I have used Apple Maps as my go to navigation for many years because I like it's animations and graphics better. The recent updates Google has done over the last year or so have closed the gap, though. I use them both intermittently.
Google still kills Apple when it comes to searching for anything. If you know the address, save the address in a calendar event; I like how Apple Maps suggests it. If you don't know where you want to eat, get gas, find something interesting, then Google runs circles around Apple. I'll find stuff in Google, copy the address, and paste it into Apple a lot of the time.
Hahaha, yes! Just yesterday I was searching for Pata Timber company locations in Latvia to drive to the nearest one, and Apple Maps "logically" deduced that I want to drive to Pata village in Slovakia 1500 km away. Because, of course, that one makes more sense to be surfaced as the primary result, ready to be navigated to, than giving me Pata Timber locations or at least search results . I love Apple Maps for navigation, but for POI it, unfortunately, sucks ass and infuriates me.
But google will also highlight random grocery stores and slightly related other restaurants as well. It's been horrible lately with what I can only assume are sponsored results coming up in random places.
(I'm very anti-apple and only use GoogleMaps. This is just a recent observation.)
Meh, my experience is a bit different than yours it seems.
Basic stuff (i.e., gas station, food places, hotels, etc.) I never had issues with while using Apple Maps, both do the job 99% of the time and I can't recall having to look anything up with Google in the last decade for basic stuff like that.
Google used to be better at more niche things that were more tied to intent. But is has significantly gone downhill on that.
For example I wanted to find a currency exchange office near me, but Google (both search, maps and the embedded maps search in regular search) only showed (vagely) related services. Western Union money order points of sale, bitcoin ATMs, nonsense like that.
The problem with poor performanc on niche searches is that, if you're so used to it showing good results for the more basic stuff, you'll be likely to assume the niche stuff you're looking for simply doesn't exist in your area.
Spoiler alert: it did exist, plenty of options too, ironically the new Siri that's in beta helped me find them.
Nowadays the only thing Google sometimes wins on is opening hours for POIs, every so often I have to find out the hard way that POI hours in Apple Maps aren't accurate.
Very frustrating but that's mainly because most business actively keep their Google Maps profile up to date and never think to check what their business looks like on Apple Maps (even people who I know use Apple Maps as their main navigation app).
Luckily Apple has started to make a big push to make businessess aware and they recently updated the tools for businesses to update this information. In the meantime I do my part by flagging outdated information and providing up to date information in the Maps app.
As such the Apple universe, as long as it looks good. Functionally it can be subpar it just has to look good. Steve Jobs for you. All about aesthetics.
In Greece when we travel in the countryside Google Maps will CERTAINLY take us to a dirt road that thinks it’s faster, with Apple Maps it just never happens
That's something. It's actually okay in the US. My partner sometimes plugs her iPhone into the car for trips and it's fine it's just a different UI than I'm used to... Some of its calculations are weird but whatever it's doable.
When i was in college, i had a senior design project (engineering) and one of my group members wanted to come pick it up and came to me instead of me going to him. I sent him the address of a mall by my house to meet up and google maps took him to a random store a mile and a half away.
Google Maps loves making unnecessary u-turns and unprotected left turns on 4 lane roads where turning left is nearly impossible due to the amount of traffic.
In my experience, in the Netherlands at least, I preferred google over apple maps. But honestly, I like waze best for short trips.
I would like waze best in a whole if it didn’t make routes around tunnels and stuff. You have to manually add zones vignettes and all that stuff, or else it makes a route around that that’s like 3h longer or something on a long trip. Other than that it’s definitely my fav
Nope, 2 weeks ago Apple Maps showed me the wrong way to a postoffice. In my country’s capital. Must have been reported as wrong way a thousand times to without a fix while Google had no problem.
Also was getting a rental car a couple of months ago and Apple showed a way 15 minutes longer than Google from the subway. I kind of want to use Apple, that’s why I try it, but Google is still way better.
It got much better over time. Today Apple Maps gives me much better directions than Google Maps. I don’t have a wrong turn for many many months of usage.
In some cases (and this is one of them) better design translates to better usability. It's not just that Apple Maps is better aesthetically…it's clearer and easier to understand than the same direction in Google Maps.
It doesn’t just look better it performs betters. I WANT to prefer Google Maps especially since it’s much better in terms of being integrated into my Google account however Apple Maps doesn’t make as many mistakes and the UI isn’t as crowded.
Yeah, I am a GIS guy and people are always surprised I use Apple Maps. For me it’s Apple Maps for navigation, Google Maps for finding which restaurant I want to go to, and Google earth for exploring or investigating something that doesn’t warrant ArcGIS
Apple maps also has user report for speed traps and police and all that.
For me it’s not the useful part thus. I much prefer the interface, the directions are much more accurate, the traffic as well (since it uses all iPhones to estimate traffic as well as official traffic sources). Also much better POI info, like restaurants and all that.
And then the interface… Apple Maps interface is just so joyful and high quality compared to Waze….
It has all that and yet I’ve never ever seen one police report in Apple Maps in both Poland and Portugal and I have driven 25k kilometers in the last year. In Waze? I see them daily.
Very valid points! I agree with you, but for me the lack of user reports is the one big reason most people end up using Waze instead. I drive very carefully so speed traps and police reports are less important to me, but because I live in a country where speed limits feel very exaggerated in lots of places combined with MANY speed traps, I find even myself using Waze more often than Apple Maps. If more people were to use Apple Maps for a more reliable user report system, we'd really get the best of both worlds.
I think you don’t know what you’re talking about. Most people I know with iPhones uses Apple Maps via CarPlay.
POIs are feeded by booking, TripAdvisor and other sources much better than Google Maps reviews.
Much more reliable than Google Maps for directions.
So I don’t even know what you’re talking about.
Exactly. Now compare with Apple Maps where you have more photos, reviews, ratings, directly book a table or hotel, and a lot more info about the place (website, social media, services like WiFi, dogs, take way, credit card, etc).
All those things you said are available in Waze except reviews snippets. Apple Maps has no reviews, it just displays Foursquare/TripAdvisor etc.
Não estou a dizer que o Waze é o melhor do mundo, mas Apple Maps está uns furos atrás em termos de qualidade em POI. Quando vou a Portugal a quantidade de erros que encontro no Apple Maps é enorme. Encontro n sítios que claramente são um import manhoso duma base de dados qualquer de empresas sem qualquer nexo com a realidade do local. Tipo um coffee roaster que é em Cascais a mostrar uma morada na Amadora (que deve ser onde a empresa do roaster está sediada por exemplo).
E com isto tudo Apple Maps é a app que uso mais como podes ver pela quantidade de fotos e ratings que faço, e edits também.
Because I drive a lot on other European countries. Both my car or rentals.
Can you please tell me what the road you’re mentioning is? Just to check why it’s wrong. Never saw a wrong speed limit on a highway before.
Open google maps, see the icons of businesses that pop up. Click on them and you’ll see it says “sponsored” at the top. Ie they paid Google to show their business to you on maps.
I do this comparison frequently with my fiancé when we are together (he likes Google Maps). Apple Maps is almost always spot on, Google Maps ETA is always, without fail, early. They both suck ass in their own ways but the traffic detection on Google Maps is ridiculously terrible.
I might be mistaken, but in my experience Google Maps estimates based on the speed limit, where Apple Maps does the estimate based on your behavior. So if you regularly do 5 over, the ETA for Apple Maps will take that into account
I drive a different speed on my commute (slower due to traffic and me MPGmaxxing lol) and for personal travel on the same roads and Apple Maps is very quick to update its ETA in my experience.
Google maps definitely uses individual driving behavior to calculate ETA. I've pulled up the same directions and route on friends phones and we all had different times, while riding in the same car!
It is very pretty. But what I don’t like about Apple Maps is the auto zoom while driving. It always feels a bit too zoomed in for my liking. I think Waze does it best.
I quite enjoy Apple Maps for walking though.
Exactly how I feel. I feel like google just started to zoom in too much after their recent update so thankfully Waze hasn’t changed how zoomed in it is
Apple Maps doesn’t update business information as fast. It largely relies on third party data services. So if a business moved, it could be 4-6 months out of date. I’m not concerned about who has the prettier lines. I want the most accurate data. And that’s Google because it has 70% market share. Apple Maps is 15%.
That's the whole strengh tho. Google puts everything on every platform for free while for apple you need to pay. Google maps is full of ads, while apple maps isn't.
I prefer Apple Maps UI and layout. But I wish it would stop taking me to the back of building instead of the entrance! Used it in Trieste last week and it was awful! Would go down roads you clearly could. Told you to walk for 6 minutes! 😂
For me it Apple Maps is better in quite a few scenarios compared to the other apps, the only downside in the uk is the lack of current traffic information, but it has improved somewhat.
The two main pro’s for me is the fact that Apple Maps doesn’t take me down every small single country lane because it saves me a few minutes, as my car is worth more than scaping it on every hedge because google can save me a few minutes!!!. Secondly I love the routine so when I go home it knows the route I like and just puts it up and lets me drive home, none of that rerouting google does.
I travel quite a bit. In general, when one of them sucks, so does the other, and you need a local app instead
Google Maps is better at discovering places you don’t know and Apple Maps is better at directions and that holds pretty much the same everywhere I’ve been in the past five years.
Some places are incompetent with giving their actual address. Went to a Six Flags park and the official address on their site was for a service entrance and not the parking lot on the other side
I don't know how recent these screenshots are but the latest Google Maps on CarPlay is significantly better than what it was last year, the level of details comes close to Apple Maps. The routing is also more dynamic as I suspect more people use it and it can adapt to slow-downs, closures and de-tours quicker.
If I’m driving and following navigation I just care about what’s most visually easy to process which is the one on the right. The left is too opaque and even has the route cut off by the overlapping overpass. Also couldn’t care less about pretty trees on my map, it’s just visual clutter but yeah it looks nicer I guess.
I don't even see a point in comparing these two images. Look at the road ahead as it curves to the left, not by looking at your phone to see what it says.
I used to hate when people would send me apple maps links when I didn’t have an iphone. I dont use apple maps out of spite and principle. I hate apple’s exclusivity
I had been using - defaulting actually - to. Google Maps on my iPhone but as of late have been using Apple more along with an Apple Watch. I'm liking Apple a lot more.
For Europe: yes! Not in Hong Kong, sadly. Missing POI, outright dangerous lane guidance. Google does slightly better, but not great either. At least it has more of the POI.
Apple maps has trees and 3d bridges, people need to pay attention to details lmao Google maps suggests better routes for me and I use it over Apple maps. Apple maps is prettier though
In some countries such as Japan, yes. In my country (Thailand), no. Apple Maps cannot even tell that a particular intersection is for left turn only. Or told me to make a u-turn then turn left up in to a road like 20 m from the u-turn, effectively crossing a 4 lane, while Google Maps knows better and suggest the further u-turn. And also traffic is far inaccurate than Google Maps.
Nah I prefer apple maps for eu aswell. Looks nicer imo than waze, has better ios integration (especially with apple watch) and works just as well for navigation
Many years ago there was a case of a lady following Google Maps instructions right into a river. She was supposed to take a ferry at that point. Keep your eyes on the road!
Apple has some inaccuracies in my area. Cannot find about 5%, which I then use Google for. Its spoken directions are generally better. The main reason I use Apple is the routing. I wish they'd expand beyond 13 stops however.
I’m from LA and this freeway interchange between the 105 and 110 is very impressive (especially how high up the carpool lane goes when going from the 105 to the 110 because it has to cross over the 105, which is already elevated above the 110)
Apple maps cannot get my address correct, and no one can find my house when using the app. I have asked them several times to update it, but nope, they aren't listening. I can't use DoorDash, and unfortunately Google Maps has it right. Just read the request Apple Maps.
Google used to be acceptable routing and best UI. Feels like 6 or 7 years ago they purposely make it worse UI and routing each update. Waze is good for finding fastest route but the interface is terrible. Apple now has better interface and acceptable routing.
That Apple Maps routes you the slow 13-minute way, while Google Maps gets you through that massive interchange in just 10 minutes, really speaks volumes! 😂 It's pretty wild how they seem to prioritize fancy 3D graphics over actual routing speed and functional clarity. But I suppose being logical wasn't the main concern for most people.🤷🏾♂️🤦🏾♂️
Apple Maps is better so far. At least it is not geographically and functionally challenged with respect to the names of well established bodies of water.😀
I love Apple Maps for its UI, voice navigation pace, the details in turning direction but my freaking gods it keeps routing me to gravel drirt road on the countryside. I ride motorcycle and I don't want those roads, Google is much better to avoid it but my god everything else is worse than Apple
Apple Maps is showing Lake Ontario as Lake Ontario.. Google Maps is showing it as Lake Ontario/Lake America. this alone is already the main reason Apple Maps is better
I get so mad every time I have to use Google Maps on my Windows Desktop PC because I’m always looking at transit and Google Maps is just literally the worst for displaying transit.
Oh man, I actually didn't know that was around. Very glad to finally see that exists, but unfortunately it looks like it does not have a transit view or 3D yet, so I'd have to continue using Google Maps on PC
honestly i just use apple maps because it’s the default app and i don’t want multiple apps on my phone to be doing the same thing as another… but that’s just my own quirk.. but yeah idk google maps is maybe better overall. but ive got the map autism so really if open maps had a decent nav mode (i dont even drive so its not that important anyway) like the graphics details whatever is not important…
street view is obviously and a good array of map types… but in terms of navigation as i use it for public transport, walking, and finding places?
i already know my city back to front basically and how to navigate it and generally where stuff is… so i usually just head in a direction and unless it’s a bus ride away or somewhere i’ve never been i only really need to check the map once or twice. and it’s more than fine and knowing the times of buses or where something is…
sure google looks nice and fancy here but i really don’t see how that appeals to anyone unless you REALLLY struggle with basic map and navigation skills…
Unfortunately Google’s mapping is A1 compared to Apple. The amount of times Apple has put me where I shouldn’t be means I cannot trust it over Google Maps a lot of the time.
89
u/RollTide1017 1d ago
I have used Apple Maps as my go to navigation for many years because I like it's animations and graphics better. The recent updates Google has done over the last year or so have closed the gap, though. I use them both intermittently.
Google still kills Apple when it comes to searching for anything. If you know the address, save the address in a calendar event; I like how Apple Maps suggests it. If you don't know where you want to eat, get gas, find something interesting, then Google runs circles around Apple. I'll find stuff in Google, copy the address, and paste it into Apple a lot of the time.