Compare
Oomoyo link vs WhatsApp live location
A link anyone can open in a browser, that ends when you say it ends.
If you and the people you share with already use WhatsApp, its live location is the quickest way to show where you are in a chat. WhatsApp says the feature is end-to-end encrypted, "which means no one can see your live location except the people you shared with" [1], and for people who already have WhatsApp there is nothing new to install. An Oomoyo location link is for the other moments: a babysitter, a grandparent, a driver or another parent who is not in your chat, who does not have WhatsApp or does not want an account. They open the link in any browser and see your location until it ends.
Differences that matter
Who can open it
WhatsApp live location is shared with the members of an individual or group chat [1], and WhatsApp asks you to register with a mobile phone number [5]. WhatsApp's help lists Web, Windows, Mac, iPad and wearables as linked devices, and lists "Viewing a live location" among the features they do not support [3]. An Oomoyo link is a web address. Anyone you send it to opens it in a browser, with no app and no account, on a computer as well as a phone. The flip side is real: a link works for whoever holds it, so if it is forwarded it works for the person it was forwarded to until it ends. That is why the apps label it "Shared by link" and say so when you create it: "Anyone you send this link to can see Emma's location until 18:00. Oomoyo's servers can't read it." A link is not end-to-end encrypted and Oomoyo does not call it that.
How long it lasts and what is left when it ends
With WhatsApp you choose whether and how long to share, you can stop at any time in one chat or in all chats (Settings, Privacy, Live location), and when it is stopped or has expired your live location is no longer shared [1]. After that, the members of the chat still see the first shared location as a static thumbnail and can tap it to see your last updated location [2]. An Oomoyo link also has an end time you pick from presets, and you can end it earlier on your phone. A live link updates about every 10 seconds, a snapshot link shows one position, and a view-once snapshot is gone after the first time it is opened. When a link has ended, it answers exactly like a link that never existed, so nothing stays in a chat.
What the person on the other end sees, and what Oomoyo sees
An Oomoyo link shows one person: the position with its accuracy and how old it is, the name and colour you chose, and your battery level only if you turn that on (it is off by default). You can share the exact position or about 1 km. It never shows your group, your places, your history or other members. The link key sits in the part of the web address after the #, which is never sent to Oomoyo's servers. Oomoyo learns when a link was created, its mode and length, and when it is opened, and never the position or the name. WhatsApp's policy says it collects device and connection information and usage information, and uses IP addresses and phone number area codes to estimate your general location [4].
How they compare
| Feature | Oomoyo | WhatsApp live location |
|---|---|---|
| Who can see it | Anyone who has the link | The members of the individual or group chat you share it in; "no one can see your live location except the people you shared with" [1] |
| What the viewer needs | A browser. No app and no account. | WhatsApp, registered with a mobile phone number [5], and location permission on the sharer's phone [1] |
| How long it lasts | An end time from presets, or one view for a view-once snapshot. You can end it earlier. | You choose how long to share; you can stop at any time [1] |
| Stops by itself | Yes, at its end time. | Yes: "Your live location will stop being shared after the selected amount of time." [1] |
| After it ends | An ended link answers like a link that never existed. | Members of the chat still see the first shared location as a static thumbnail and can tap it to see your last updated location [2] |
| What the viewer sees | One person: position, accuracy, how old the position is, the name and colour you chose, battery only if you turn it on, exact or about 1 km. Never your group, places or history. | Everyone in the chat sees your real-time location on a map; if several people share in one group, all appear on the same map [6] |
| Updates | A live link about every 10 seconds, shown with its age. A snapshot link shows one position. | Real time, on the chat's map [6] |
| Places and arrival alerts | Not in a link. They belong to your family's group in the Oomoyo app: places with arrive and leave alerts, and check-in deadlines such as "tell me if Mila is not at School by 08:15". | No |
| History | Not in a link. In the group, the guardian picks how long history is kept and every member can choose less for their own data. | No. After sharing stops, the chat keeps the first shared location as a static thumbnail that opens your last updated location [2] |
| Devices other than phones | The link opens on any device with a browser, a computer included. | Linked devices (Web, Windows, Mac, iPad, wearables) cannot view a live location: "Viewing a live location" is listed under unsupported features [3] |
| Encryption | Label "Shared by link". The key is in the part of the address after the #, which Oomoyo's servers never receive: "Oomoyo's servers can't read it." Not end-to-end encrypted: whoever holds the link sees what it shows until it ends, and the page that opens it is served by Oomoyo. | "This feature is end-to-end encrypted, which means no one can see your live location except the people you shared with." [1] Policy: precise location shared with your contacts in your chats "is encrypted so WhatsApp cannot see it" [4] |
| What the company sees | Oomoyo sees that a link was created, its mode and length, and when it is opened, never the position, the name or the battery choice. The viewer's address is never stored or logged. The share page writes no access log. | WhatsApp says it collects device and connection information and usage information, and uses IP addresses and phone number area codes to estimate your general location [4] |
| Company and hosting | Proudly EU-hosted. Our servers run in the EU, under EU privacy law. | WhatsApp Ireland Limited provides the service in the European Region. WhatsApp says it shares information globally and that information is stored and processed in the United States or other countries outside the EEA [4]. |
When WhatsApp live location may suit you better
- Everyone you share with is already in a WhatsApp chat with you. Nothing new to install, and the audience is the chat, not whoever receives a forwarded message [1].
- You want only the people in one chat to see where you are. An Oomoyo link works for anyone who holds it until it ends, so a forwarded link works for the person it was forwarded to.
- You want WhatsApp's own end-to-end encryption for the location [1]. An Oomoyo link is labelled "Shared by link" and is not called end-to-end encrypted. Inside an Oomoyo family group, phones are end-to-end encrypted; the link is the part meant for people outside it.
- You want the chat to keep a last known place. After sharing stops, the members of the chat can still tap the thumbnail to see your last updated location [2]. An ended Oomoyo link shows nothing.
- You are already talking about where to meet. The location and the conversation are in one place.
Questions
Is WhatsApp live location end-to-end encrypted?
WhatsApp's help says so: "This feature is end-to-end encrypted, which means no one can see your live location except the people you shared with." [1] Its privacy policy for the European Region says the precise location you share with your contacts in your chats is encrypted so WhatsApp cannot see it [4].
Is an Oomoyo link end-to-end encrypted?
No, and Oomoyo does not call it that. It is labelled "Shared by link". The position is sealed before it reaches Oomoyo's servers and the key is in the part of the address that servers never receive, so "Oomoyo's servers can't read it". But anyone who holds the link can read what it shows until it ends, and the page that opens it is served by Oomoyo, so it is not held to the standard of the Oomoyo app on a family member's phone.
Does the person I send an Oomoyo link to need an account or an app?
No. They open it in a browser, on a phone or a computer, with no app and no email address. WhatsApp's help says a live location cannot be viewed on a linked device such as WhatsApp Web, Windows, Mac or iPad [3].
Does an Oomoyo link stop by itself?
Yes, at the end time you pick. You can end it earlier from your phone, and a view-once snapshot ends after its first view. After it ends, the link shows nothing. Alerts and updates depend on phones and networks and can be delayed, and every position shows how old it is.
Does a link show my family or my history?
No. A link shows one position and the name, colour and optional battery level you chose. It never shows your group, places, other members or history.
Can I use both?
Yes. They do not depend on each other. Send a WhatsApp live location in the chat, and an Oomoyo link to the person who is not in it.
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Sources
Facts about other products on this page come from these sources, read on the date shown.
- How to use live location
- About sharing your device's location
- About linked devices
- WhatsApp Privacy Policy, European Region
- WhatsApp Terms of Service, European Region
- Share your live location, WhatsApp Blog
Life360, Google, Google Maps, Find Hub, Family Link, Android, Apple, iPhone, Find My, Apple Watch, WhatsApp, Meta, Traccar, Traccar Client, Traccar Manager and Hetzner are names or trademarks of their owners. Oomoyo names them only to identify their products and is not connected with them. Facts about other products come from the sources listed on this page, read on the date shown. Products change; check the source if a detail matters to you.