The Confusion
"I installed Location Guard but the site still thinks I'm in London."
This is by far the most common complaint we see — and it's almost always caused by the same misunderstanding: your location online comes from two separate sources, and most tools only change one of them.
Two Types of "Location"
1. GPS / Browser Geolocation (what Location Guard changes)
When a website calls navigator.geolocation.getCurrentPosition(), your browser reports latitude and longitude coordinates. On a PC, these are derived from:
- Nearby Wi-Fi network data (compared against Google's or Mozilla's location database)
- Your IP address as a rough fallback
Location Guard intercepts this API call and returns whatever coordinates you've set instead of your real ones. This is a software-level override that happens entirely within the browser.
2. IP Address Location (what a VPN changes)
Every internet connection has an IP address, and IP addresses are mapped to geographic regions. Websites check services like MaxMind or IP-API to determine where you are based on your IP — completely separately from the Geolocation API.
A VPN routes your traffic through a server in another location, so websites see that server's IP address instead of yours.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Location Guard | VPN |
|---|---|---|
| Changes GPS coordinates | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Changes IP address | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Works in browser only | ✅ Yes | ❌ All apps |
| Affects timezone | ❌ No | ❌ No (usually) |
| Free option available | ✅ Yes (fully free) | ⚠️ Limited free tiers |
| Open source | ✅ Yes | Varies |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy–Medium |
| Streaming unblock | ❌ Partial | ✅ More reliable |
| SERP location testing | ✅ Excellent | ✅ Good |
| Developer geolocation testing | ✅ Precise control | ⚠️ City-level only |
When Each Tool Is Enough on Its Own
Use Location Guard alone when:
- You're testing how a web app behaves for users in different cities
- You want to prevent a news site from serving you local ads
- You're checking Google SERP results for a different location
- A dating or social app uses browser geolocation to show "nearby" results
Use a VPN alone when:
- You want to appear in a different country for streaming services
- You need to hide your traffic from your ISP
- You're on a public Wi-Fi network and need encryption
- You want all apps (not just the browser) to see a different location
When You Should Use Both Together
For the most convincing location change — where both the GPS and the IP point to the same place — use them together:
- Connect your VPN to a server in your target city (e.g., Tokyo)
- Open Location Guard → Options → Fixed Location → set pin to Tokyo
- Visit the target site
The site will see a Japanese IP address and receive Japanese GPS coordinates. This is as close to "invisibly in Tokyo" as you can get from a browser.
Used by: Journalists, SEO researchers, privacy-conscious users, streamers
Does My IP Address Change When I Move?
Yes and no. Your home broadband IP is fixed (or changes rarely). Your mobile IP changes with your carrier's network. But crucially, moving your physical location doesn't automatically update your browser's GPS location — the browser caches location data and only refreshes when a site explicitly requests it.
Frequently Asked Questions
If I use a VPN, do I still need Location Guard?
Yes, if you want to spoof the browser Geolocation API. A VPN changes your IP but doesn't touch the navigator.geolocation API. Some sites check both.
Can sites detect that I'm using Location Guard? Sites can tell that you've given location permission, but they receive only the coordinates you've set. There's no reliable browser fingerprint that reveals location spoofing.
Does Location Guard affect all my tabs? By default, yes — the fixed location applies globally. You can also configure per-site overrides in the options.
Install Location Guard free — works alongside any VPN, 100% open-source, no account required.