Yes, Apple Maps also works in Europe.
The revamped Apple Maps experience first launched in the U.S. in 2019 and has since expanded to the U.K., Ireland, Canada, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, France, Germany, and select other countries and territories. (Thanks, Hidde Collee!)
Google Maps is legal to use in Germany. This includes the use while driving as a navigation tool, as long as it runs by itself. In fact, quite a few cars in Germany use Android Auto or the Apple counterpart.
On March 2, 2023, the new maps were launched in Finland, Norway, and Sweden. On March 10, 2023, Apple began testing its new map data in Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovenia. The new maps were released on April 6, 2023. On April 17, 2023, Apple began surveying the United Arab Emirates.
The mapping app on your phone works fine for navigating Europe's roads. The downside is that to get real-time turn-by-turn directions and traffic updates, you'll need Internet access (a concern abroad, where you are likely paying more for data).
German data protection and privacy rules are pioneering
This has led a tradition of strong data protection for German civilians, which has created a barrier to Google's Street View Programme.
The top GPS brands for Europe are TomTom, Garmin and Magellan GPS.
Apple didn't renew its licence with Google; that still had some months to run when iOS 6 was introduced. But Apple had also been frustrated by Google's refusal to allow it access to its voice-directed turn-by-turn navigation and vector graphics for mapping; Google kept that for its own Android to give it an edge.
While Apple Maps does not rely on real-time traffic data in the same way as Google Maps, it may be able to provide faster route recommendations in some cases based on its algorithms and mapping technology.
Top Maps Websites in Germany Ranking Analysis for June 2023
komoot.de ranked number 1 and is the most visited Maps website in Germany in June 2023, followed by maps.google.com as the runner up, and viamichelin.de ranking at 3rd place as the leaders of the Maps websites in Germany.
The famous Street View feature of Google Maps has not been operating with up-to-date imagery in Germany due to decade-old privacy concerns. Today, Street View is finally coming back to the country. Announced on The Keyword, Google has confirmed that Street View will once again operate in Germany for Maps.
Is Waze available in Europe? Yes, Waze is available throughout Europe including France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK.
Some countries may not have coverage as there's no enough users. Some countries require a license. Some countries require a local mapping company as the only authorized company able to offers mapping so Apple licenses their maps.
Apple Maps is exclusive to Apple devices - iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and Macs. But there's a workaround that lets you use Apple Maps on Google Android phones. With the DuckDuckGo search engine, you can access Apple Maps on any Android smartphone, including Google Pixel smartphones.
Accuracy
So, it was difficult to trust its traffic or mapping data for navigation. Thankfully, after significant improvements, that is no longer the case. Now both Apple Maps and Google Maps are about equal in terms of accuracy. There is a minor difference in terms of convenience.
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Apple Maps
Apple Maps is the built-in maps app on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac computer. Apple Maps is a great navigation app, and it's very easy to use. You can easily search for and navigate to addresses, and you can also search for and add specific places for quick access.
When you use Apple Maps, you can get three-dimensional satellite views of many places all over the world. The view is easier to access than Google's 3D pendant and simpler to understand and use, with fewer visual distractions.
You can't use Apple Maps on Android smartphones. It works on iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches and Mac computers. You can, however, use Google Maps on iPhones and virtually any device. Google Maps works on Apple and Android phones, tablets and computers.
Most popular cell phone apps in Germany 2022, by average daily usage. In 2021, WhatsApp was the most used cell phone app in Germany.
It's all on the device and doesn't need an internet connection. GPS and map/driving applications are two different things. GPS is the same everywhere in the world and on all devices that use it.
Sure, your smartphone has maps now and sure, these do work in many countries. But with data connection sometimes proving an issue and plenty of countries still not fully on board with Google Maps, your safest travel companion is still a dedicated international GPS device.