What's your Google Maps open-source replacement?

AlmightySnoo 🐢🇮🇱🇺🇦@lemmy.world to Android@lemmy.world – 163 points –

I imagine certain features like Google Maps' different busyness indicators might be missing because otherwise that would require telemetry?

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Try OrganicMaps (https://organicmaps.app) on Android. It's awesome!

it's nice, but its navigation/route finding can be pretty atrocious

This is my favorite front end for openstreetmaps. The only problem is I live in NJ and most addresses are missing. I usually just get coordinates from Google maps and add them manually.

Only thing I consistently don't see well done are parks and other green spaces, where the boundaries are ill defined or missing. Other than that, also my mainstay

Try adjusting them on openstreetmap.org/edit, takes a few minutes at most

https://www.openstreetmap.org/

It's the only one I know, I've also done mapping for them and updating several places around my home town.

Open Street Map is legitimate. In bicycling communities, Strava is the gold standard app for tracking rides, and it uses Open Street Maps on the backend. It's always super accurate for me, even for fairly obscure bike trails off the beaten path.

I noticed allot of the trails in my area are mapped better than on Google.

My house doesn't even exist on OpenStreetMap, so I don't have much faith in it

Then you can map it and add it to the map with a free account and some "proof", unlike Google Maps where the main road to my colleague and his four neighbours houses still isn't on Google Maps after almost a year of reporting. The road is almost a year old but my colleague still can't get deliveries to his house.

Try it out! The mapping community on OpenStreetMap is often very helpful and open to new people.

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Almost all alternatives use OpenStreetMaps. I prefer Magic Earth but all of them are similar enough

The main issue is OSM. They lack many addresses (varies A LOT among different countries, some are fine) and POIs. Please consider contributing yourself, because it depends only on volunteers!

It is SUPER easy. Just download StreetComplete on Android to add multiple different info in a very easy way (or just house numbers which are the most important info) and EveryDoor for POI editing/deletion/addition in just a few clicks. And don't worry if you don't input something because you aren't sure as long as what you enter is correct

interestingly in my region in germany osm is more reliable in regards of house numbers then google is

in some areas osm is insanely detailed, with trash cans, flower pots, and all kind of stuff. Nerds fucking rock.

Some basic information, including building numbers, can also be edited from within Organic Maps.

Osmand with some of these custom maps that add address data to the normal maps. It works amazingly and is also entirely offline.

I've been using Osmand for years, it works fine here in Denmark. I just use the standard maps.

Offline functionality used to be very important to me, but not so much anymore. Still I'd hate my map to stop working, just because I don't have good enough signal.

I find offline still very important. Great for travelling, mobile data, and reliability

But I also have a SD card full of music on my phone. And no cloud storage

Oh my thank you so much, this and no trafic data are my main 2 pain points with this app, now it's one less!

Why isn't that address data included in OpenStreetMaps and/or OSMAnd by default?

OrganicMaps, love it

Currently on vacation and switched to organic maps for the trip. Some stuff is awesome and some is kinda counter intuitive. Try to stick with it for now and see if I get used to it.

The FOSS ones suck in comparison honestly. There's really just osmAnd that has a really ancient UI. As for other OSM(OpenStreetMaps), I find MAPS.ME to be the best, but it's closed source with some crypto scam crap built in that you can't disable.

I don't really like OSM based maps because they miss tons of places where I'm at, when I specifically need building numbers and locations. Also the search on both apps is god awful and straight broken.

Google Maps is definitely miles ahead of the competition here. The other features like seeing how busy businesses are, reviews/images, menu and phone number/website. These are also icing on top of the cake that make it essential to have which none of the competition have, let alone any FOSS ones.

It really depends on where in the world. I'm in the Caribbean and Google maps is terrible here.

Even on the main road network there is places where a bridge is seen as an intersection on Google maps.

Open street maps is much better here.

The app I'm using for open street map is called Organic Maps.

Yeah when traveling I'm always supplementing my Google maps with OsmAnd just because gmaps is missing so much data.

Honestly, OsmAnd doesn't have that bad of an ui these days. I'm perfectly happy with it, most of the time. Definitely prefer it to Google Maps while cycling.

Organic Maps is a great open source replacement for MAPS.ME and osmAND, but also with the same disadvantage of not having good public transport options and needing to download offline maps beforehand. Magic Earth, while not FOSS, at least does show public transport times (in my country at least).

Address based search works, but the data is largely lacking.

You can help by adding building numbers from within Organ Maps (tap a building and, then "edit place").

The underlying OSM dataset supports building number interpolation, so even a few accurate entries could be very helpful.

I use Open Street Maps. There are multiple clients available, but the one I use is called OSMAnd+. It pretty much works just as well as Google Maps in my experience.

For walking nothing beats OpenStreetMap. Absolutely destroys Google maps as it knows all the footpaths and what is and isn't walkable.

For driving I'm stuck with Google due to Android Auto.

For finding businesses etc Here is the best alternative but frankly Google is in a different league in this regard, nothing beats it.

If you want a good alternative for driving try out Magic Earth! Also uses openstreetmaps and has some Waze like features to report stuff

Thanks, I tried it a while ago (two years or more) and didn't like it then, but it looks a lot better now. Will give it a go on some routes I know and see how it does!

I am waiting for an android auto update where it has a mute button for navigation, if it had that I could live with all the inconveniences.

I am not using Android Auto, but cant you just change the voice volume to 0 in the app? Wont it carry over the settings to the car?

Sure but that is a lot more difficult to do when you forget and your a mile down the road and it's illegal to use your phone while driving. I might use it for my normal drives that I just leave on for reporting and use gmaps for navigation until it's added though.

OpenStreetMap. Google Maps is probably the best product in the field tho, even among paid solutions.

I have tried other open source apps but always end up back on google maps because I live in a city and need detailed directions all the time....

FOSS turn-by-turn is unfortunately not great. I like the proprietary app HERE, because it works well for turn-by-turn, is based in Europe and has a privacy policy that fits on one page

Which is the old and excellent nokia maps built in navteq GPS tech they bought like 15 years ago. I used it on and off for a while but started using openstreetmap based services eventually.

Organic Maps. It uses OpenStreetMap as a backend, plus it has hiking trails as well.

Magic Earth (not FOSS), such an underrated app

I like OsmAnd as a client for using open street maps. I hadn't heard of organic maps though which someone else mentioned- I'll have to give it a try!

I use OsmAnd~ it's very nice ,and open source . Oh and if you use the F-droid version you got the pro feature .

OsmAnd is awesome, I use it especially for cycling. It has an awesome cycling/hiking route planner, and even the smallest forest paths are on the map!

Oh yes for bike it's amazing . I even find 1 accesses to a highway store wich normaly are not alowed .

magic earth for regular use and herewego if openstreetmap doesn't have data and I'm in a hurry

both are proprietary but way better than google

I also input data in openstreetmap if it doesn't have it from gmaps webview(by divestos) so I can use it in future without relying on proprietary services

None. Tried a few, none of them come close to what Google Maps offer.

Unfortunately, that's the only truth. Especially if you live outside the US.

Huh? OpenStreetMap is pretty bad in the US compared to Europe, where it's far more detailed than Google Maps will ever be

All the alternatives have poor search functions e.g. fuzzy search. After trying them all I use magic earth but will often find I have to get addresses out of google maps then put them into ME

My job requires a lot of pulling up maps. I'm sad to say I haven't found a good Google replacement. Do I like all the ones listed? Yes. Can they get the job done the way I need it? No.

For hiking and walking around the city open street map is great. I personally use mapy.cz - they work great and at least in central Europe - more accurate than google.

maps.me has been pretty good - they occasionally try various ways of monetizing it (the most recent one seems to be some kind of limit on map downloads) but it was a pretty straightforward OSM viewer with basic routing and searching.

Give Organic Maps a try; it's from some of the original creators of MapsWithMe/Maps.me: https://organicmaps.app/

+1 for organic maps. Been using that for the past year and it's awesome!

Thanks - just replaced maps.me (no, Lemmy, that's not a URL!) with organic maps.

It sounds like maps.me might have gone through a few changes of ownership? The latest "update" comes a lot closer to breaking its core functionality than previous attempts.

Similar question, but what's the best app for following a gpx track? Like just plot it on a map with my current location centered

I use OSMAnd+ for this. I can plot out a route to take on the motorcycle using Basecamp and then send the .gpx to my phone and OSMAnd will load it up and let you follow it.

Open Street Maps. It has some gaps or missed addresses/neighborhoods/roads because it is built on contributions of volunteers.

Magic Earth. I've tried every other major OSM google maps alternative and none have been as good as Magic Earth.

Osmand, Maps.me, Organic maps, and one other I can't remember now, used them all. I still use Osmand because I'm trying to support the project, but Magic Earth by far has the best address searching, best UI, best directions, and limited but existing live traffic data to help you avoid really bad backups.

Now I'm in the USA, and some folks say some of these apps work better in Europe, that's fair, but that's still my point, Magic Earth. Not FOSS, but privacy respecting and uses OSM data. If you wanna break away from Google but aren't willing to deal with a bunch of jank, Magic Earth is your friend.

https://opensupermaps.com/

They have maps with USA style addresses, updated monthly. They cover pretty much everything. So that would solve your address search Problem in OsmAnd.

There is also a google traffic overlay.

Oh dang, do you just download and import into OSMand?

Yes. In fact, when you open the file in a file manager, you can have OsmAnd automatically import it.

For traveling I often use Here We Go maps, because have more information than Magic Earth (buses, trains, more info about restaurant / eating / sleeping accomodations - links, prices etc). In my country I use just Magic Earth.

I live in south korea, and unfortunately, openstreetmap isn't enough for daily usage on here. So I am using both. Google Maps(using GMaps WV) and organic maps

Not FOSS but MagicEarth works pretty well and they are privacy friendly.

Not FOSS but MagicEarth works pretty well and they are privacy friendly.

For hiking and walking around the city open street map is great. I personally use mapy.cz - they work great and at least in central Europe - more accurate than google.

If you need Google Maps from time to time use GMaps WV it is a a webview shell for google maps.

My go to is mapy.cz You can download regional maps for offline use, it is intuitive to use, good for seeking out cycling routes and builds on openstreetmap data.