Google also sustains accurate and up-to-date walking, public transit, and bicycling directions, including bike lanes and bike-friendly roads. Users can contribute to Google Maps by adding new and missing roads, uploading photos, and writing reviews of local businesses. It's got spoken-street-name directions, street view images, real-time traffic detection and avoidance, among other features.

In combination with Google's massive database of businesses and points-of-interest, Google Maps augments the standard GPS app with all the perks of a search engine. With a large fleet of vehicles, backpacks, and specialized GPS cameras and devices, Google is constantly verifying and updating the 'ground truth' of its mapping app. You can now even pay for parking with the Google Maps app by tapping Pay for Parking next to your destination. The company still maintains a massive and costly project to keep the service accurate and up-to-date. Google pioneered the free GPS navigation category with Google Maps.

May consume lots of data and battery power. Can be glitchy when integrating with iPhone contacts.

Download waze directions