San Francisco — Google Maps users will soon be able to broadcast their movements to friends and family via the app — the latest test of how much privacy people are willing to sacrifice in an era of rampant sharing.

The location-monitoring feature is an update to the Google Maps mobile app, which is already installed on most of the world’s smartphones. It will also be available on personal computers.

Google believes the new tool will be a more convenient way for people to let someone know where they are without having to text or call them. The company has set up the controls so individuals can decide with whom they want to share their whereabouts and for how long — anywhere from a few minutes to indefinitely.

But location sharing could cause friction in marriages and other relationships if one partner demands to know where the other is at all times or if parents insist their teenagers turn on the location-sharing option.

Similar tracking is already available on other apps; Glympse, founded by former Microsoft employees, has offered this function for years. That’s one of the reasons Google isn’t expecting a lot of complaints about adding the option to Maps, especially since everyone can decide when to turn it on and who can monitor them.

“We don’t feel like we are changing the game,” said Jen Fitzpatrick, Google’s vice president of maps.