You Can Use Apple Maps on the Web, but Will You?

On Wednesday, Apple announced that Apple Maps is now available on the web in beta. While the Maps app is available on all of Apple's devices, you can now access Apple's navigation app on virtually any device with a supported web browser. The question is: will you?

The web app appears to be a similar, yet stripped down, experience to the app you'd find on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac: You can search for addresses and businesses, see step-by-step directions for your chosen route, click on locations on the map to learn more about them, and browse guides related to wherever you happen to be on the app. It is missing a lot of Apple Maps features at this time, including Look Around (Apple's version of Street View), biking and public transit directions, the ability to plan a route at a certain time, 3D environments, traffic maps, and, crucially, the ability to log into your Apple ID.

At least it has dark mode. Credit: Jake Peterson

As it stands, this version of Apple Maps is by far the most limited, and doesn't even benefit from the simple ability to pick up directions from one Apple device to another. But Apple does note it's in beta, and the more people test it out, the more it will likely resemble the full app we're all used to in the future.

Apple Maps has caught up to Google Maps

Apple Maps has certainly come a long way since its infamous 2012 rollout. The app that once told drivers to take a sharp right directly off the Brooklyn Bridge is now perfectly usable as your dedicated navigation program. In fact, many, if not most, iPhone owners do. The fact that Apple includes Maps as the default navigation app when setting up a new iPhone likely contributes to that, but there are other reasons you may enjoy Apple Maps over Google Maps: Maybe you prefer Apple's map aesthetic to Google's, or its overall UI choices. Maybe you like Apple Maps' integration with iOS, so you can ask Siri for directions, share your ETA via iMessage, or pick up your maps planning on other Apple devices.

There are plenty of features, big and small, that might make you team Apple Maps. But, functionally, both apps are pretty similar these days: They'll both highlight the best routes with similar ETAs, offer public transit and biking routes, allow you to report hazards on your route, etc. Which you use really comes down to personal preference, likely fueled by habit (maybe you've always used Google Maps over Apple Maps) or by exclusive features on one platform.

...but not on the web

For me, that's why I cannot see myself ever choosing to use Apple Maps on the web, even if/when it resembles the main app. I'll occasionally choose to use it on my iPhone: I tend to bounce between Apple Maps and Google Maps (sometimes Waze), just to keep up with any new features among them. But when it comes to using maps on the web, it's Google Maps every time, for two specific reasons: First, Street View. Look Around is definitely expanding, but Apple simply hasn't mapped the entire world multiple times over like Google has. Street View is both helpful and entertaining, and roughly 50% of the reason I open the web app.

My second reason concerns user reviews. I simply prefer Google's reviews over Yelp, which is what Apple Maps sticks with. Look, I know Apple can't use Google reviews in its app, but Yelp? Where clicking the review takes me to another website or app entirely? No thanks: If I'm doing research for a dinner reservation or a destination on my computer, it's going to be Google Maps.

I imagine it'll be the same for many people using a maps app in a web browser: If you're on your iPad, sure, you can use Safari or Chrome to open Maps. But you might use Google Maps, or you might use the Maps app built into your iPad. Same goes for if you're on your Mac. But I'd be very curious by how many PC users end up using Apple Maps' web app on Chrome or Edge. I can't imagine it will ever be a large number.

Now, if Apple does end up covering most of the globe with Look Around, and rolls out a review system that can match Google Maps, then we'll talk. Until then, it's Google Maps on the web for me, and whatever I'm feeling like on my iPhone.