Looking at various Google Maps Statistics can show how vital the service is to the modern world.
It isn’t just Android devices using Google Maps either, as it’s a go-to source of geographical information for people worldwide.
Considering the service is available in more than 220 countries worldwide, many people use it daily.
This article provides a detailed look at various statistics surrounding the Google Maps service, including its user base, market influence, and more.
Key Statistics
- The service currently supports 40 different languages
- Google Street View 2019 utilized 170 billion images from 87 countries
- On average, Google Maps utilizes 5MB per hour
- Over a billion people use Google Maps every month
- Maps is the most popular GPS app in the U.S., boasting over 25 million downloads in 2021 alone
- The record number of Google Maps website visits was recorded in May of 2023, with 196.8 million visits that month
- Google Maps reached one billion users back in June of 2012
- Among all monthly navigation app users, 70% of them prefer Google Maps over others
- There are 5 million active applications and websites that utilize Google Maps Platform core products every week
- Google Maps boasts a 56% smartphone penetration in the U.S., ranking number four among all smartphone applications
With GPS being a part of everyday life for most people, you can see why there are so many navigation apps and services on the market.
Even if different applications bring something unique to the table, Google Maps still carries a majority of the market.
Part of this comes down to the fact that Google Maps was a leading innovator in the way we use GPS today.
There’s plenty of statistical data that highlights the service’s long-standing reputation.
In the next few sections, you’ll get a look at statistics that provide a general overview of Google Maps from multiple angles.
1. Significant Language Support
Considering the reach Google Maps has across the world, you can assume that the service supports quite a few languages.
At this time, Google Maps supports 40 languages, and there’s a good chance more languages will be added down the road.
It took quite a while to reach that number, as services like this usually only add more languages based on user demand.
However, it isn’t very common for languages to be removed for any reason.
Google Maps will, if anything, become more accessible to different regions of the world as its market reach continues to expand.
Many people just opt for English, even if it’s their second language.
However, using different languages improves the application’s accessibility in different parts of the world.
(EnterpriseAppsToday)
2. Billions of Images for Google Street View
When you’re looking for a more close-up look, Google Street View can be extremely helpful.
This particular feature of Google Maps used 170 billion different images from 87 countries in 2019.
Now, this data will definitely vary for each year, but it shows how much data is needed to make the service work effectively.
In most populated areas, Google Street View is available almost everywhere.
However, in more rural areas, you may encounter a few streets where the service isn’t available.
This isn’t a deal breaker for most users, but it’s an additional feature that can be helpful when you’re trying to get a visual of a location.
Google Street View has come a long way over the years.
The number of images used to improve and expand the service will likely increase as it expands into new territories.
(OnTheMap)
3. Google Maps Data Utilization
Another benefit of Google Maps is that it doesn’t take up much data when using it.
On average, Google Maps uses about 5MB of data every hour.
This is a necessity, as many people use the application for multiple hours per day.
Whether it’s commuting for work, driving around town, or going on a road trip, it’s important for applications like this to utilize minimal data.
If someone were to hit their data limit in the middle of using the app, the service would stop working entirely.
Issues with data caps on smartphones aren’t as big of a problem as they used to be, but they can still happen.
Google and many other app developers keep this in mind, which is why you can use the application for hours on end.
(EnterpriseAppsToday)
4. No Shortage of Monthly Users
You can break down Google Maps’ user base in many different ways.
When it comes to monthly users, the service sees engagement from roughly one billion people.
This alone could keep the service alive, and the number is guaranteed to grow in the near future.
Google Maps is only becoming more relevant as time goes on.
From Android to iOS and desktop users, Google Maps is being used for a long list of reasons.
Of course, this level of success didn’t happen overnight, but Google made a few strategic moves early on that kept them in first place.
If you were to look at each of these monthly users, you’d also find many unique user patterns.
Some people use Google Maps for the same thing every day, while others may only use it to find food nearby.
Although navigation is the core of Google Maps, it comes with many integrations and added capabilities.
(EnterpriseAppsToday)
You’d be surprised at the number of navigation apps that are available on the market.
It can be hard to choose, as many people wonder what makes one app different from another.
Nevertheless, Google Maps still has control of this area as well.
In 2021, the Google Maps application was downloaded over 25 million times.
The only app to come close to that number is the Waze app, which only amounted to 13.4 million downloads for that year.
The chart below offers more data on downloads for different navigation apps throughout 2021.
There’s plenty of room in the market for other navigation apps to exist, but they rarely match up to the market influence that Google Maps has.
You’ll find varying sentiments on why Google Maps is so popular among users.
Google Maps is considerably more successful than even its closest competitor, which means it’ll likely remain that way as time goes on.
(OnTheMap)
Digging Deeper Into the Data
I’m sure we can all agree that the few stats mentioned above showcase just how significant Google Maps is to the GPS market.
Looking past surface-level data can provide a much more thorough look at the service, its features, user base, and much more.
While Google Maps has been on the market since 2005, it continues to innovate and improve at every turn.
From changing trends to new technologies, Google Maps has been at the forefront of modern navigation systems.
6. Record-Breaking Number of Website Visits
When most people think about Google Maps, they immediately imagine the mobile app by itself.
Few remember that Google Maps first started out as a website and is still fully functional and thriving to this day.
In May of 2023, the Google Maps website saw roughly 196.8 million visits in total.
This is a record-breaking number for the website and shows that the service continues to grow, even almost 20 years after launch.
Of course, unexpected factors will cause this number to fluctuate over time, but Google Maps definitely isn’t hurting.
Having a parent corporation like Alphabet to support future endeavors helps a lot, but this isn’t to say other services don’t have substantial resources of their own.
The truth is in the numbers, and Google Maps continues to reign supreme among others.
(EnterpriseAppsToday)
7. Over a Decade in the Billions Club
There’s a lot of talk about Google Maps’ recent developments, primarily due to changing trends in navigation and technology as a whole.
However, it’s important to remember that Google Maps found substantial success a long time ago.
Long before, some of you may have even heard of it.
Google Maps reached its first one billion users in June of 2012, so you can only imagine where they are today.
This is another example of how Google Maps had a lead on other services in the market.
Many others followed suit after Google Maps gained traction, but many of them simply didn’t get the same attention.
You’ll find millions of people who prefer other navigation services.
Even if you combined the user numbers from several other services, many still wouldn’t come close to Google Maps’ user numbers.
(Justinobeirne)
8. Most People Prefer to Use Google Maps
When you look at the entire commercial navigation technology market, it’s pretty clear that a majority of users worldwide prefer to use Google Maps.
Other popular choices that fall behind Google Maps include Waze, Apple Maps, Google Earth, and MapQuest.
The chart below highlights how each of these matches up against each other in global user interest.
Regardless of the actual user numbers, this chart alone shows that most navigation app users choose Google Maps as their first choice.
There would have to be a pattern of unsatisfactory service before people decide to change navigation apps altogether.
The reality is that Google has put an immense amount of investment into navigation as a whole. That’s why you see Google Earth in that chart as well.
Although people don’t necessarily use it all the time for local navigation, it gives a much more detailed look at locations.
MapQuest has been around for quite a long time as well, but it simply doesn’t offer as much in comparison.
Waze has also found its way up the ranks over the years, even though it’s one of the newest navigation apps.
However, you’ll find varying sentiments about Waze as the company has come under fire about user data privacy concerns in the past.
(Justinobeirne)
9. Google Maps Platform Integrations
Over the years, Google Maps has blossomed into something nearly unrecognizable from its early days.
The navigation concept is the same, of course, but the capabilities, integrations, and business partnerships with the service have expanded immensely.
This comes from the fact that around 5 million applications and websites make use of something called Google Maps Platform and its associated products.
Underneath the Google Maps name is the Google Maps Platform, which includes three core products: Maps, Routes, and Places.
Google introduced this change to help simplify their 18 individual APIs, which many other businesses and services have been utilizing for years.
You can assume that the many integrations and APIs Google Maps offers have helped its user base grow over the years.
It’s safe to say that Google knows exactly what they’re doing, and Maps won’t fall any time soon.
(Google)
10. A Contender Among All Applications
In regard to competition, this article has only focused on other navigation services.
Statistics make it evident that Google Maps is one of the most popular apps among all applications.
This can be found in the application’s smartphone penetration rate, which currently sits at 56% in the United States.
This puts the Google Maps application at number four among all smartphone applications.
Beyond impressive, Google Maps is a much bigger contender than many people think.
You always have to remember that Google Maps is much more than navigation.
Continuing on this path is what will ensure the future success of the service, alongside new features and innovations.
Among all applications, the only apps that are ahead in terms of mobile audience reach include YouTube (72%), Facebook (57%), and Gmail (57%).
A few that fall right behind are Google Search (53%), Amazon Mobile (50%), and Facebook Messenger (49%).
While many of these applications have nothing to do with navigation, it highlights how prevalent Google Maps is as a whole.
(OnTheMap)
Revenue, Usage, and Demographics
To finish off the last few sections of this article, we’re going to focus on statistics centered around revenue, usage, and user demographics.
Many of these will look into the fine print of specific data points that stand out among others.
Google Maps is a massive service on its own, even if it’s merely a sub-section of the Alphabet parent company.
Considering how long Google Maps has been in service, there’s plenty of data to pull from for this particular topic.
11. Revenue Projection for 2023
There’s no reason to believe that Google Maps would be hurting in the revenue department for 2023.
However, 2023 revenue projections for the service are looking to be somewhere around $11 billion.
You can break down this revenue into two main categories.
- Desktop Local Search = $1.23 billion
- Mobile Search = $9.82 billion
With the increasing convenience of smartphone use and applications, the figure for desktop search will likely decline in the coming years.
Nevertheless, Google Maps is looking at a healthy year for revenue. From marketing, shop promotions, reviews, and many other features, Google Maps is able to churn a profit through a long list of methods.
(DataProt)
12. A Majority of Revenue Comes From Advertising
This isn’t much of a surprise, as there are many business models that make a majority of their revenue from advertising.
Although Google Maps has multiple revenue streams, advertising is where most of its revenue comes from.
Then again, this data point is taken from 2021.
In Q4 of that year, it was reported that 82% of Google Maps’ revenue came from advertising.
It’s safe to bet that this number fluctuates each month, as advertising isn’t guaranteed to be consistently successful every month.
However you decide to look at it, advertising is a significant driving factor in Google Maps’ overall revenue.
If they were to lose that revenue stream for any reason, the successful sentiment toward the service would quickly change.
(DataProt)
13. Hundreds of Millions of Miles
On a daily basis, users as a whole drive over 621 million miles through the Google Maps application.
This is an insane number to think about, but it makes sense when you consider how many people use the application every day.
Moreover, this is another statistic that’s bound to get larger over time as Google Maps becomes even more popular.
In today’s world, many people entirely rely on services like Google Maps to get where they’re going, even if it’s local.
It’s another creature comfort that has eliminated the need to memorize essentially anything around town.
However, this has also created the issue of many people not knowing their surroundings at all without having GPS.
(Increditools)
14. Accurate ETA Predictions
Part of what drives users from one navigation app to another is its overall accuracy of information.
Users rely on every little detail navigation apps provide, and it can be detrimental if this information is even slightly off base.
Thankfully, Google Maps is revered for its 97% accuracy when it comes to ETAs.
An estimated time of arrival helps with communication, scheduling, and planning for trips of any size.
If this estimation is consistently inaccurate, users are bound to get upset at the inaccuracies eventually.
It can be challenging for any application to consistently meet the demands of its users.
Google Maps may not always be perfect, but it’s far above what many other navigation apps currently bring to the market.
Even if their services are on par, many come with other issues that aren’t commonly found with Google Maps.
It’s known that throughout its history, Google Maps has continuously worked on improving the accuracy of its services.
This can be difficult for a number of reasons, as there are many considerations when it comes to navigation.
Between the directions, road signs, construction, accidents, businesses, and many other aspects, Google Maps has a lot of upkeep on its hands.
It’s something that requires work and attention around the clock, as you can bet people are making use of the application 24/7.
(Inreditools)
15. Most Active Age Groups
With many intuitive technologies, such as Google Maps, a majority of them are primarily adopted by a younger crowd.
The highest usage of the application comes from those who are 18 to 24 years old.
This is usually always the case in this realm.
Nowadays, Google Maps’ user base is extremely diverse now that so many years have passed.
Here’s a breakdown of Google Maps’ primary age groups:
- 18 to 24 = 29.66%
- 25 to 34 = 27.21%
These numbers start to dwindle with older age groups, as older individuals tend to drive less.
Keep in mind this is a general overview, and the statistics are bound to look very different depending on where you look.
Overall, young people are known to always be on the move, so this adds up to the fact they’re the main user of Google Maps.
You can also look at it from a development point of view.
Many aspects of applications nowadays cater to a younger audience for a reason.
In some cases, the intuitive features younger generations prefer can pose challenges for older users.
Although this is true, the success of Google Maps has proven it has found a sweet spot for its user base.
(Increditools)
Conclusion
With years of experience in the market and plenty of innovation under its belt, Google Maps has found long-term success for a number of reasons.
At this point, the vocal support from its user base is enough to keep it going.
Even if you aren’t a fan of Google Maps yourself, the information we’ve gone through offers a clear look at why many others are die-hard fans.
For this article, we covered many general and specific Google Maps statistics that provide an unfiltered look at what the service truly is.
