When it comes to digital maps there are plenty of options, such as Google Maps, Mappls MapMyIndia Maps, HERE Maps, Apple Maps, and the list goes on. However, some of these have limited features, not all of them have Public APIs for developers / third-party integration, and some of them have low coverage.
Out of these options, we will focus on only two navigation platforms, targeting specifically for Indian territory: Google Maps and Mappls - A swadeshi app developed by Indian couple Rakesh and Rashmi Verma.
We will compare these apps from both perspectives, whether you are an end-user looking for a better navigation app within India or a developer looking to integrate the navigation suite into your application.
Google Maps VS Mappls
Mappls and Google Maps are the most popular and feature-rich navigation platforms. While both apps offer similar features such as turn-by-turn navigation, voice commands, voice assistance, street view, 360-degree view or 3d view, photos, reviews, etc, there are some major differences as well, we will cover these differences one by one.
Although both apps share many common features, Mappls has surely its advantages over Google Maps. As Mappls is specifically tailored for India and surrounding regions, it is focusing on India primarily, so we can expect it to have a greater accuracy and in-depth knowledge of India and surrounding regions.
Even for some Government-related activities, Mappls was always the first choice. Mappls has dedicated support for events such as the G20 Summit, Fit India, Swachh Bharat, UP International Trade Show, Moto GP Racing event, and many more. Surely this proves the point that Mappls is made for India, and the continuous development to incorporate these changes makes Mappls a better choice.
History
Google Maps was launched in 2005, 18 years ago, whereas Mappls is a swadeshi app, developed by MapMyIndia in 1995, nearly 28 years ago. Both of these apps have a huge user base and growing rapidly.
Coverage
Coverage area is one of the important points. Mappls by MapMyIndia as the name suggests has maps of India and surrounding regions, while Google Maps has more comprehensive coverage of the entire world.
Both the maps provide good coverage, but when it comes to rural areas, Google Maps takes first place, it provides good coverage and detailed maps of rural areas, whereas Mappls shows only blanks for the same area.
Also, there are a few incidents where some roads exist in reality but don't show on the Mappls app so need to take a longer route, although these cases are rare and continuous improvement is going on.
Accuracy
While comparing these navigation systems, it's crucial to consider the location accuracy, Google Maps specifies the location accuracy up to around 20 meters, however, there is no mention of location accuracy for Mappls.
Workmate, another app by MapMyIndia has similar functions and has a location accuracy of 20 meters, so we can infer the same level of accuracy for Mappls (as searching 'location accuracy' on Mappls takes to this page).
However, there are certain areas where Mappls outperforms, especially in cities, Mappls shows very precise details, even the house numbers. In contrast, Google Maps shows comparatively fewer details, meaning that if you're primarily using maps for navigation within India, MapMyIndia can be a far better option.
Mappls provides you Mappls pin, which is your digital address for precisely pointing to a particular location, Google Maps also offers the same thing called plus codes, they work similarly to street addresses.
Navigation Features
Both applications have excellent navigation features such as real-time traffic updates, alternate routes, voice-guided directions, 3D maps, and road conditions. But when it comes to Mappls, it even shows the speed breakers, weather, Air Quality Index (AQI), speed limits, potholes, water logging, junction view/flyovers, estimated fuel and EV Charging costs, 3D metaverse and real-view imagery, these features make the navigation a lot easier.
Moreover, Mappls comes with support for additional hardware as well, these are called Mappls gadgets. This includes Smart Helmets, Vehicle dash cameras, Advanced plug-and-play Trackers, in-dash navitainment systems, and many more.
Local Knowledge
In February 2021, Mappls partnered with ISRO to offer India’s best, and entirely indigenous, mapping system and geospatial services. By combining the power of MapmyIndia’s digital mapping technologies with ISRO’s catalog of satellite imagery and earth observation data. the end user would benefit from ISRO’s huge catalog of satellite imagery and earth observation data.
Consequently, the apps and services would be a much better, more detailed, and comprehensive, as well as privacy-centric, hyper-local local and indigenous mapping solution tailored for Indian users.
While both the apps share great similarities in these criteria, as discussed earlier, Mappls shows exceptional details of a city locality, up to house no. Recently, at the time of Independence Day, Mappls started ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ & ‘Meri Maati Mera Desh’ where the houses were marked with an Indian flag if there was a flag on the house physically.
Moreover, for some official events happening in India, Mappls is the first place where authentic information is provided, such as G20 summits detailed information is available on Mappls.
G20 summit
G20 summit-related options
G20 summit-related options
To improve the local knowledge and add/verify area-specific details, both of these have provisions for the same, Google Maps calls it a local guide and Mappls has local leaders. These people verify the details of places, incidents, and events happening in that particular area.
Mappls app is suggested for use by government bodies as well, see the tweet from CEO Rohan Verma. This underlines the platform's reliability and utility in official contexts.
Privacy and Data Security
If you have concerns about data privacy, rest assured that both maps offer incognito mode for web usage. In the case of mobile applications, you can use certain map features without the need to log in, ensuring your privacy.
However, it's worth noting that Mappls goes a step further by exclusively storing all data on Indian servers. This approach ensures that your data remains within our country, enhancing data privacy and security.
Developer’s Perspective and Third-Party Integration
Let's discuss which navigation suite provides the better developer experience, along with the features, prices, cost, and support.
Google Maps has gained popularity in the market as well as the developer community, many apps use Google Maps services for their operation, but on the other hand, Mappls is being used by various automobile brands, government organizations, financial institutions, etc.
Apps using Google Maps
- Uber: Uber uses Google map to show driver location, select pick-up and drop-off locations, provide directions, and display the traffic conditions
- OLA: Similar to Uber, OLA uses Google Maps for selecting pickup, and drop-off locations and for navigation purposes
- Zomato: Zomato uses Google Maps for navigation, route optimizations, and estimating ETA for delivery partners
- OYO Rooms: OYO uses Google Maps to point the hotels on maps
- Practo: Practo also uses Google Maps to show doctors, clinics laboratories, and hospitals on the map
- Paytm, Flipkart, and many other apps use Google Maps
Apps using Mappls by MapMyIndia
Mappls is growing in India rapidly, there are so many companies and brands using Mappls for various purposes.
- PhonePe: PhonePe uses Mappls to show addresses/locations of nearby stores
- Amazon Alexa: Alexa uses Mappls to assist users with queries related to navigation
- PayTM: Paytm uses Mappls’
Reverse GeoCoding APIto set delivery locations - MG Motors: MG Motors has Mappls Maps installed in their infotainment system for Navigation, offline maps are also preloaded
- MacDonalds: Similar to Paytm, MacDonald’s also uses
Reverse Geocode APIfor pinpoint delivery location - Bajaj Auto: Bajaj Uses Mappls Maps for locating nearby EV stations, storing trip histories
- ULIP: The government of India’s Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP) uses Mappls
Cost and Pricing
Google Maps offers 28,500 map loads every month for free, after that there are charges per API usage, for more info see Google Maps Pricing
Updates and Support
For Google Maps, there are 65,905 questions tagged on Stackoverflow, and for Mappls there are only 39 questions at the time of writing this article. So, developer community support for Mappls is very low.
Although both the maps provide various SDKs, Google Maps has JavaScript APIs even with TypeScript support but on the other hand, Mappls has only a CDN and not even an NPM package, typescript support is far away.
Comparision
| Feature | Google Maps | Mappls ( MapMyIndia) |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage | Google Maps is available in over 256 countries worldwide countries | Mappls is available for 231 countries & territories across the world. |
| Location Accuracy | Generally more accurate, especially outside of India | Better in india, somewhat les accurate outside india |
| Features | real-time traffic updates, alternate routes, voice-guided directions, 360-degree view or 3d view, photos, reviews, street-view, plus codes for address | real-time traffic updates, alternate routes, voice-guided directions, 3D maps, road conditions, speed breakers, weather, Air Quality Index (AQI), speed limits, potholes, water logging, junction view/flyovers, estimated fuel/Charging costs, 3D metaverse, real-view imagery, NAVIC support, Mappls ID |
| Offline Usage | Yes | Yes |
| API Prices | Google Maps offers 28,500 map loads every month for free, after that there are charges per API usage | Freemium, usually costs around 30% lesser than other competitors |
TL;DR
Thanks for reading this Article! Here is a quick recap of Mappls MapMyIdia.
Conclusion
Google Maps and Mappls are very good options for navigation suites for end users as well as developers for integrating these services/APIs into their apps. However, Mappls is a Swadeshi app and is growing rapidly, so looking at all the pros and cons, I would say, that Mappls is better than Google Maps for Indian users, Mappls is continuously adding new features and improving the user experience.
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