Google Maps
By MacRumors Staff
Google Maps How Tos

How to Clear Google Maps Search History on iPhone and iPad
If you prefer using Google Maps over Apple Maps on your iPhone or iPad, it's useful to know that you have the ability to manage how long your map search history is stored on Google's servers. This article shows you how. When you start typing the name of somewhere in Google Maps, the app throws up suggestions of your recent searches for places and directions, which can be useful if you visit...
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Google Maps Articles

Google Maps Preparing Live Activities Support Ahead of Dynamic Island Expanding to All iPhone 15 Models
The latest version of the Google Maps app for the iPhone includes hidden code-level references to Live Activities, according to MacRumors contributor Steve Moser. The feature remains in development and it is not yet functional in the app. Live Activities will allow Google Maps users to view turn-by-turn directions and the ETA in a single live-updating Lock Screen notification, and in the...

Google Maps to Offer Turn-by-Turn Directions in iPhone's Dynamic Island
Google today announced that its Maps app will support Live Activities in the coming months, providing iPhone users with access to turn-by-turn directions on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island on the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. Live Activities integration will allow users to receive real-time ETAs and directions for driving, biking, walking, public transit, and other forms of...

Google Maps for iOS Gaining Augmented Reality Live View Search in Select Cities
Google is bringing a new augmented reality Live View feature to its Maps app, allowing smartphone users to visually search for restaurants, coffee shops, and other businesses that are located nearby. Using Live View, you can open up Maps and tap the camera icon in the search bar to see what's around you, from shops and banks to ATMs and bars. Google Maps will provide AR-powered directions...

Google Maps Gains Landmark Aerial Views, Location Sharing Notifications for Arrival and Departure, and More
Google is rolling out some new Maps features to its iOS and Android apps for the summer, including new location sharing options, cycling directions enhancements, and photorealistic aerial views of famous city landmarks. First, location sharing. Google says it wants to make it easier to see when someone who has shared their location with you arrives or leaves a place, "so you can more easily...

Google Maps Now Estimates Toll Charges for Your Journey
Google Maps is gaining a new feature on iOS and Android that estimates the amount of money you'll have to pay in tolls for a chosen route. Before you set off, you'll now see the estimated toll price to your destination in the app. Google says the road information is sourced from local tolling authorities, and includes factors like having a toll pass or not, what day of the week it is, and...

Google Maps' Historical Street View Imagery Now Available on iOS
Google Maps' Street View is 15 years old today, and to celebrate, Google is rolling out the ability to view historical imagery when using the service on iOS and Android. When in Street View mode, users can access the historical imagery by first tapping anywhere on the photo to see information about the location, and then selecting "see more dates" to access the current location's historical...

Google Maps to Gain Impressive New 'Immersive View' Later This Year
Google Maps is set to get a new Immersive view for cities that uses artificial intelligence and high-quality 3D rendering to simulate real-time data, Google has announced. Thanks to advances in computer vision and AI that allow us to fuse together billions of Street View and aerial images to create a rich, digital model of the world — we're introducing a whole new way to explore with...

Google Maps for iOS Gains More Detail, Toll Estimates, and Standalone Apple Watch Support
Google today updated its dedicated Google Maps app for iOS devices, introducing several new features that will improve the navigation experience on iPhones. There is a more detailed navigation map that Google says is designed to make it easier for people to drive on unfamiliar roads. Google Maps will show traffic lights and stop signs along the route, and enhanced details like building...

Google Maps Warns You About Crowded Areas With Updated 'Busyness' Feature
Google today announced the launch of new iOS Google Maps features aimed at helping holiday shoppers, including Area Busyness and Directories. With Area Busyness, Google combines the busyness trends of businesses and locations that are near each other to let you know when a neighborhood or a part of town is at its busiest. Google says that this feature can help you identify busy areas to...

Google Maps for iOS Gaining Dark Mode and Messages Integration for Sharing Real-Time Location
Google today announced new updates that are coming to the Google Maps app designed for the iPhone. The most notable new feature is dark mode, which Google Maps app users have long been wanting. Dark mode is an alternative to light mode and allows for a darker user interface to match other dark mode apps on iOS devices. According to Google, dark mode is going to be rolling out "in the coming...

Google Maps Gains Home Screen Widgets on iPhone
Google today updated its Google Maps app for the iPhone to add support for widgets that can be added both to the Today View and the Home Screen. There are two separate widget options. The first allows users to check traffic conditions, store opening times, restaurant reviews, and more for a given location, while the second is designed to let users find places that are nearby like...

Google Maps Gains Expanded Transit Crowdedness Predictions
Google today announced that it is expanding transit crowdedness predictions to more than 10,000 transit agencies in 100 countries so that customers can better determine which transit options are at capacity and which have more open space and seating available. In New York and Sydney, Google is launching a pilot program that lets Maps users see live crowdedness information at the transit car...

All of Google's Main Apps Now Feature Privacy Labels
Four months after Apple first began requiring apps to add App Privacy labels to their App Store listings, Google has finally updated all of its most popular apps with the information, letting people know exactly what data Google is collecting. Google began adding App Privacy labels to its apps in February after months of delaying. Gmail, for example, got App Privacy labels on February 22,...

Google Maps Announces Indoor AR Navigation and Eco-Friendly Route Options
Google today announced several new features coming to Google Maps for iOS and Android this year, including a brand new "Live View" mode that uses AR for navigation inside malls and airports. Live Mode aims to prevent customers from the "awkward moment when you're walking in the opposite direction of where you want to go" by providing directions in AR, right in the app. Google says the new...

Google Maps Gaining Tools for Drawing Missing Roads, Sharing Photo Updates
Google today announced a number of improvements that are coming to the Google Maps app in the near future, including a tool that makes it easier to highlight missing roads and transportation errors. There's a new road editing tool available on the desktop, accessible by going to maps.google.com. Users can click on the side menu button and select the "Edit the map" option to get to the a...

Google Maps iOS App Will Soon Let You Pay for Parking and Transit Rides
Google has just rolled out a new pay for parking feature in the U.S. that lets Android users pay for street parking and mass transit fares right from within Google Maps, without having to come in contact with a parking meter or ticket machine. These days, people are upping their hand sanitizing game and avoiding touching public surfaces as much as possible. Thanks to an integration with...

Google Maps Gains Enhanced Street-Level Detail in Four Major Cities
Google Maps has quietly been updated to include significantly more detailed street-level information in a handful of key cities around the world. Upon zooming in, Google's maps for Central London, Tokyo, San Francisco, and New York now benefit from shapes and widths that match the scale of roads more accurately. Meanwhile, enhanced graphical representations of sidewalks, crosswalks,...

Google Maps Gains Real-Time 'Crowdedness' Transit Data, Live Food Delivery Status, and More
Google Maps gained three new features today to help users stay safe amid the coronavirus pandemic, including an expansion of its live transit "crowdedness" status information. Crowdedness data shows the real-time state of transit lines when users look up directions. The information is crowdsourced and relies on in-app feedback from users. Before today, Google Maps only showed the data for...

Google Maps to Gain New 'Live View' AR Features
Live View in Google Maps uses your iPhone's camera and GPS to provide augmented reality directions when you're walking somewhere, and this week Google announced that it's enhancing the feature and making it available in additional transit scenarios. In Live View, arrows, directions, and distance markers are placed right on top of your surroundings to visualize your destination in the real...

Google Maps for Apple Watch Now Live With Latest Update
Google in August announced the launch of a new Google Maps app that's designed for the Apple Watch, and at the time, Google said that it would be rolling out "in the coming weeks." The Apple Watch app has gone live based on reports from Reddit users who downloaded the latest iPhone update and were able to install the Google Maps app on the Apple Watch. The Google Maps app for Apple Watch...