The short answer: If everyone in your family has an iPhone and you only need to see where people are, Apple Find My is hard to beat. It comes with the phone, and Apple says it can't access your shared location when both people run iOS 17 or later. Orma is for families who want more on top of that: 30 days of history, daily check-ins, low-battery and phone-went-quiet alerts, and an SOS button for your circle. Orma isn't on the App Store yet (coming soon). Facts about Find My are as of October 2026.
Orma vs Apple Find My at a glance
| Orma | Apple Find My | |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | iPhone only. Not yet on the App Store (coming soon). | Comes as the Find My app on Apple devices (Apple Support). |
| Price | Not announced yet. | Apple's sharing guide describes no separate charge (Apple Support). |
| Who you can share with | People you invite to a circle. | People with Apple devices: Live Location needs both people on iPhone with iOS 15 or later (Apple Support). |
| Encryption | Locations, places, alerts, photos and names are end-to-end encrypted. | Apple says that when both people are on iOS 17 or later, your location is not accessible to Apple. If a friend is on an earlier version, it may be (Apple Privacy). |
| Ads and data sales | No ads. No data selling. No analytics SDKs in the app. | Not covered here. See Apple's Find My privacy page. |
| Sharing length | Until you turn it off, or for a set time. | An hour, until the end of the day, or indefinitely (Apple Support). |
| Location history | 30 days of paths, arrivals and departures. | Apple's sharing guide doesn't describe a location history feature (Apple Support). |
| Place alerts | Arrival and departure alerts for saved places, with a radius you set. | Arrival and departure notifications for places a friend chooses (Apple Support). |
| SOS | Alerts your circle with your location. Does not call emergency services. | Crash Detection on iPhone 14 or later can call emergency services (Apple Support). Check In shares your location if you don't respond (Apple Support). |
Where Find My is better
It's already on your phone. There is nothing to install, no new account and no invite to send. For couples and families who all use iPhones, that matters.
It's the platform's own app. It works with Messages and Maps, and it can share location by satellite when there is no Wi-Fi or mobile coverage (Apple Support).
Apple's safety features are built in. On iPhone 14 or later, Crash Detection can call emergency services by itself after a severe crash and message your emergency contacts with your location. Orma's SOS doesn't do this. It alerts the people in your circle only. Apple also offers Check In, which shares your location if you're delayed and don't respond (Apple Support), and Safety Check, which can quickly stop sharing if your safety is at risk (Apple Support).
Apple states its privacy position plainly. According to Apple's Find My privacy page (last updated December 2025), shared location data is kept for up to 24 hours and then deleted.
Where Orma is different
More tools for looking after each other. Orma keeps 30 days of history, so you can look back at paths, arrivals and departures. You can ask someone to check in every day by a set time and hear if they don't. You also hear when someone's battery drops below 15%, or when a sharing phone goes quiet for 2 hours. Apple's sharing guide, as we read it, doesn't describe these.
An SOS button for your circle. Hold it for 2 seconds and everyone in your circles gets your location. It can also be triggered from the Action Button or Back Tap. It stays shared until you say you're fine, and people can reply that they're on their way. To reach emergency services, you also need to turn on Emergency SOS in iPhone Settings.
Circles for people who look after each other. An Orma circle is a group you set up for family, a partner, or people sharing the care of a parent. Everyone joins by invitation and can see who is in it.
Encryption you can check. Each circle has its own key, created on a phone and passed only between phones. Our servers hold ciphertext of locations, places, alerts, photos and names. Our privacy policy lists what we can still see: your account email, which circles you're in, device IDs and push tokens, timestamps, and IP addresses in short-lived logs.
One honest limit: end-to-end encryption doesn't hide anything from the people in your circle. They hold the key and see what you share by design.
Which should you choose?
Choose Find My if:
- Everyone in your family has an iPhone and you want the simplest option.
- You want nothing extra to install or set up.
- You want crash detection and emergency calling built into the phone.
Choose Orma if:
- You want location history, daily check-ins and low-battery alerts in one place.
- You want a dedicated SOS for your circle.
- You want your circle's key to stay on your phones, with a clear list of what the server can see.
- You're happy to wait for the App Store release.
Use both: Orma doesn't replace Find My's device finding or iPhone's own emergency features. You can keep both on.
FAQ
Is Apple Find My end-to-end encrypted?
Apple says that when you and a friend are both on iOS 17 or later, your location is not accessible to Apple. If a friend is on an earlier version, Apple says it may be accessible when that friend actively requests it (Apple Privacy).
Can Android users see my location in Find My?
Apple's guide says Live Location requires both you and the recipient to have an iPhone with iOS 15 or later (Apple Support). Orma is iPhone only too.
Does Orma replace Find My?
No. They do different jobs. Orma is for sharing with a private circle, with history, check-ins and an SOS for your circle. Find My is built into your Apple devices.
Does Orma's SOS call emergency services?
No. It alerts the people in your circle with your location. For emergency services, use Emergency SOS on your iPhone.
Is Orma available now?
No. It is coming soon to the App Store, and its price hasn't been decided.
Apple, Find My and other names are trademarks of their owners. Orma isn't affiliated with them. Details checked October 2026; tell us at support@ormacircle.com if something has changed.