Google Maps Statistics and Interesting Facts

Nearly two decades have passed since Google Maps’ inception. Throughout this period, the app has introduced many innovations that have secured its position as a market leader. From a simple navigation program to a comprehensive platform that provides detailed information about various places and allows users to contribute data, Google Maps has significantly outpaced its competitors. In this article, we will examine the most critical statistics related to the application, which will help illustrate the magnitude of its operation.

Google Maps General Statistics

1. Google Maps holds the top spot as the preferred navigation application on both Android and Apple platforms, boasting over 10 billion downloads from the Google Play Store, underscoring its dominance in navigation solutions across major mobile operating systems.
2. Ranking as the third most downloaded Google application globally, Google Maps is only preceded by YouTube and YouTube Kids as of September 2023

3. With over 1 billion monthly active users, Google Maps’ universal compatibility across devices, including Android and Apple, sets it apart from Apple Maps and explains its vast user base.
4. In 2019, 67% of all smartphone users utilized Google Maps, indicating that a significant majority regularly depend on its services.
5. On average, users engage in 50 sessions with Google Maps each month, each lasting about 3 minutes, marking it as the second most used navigation app. In comparison, Waze Navigation Live & Traffic (which, by the way, is also owned by Google) leads with an average of 269 minutes per user monthly, while Apple Maps usage lags significantly at just 12 minutes.
6. In the U.S., Google Maps is the premier mapping application, boasting 21 million downloads and significantly outperforming its closest competitor, Waze, which has 9.9 million downloads.

7. Google Maps’s 97% accuracy in ETA predictions plays a significant role in its global popularity across Android and iOS platforms. Its commitment to enhancing prediction accuracy through graph neural networks exemplifies its forward-looking approach to delay forecasting.

Business Data

8. With the integration of Google Business into Maps, over 200 million businesses and places have been listed on Google Maps as of 2023, showcasing its extensive directory.
9. In the United States, 73% of websites and businesses leverage Google Maps’ API technology, integrating it into their systems to enhance the online visibility and accessibility of their services.
10. Each month, the Google Maps Platform API offers free usage valued at $200, equivalent to loading maps 28,400 times. This generous allowance empowers developers to integrate Google Maps into their applications and websites, facilitating a wide range of services without incurring immediate costs, encouraging innovation and developing location-based services.
11. With over 10,000 indoor maps, Google Maps provides insights into buildings’ layouts and floor plans, enhancing navigation experiences indoors through partnerships with numerous locations.
12. Estimated by Morgan Stanley, Google Maps’ revenue reached $11.1 billion in 2023, marking its transformation into a utility-like service. This represents a significant growth from $3 billion in 2019, with a large portion of this revenue originating from the U.S., accounting for 16.5% in 2022.

Google Maps Worldwide

13. Google Maps offers coverage in 250 countries and territories globally, surpassing the reach of Apple Maps, which is available in over 200 countries and regions. Thus, Google Maps is the more extensive navigation solution.
14. The United States leads the global usage of Google Maps on websites, with 588,967 sites utilizing the service, followed by Japan with 305,763 and the United Kingdom with 140,972.

15. Supported by 120 million local guides contributing daily with photos, reviews, and answers, Google Maps spans 24,000 cities worldwide. These guides, categorized into five levels, enjoy benefits including exclusive contests, badges, and Drive storage upgrades.
16. With high-definition satellite imagery, Google Earth covers over 36 million square miles of the Earth’s surface. This extensive coverage gives users unprecedented access to detailed views of the planet, enabling educational exploration, environmental monitoring, and virtual tourism.
17. By suggesting eco-friendly routes, Google Maps contributed to preventing 1.2 million metric tons of carbon emissions by the end of 2022. This feature, along with displaying flights’ carbon emission details, aids users in making environmentally friendly choices.

Data Collection and Usage

18. Google Earth’s comprehensive database, which houses more than 40,000 terabytes of geospatial information, includes historical images and scientific data accumulated over three decades. This vast repository of data supports historical analysis of environmental changes and urban expansion and serves as a critical tool for scientific research, disaster response planning, and conservation efforts.
19. Google Maps receives updates at a remarkable rate of 200 contributions per second, amounting to 200 million pieces of data from users every day, ensuring constant currentness.
20. Google Maps is refreshed with 50 million updates daily, maintaining accuracy across over 250 regions in various categories such as map tiles, traffic layers, and speed limits, reflecting its commitment to real-time precision.
21. In 2018, Google Maps expanded its linguistic range by adding 39 new languages to accommodate an additional 1.25 billion people globally. Presently, it automatically translates place names into local languages, with the aim of incorporating support for all 133 languages recognized by Google Translate.
22. Typically, Google Maps consumes an average of 2.19 megabytes (MB) of data hourly, and for every mile traveled, it uses about 67 kilobytes (KB) of data. This efficient data usage makes it an ideal app for navigation without heavily impacting data plans, facilitating its use in diverse network conditions worldwide.

Sources:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.apps.maps&hl=en_IN&gl=US
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/google-maps/id585027354
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https://www.allconnect.com/blog/how-much-data-does-google-maps-use
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https://www.similartech.com/technologies/google-maps