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REVIEW
Google Maps still wins the iPhone, just by less.
Apple Maps has closed enough of the gap that the choice now hinges on where you live and what you ask of it. Google's depth is still the safer default.
BY THE APP COMRADE DESK · MAY 10, 2026 · 5 MIN READ
Apple Maps in 2026 is genuinely good. The 2018 rebuild finally finished landing in most of Europe, Look Around covers cities that used to be flat blue rectangles, and the CarPlay redesign reads better at 70 mph than anything Google ships. None of that has dethroned Google Maps on the iPhone, and the reason is unglamorous: depth.
Google has spent two decades collecting the data layer the map sits on — the hours of the dentist that moved last month, the bus stop that got renamed, the EV charger that’s been broken since Tuesday — and that lead doesn’t close in a year. What’s changed is the margin. Apple Maps catches up where Apple lives; Google Maps still works the same in the places nobody is building flagship features for.
So this is a review of a product that’s still the best at what it does, written at the moment its best competitor became a real one. The right answer for most iPhone owners is to install both and reach for the right tool. Google’s is still the bigger toolbox.
Apple Maps caught up in cities Apple cares about; Google Maps still works the same in cities nobody does.
FEATURES
Turn-by-turn covers driving, walking, cycling, motorcycle, transit, and rideshare, with lane guidance, speed limits, and incident reports surfaced inline. EV routing reads the car's connector and current charge and plans charging stops along the route — the database has grown well past Apple's, especially outside the US. Transit directions cover real-time arrivals on hundreds of agencies and quietly handle the small things, like warning you about a closed station entrance before you walk to it.
Immersive View renders photorealistic 3D flyovers of select cities and major landmarks, with weather and traffic layered on. Live View uses ARKit and Street View imagery to drop walking arrows over the camera feed when you stop at an intersection — useful exactly when phone-down dead reckoning fails. Lens in Maps lets you point the camera at a storefront and pull up reviews, hours, and menu pictures without typing the name.
The iPad version finally treats the larger screen like a workspace instead of an upscaled phone: split panels for search and route, a real sidebar, and pencil annotations on saved lists. Offline areas can be downloaded by tile and used for search, directions, and reviews without a signal. Sharing a live trip ETA still works the same way it has for years, and it still works.
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED
Three things keep Google Maps the default. The places database is deeper and more current than anyone else's by a wide margin — opening hours, phone numbers, "popular times" graphs, and user photos of the menu actually exist for the boba place three towns over. Transit coverage extends to agencies Apple has never integrated, with rider-submitted updates that fill the gaps in official feeds. And the routing engine remains the one most likely to know about the lane closure that started forty minutes ago.
The cross-device story matters too. Saved lists, contributions, and trip history sync to the same account that runs your Android phone, your work Chromebook, and the embedded Maps in a rental car's Android Automotive head unit. Apple Maps has parity on Apple hardware; it has nothing once you step outside.
ROOM TO IMPROVE
The interface keeps getting busier. The bottom sheet now stacks ads, Gemini suggestions, "explore" carousels, and a constant drumbeat of prompts to rate places you visited last week. CarPlay handling is fine but Apple Maps' CarPlay experience is now cleaner, faster to glance at, and better tied into the Phone, Messages, and Calendar apps. Battery drain on long drives is still noticeably worse than Apple's, especially with Immersive View elements rendering.
Privacy is the other honest caveat. Even with Web & App Activity paused and Location History off, this is a Google product that ties searches, routes, and ratings to your account. If that's a dealbreaker, Apple Maps is the actual alternative — not a downgrade, just a different set of compromises.
CONCLUSION
Install both. Make Google Maps the default for transit, EV charging, unfamiliar cities, and anywhere the answer "is this place still open?" matters. Use Apple Maps when you're driving a familiar route on CarPlay and want the cleaner glance, or when you'd rather Google not log the trip. The two-app stance is what most people we know quietly settled into, and it's the honest recommendation in 2026.