerts, not the accuracy of the phone’s location. A very small boundary may make alerts more sensitive to GPS variation.

Does changing a Place radius affect everyone in my Circle?
The Place boundary is associated with the saved Place, but who receives alerts depends on the Circle and notification settings. Check the alert configuration after editing.

Can Life360 alert me when someone leaves a custom area?
Place alerts can report entry into or departure from a saved location’s boundary. They do not create a general moving boundary around a person; use a saved Place for a fixed area.

Method: the standard formula for this calculation, rounded as each result states. See how the calculators work or report an error.