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Navigation apps may use your device’s live location to calculate routes, report traffic and update your estimated arrival time. That is different from saving a trip history, retaining recent destinations, using route patterns to personalize suggestions or showing your position to other users. To limit collection, adjust both your device’s location permission and the app’s own history and privacy controls; changing one does not necessarily change the other.
What location data can a navigation app collect?
The exact data and retention depend on the app and the settings you use. Official disclosures describe several distinct kinds of information:
- Live location and route: where the device is while navigating and the route it takes, used for directions, traffic and arrival estimates.
- Saved trips and destinations: places visited or navigated to, route history and recent locations. These may be stored in an account or in the app.
- Searches and app interactions: queries, places checked for an ETA and other activity related to Maps use. These may have controls separate from trip history.
- Patterns and preferences: frequently used routes, home or work locations, favorites and other details used to tailor suggestions.
- Technical and visibility information: depending on the service, device identifiers, IP address, app usage or a public map profile.
These categories are not interchangeable. Turning off a saved-history feature does not necessarily stop the app from processing live location while it provides navigation. Hiding a location from other users is not the same as stopping the service from receiving it.
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Google Maps
Google describes Timeline as an account feature that creates a personal map of places, routes and trips. Google says Timeline is off by default and requires opt-in. You can turn it off or delete some or all of its data. If you leave it on, it follows your auto-delete setting or remains until you delete it. Google also says it identifies some particularly personal places and deletes those visits from Timeline soon after identification. That commitment is about Timeline: Google notes that other settings may still save Maps-related searches, interactions or photos. Review Timeline and other account activity controls separately. Google Maps Timeline settings
#1 Best Overall
- Bright, high-resolution 5” glass capacitive touchscreen display lets you easily view your route
- Get more situational awareness with alerts for school zones, speed changes, sharp curves and more
- View food, fuel and rest areas along your active route, and see upcoming cities and milestones
- View Tripadvisor traveler ratings for top-rated restaurants, hotels and attractions to help you make the most of road trips
- Directory of U.S. national parks simplifies navigation to entrances, visitor centers and landmarks within the parks
Apple Maps
Apple says it does not collect personal data associated with Maps usage. It says precise locations are converted to less exact locations within 24 hours and that, during navigation, precise locations from the beginning of a route are converted to a less exact area. Apple describes routing, traffic and nearby points-of-interest information as being used anonymously and in aggregate to improve Maps. These are Apple’s descriptions of its practices.
Optional features create different data flows. If you enable Visited Places, Maps can access recently visited places; Apple says those places are end-to-end encrypted so Apple cannot read them, and you can choose how long Maps stores them. Preferred Routes & Predicted Destinations uses frequently taken routes and may send preferred or upcoming routes to Apple for route search, widgets and departure suggestions. Apple Maps privacy information
Rank #2
- 6” high-resolution navigator includes map updates of North America
- Hands-free calling when paired with your compatible smartphone with BLUETOOTH technology and convenient Garmin voice assist lets you ask for directions to places you want to go
- Road trip–ready features include the HISTORY database of notable sites, a U.S. national parks directory, Tripadvisor traveler ratings and millions of Foursquare POIs
- Driver alerts for things such as school zones, sharp curves and speed changes help encourage safer driving and increase situational awareness
- Access live traffic, fuel prices, parking, weather and smart notifications when you pair this navigator with your compatible smartphone running the Garmin Drive app
Apple also describes a separate crowd-sourced Location Services database. Devices with Location Services enabled periodically send geo-tagged nearby Wi-Fi hotspot and cell-tower locations to Apple. While in transit, GPS-enabled iPhone and iPad devices periodically send GPS location, travel speed and direction, and barometric pressure to help build traffic, roadway, pedestrian-walkway and atmospheric-correction databases. Apple says this data is encrypted and does not personally identify the user. This is a description of Apple’s Location Services database collection, not simply an account trip-history feature. Apple Location Services and Privacy
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Rank #3
- Explore confidently with the reliable handheld GPS
- 2.2” sunlight-readable color display with 240 x 320 display pixels for improved readability
- Preloaded with Topo Active maps with routable roads and trails for cycling and hiking
- Support for GPS and GLONASS satellite systems allows for tracking in more challenging environments than GPS alone
- 8 GB of internal memory for map downloads plus a micro SD card slot
Waze
Waze says it may collect device location as well as usage information, device identifiers, IP address and app interactions. Its policy describes using location, route information and search-query history to provide navigation, choose routes, deliver traffic alerts and nearby-place information, improve mapping and navigation, and personalize the experience using home, work, favorites or route history. Waze Privacy Policy
Invisible Mode is not a collection opt-out. Waze says the mode hides your location on the map from other users, while Waze continues to collect your location and route information for purposes described in its policy.
Rank #4
- 8” navigator with high-resolution, dual-orientation display and map updates of North America .Special Feature:Large Display; Voice Assist; Hands-Free Calling; Live Traffic and Weather; Traffic Cams and Parking; Smart Notifications,Driver Alerts; Tripadvisor; National Parks Directory; Find Places by Name; Garmin Real Directions Feature.
- Hands-free calling when paired with your compatible smartphone with BLUETOOTH technology and convenient Garmin voice assist lets you ask for directions to places you want to go
- Road trip–ready features include the HISTORY database of notable sites, a U.S. national parks directory, Tripadvisor traveler ratings and millions of Foursquare POIs
- Driver alerts for things such as school zones, sharp curves and speed changes help encourage safer driving and increase situational awareness
- Access live traffic, fuel prices, weather, parking and smart notifications when you pair this navigator with your compatible smartphone running the Garmin Drive app
How to limit collection without losing more navigation than necessary
Choose the control that matches your goal. Device permissions limit an app’s access to location; app history controls address saved records; visibility settings affect what other people can see.
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1. Set the device’s location permission
On iPhone or iPad, open Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services, then select the navigation app to review its access. Apple supports Allow Once on iOS 13 or later and iPadOS 13 or later; permission can be changed later. Turning off Location Services prevents apps from using that service in the foreground or background, but can limit navigation and other features. Menu labels can vary by release. Apple: About privacy and Location Services
Best Value
- Bright, high-resolution 5” glass capacitive touchscreen display lets you easily view your route
- Get more situational awareness with alerts for school zones, speed changes, sharp curves and more
- View food, fuel and rest areas along your active route, and see upcoming cities and milestones
- View Tripadvisor traveler ratings for top-rated restaurants, hotels and attractions to help you make the most of road trips
- Directory of U.S. national parks simplifies navigation to entrances, visitor centers and landmarks within the parks
On Android, review the app’s location permission in your device’s system settings. The precise path and available choices depend on the Android version and device maker; use the app-permission controls rather than assuming that deleting history changes location access.
2. Reduce precision or background access where available
For Apple Maps on iOS, iPadOS or visionOS, Apple lists Settings > Apps > Maps > Location for turning off Precise Location. Less precise access may be sufficient for some uses, but turning off location-based functionality removes features such as turn-by-turn navigation. For Waze, review whether the app can access location when it is not in use in your device settings. Waze says background access may support planned-drive reminders, traffic updates and parking assistance. Apple Maps privacy information · Waze privacy controls
3. Review each app’s stored history and personalization
- Google Maps: review Timeline separately from other account activity controls. Turning Timeline off does not establish that every Maps-related search, interaction or photo is no longer saved.
- Apple Maps: decide whether to use Visited Places, select its retention period if enabled, and review Preferred Routes & Predicted Destinations.
- Waze: its controls cover ad personalization, map visibility, navigation history, recent locations and account deletion. Navigation history includes places navigated to or checked for an ETA; recent locations can be removed. Waze says account deletion removes saved places and navigation history, but contributed map edits and statistical drive data are not removed; they cease to be linked to the account. Google Maps Timeline settings · Apple Maps privacy information · Waze Privacy Policy · Waze privacy controls
4. Match the setting to the privacy goal
| Goal | Control to use | What it does not necessarily do |
|---|---|---|
| Reduce an app’s access to device location | Change the app’s Location Services or location permission in device settings. | It does not necessarily erase previously saved trips or account activity. |
| Remove saved trips or destinations | Use that service’s history, recent-location or account-deletion controls. | It does not necessarily stop live location processing when you navigate. |
| Keep your position off other users’ maps | Use a public-visibility control such as Waze Invisible Mode. | It does not stop Waze from collecting location and route information under its policy. |
What changes when you restrict location access?
More restrictive permissions can reduce an app’s ability to locate you, especially in the background, but may also impair features. Apple says disabling location-based functionality for Maps removes features such as turn-by-turn navigation. Waze’s description of background location explains why planned-drive reminders, traffic updates or parking assistance may be affected if background access is removed. If you still need directions, consider granting location only while using the app or reducing precision where your device offers those choices, then check which features remain available.
How to interpret privacy claims
App disclosures describe different systems and are not directly comparable measures of how much location data each service collects. Apple’s statements about aggregation, encryption and identifiers are Apple’s descriptions of its practices; Google’s Timeline controls concern a particular account history; and Waze distinguishes public map visibility from its own collection. The available disclosures do not establish a consistent independent test or a universal “most private” ranking. Compare the data flow and the control you need—live access, saved history, personalization or public visibility—rather than treating one setting as a complete privacy switch.
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