Apple Maps navigation in background stopped working after ios 26 update

Since I updated to ios 26 yesterday, Apple Maps doesn't keep navigating when it is in the background, screen locked, etc. A few seconds after I put it in the background, it seems like my location just freezes or as if I was standing still. If I open the App again, it jumps from the last known location to my current location.


I got it to work for a short period of time after I reset Location & Privacy yesterday, but today it didn't work again, although I didn't change any setting. Resetting again today didn't make it work either.


Other apps that use location services (Google Maps and some other apps) still work fine in the background so I suppose the location service itself is not the problem. There seems to be some issue that Maps just can't access the location when it's in the background.


The blue 'I'm navigating' thing in the top left corner still shows as well as the 'location is being used' arrow.


There's no indication / popup / alert in Maps that says it lacks any permissions.


Things I have already tried:


• ⁠background refresh is active for Maps

• ⁠restarted both iPhone and watch

• ⁠reinstalled Maps

• ⁠checked location permissions, everything is allowed for Maps

• ⁠turned on everything in System Services

• ⁠tried with and without Apple Watch

• ⁠tried with bluetooth turned on and off


Am I missing something here? After scanning the internet, it seems I'm the only one with that issue.


Thanks in advance!

iPhone 13 Pro Max, iOS 26

Posted on Sep 17, 2025 7:50 AM

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Apple Maps navigation in background stopped working after ios 26 update

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