Google Maps celebrates its 20th birthday and shares current favorite features

20 years ago, Google launched an innovation that would soon make printed road maps obsolete – at least for most of us. Google Maps has been available in Austria since 2007. The digital atlas is used by more than two billion users worldwide every month.

500 million active Google Maps contributors

Over the years, Google Maps has become an important digital guide for getting from A to B. In addition to functions such as navigation, route planning, information on traffic, and public transport, local search services are also offered.

Over the years, both the app and the web application have developed into much more than just a map service. In addition to Google Street View and Google Earth, the service thrives primarily on community interactions. Google itself puts it this way: “It’s a community that shares its knowledge of the world with others.” According to the search engine giant, more than 500 million users now regularly upload reviews and photos to the service, helping to expand the information.

Google Maps Wrap-Up: Austria

In Austria, Schönbrunn Palace is the place that has received the most reviews: the tourist attraction has collected 158,000 reviews over the years, according to Google. The most rated places in the restaurants, sights, and museums categories are “Figlmüller” in Bäckerstraße (around 25,000 reviews), the Hofburg (more than 51,000 reviews), and the Belvedere Gallery (more than 74,000 reviews).

More than 250 countries and regions

In general, around 100 million updates take place on Google Maps every day. Last year, the service said it provided its users with a trillion kilometers of directions. Although not everything can be found on Google Maps, the number of places it has discovered on the planet is impressive: In total, more than 250 countries and regions have been mapped.

By the way: Google Maps can also be used offline. This video shows how:

Useful tips and tricks for Google Maps

How to use the map service is probably clear even to people who are not particularly tech-savvy. However, there are some extra features that perhaps not everyone has discovered yet, including:

• Most popular dishes: On Google Maps under the “Highlights” for a particular restaurant, users can view the most popular dishes of the Maps community.
• Create bucket lists: With the “Lists” function in Google Maps, places can be saved and shared with others. Google says: “Groups can plan trips together and vote on the destination using emojis.”
• Inclusiveness: If the “Accessible places” option is activated in the digital atlas settings, a wheelchair symbol will indicate all accessible places. People with impaired vision should even receive detailed voice instructions with useful tips while walking.
• Eco-routing: Google Maps will now also have an AI function that shows the “most energy-efficient route” – regardless of whether you are traveling with a combustion engine or an electric car.
• Discover activities: With Gemini on Google Maps, users in the US can search for tailored activities, such as “Things to do with friends in New York at night” or “Interactive date nights in San Francisco” to get curated suggestions. Users can ask specific questions about places directly in the app, such as the dress code or parking options. This feature has not yet been rolled out in Austria – but who knows, maybe it will come soon.