A Ring Video Doorbell owner applying settings to their Ring account in the Ring app.

Geofence in the Ring App

Draw a virtual boundary around your Location with Geofence to automate features like home and away mode and snooze alerts without lifting a finger.

What is a Geofence?

A geofence is a virtual boundary you can draw around the Location where your Ring devices are set up. When you draw a Geofence using the Ring app, it can remind you to set your Mode to "Away"1 when you exit the Geofence. When you re-enter the Geofence, the Ring app can automatically snooze alerts from your devices. 

How to enable Geofence setting.

In the Ring app:

  1. Tap the
    menu
    (☰) in the upper left corner.
    1. Ensure that the location you wish to set up a Geofence for is displayed at the top of the menu.
  2. Tap
    Settings
    .
  3. Tap
    Modes and Automations
    .
  4. Tap
    Geofence
  5. Tap
    Turn on feature
    .
  6. Read the information about location data, then tap
    Continue
    .
  7. Check the placement of your Geofence and drag the circle to center it over your property if needed.
    • Alternatively, tap the arrow in the lower right to use the current location of your mobile device to define the center of your Geofence. 
    • Note:
      Adjusting the position of the Geofence on the map will not affect your address settings for your Location.
    • Only the Ring account owner can modify the Geofence position.
  8. Tap
    Confirm
    .
  9. Set the Auto-Snooze duration. 
  10. Select the devices you wish to snooze notifications for automatically when you re-enter the Geofence.
    • Note:
      Compatible Ring devices that are snoozed when you re-enter your Geofence will not send alerts to the mobile device you use to configure Auto-Snooze. They will still record events if you have a Ring Protect plan
      1
      , and other (non-snoozed) compatible Ring devices will still send alerts.
    • Note
      : If you only have a Ring Alarm, you will not see this option.
  11. Tap
    Continue
    .
  12. Toggle on
    Arm Reminders
    and
    Disarm Reminders
    if you want to receive reminders to change your Mode any time you exit or enter your Geofence without arming or disarming your system.
    • You can select your preferred reminder tone.
    • You will only receive an Arm or Disarm Reminder if the Mode of the Location is not already Home or Away (when exiting the geofence) or Disarmed (when re-entering the geofence).
    • Note:
      If you have not enabled Modes
      1
      for your Ring devices, or if you do not have Ring Alarm, you will not see this option.
  13. Tap
    Continue
    .
  14. Tap
    Finish & Save
    .
  15. Next the Ring app will prompt you to enable location permissions. This lets the Ring system know when you enter or exit your Geofence. Tap
    Go to Settings
    to start sharing your location always.
    • Note
      : If you do not enable location permissions, Ring’s Geofence feature will not work. 

Tips on using a geofence

If you have set up Arm or Disarm Reminder1: Like Snooze, these reminders are relevant only to the phone or tablet where they were configured. No other phones or tablets (whether logged in as you or as a Shared User for the Location) will receive an Arm or Disarm Reminder* of your exit or entry. Additionally, Mode Reminders are not affected by the location of other phones or tablets with access to that Location.

What does providing “Always” or “Allow all the time” access to my location mean?

Even if the Ring app isn't visible on your screen, it'll be able to sense when your mobile device crosses the geofence boundary.

My phone is alerting me that Ring is using my location in the background. What does this mean?

The Ring app will use location data from your mobile device to determine if that mobile device has entered or exited the geofence you defined. Your mobile device may occasionally provide location updates to the Ring app that are not related to your geofence. In these cases, the data is discarded by the Ring app and no action is taken. If you don't want the Ring app to have any access to your mobile device’s location, you can always deactivate location settings for the Ring app:

  • In iOS, go to Settings > Ring > Location, and change to “Never.”
  • On Android, the settings may vary by model, but will be similar to Settings > Apps > Ring > Permissions > Location > “Deny.”

If you choose to disable location access, we strongly recommend you deactivate the Geofence feature in the Ring app to prevent in-location permission errors.

Can other Ring users see the location of my mobile device because I activate geofence?

No, your location remains private from other Ring users.

Will my Ring devices continue to detect motion and record video* even when a Ring device has been Snoozed?

Yes. Just like manually enabling Snooze for a Ring camera, your devices will continue to record1 as usual and, if you have a Ring Protect Plan subscription, you can view those videos in the Ring app. The Ring app on the iOS or Android device for which you have activated geofence and Snooze will simply not receive motion alerts for the duration of the Snooze period.

After setting up the geofence, what if I go into iOS or Android settings and change Ring’s location access from “Always” or “Allow all the time” to something else?

Your selected Ring devices will no longer be Snoozed when you enter the geofence, and you will not be reminded to change Modes (subscription required; sold separately). No other user of the geofence for that Location will be affected. When you open the Ring app, you will see an alert with a link to help you re-activate the appropriate location sharing setting. To keep location sharing off and prevent this alert from appearing, deactivate Geofence.

Can Geofence do more than just Snooze alerts and remind me to change Modes?

No, those are its core functions.

Do Shared Users have any control over the Geofence?

Shared Users cannot see or access other users’ Geofence settings. However, Shared Users can turn on Snooze and get Mode Reminders1 for their own mobile device by setting up Geofence for themselves. This will not have any impact on other users (including the Owner or any Shared Users) who use Geofence on the Ring app, or their respective iOS/Android devices.

What happens if an Owner and Shared User both live in the same Location where a Geofence has been drawn?

Once an Owner sets up the Geofence for a Location in the Ring app, then any Shared User can activate the Geofence feature for themselves for that same Location. The Geofence entry or exit of one user does not notify nor impact the experience of another neighbor. Similarly, if one user chooses to deactivate Geofence for a Location in the Ring app on one mobile device, no other devices or users are impacted. Click here for more information on Shared Users

How do I change the placement of a Geofence?

In Geofence Settings, tap on the map. Then, re-position your geofence to the desired area on the map, and tap "save." This setting will affect all iOS and Android devices that currently use that Location's geofence.

What does it mean to “Deactivate Geofence?” Where do I do this?

Disabling Geofence only applies to the particular iOS or Android device on which it is deactivated. It does not impact the placement of the geofence. Disabling Geofence on one phone or tablet does not affect the Owner or any other Shared Users, their iOS/Android device that has Geofence activated, or their own Geofence-specific settings. To deactivate a geofence for a Location:

  1. Open the Ring app.
  2. Tap the
    menu (☰)
    in the upper left. (You cannot modify geofence settings from the “All Cameras” view.)
  3. Tap
    Settings
    .
  4. Tap
    Modes and Automations
    .
  5. Tap
    Geofence.
  6. Tap
    Turn off Geofence.
  7. Tap
    Turn off Geofence
    again.

Get Geofence troubleshooting steps

1
A compatible Ring Protect subscription is required to enroll in the Ring Alarm professional monitoring service. Professional monitoring service is available only within the U.S. (all 50 states, but not U.S. territories) and in Canada (excluding Quebec). Ring does not own its own professional monitoring center. Smoke and carbon monoxide monitoring is not available for commercial properties. See Ring Alarm licenses.​
Last updated 2 months ago