Apple's AirTag item trackers are designed to let users track their everyday possessions, such as keys, wallets, backpacks, and so on. If you find an ‌AirTag‌ that's been separated from its owner, here's how you can safely return it to them.

AirTag and Lavender iPhone
AirTags‌ can be tracked by their owners in Apple's ‌Find My app‌, which uses Bluetooth and other Apple devices to locate them. However, if an ‌AirTag‌ isn't nearby and there are no Apple devices in the area in which it's located, ‌‌‌Find My‌‌‌ can only tell the owner where it was last seen on the map.

In such cases, the ‌AirTag‌ owner can put it in Lost Mode, which allows anyone with an iPhone or Android device that has NFC to help return the ‌AirTag‌ to them. Even if an ‌AirTag‌ isn't in Lost Mode, if it's been separated for a period of time from its owner then it will make a sound to alert anyone nearby.

If you come across an ‌AirTag‌ and you have an NFC-equipped device, here's what you can do to get it back to its rightful owner.

  1. Tap and hold the top of your ‌iPhone‌ or NFC-capable smartphone to the white side of the ‌AirTag‌.
  2. Tap the notification that appears on your device's screen. This will open a website providing you with information about the ‌AirTag‌, including its serial number.
    airtag

  3. If the owner marked the ‌AirTag‌ as lost, you may be shown a message with information about how to contact the owner, enabling you to contact the owner to let them know that you found their AirTagged item.

AirTags can only be used to track items via an ‌iPhone‌ or iPad with the ‌Find My‌ app. Apple sells individual AirTags for $29 or a pack of four for $99. For more details on ‌AirTag‌ item trackers, check out our dedicated guide.

Top Rated Comments

erinsarah Avatar
51 months ago
There are gonna be lots of people finding little beeping discs, having no idea what they are or how to deal with them, and shouting to everyone around them to evacuate the building immediately.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Seifensieder Avatar
51 months ago

AirTags can only be used to track items via an iPhone or iPad with the Find My app.
Why not with the Find My on the iCloud website?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Robospungo Avatar
51 months ago
Either ignore it or kick it into the nearest sewer grate? Got it.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mono1980 Avatar
51 months ago

Why not with the Find My on the iCloud website?
That is still called Find iPhone, not Find My, so they clearly have not updated the functionality of the web app, which is a shame.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nitramluap Avatar
51 months ago
I assumed that when you put an AirTag into 'Lost Mode' it would notify any nearby iPhones that it's nearby & lost, but this isn't the case.

They have to actually *see* the AirTag and then use their NFC reader to get the details. The only thing 'Lost Mode' appears to do is allow you to display a phone number (the message thing doesn't work for me) for the person who does scan it.

So it makes no sense whatsoever to hide an AirTag if you expect someone to help get it back to you. They need to be able to see it so they can scan it.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
PsykX Avatar
51 months ago
Should I put an AirTag on an AirTag I really don't want to lose ?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
Generic iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Coming Soon With These New Features for Your iPhone

Tuesday March 25, 2025 6:45 am PDT by
Apple is expected to release iOS 18.4 to the general public as soon as next week, following more than a month of beta testing. Apple's website says some iOS 18.4 features will be released in "early April," so the update should be out as early as Tuesday, April 1. Apple this week seeded the iOS 18.4 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, barring the discovery of any...
ios 19 messages app

Here's What Apple's iOS 19 Messages App Might Look Like

Tuesday March 25, 2025 11:52 am PDT by
Leaker Jon Prosser today shared a mockup of what he says the Messages app will look like in iOS 19, demoing an interface with rounded, translucent bubble-shaped navigation buttons at the top and softer, rounder corners for the keyboard and word suggestions. Jon Prosser's Messages app mockup The return button, a button for going back to the Messages list, and the FaceTime button have a deeper...
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk

Thursday March 20, 2025 12:01 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...
macbook pro blue green

When Will Apple Release the M5 MacBook Pro?

Wednesday March 26, 2025 4:53 pm PDT by
Apple regularly refreshes the MacBook Pro models, and a new version that uses M5 series chips is in the works. Apple just finished refreshing most of the Mac lineup with M4 chips, and now it's time for the M5. Rumors suggest that we could see the first M5 MacBook Pro models this fall. Design There have been no rumors of a design update for the M5 MacBook Pro models that are coming this...
airpods max 2024 colors

Don't Buy Into Apple's Hype About AirPods Max Gaining Lossless Audio

Monday March 24, 2025 4:24 pm PDT by
Apple today announced that AirPods Max with a USB-C port will be gaining support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio with a firmware update next month, alongside the release of iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4. For context, audio files are typically compressed to keep file sizes smaller. There are lossy compression standards like MP3 and AAC (Advanced Audio Codec), which...
Apple Lumon Terminal Pro

Apple's Mac Site Features Fictional 'Lumon Terminal Pro'

Wednesday March 26, 2025 12:19 pm PDT by
Apple is going all out with promotions for the popular Severance Apple TV+ show today, and as of right now, you'll find a new "Lumon Terminal Pro" listed on Apple's Mac site. The Lumon Terminal Pro is designed to look similar to the machines that Severance employees like Mark S. and Helly R. use for macrodata refinement. The Terminal features a blue keyboard, a small display with wide...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

Gurman: Jon Prosser's iOS 19 Mockups 'Aren't Representative' of Redesign

Tuesday March 25, 2025 4:47 pm PDT by
The iOS 19 mockup images that leaker Jon Prosser shared today are not representative of the actual iOS 19 design, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on social media. According to Gurman, the images that are "floating around" are based on "very old builds" or "vague descriptions," and are lacking key features. Gurman says that we can "expect more from Apple in June." Gurman made the same comment ...