Live heading in degrees · Cardinal direction · Magnetometer check. Hold your phone flat and away from metal & magnets.
Tap to enable the compass. iPhone will ask for motion & orientation permission.
This tool reads your phone's magnetometer to show a live compass heading in your browser. Use it to confirm the compass sensor works, to check whether it needs calibration, or simply to find which direction you are facing. It works on most modern smartphones with no app to install.
Magnetometers are easily disturbed by nearby metal and magnetic fields — laptops, car dashboards, magnetic mounts, and MagSafe accessories are common culprits. The sensor also reports magnetic north, which differs from true (geographic) north by a local angle called magnetic declination.
Tap Start Compass and grant permission if your phone asks. Hold the device flat and level, like a real compass. The dial rotates so that N always points to magnetic north, and the fixed needle at the top shows the direction your phone is facing. The large number is your heading in degrees (0° = North, 90° = East, 180° = South, 270° = West). If the heading is wrong or jumps around, calibrate the magnetometer: move the phone in a figure-8 motion a few times, and keep it away from metal objects, speakers, magnets, and cases with magnetic clasps.
0° is North, 90° East, 180° South, 270° West. The dial spins so N always points to north, and the fixed needle shows your facing direction. The cardinal label (N, NE, E…) is the nearest named direction.
If the heading drifts or sticks, move the phone in a figure-8 a few times. This recalibrates the magnetometer against the local magnetic field. Always do it away from metal and magnets.
The sensor reports magnetic north (iOS converts to true north). The gap between them — declination — depends on where you are, from near zero to 20°+, and matters for precise navigation.
Laptops and some budget tablets lack a magnetometer entirely, so no heading appears. The sensor also needs HTTPS and a tap to start, and iPhone requires explicit motion permission.
It is as accurate as your phone's magnetometer and its calibration. Held flat, away from interference, and freshly calibrated, consumer phone compasses are typically accurate to within a few degrees — fine for orientation and casual navigation, though not survey-grade.
Electronics and metal generate or distort magnetic fields that the magnetometer picks up, throwing off the reading. Move away from computers, speakers, metal furniture, and magnetic phone mounts for an accurate heading.
Yes. On iPhone you must tap Start and allow motion access; iOS then provides a true-north heading. On Android the reading comes from the absolute orientation sensor. Both require a device that actually has a compass/magnetometer.
On iPhone (iOS 13+), Safari requires your explicit permission before a website can read motion and orientation sensors, for privacy reasons. Tap "Allow" when prompted. If you accidentally denied it, go to Settings → Safari → Motion & Orientation Access and enable it, then reload this page.
Hold the phone and move it in a figure-8 pattern several times, rotating your wrist so the device points in many directions. This lets the magnetometer re-learn the surrounding magnetic field. Move away from computers, metal desks, and magnets first. On iPhone you can also open Apple Maps, which prompts a calibration spin.
On iPhone, the browser provides a true-north heading (webkitCompassHeading). On most Android devices the reading is based on absolute orientation, which is close to magnetic north. The difference between magnetic and true north (declination) varies by location from a few degrees to over 20°.