Background Location

The iOS Location SDK supports continuous background location tracking, enabling persistent recording of location information. This feature is ideal for use cases such as route tracking.

Step 1: Import Header Files

Import the AMapFoundationKit.h and AMapLocationKit.h headers in the class where you will use the location features.

Note: For Swift projects, import these headers in your bridging header file.

#import <AMapFoundationKit/AMapFoundationKit.h>

#import <AMapLocationKit/AMapLocationKit.h>

Step 2: Configure Your API Key

You must set a valid API key before calling any SDK methods or initializing any objects.

For Location SDK v2.x

Set the key using the AMapServices singleton:

[AMapServices sharedServices].apiKey = @"Your API Key";

For Location SDK v1.x

If you are using v1.x, we strongly recommend updating to the latest version. For v1.x, set the key as follows:

[AMapLocationServices sharedServices].apiKey = @"Your API Key";

Step 3: Update Info.plist

Add location usage permission descriptions to your Info.plist file. For detailed configuration instructions, see the [Manual Configuration](/api/ios-location-sdk/guide/create-project/manual-configuration#permissions) guide.

Step 4: Enable Background Location

1. In the Xcode project navigator, select your project.

2. Go to TARGETS > Capabilities.

3. Turn on Background Modes.

4. Check the Location updates checkbox, as shown below:

Step 5: Initialize the Location Manager

Create an AMapLocationManager instance and set its delegate.

- (void)viewDidLoad {
    self.locationManager = [[AMapLocationManager alloc] init];
    self.locationManager.delegate = self;
}

Set the Distance Filter

Set the minimum horizontal distance (in meters) that triggers a location update. The SDK only returns a new location result when the device moves at least this distance from the previous location.

self.locationManager.distanceFilter = 200;

Enable Reverse Geocoding for Background Location

To receive reverse geocoding information (address descriptions) during continuous background location, configure the following. This feature is supported from SDK v2.2.0 onwards.

Important: Address descriptions are only available within China. They are not returned for locations outside of China.

/**
 * Determines whether reverse geocoding data is returned during background location. Default is NO.
 */
@property (nonatomic, assign) BOOL locatingWithReGeocode;

Step 6: Start Continuous Location

Call the startUpdatingLocation method on your AMapLocationManager instance to begin continuous location updates.

// For iOS versions earlier than iOS 9: disable automatic pausing to prevent the app from being suspended
[self.locationManager setPausesLocationUpdatesAutomatically:NO];

// iOS 9 and later: allows multiple location managers in the same app,
// where some can only locate in the foreground, and others can locate
// in the background, with the option to disable background location at any time.
if ([[[UIDevice currentDevice] systemVersion] floatValue] >= 9) {
    self.locationManager.allowsBackgroundLocationUpdates = YES;
}
// Start continuous location updates
[self.locationManager startUpdatingLocation];

// To receive reverse geocoding data during continuous location updates (supported since V2.2.0),
// add the following settings:
[self.locationManager setLocatingWithReGeocode:YES];
[self.locationManager startUpdatingLocation];

Step 7: Handle Location Results

Implement the delegate callback to receive and process location coordinates.

- (void)amapLocationManager:(AMapLocationManager *)manager didUpdateLocation:(CLLocation *)location reGeocode:(AMapLocationReGeocode *)reGeocode
{
    NSLog(@"location:{lat:%f; lon:%f; accuracy:%f}", location.coordinate.latitude, location.coordinate.longitude, location.horizontalAccuracy);
    if (regeocode)
      {
          NSLog(@"reGeocode:%@", regeocode);
      }
}