How to Remove GPS From a Video

Short answer: most phones save the place where you filmed inside the video file, as a short line of coordinates that you never see during playback. To remove GPS from a video, you need a copy of the file with that metadata taken out. You can do it yourself with free command-line tools such as ffmpeg or ExifTool, or use our paid done-for-you video service if you would rather not use a terminal. Either way, check the result afterwards, and remember that nothing can remove a place that is visible in the picture itself.

Here is where the location sits, what phones record, how to take it out, and how to confirm it is gone.

Where a video keeps its location

MP4 and MOV files are built from nested blocks of data, often called atoms or boxes. The picture and the sound live in their own blocks. Metadata, such as the date, the device and the location, lives in separate blocks in the file header.

Location is usually stored as one short text string. Apple's QuickTime documentation defines a key called com.apple.quicktime.location.ISO6709, described as a "geographic point location by coordinates as defined in ISO 6709:2008". Apple's own example value is +27.5916+086.5640+8850/: latitude, then longitude, then altitude, with a slash at the end.

The same documentation lists more keys that can sit next to it:

• com.apple.quicktime.location.name for a place name
• com.apple.quicktime.location.date for a date and time
• com.apple.quicktime.direction.facing for the direction the camera faced
• com.apple.quicktime.software and com.apple.quicktime.creationdate for the software and the creation date

Not every phone writes every key. Many Android phones and cameras use a different, older tag for the same kind of coordinate string, so a file from one phone can store location in a different spot than a file from another. A file that has been through an editing app can also carry a second copy. This is why one tool can say a clip is clean while another still finds coordinates.

Action cameras and drones add another layer. Some record a GPS reading throughout the clip as a separate data track, and some drones save the flight path in a separate file next to the video. A tool that only clears the usual location tag will not touch those.

What your phone records

On iPhone, the Camera app can only save location in photos and videos if it has access to Location Services. Apple's Personal Safety guide says this directly, and it also explains how to check: open the video in Photos, then swipe up or tap the Info button. If you see a map, the location is still there.

On a Pixel, Google's Pixel Camera help page describes a single Save location switch under the camera's settings. Other Android phones have a similar switch in the camera app, but the name and place differ by maker.

For more on how phones handle location in general, see our guide to privacy and GPS metadata and the iPhone geotagging guide.

Stop new videos from saving location

Removing location from old clips and stopping it on new ones are two separate jobs.

1. iPhone: go to Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Location Services, then Camera, and choose Never. Apple lists this path in its Personal Safety guide.
2. Pixel: open the Camera app, tap Settings at the bottom left, tap More settings, and turn off Save location.
3. Other Android phones: look in the camera app's own settings for a location or "location tags" option.

This only affects what you record from now on. Videos you already have keep their location until you remove it.

Share one video without its location on iPhone

If you only need to send a single clip, iPhone can leave the location out of the shared copy.

1. Select the video in Photos.
2. Tap the Share button, then tap Options.
3. Turn off Location. Apple says "Location Not Included" then appears above the Options button.
4. Share as usual.

This applies to that one share. The original in your library still has its location, so a later backup or file transfer can carry it again.

How to remove GPS from a video yourself

If you are comfortable with a terminal, two free tools do the job on your own computer, so the file never leaves your device.

Option 1: ffmpeg

1. Install ffmpeg.
2. Run: ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -map_metadata -1 -c copy output.mp4
3. Keep the original until you have checked the new file.

What the flags do, according to the ffmpeg manual: -c copy copies the video and audio streams without re-encoding them, so the picture and sound are unchanged. -map_metadata with a negative number creates a "dummy mapping that just disables automatic copying" of metadata, so the global tags, location included, are not carried into the new file. The recording date usually goes too, because it is metadata like the rest.

A separate GPS data track from an action camera may or may not be kept, so check the output.

Option 2: ExifTool

1. Install ExifTool.
2. Run: exiftool -location:all= -gps:all= -xmp:all= -api LargeFileSupport=1 video.mov
3. Check the result: exiftool -a -G1 -s video.mov | grep -iE "gps|location" should print nothing. iPhone files keep location under a "Location" group, which is why -gps:all= alone is not enough. This command removes location, not the camera make and model; add -keys:all= to clear those too (it clears the whole Keys group, so check what else disappears).
4. Keep a copy of the original until you have checked the result.

ExifTool lists MOV and MP4 as formats it can read and write. In its syntax, a tag name followed by = and no value deletes that tag. The aim of this command is to clear location fields while leaving things like a title alone. Unusual camera formats can leave a stray entry behind, which is why the next section matters.

Option 3: send the files to us

Our video GPS removal page is a paid done-for-you service, not an in-browser tool. Here is how it works, as the page describes it:

1. Fill in the short enquiry form: how many clips, roughly how big, and what you need removed. The form sends only your message and email address, not your video.
2. When we reply, share the files as a Google Drive, Dropbox or WeTransfer link rather than an email attachment.
3. We strip the GPS and device metadata without re-encoding, and send the files back.

It handles MP4 and MOV, including .m4v and .qt. The standard job covers files up to 1 GB or 10 minutes each; bigger files or larger batches can be arranged on request.

Be clear about one difference. Our photo tools run in your browser and photos are not uploaded. For video, you are sending us the files. If keeping the file on your own machine matters most, use ffmpeg or ExifTool instead.

How to check that the location is gone

Never assume a clean result. Check it.

1. On iPhone: save the cleaned copy to Photos, open it, and swipe up. No map means no location was found by Photos.
2. With ExifTool: run exiftool -a -G1 cleaned.mov and search the output for "GPS" and "ISO6709". If nothing comes up, the usual location fields are empty.
3. Check every copy: the original on your phone, your cloud backup and any copy you already sent still have the coordinates.

If the clip came from an action camera or a drone, also check for a telemetry track or a matching side file.

What removing GPS cannot do

Metadata removal has clear limits, and it helps to know them before you rely on it.

• The picture can still give the place away. Street signs, house numbers, shop fronts, landmarks, a view from a window or a car plate can show where you filmed. No metadata tool changes what is in the frame.
• Sound can give it away too. Announcements, local radio or someone saying an address are part of the audio, not the metadata.
• Burned-in overlays stay. Some drones and dashcams can print coordinates or speed onto the image. That is part of the picture, so it cannot be stripped.
• Copies you already shared keep their data. Cleaning a file today does not change a file that went out last week.
• Platform behaviour is not a promise. Many social apps re-encode uploads, which often drops header metadata, but that protects only their copy and can change without notice. Our post on which apps strip EXIF data covers photos, and what WhatsApp does with location explains why sending as a document keeps the original file intact.

If you also need to clean photos, our guide on how to remove location from photos covers iPhone, Android, Windows and Mac. And when you have clips to clean and no wish to touch a terminal, you can request video GPS removal here.