Lost Your Android Phone? How to Find, Lock, or Erase It

To find a lost Android phone, go to android.com/find on any browser (or open the Find Hub app on another Android device), sign in with the Google account on the missing phone, and pick it from the list. You'll see it on a map and can make it ring, lock it with a message, or erase it. Can't remember your Google password? Go to android.com/lock and lock the phone with nothing but its phone number, as long as Remote Lock was turned on beforehand.

Also in this topic: Android Guides hub.

Jump to: first 5 minutes · Find Hub steps · lock with your number · Samsung Galaxy · Google vs Samsung · phone off or dead · phone not showing · if it was stolen · set up before you lose it · FAQ

How we put this together: The steps, limits, and device lists below come from Google's Find Hub and theft protection help pages, Samsung's US support pages, and the FCC's consumer guide, all linked in place and rechecked on October 18, 2026. We haven't tested every phone model, so a menu on your phone may be worded a little differently.

What to Do in the First 5 Minutes

Work from least to most drastic. Ring it, look at the map, lock it, and only erase it once you've given up on getting it back. Erasing can't be undone, and Google says a phone that has been factory reset drops out of Find Hub, so you lose the map too.

1. Call the phone from another phone. It's the fastest test if it's somewhere nearby.
2. Open Find Hub at android.com/find and sign in with the same Google account.
3. Tap Play sound if the map shows it close by.
4. Mark it as lost (called Secure device on some versions of the website) so it locks and shows your contact details.
5. Erase it only when you're sure it's gone for good, then call your carrier.

How to Find Your Android Phone With Google Find Hub

Find Hub is Google's free service for locating, ringing, locking, and erasing Android phones, tablets, Wear OS watches, and paired accessories. It was called Find My Device until Google renamed it in May 2025. It's switched on automatically once a phone is signed in to a Google account, so most people already have it.

Steps to locate the phone

1. On a computer or any phone, open android.com/find. On another Android device, you can use the Find Hub app instead.
2. Sign in. On your own second device, tap Continue as [your name]. On a friend's phone, tap Sign in as guest so you aren't using their account.
3. Select the missing phone. It gets a notification that it's being located.
4. If asked, enter the missing phone's lock screen PIN. Google says this applies to Android 9 and newer; older phones or phones without a PIN may ask for your Google password instead.
5. Check the map. Tap Get directions to navigate there, or Find nearby once you're within about 10 meters.

The circle around the pin shows how sure Google is about the spot. According to Google's help page, a GPS fix is accurate to around 20 meters, while a cell tower fix can be off by a few thousand meters. So a huge circle over a whole neighborhood usually means the phone has no GPS fix, not that it's moving around.

Ring, lock, or erase it

• Play sound rings the phone at full volume for 5 minutes, even if it's on silent or vibrate.
• Mark as lost locks the phone with your existing PIN, pattern, or password and lets you put a contact number and message on the lock screen for whoever finds it. On Android 17 and newer phones with fingerprint or face unlock, Google adds a second check: unlocking needs both your PIN and your biometric, and notifications and widgets are hidden.
• Factory reset (under the device's Settings in Find Hub) permanently wipes the phone. Google warns it may not wipe an SD card, and if you get the phone back afterward you'll need your Google password to use it again.

Lost it somewhere in the house? If you have a Google Nest speaker or display linked to your account, say "Hey Google, find my Pixel" (or name your phone). Google's Nest help page says it rings the phone even in Do Not Disturb, as long as the phone is online. If you own several devices, name the one you want, or the speaker may ring the wrong one.

How to Lock Your Phone With Just Your Phone Number

Remote Lock locks a lost Android phone's screen using only its phone number and a quick security check, with no Google password needed. It's the tool to reach for when your password manager and 2-Step Verification codes were on the phone you just lost.

1. Go to android.com/lock from any browser.
2. Enter the lost phone's number.
3. Complete the reCAPTCHA, and answer your security question if you set one.
4. Confirm the lock. The screen locks shortly after.

The catch is that Remote Lock has to be switched on before you lose the phone. Google's theft protection page lists the requirements: a screen lock, an active SIM, a verified phone number, Find Hub turned on, and an internet connection. If the phone is offline, it locks as soon as it reconnects. You can only use it twice in 24 hours, and it only locks the screen. It doesn't show a location or erase anything, so sign in to Find Hub afterward for that.

How to Find a Lost Samsung Galaxy Phone

Galaxy phones can be found two ways: Google's Find Hub, using your Google account, and Samsung's own service, using your Samsung account. Samsung runs it on two websites, Samsung Find and SmartThings Find. If Find Hub comes up empty, try Samsung's service next. It has a few tools Google's doesn't.

1. Open samsungfind.samsung.com or smartthingsfind.samsung.com and sign in with your Samsung account.
2. Pick your phone from the list on the left to see it on the map.
3. Choose Ring, Lock, Track location, Extend battery life, or Erase data.

According to Samsung's US support page, Track location sends you the phone's position every 15 minutes, which is handy if you left it on a bus or train. Extend battery life remotely switches on Maximum power saving mode, so the phone stays findable for longer. Samsung's Lock also works differently from Google's: you create a new PIN on the website instead of reusing the phone's own lock.

For any of this to work, the Galaxy must be on, connected, signed in to a Samsung account, and have these switches on under Settings → Security and privacy → Lost device protection: Allow this phone to be found, Send last location, and Offline finding.

Google Find Hub vs Samsung Find: What's Different

Both can ring, lock, and wipe a Galaxy, but the details differ in ways that matter when you're in a hurry. We built this table from Google's and Samsung's own help pages.

	Google Find Hub	Samsung Find / SmartThings Find
Works on	Most Android phones and tablets with a Google account	Samsung Galaxy devices with a Samsung account
Website	android.com/find	samsungfind.samsung.com or smartthingsfind.samsung.com
Ring length	5 minutes	1 minute
Lock	Uses your existing PIN, pattern, or password	You set a new PIN on the website
Lock without signing in	Yes, with Remote Lock (phone number only)	No
Location updates	Current or last known location	Track location sends updates every 15 minutes
Save battery remotely	No	Yes (Maximum power saving mode)
Remote erase and SD cards	"May not delete SD cards"	SD card data is erased too

Our take: if you own a Galaxy, keep both accounts signed in. They're separate systems, so if one can't reach the phone or you're locked out of one account, the other still gives you a way in.

Can You Find an Android Phone That's Off or Dead?

Usually you'll only see its last known location. The exception is newer Pixels: Google's Pixel help page says the Find Hub network can locate the Pixel 8, Pixel 9, and Pixel 10 series for several hours after the battery dies or the phone is turned off. As of October 18, 2026, that page doesn't list the Pixel 11 yet.

That "power-off finding" depends on how the phone was set up before it died. Location and Bluetooth have to be on when it shuts down, and offline finding has to be set to one of the network options. On most other Android phones, an offline or dead phone falls back to the encrypted location it last stored with Google.

Which offline finding setting to pick

Find Hub has four offline finding modes under Settings → Google → All services → Find Hub → Find your offline devices (on a Pixel: Settings → Security → Find Hub → Find your offline devices):

• Off: no stored locations and no network help.
• Without network: only the encrypted location saved the last time the phone was online.
• With network in busy places only: other Android phones can report your phone in crowded spots like airports.
• With network everywhere: the network can report it in busy and remote areas.

If you live, hike, or drive outside big cities, "With network everywhere" is the one that can actually help on a back road. Either network option needs a PIN, pattern, or password on the phone. Google says it uses Bluetooth to pick up your phone from other people's devices, and those location reports are end-to-end encrypted.

Phone Not Showing in Find Hub? Common Fixes

Most "can't find my phone" problems come down to a setting that was off before the phone went missing. Google's Find Hub troubleshooting page and its setup guide point to these:

• "Location unavailable." The phone is off, has no signal, is in Airplane mode, had its SIM pulled, or is damaged. Mark it as lost anyway. The lock takes effect the moment it reconnects.
• "Sync recent location." Tap it, then enter the screen lock of one of your other Android devices or sign in again. The message usually clears and shows a recent location.
• The phone isn't in the list at all. Check play.google.com/library/devices. If the phone is hidden there (the "Show in menus" box is unchecked), Google says you won't find it in Find Hub.
• Wrong account. Google says a phone's most recent location goes to the first account activated on it. On a phone with several user profiles, sign in with an account on the main profile.
• Locked out by 2-Step Verification. If the lost phone is where your sign-in codes arrive, you can get stuck at the login screen. Google's setup guide says a backup code or a physical security key gets you in. Without one, you may need a replacement SIM from your carrier. Remote Lock (above) doesn't need a sign-in at all.

Old earbuds and dead phones cluttering the list? Find Hub now lets you remove old Bluetooth headphones and earbuds from Find Hub, which makes the device you're actually looking for easier to spot.

If Your Phone Was Stolen

Don't go to the spot on the map yourself. Samsung's support page says the same: give the location to the police and let them recover it. Then follow the FCC's checklist:

1. Lock the phone remotely, even if you think it's just lost.
2. File a police report with the make, model, serial number, and IMEI. Some carriers ask for proof of theft.
3. Report it to your carrier right away and ask them to disable the device. The FCC notes you may be responsible for charges made before you report it.
4. Ask the carrier for written confirmation that the phone was reported and disabled.
5. Change your Google account password and the passwords saved on the phone, starting with email and banking.

Need the IMEI and don't have the box? In Find Hub, select the phone and open its Settings. The IMEI is listed there, on the website as well as in the app. Some devices, like the Pixel Tablet, don't have one.

Set It Up Now, Before You Lose It

These take about five minutes and decide what you can do later. Paths are from Google's help pages and may be worded a little differently on your phone.

• Check Find Hub is on: Settings → Security → Find Hub → Allow device to be located (on Samsung phones it's under Settings → Google → Find Hub).
• Turn on theft protection: Settings → Google → All services → Theft protection. Switch on Remote Lock (verify your number), Theft Detection Lock, and Offline Device Lock. Google says these aren't available on Android Go phones, tablets, or watches.
• Turn on Identity Check if your phone lists it there. Outside trusted places like home, a thief would need your fingerprint or face, not just your PIN, to turn off Find Hub or factory reset the phone.
• Save 2-Step Verification backup codes somewhere that isn't your phone.
• On a Galaxy, turn on the three switches in Lost device protection listed in the Samsung section above.
• Back up your photos. Finding the phone is a bonus; having your photos is what really matters. If you've switched off cloud backup, our guide to Google Photos backup settings shows how to turn it back on for just the folders you care about.

One trade-off to know about: apps inside Android's Private Space can't use Find Hub. Our guide to hiding apps on Android covers that and Private Space's other limits.

FAQ

Can I find my Android phone from an iPhone or a computer?

Yes. Open android.com/find in Safari, Chrome, or any other browser and sign in with the Google account on the lost phone. You don't need another Android device or any app.

Can I track my Android phone with just the phone number?

No. Google's number-only tool, Remote Lock at android.com/lock, can lock the screen but doesn't show where the phone is. To see it on a map, sign in to Find Hub with your Google account. Be wary of websites that promise to track any phone from its number.

Can a thief turn off Find Hub?

It's harder than it used to be. On phones with Identity Check turned on, switching off Find Hub or running a factory reset away from your trusted places needs your fingerprint or face. And Google says a phone erased through Find Hub needs your Google account password before it can be used again.

How long does Find Hub keep ringing the phone?

Five minutes at full volume, even on silent or vibrate. Samsung Find's Ring option plays for one minute. You can stop either one early from the phone or the website.