Waze Vs. Google Maps: Which Is the Best Navigation App in 2023?

The debate of Google Maps vs Waze has been a long and difficult to judge. Both the applications have similar features and have the same parent company, Google. With time, both the applications are becoming quite alike. However, there is a clear demarcation between these two applications based on their features and navigation style. Determining which of two is better is not easy, and we have tried to compare them based on certain factors. Check out yourself, which one of the two wins this all-out brawl of the navigation apps. Read on.

Waze and Google Maps are both downloadable for iOS and Android mobile devices. In addition, both are compatible with the Android Auto systems. Therefore, you will be capable of utilizing either app regardless of the device you have or the vehicle you drive.

Some versions can be accessed using desktop browsers; however, these are restricted since they do not offer any form of live navigation. You can still search for directions and places and store items on your account so that you may retrieve them on your smartphone later.

Winner: Tie

Though Google owns both Waze and Google Maps, their interface is completely different. Waze GPS adopts a far more straightforward approach, with fewer features and a cartoony style, in contrast to Google Maps, which has the appearance of a more conventional apps due to its abundance of on-screen information.

While exploring locations on the map, it is easily deductible that both apps work similarly. They remove all the extraneous clutter and only display the information relevant to the user. This includes your symbol, the location where you should be headed, and extra information such as speed restrictions and roadblocks along your way.

Waze tops this category as it only displays the important content required for your journey. Everything is stacked in order, whether you are actively getting directions or simply glancing at the map. The usage for these two apps depends on the interface - it will be easy for you to pick one under this category.

Winner: Waze

In addition to navigation, the Map design is one of the most important aspects of Waze and Google map comparison. Both Google Maps and Waze offer various other services that, when combined with GPS, can significantly enhance the quality of the driving time. Both applications can display the local speed limit, ensuring that you are always aware of the correct rate of travel that should always be followed.

Waze also allows users to report the locations of local speed traps, allowing you to ensure that you are driving below the legal speed limit while nearing one such trap. On the other hand, if you are seeking places in your immediate area, Google Maps is your go-to app.

Google’s expansive database makes it simpler to find your preferred outlets/businesses around you. It also includes reviews and images of the preferred location. To receive tailored recommendations, you’ll have to register/sign in. Using Google’s street view function, you can check your desired location beforehand to avoid unwanted confusion.

However, Waze is better for getting current market prices of goods. For example,

Waze incorporates data on the current price of gasoline as mentioned by the users; you may be able to save money the next time you need to fill up your tank if you utilize the app.

Winner: Waze

Is Google map better than Waze when it comes to navigation ability, Well, we will answer this question here.

Google Maps is your go-to app for navigation. You give it a destination, and it will figure out how to get you there. You may drive, walk, ride a bike, or take a bus, and Google Street view can help you figure out which route is best for you. Google may even warn you of potential hazards along the route, such as heavy traffic or construction, and provide you with an alternate route.

But on the other hand, Waze was developed only for cars and motorcycle drivers. Waze monitors the road ahead to determine to get to your destination as quickly as possible.

But in the past year, Google Maps has altered the method of calculating the routes. The service will now consider various criteria, such as the current traffic and the number of traffic lights, to make the planned route safer and more environmentally friendly. You will save money on gasoline and reduce the risk of getting into an accident if you follow the route provided by Google Maps.

Winner: Waze

Waze vs. Google maps traffic is another aspect of comparing the two apps.

Waze is active in directing the user around obstacles that other users have reported. You could find yourself traveling into strange winding paths to shave a few seconds off your predicted time of arrival (ETA). The level of dedication displayed by the users is unavoidably worthy of praise.

While both Google Maps and Waze allow users to report hazards as they come across them, there is no assurance that the information will be correct, specifically when you use Google Maps. On the other hand, Waze guarantees that the information will be accurate.

For instance, the part of the motorway that a user takes into London is fully lined with speed cameras. The speed limit has been set to monitor compliance with the tight speed limit of fifty miles per hour and to guarantee at least one camera positioned per mile. Waze notifies the user with a pop-up message anytime they get close to one of those cameras while driving by displaying a basic image for most cameras and showing it to them.

Winner: Waze

When it detects a quicker route around obstructions, Waze will reroute you as the driver. However, you will not have this privilege if you take public transportation. Therefore, it will be necessary for you to use Google Maps.

Conversely, Google Maps provides much information on public transportation. To begin with, it provides complete schedules and maps for public transportation services worldwide and can include these elements into its guidance without any reluctance. Additionally, it provides real-time alerts on potential delays and other difficulties that may arise throughout your travel.

Winner: Google Maps

Both applications have several characteristics designed to assist users in locating significant sites and businesses in their immediate surroundings. These applications provide you with the required information and several buttons for different functions. You can quickly locate your desired destination, be it a service station, supermarket, or restaurant.

Google Maps has several in-built features. Waze, on the other hand, keeps things straightforward.

Winner: Google Maps

Another aspect of the Waze versus Google maps debate is data usage. When Waze vs. Google maps data usage comes into question, the former uses 1MB per hour while the latter consumes 2 MB. So, if you want to use a app which consumes less data, then Waze is the right choice for you.

Winner: Waze

When hands-free control is one of the aspects of the Waze app vs. Google maps debate, you must know both provide similar hand-free navigation features. You can tap the on-screen microphone whenever you wish to issue a command or rely on Google Assistant's "Hey Google" function to act on your behalf.

If you are using Android, accomplishing this task is simple because Google Assistant comes pre-installed on all Android devices. iPhone users are needed to perform certain additional steps. Siri will send orders to either app, but if you do not indicate which app you want it to use, it will default to Apple Maps. Therefore, instead of just asking for "directions for home," you should ask for "directions for home using Waze."

You also can download Google Assistant for iOS, which will handle everything for you and can be activated by tapping the microphone displayed on the screen. One can use an assistant to go to new destinations, change your current route, check what is up ahead, what the traffic is like, and so on. Even reporting traffic incidents, traffic, and other problems you stumble across on your journey may be done with voice commands.

The difference between Google maps and Waze is not so much when hands-free control is one of the aspects for comparison. However, Google Maps is a bit better than Waze.

Winner: Google Maps