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How to Tell If Someone Is Active on Their Phone

Elsa Updated on Apr 25, 2025 Filed to: Parent Control

When you are messaging or calling someone who isn't responding, it's frustrating, and you may want to know if someone is active on their phone, knowing if they are busing or just ignoring you. Or when giving your child a phone, you may want to monitor your kid's online activity to keep them safe.

In this post, we'll review some methods so you can be more informed about your child's online activity. We will especially focus on how to tell if someone is on their phone.

  • Method 1. Show Their Live Screen on Your Phone hot tip
  • Method 2. Check Their WhatsApp "Last seen" Status
  • Method 3. Check Their Status on Facebook Messenger
  • Method 4. Check Their Snapchat Score
  • Method 5. Check Their Activity on Instagram
  • Method 6. Check Their Activity on Snap Maps using Snapchat
  • Method 7. Use the Find My Friends feature on iPhone
  • Method 8. Check Their Phone Bill
  • Method 9. Check When They Last Read a Text Message
  • Method 10. Check Their TikTok Account

Show Their Live Screen on Your Phone

By mirroring the screen of the target phone with AirDroid Phone Monitor, you can directly see if their phone is active in real-time on your device. This app provides the most direct "activity evidence" without relying on indirect signals (such as online status).

Moreover, it can help you know what time they use their smartphones. To use AirDroid, follow these steps:

  1. Step 1.Install AirDroid Phone Monitor on your device or go to its web version.
  2. Step 2.Tie up the target phone that you need to check.
  3. Step 3.Select "Screen Mirroring." If the phone is being used, then you can directly see the live screen. Conversely, if the screen is black, then it means the phone is not active this time.
  4. tap on screen mirroring on AirDroidAirDroid Screen Mirroring feature

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Check Their WhatsApp "Last seen" Status

One of the most popular messaging apps out there is WhatsApp. If you're not familiar with it, WhatsApp is a cross-platform app that allows users to send text, audio, and video messages for free. It's also one of the easiest ways on how to see if someone is on their phone.

WhatsApp Last seen status

To check your their WhatsApp "Last Seen" status:

1. Open the WhatsApp app and go to the "Chats" tab.

2. Tap on the tab; it will open the chat tab.

3. You'll see the timestamp under their name. If the timestamp is "online", you know someone is active on their phone now.

Check Their Status on Facebook Messenger

Another popular way to tell if someone is on their phone is to check their Facebook Messenger status. Facebook Messenger app is part of the Facebook app. It allows users to send messages, make calls, and make video calls for free.

to know if someone is on their phone:

1. Open the Facebook Messenger app and go to their profile.

2. Then, look at the "Active" status under their name.

3. If it says "online", you know your child is currently using their phone. The app also will tell you how long since they have been active.

Facebook active status

This will help you to track their phone usage. However, please remember that anyone can use this app multi-platforms, such as on a desktop computer or a laptop, so that they can be active on a different device.

Check Their Snapchat Score

Snapchat is a multimedia messaging app that allows users to send photos and videos, which are automatically deleted after a certain amount of time. It's a popular app among teenagers.

check Snapchat score

Snapchat score is the sum of all snaps sent and received. You will get some ideas about how much time they spend on their phone if you Check Their Snapchat Score.

To see if someone is active on Snapchat:

1. Open the Snapchat app and go to their profile.

2. Then, look at the number next to the "Snapchat Score" heading.

3. This is their Snapchat score. If the score is high, then it's likely that someone is spending a lot of time on their phone.

Check Their Activity on Instagram

Instagram is a photo and video-sharing social networking service. Facebook also owns it. It is very popular among teenagers due to its ability to share photos, videos and live stories with friends and family.

To see someone's activity on Instagram, go to your Direct Message tab and look for the green dot next to their name. If the dot is present, someone is currently active on Instagram.

Instagram status

You can also test by posting a story on your Instagram account. If smeone watches it, you will see a "seen" icon under your story. This means they are active on their phone.

see Instagram story

Check Their Activity on Snap Maps using Snapchat

Snapchat has a feature called Snap Map, which allows users to see the location of their friends who are also using the app. This is a great way to see if someone is on their phone and where they are.

check Snapchat map

To use this feature to know if someone is using their phone, open the Snapchat app and zoom out on the Snap Map. Then, look for your child's Bitmoji (the avatar that represents them on the app). If their Bitmoji is present, you know they are currently using their phone, and you can see their approximate location.

Use the Find My Friends feature on iPhone

If you have an iPhone, you can use the "Find My Friends" feature to see if someone is on their phone. This feature will show you the location of their iPhone.

iPhone Find My Friends

How to know if someone is on their phone on Find My iPhone:

1. Open the "Settings" app on your iPhone and tap on the "Privacy" setting.

2. Then, select the "Location Services" setting and ensure that the "Find My Friends" app is turned on.

3. Once it's turned on, open the "Find My Friends" app and look for ythe contact. If their location is being shared, you will see their current location.

Check Their Phone Bill

If you're concerned about how much time your child is spending on their phone, you can check their Phone Bill. This will show you how many minutes they have used for phone calls and how much data they have used.

How to know if someone is using their phone? Log into your child's account on your carrier's website. Then, look at the "usage" section to see their phone usage for the current billing cycle.

Check When They Last Read a Text Message

If you're concerned about how much time your child is spending on their phone, you can always check when they last read a text message. This will give you an idea of how often they use their phone.

last read text message

To know if someone is using their phone, you can go to your messaging app and look for your conversation tab with that one. Tap on the conversation and look at the timestamp next to each message. The timestamp will tell you when someone reads each message. If the timestamp is recent, someone is currently on their phone.

Check Their TikTok Account

TikTok is a short-form, video-sharing app that allows users to create and share 15-second videos on any topic. It is very popular among teenagers.

TikTok

To see if someone is on their phone without calling them, you can check their TikTok account. You will see a timestamp next to their video if they have recently posted a video. This timestamp will tell you when someone was last on their phone.

Conclusion

There are several ways to tell if someone is actively using their phone. In this post, we reviewed some of the most common methods. Although most of these methods do not necessarily indicate that the person is addicted to their phone, they may give you a general idea of how often someone uses their phone.

If you're concerned about your child's phone usage, we recommend installing a parental control app like AirDroid Parental Control. With AirDroid Parental Control, you can remotely monitor your kid's phones and set limits on their phone usage. You can also block certain apps and websites to help your child develop healthy digital habits. Download AirDroid Parental Control today and enjoy the incredible features it offers!

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Elsa
Elsa
Elsa has worked on a number of iOS & Android solutions, she can always find her way around almost any application. She is an accomplished, skilled and versatile writer with more than 7 years of technical article writing experience.
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