Apple Maps vs Google Maps

Apple and Google have been fighting for map dominance for more than a decade. 

In 2012, just months after Google Maps first hit one billion users, Apple Maps was set as the default mapping application on IOS.

I often ponder why I typically use Google Maps, given how much I love Apple, and how easy it is to access on my iPhone.

And if one small poll on Twitter is representative, you largely agree.

Breadth of data is the primary differentiator—of which Google has a significant advantage.

For example, I use Street View to quickly contextualise where a destination is, and it has huge broad value, like identifying if there's on-street parking available.

Apple's version, called 'Look Around', is still about a decade behind (in terms of miles driven, which should be positively correlated to availability of the feature).

But assuming that you live in a densely-populated city—where both Apple and Google have similar amounts of data—how do these services compare?

While the issues raised below may be relatively minor, it demonstrates that there is still room for improvement, within two world-class apps.

Let's jump in.