Comparing 4 best Offline Maps Apps for Smartphones

Comparing 4 best Offline Maps Apps for Smartphones.

Visiting a new city? Well, it’s always good to have offline maps of the city you are visiting. This has several advantages, for example:

1. You do not need to spend money on data while roaming.
2. Offline maps work even when there is no signal.
3. They are much faster in response and save battery power.

There are many offline applications on the market now. Some specialize in route details and navigation, while others specialize in guidebooks. But the question is, how do I find the best application that suits my purpose.

Trying out every offline map is not an option. They will ask you to download a few hundred MB of data before you can see what they look like.

To make things easier for you, I’ve tested four of the most popular offline map apps. In this post, you will learn the pros and cons of each app and compare the table.

Best offline maps

# 1 Google Map

Google map is good. But it * lacks full offline support . Only a small part of the city can be cached. Not an entire state or country.

Although you can always save more space by downloading them separately. But this will complicate the search process.

* Update:

A A few months ago, Google made a major update to its Maps app. You can now save a much larger area (up to 120,000 square kilometers). This is enough for a whole city or even a small state.

But still, this is not enough if you want to turn off an entire country.

To save your map offline, open the Google Map app find a place, say New Delhi at the bottom, tap the place name bar then tap the more icon download offline zone. If the area you selected is too large, you will have to enlarge the smaller area.

TL; DR;

Great map app. Streets are detailed and also allows you to see landmarks and save places for offline use. And in the new update, the capacity of offline maps has been increased.

Download Google Maps | Android | iOS

# 2 Maps.me

Maps.me (formerly known as maps for me) is one of the most popular offline maps.

When you first open the app, you will see a map of the world. And when you zoom in, it will ask you to download an offline map of that country (or city, if available).

After that, you have all the maps offline. You can zoom in to see a detailed view of the street and attractions. You can also search the address and bookmark it for future reference. And all this without an internet connection.

Maps.me uses OpenStreetMap (or OSM for short). It’s like Wikipedia for maps: users can edit them, add new cities / roads, etc. on their own. However, I personally am not a fan of OSMs, they are not as detailed as Google maps, especially in developing countries.

However, I personally am not a fan of OSMs, they are not as detailed as Google maps, especially in developing countries.

Another thing missing is dedicated navigation (like step by step instructions). But it doesn’t really matter as it uses GPS.

TL; DR;

A good offline map, you can save an entire country or a large state. However, since it uses an open source database, the maps are only suitable for first world country.

Download Maps.me | Android | iOS | BlackBerry

# 3 Triposo

Triposo is a versatile travel guide with good offline map support. You can select any city or country and download its offline guide. It also includes suggestions for attractions, nearby restaurants, nightclubs, etc.

This application works by scanning data from open source media like Wikipedia, Wikitravel, OpenStreetMaps, etc., and then structures the information in its application.

During testing, I downloaded offline maps of Mumbai (India). The offer was impressive, but the maps were not very detailed (OSM).

TL; DR;

In general, Triposo was created for people who visit a new city and do not know what to do there. It has support for offline maps, but that will only give you an overview.

Download Triposo | Android | iOS

# 4 here

The lack of decent offline support on Google Maps has reassured other players. And maps here (formerly called Nokia maps) have filled that gap very well.

Unlike Google Maps, Here is specifically designed for offline use. You can download maps of the entire country or an individual state.

Complete offline map of India weighing about 1.5 GB. Maps.me and Triposo were only about 300MB in size. Needless to say, this makes the maps here more verbose.

Maps here also support voice navigation , as well as route planning, travel guide, points of interest, etc. In short, it’s a good combination of google maps and travel guide.

TL; DR;

HERE maps are the complete package. Like Google, they have their own map database that they developed from scratch (think Ovi Maps), and it’s extremely detailed. Sometimes even better than Google Maps.

And since this app is designed to be used fully offline, you get other important features like voice navigation too.

Download here | Android | iOS | Windows

Comparison table

Conclusion

In this article, we compare the 4 best offline maps and here is the final verdict.

If detailed maps are your top priority and size is not an issue, go HERE. This is the best option when you are going on a big vacation.

If you want a travel guide with decent map support, choose Triposo or Maps.me.

Google Maps is handy when visiting an individual city and won’t bring much sightseeing.

See also: Useful travel apps for Android (with video)