Use Google Maps when offline

Important: This article is only for Google Maps built into your car. Feature availability or functionality may depend on your car manufacturer or region. Learn how to use offline maps on other platforms.

You can use offline maps for reliable navigation and safety features when your car has a poor internet connection.

Offline maps are automatically downloaded and updated based on your current location and travel patterns.

Tip: You'll be notified if you're outside the area covered by your Offline Maps.

Let Google Maps manage your offline maps

Offline maps and Vehicle Map Service (VMS)

Google Maps provides data via Vehicle Map Service (VMS) to support safety-related driver assistance features in cars, like road sign integration and adaptive cruise control. These safety features rely on offline map data. To ensure map data is always available, turn on “auto-download” in the Privacy Center.

Turn on auto-download in the Privacy Center

To turn on auto-download:

  1. Open the Google Maps app Maps.
  2. At the bottom, tap Settings Settings.
  3. Tap Privacy Center and then Offline maps.
  4. Select Auto-download offline maps.
  5. Make sure you have internet connection and wait for your offline map download to finish.
Tip: If you turn off auto-download, already downloaded maps will remain saved, but no new maps will be automatically downloaded.

Manage offline maps

On your car, under "Offline maps," your offline maps will show:

  1. Auto-downloaded maps based on your car’s movements, if you’ve turned on auto-download before.
  2. Optional: Home and Work maps, if you’re signed in.
  3. Optional: Maps you’ve downloaded manually.

Tip: Home and Work maps are based on your home and work address, or your Google Account’s location history.

Download offline maps

You need an internet connection to download offline maps. If you don’t have an internet connection:
  • Turn on your phone’s hotspot and connect your car to the Wi-Fi. Your phone may have a better signal.
  • Drive to an area with a stronger internet connection.
  • Switch to another profile because it may already have an offline map of the area.

After you have an internet connection, you can download offline maps:

  1. Open the Google Maps app Maps.
  2. At the bottom, tap Settings Settings and then Offline maps.
  3. Tap Select your own map Select your own map.
  4. Adjust the map to cover the area you'd like to download.
  5. Tap Download Download

Rename offline maps

  1. Open the Google Maps app Maps.
  2. At the bottom, tap Settings Settings and then Offline maps.
  3. Select a map to edit, then tap Rename Edit.

Update offline maps

  1. Open the Google Maps app Maps.
  2. At the bottom, tap Settings Settings and then Offline maps.
  3. Select a map to edit, then tap Update Update.

Delete offline maps

  1. Open the Google Maps app Maps.
  2. At the bottom, tap Settings Settings and then Offline maps.
  3. Select a map to edit, then tap Delete Delete
Tip: If you delete the auto-downloaded map while auto-download is turned on, the area around your current location will be automatically downloaded to replace the deleted map.
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