Can VPN change GPS location? Use the Best GPS Spoofing VPN
GPS override is possible with a reliable VPN
6 min. read
Updated on
Share this article
Improve this guide
Read our disclosure page to find out how can you help Windows Report sustain the editorial team. Read more
Key notes
- VPNs are great privacy-protection tools that can keep a lot of information passed through your connection away from prying eyes.
- However, when it comes to location spoofing, most VPNs can only ensure changing your IP-based location, and not your GPS one.
- Spoofing your GPS location is just one of the great benefits you can have with a trustworthy VPN.
It’s a well-known fact that VPNs can ensure your online activities remain private. These tools make use of several techniques to erase or replace any personally identifiable information on your end of the connection.
Note: this doesn’t mean that you can go ahead and post credit card info online and the VPN will magically erase it.
VPNs can hide your IP address, but also DNS and apparent location. Thus, if you’re connected to a VPN server, your request will seem to originate from another location/device.
There’s a lot of misunderstanding when it comes to location spoofing. This technique is very helpful if you’re trying to access geo-restricted content. However, it might not work as you expected.
Does VPN affect location services?
Your IP address will be used to determine your location if location services are disabled. In that case, the locations will be reflected to show where the VPN exit node is located.
This is primarily for the purpose of utilizing a VPN to change your location, but also for the purpose of using location services.
If your goal is to, for example, get around Netflix’s (or another service’s) territorial limits, whether you’re also using location services is essentially irrelevant.
Does VPN block GPS location?
It truly depends on the VPN service provider, the computer or other device you’re using to connect to the VPN, and the websites or services you’ve visited, are visiting or were using prior to connecting to the VPN.
If I use a VPN to access, Google GPS will only see the IP address of the VPN server and not your device or whereabouts.
Even though the IP address won’t be yours, if you’re signed in to any of Google’s services while using the VPN (or even before), they’ll still recognize you.
Does VPN change your location on Google Maps?
Your actual IP address is the first tool Google uses to identify your country or city. Even though VPN makes sure to encrypt everything, the VPN server could still leak it. A free VPN service frequently results in this. Your location will likely be wrong when you try to find yourself on Google Maps on your computer.
If you reside close to a major city, your location will be displayed as being in a rural area far from a major metropolis. Google would therefore be unable to determine your location if your VPN is trustworthy and secure against any DNS and WebRTC breaches.
As we’ve mentioned before, you can change your apparent location using a VPN. Even choosing a server from the same country you’re in counts as location spoofing, since your requests are seen as being made by a different device.
Usually, location spoofing is based entirely on IP, and sometimes DNS, depending on the service. So if your device has a GPS sensor and you’re giving websites access to it, they can pretty much detect your real location in no time.
Can VPN change GPS location?
Normally, VPNs only replace your IP address with that of their servers’. This, in turn, makes your requests appear to be sent from another machine (the VPN server).
As far as your GPS sensor (if available) is concerned, there’s absolutely no influence there. So the answer is no, VPNs don’t usually change your GPS location. They only change your apparent location by using a combination of IP/DNS spoofing.
However, one VPN service managed to break this wall and offer its customers full GPS spoofing. This can be tremendously helpful, as many apps make use of the GPS sensor instead of detecting location based on your IP address.
Best GPS spoofing VPN to change location
Surfshark is a great all-around VPN service offered to you by Surfshark LTD. As we’ve hinted above, this tool can help you hide your device’s GPS-based location without significant effort.
On the other hand, this feature is only available on the Android VPN app. And it makes perfect sense, considering that most desktop PCs don’t have embedded GPS sensors in their configuration.
Note that you don’t even need to take any extra steps or perform complicated configurations. You just launch the Android app, log into your Surfshark account, and connect to a server in the location of your choice.
Surfshark will automatically work its magic to hide your IP- and GPS-based location from intruding apps.
More about Surfshark:
- +1,700 VPN servers in +63 countries
- Private DNS on each server
- Unlimited device connections
- A strict no-logging policy
- 30-day money-back guarantee (no free trial)
Surfshark
Override GPS location with Surfshark for your Android phone and tweak the settings to spoof location.Actually, the only VPN service provider with a GPS override built into the Android app is Surfshark. However, that does not imply that it is the only one that can perform this task.
Here are some other options if you wish to test out other VPNs for GPS spoofing:
- Spoof your geolocation with the ExpressVPN browser extension. Once you install ExpressVPN on your device, you just need to add the extension from the start screen in your favorite browser.
- With the proxy browser plugin from NordVPN for Chrome and Opera, spoofing your location is made simple.
How do I change my current location with VPN?
- Sign up for an account with VPN of your choice. (we recomend ExpressVPN).
- Download ExpressVPN app for your phone.
- From your phone, open the ExpressVPN app.
- Choose any of the locations to get optimal speed to change your IP.
- Enjoy using blazing speeds and masked connections.
Conclusion
All things considered, it’s worth mentioning that almost no VPN can handle GPS location spoofing. Surfshark is currently the only one that can do that for you, and it only works on the Android app.
VPNs can only hide your IP-based location and that’s usually enough on a desktop PC.
Surfshark (Android) is currently the only VPN that can spoof your GPS location. Check out our VPN Hub for more tools and guides on how to keep your online privacy safe.
However, on your phone, certain apps might request access permission from your GPS sensor, and it might render the IP-based location spoofing useless if you grant it to them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does VPN hide GPS location? No, regular VPNs don’t hide GPS location but can mask your IP-based location pretty well. Surfshark is currently the only VPN that can mask GPS location, and it only does that on its Android app.
Can a VPN hide your location? Yes, VPN can hide your location. Merely connecting to a server in another country almost always hides your location successfully.
Can VPN be traced? Yes, it’s possible to be traced while using a VPN, but the truth is that it’s not very probable. As long as you’re careful about things you post online and the VPN doesn’t go rogue on you, chances are very slim that you’ll be traced.
User forum
0 messages