10+ Best iPhone GPS Apps for Car Drivers
77iPhone GPS apps managed to quickly replace one trick pony personal navigation devices. People still buy PNDs but that market does not have as much juice as it did years ago. In fact, many players in this industry shifted their focus to smartphone applications years ago. Garmin and TomTom are just a couple of top companies that develop and update GPS apps for iOS and Android.
Most high-end smartphone owners expect their phones to offer maps and turn-by-turn directions. Many of them rely on free solutions by companies such as Google to find their way around. There are plenty of premium solutions available for iPhone as well. Some of those offer helpful features such as free map updates, live traffic, lane assistance, and more. Clear instructions, safety features, route planning, voice commands, and local information are some of the features consumers expect to get from their favorite GPS app. If you are planning to use your smartphone or tablet to get around your city, you do not want to miss these 10+ iPhone GPS applications:
1. Sygic: this GPS app brings voice guided navigation and free map updates to your phone. It offers lane guidance, junction view, live traffic, parking suggestion, speed limit warnings, route sharing, and a whole host of other useful features. It comes with maps from TomTom and other providers. It can project directions on your car’s windshield.
2. Waze: Waze is a social navigation app for iPhone. It provides you with community generated real-time traffic and road alerts. It learns from you and can even change your route as conditions on the road change. Facebook integration, live maps, and cheap gas finder features are available.
3. Google Maps: Google Maps knows how to get you to your destination. The app offers voice guided, turn-by-turn driving directions. You can view 360 degree panoramas of places around the globe and find businesses all around you using Google Local Search. If you are tired of Apple Maps, Google Maps may be worth checking out.
4. Garmin: Garmin USA included offline maps, turn by turn directions (voice prompted), 3D landmarks, lane assist feature, and speed limit alerts (the app has already been removed from the App Store). With Garmin Smartphone Link and Garmin Drive, you can connect your smart Garmin device to your phone to enjoy live traffic, parking, and traffic camera updates. Alternatively, you can use Garmin Speak with Alexa to ask for turn-by-turn directions via voice.
5. MotionX GPS Drive: MotionX GPS Drive has been consistently one of the best apps in this category. It has a great reputation. It offers up-to-date maps and predictive traffic-based routing. Multi-stop routing is supported too. Gives you a lot of value for your money.
6. Scout GPS: Scout provides you with personalized navigation on your smartphone. You get voice-guided, turn by turn navigation with cheap gas finder, traffic data, and recent trips tracking. You can share your ETA with your friends and colleagues from this app.
7. CoPilot: CoPilot is a navigation application that works on all iPhones and the latest iPads. It offers offline maps with free updates. Live traffic service is included (for 12 months). This app is integrated with Wikipedia, Yelp, and Google Local Search to offer you the best local information possible. Plenty of powerful paid add-ons are included for it as well.
8. MapQuest: MapQuest does not need any introduction. It’s a free navigation solution that provides you with directions and speaks them to you on the road. Find Me and Auto-Reroute features are nice to have. You get road information every 5 minutes. Another decent free option for iPhone users.
9. GPS Navigation 2 – skobbler: Skobbler is a hybrid online/offline application with on-demand maps. It is powered by OpenStreetMap. It is pretty affordable.
10. Easy GPS: a GPS app for navigation and outdoors. It measures your position, height and acceleration and provides you with Google Maps, Open Street Map, Waypoints, and other premium add-ons.
11. Round: a community-based app that helps you discover new driving and walking routes near you. It lets you save routes for later.
Who needs a one trick pony PND when you can use the above applications to find your way to your destination fast? If you are looking for apps that go beyond in-car navigation, you should check these out:
- Avoid traffic with these apps
- ETA Sharing
- Apps for golfers
- Navigation apps for outdoors
- Sports GPS
- Augmented reality navigation
Your turn: have you found better apps? Please share your favorite iPhone GPS apps here.
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BindoGPS is cool. You can track the location of your friends live on the iPhone.
Roadee is cool
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gokivo GPS IS BEST!!!!
$4.99 monthly
+pro
+live traffic
+voice text to speak
+Navigator turn by turn
+HUGE LIVE SEARCH RESTAURANT, business, etc… powered by yahoo
+NICE ARROW PICTURES on MAP
+SMOOTH MOVING GPS than on regular iphone gps map
+AWESOME MUSIC VOLUME TURN OFF when voice want to say about turn
+IF accident or slow traffic, they can ask you if u want reroute
+3 different reroute = fastest, shortest, simple
+if you missed a turn, it will automatic to make new route!
+tiny 20mb filesize. most of other gps install +1gb filesize
save alot of file space.
CON
– no landscape (maybe update free future)
– wow… i cant think of anything else about negative.. hmm i guess that is all for con. I LOVE gokivo app.
I always thought the built-in Maps function would be all one needed on the iPhone for navigation. Until I tried Motion-X that is. For .99 (and $20/yr for voice and auto-nav), my iPhone has now earned a place where my old GPS would be mounted. And I can listen to my music and take calls, all with one device.
The iPhone becomes more and more the one universal device, replacing phone, computer, portable gaming, ipod and now GPS.
Does this app work over bluetooth? Can you still hear directions and take calls in your car?
Thank you Robert….this is exactly what I was looking for.
I'm a truck driver and I have just the standard 3g iPhone. I'm trying to find a gps app that is for truckers. If there is one. I'm not concerned with a monthly cost I just need one that will telle about low overpasses and restricted routs. I know they have the regular gps for truckers. But I'm really hoping I can find one for my iPhone If anyone knows of a good one please let me know at. lilman_tn@yahoo.com. Thanks everyone
I found a very nice application called Navigart or something like this. I think it has a free version too. It is really cool and it has most of the features those costly applications have.
Here’s something that struck me at once: these are all apps for “navigating” on land, particularly in a car, following a road. Is the world even aware that GPS is also used by sailors to navigate (in a very real way) across water?
Yes. Robin. You are talking about Marine apps, correct? I have tested some of those.
Navionics has an marine chart app.
Is there a iphone app that can help me find where I parked my car?
G-Park
yes it called "
Parking"
I would love that app.
There is also one called "Take Me To My Car".
You could just use the "drop pin" feature in the Maps app. That's all I need.
don't be a dick, man. valid question deserves valid answer.
I made the stupid mistake of buying copilot. What a piece of junk. It is extremely slow, the maps are inaccurate. It indicates turns about 10 seconds after you pass them. I've contacted tech support numerous times, and they have never responded. I tried it on an iphone 3gs 32gb. It isn't even worth $.99 download.
did you contact them here: http://www.twitter.com/copilotsupport. It is not the best, and it needs a lot of work. I can tell you that when I tested it, and this was a while ago, the app performed fine in Philadelphia.
Also contact them here: http://www.alk.eu.com/support/copilot-support/que…
How many of these are stand-alone apps? ie all maps stored on the phone itself.
I want to be able to navigate even when cell reception is not available.
iphone GPS is VERY useable. While not quite as good as a dedicated GPS unit, and even though it drains power, obviously no-one wants to always carry a pocketful of gadgets “just in case” they might get lost or need directions.
GPS kit works when your cell phone reception is off, all you have to do is save the map before leaving the network. Check it out! http://gpskit.garafa.com/ls.php?d=g&s=nate
i cant find the mapquest on itunes. does anyone here know wt went wrong?
Janice. I just clicked on the link and it goes to mapquest's page on iTunes. Are you looking for a different app?
+1 re zeddy's question – wondering how to figure out which GPS apps minimize phone network use? thanks!
anybody know a good gps ap where i can track my kids location without them knowing i am spying on them?
Well when I was in Japan in 2003, they had already had video calling home and mobile phones without wifi. I like the iPhone but I think apple is holding back on technology to make money.
Japanese system is much advanced because they already have infrastructure to do so… We do not have the proper networking system with high speed fiber optic lines to do what the Japanese are doing. Apple is not holding it back… it is the telephone companies holding us back with their outdated networks.
Thanks
Just discovered that the iTouch has access to location services when connected to a clearspot+ wifi hotspot, so, google maps works. Assuming the above work using location services, they should work with an itouch + clearspot.
Beverly Howard
Please can anyone advise which GPS is most suitable for iphone 3gs ? i need to use it in Bahrain.
I'm just curious… I am a real estate agent, and would like to know if any of these apps would track my mileage, or show my travels in one day? I would love to hear your comments and suggestions!
Doreen, I ran across this link today while searching free GPSs. The first one, "Automilez" sounds like what you're looking for: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/9-iphone-gps-apps-case-lost
There is a great app "GPS kit" which I have used while driving and it's great! It should have all the features you're looking for. Check it out! http://gpskit.garafa.com/ls.php?d=g&s=nate
i KNOW it's #10 but mapquest, is amazing!!!!!!!!
any pointers to a navigation app for india ???
I have been using skobbler at the side of my tom-tom and it’s never failed, and it’s free. Only draw back is no live facility. I work on mobile phone towers so I travel all over the place all the time, I have all the mobile phone pushpins on a sd card on my tomtom can’t put these on iPhone whichever app I use, so this is also a drawback of all iPhone navigation apps
I believe “Motion X GPS Drive” allows you to put drop pins in. You can’t import them, but you might be able to drop one and save it, label it, so you can recall it later.
I’ve used it for over a year and I think it’s the best Nav app for the iPhone. They also support it well.
what are "mobile phone pushpins"?
Would really appreciate if anyone could suggest a kickass navigation app for India. Thanks!
Problems with Copilot on Iphone. I purchased it through Itunes App store — had bugs, after several iterations, i was advised by the vendor (ALK) that " the navigation to contact does not fully work on iPhone as this feature has been implemented with Windows Mobile/Android device in mind." Itunes refunded my purchase prices.
Navionics makes the Sailors GPS version… go to their webpage.
$59 for an app, took my breath away, i use google maps on my droid with navagator beta, all free and it just took me halfway across the country without a single problem, voice navagation, eta was dead on. My dad was so impressed w all the use i got out of my droid apps on the trip he wanted a droid, but i thought he might be more confortable with the iphone, but if apps are this expensive then the iphone is unaffordable choice for him.
I love my Droid navigation. It is FREE! It talks to me. I don’t have to look at it. It blows all my iPhone friends away! This is the single reason I have not switched to the iPhone.
Er, Mostly, why not use one of the free ones then? I use the Mapquest gps app all the time, does voice nav too.
…never tried Garmin, but I like the Magellan GPS (stand alone) better than the Tom Tom. Mobile X for the iPhone kinda sucks. Hard to program and tells me things are on the right when they're on the left. Also, can't get my home address right….very frustrating/
How about a GPS that works in Brazil?! Any tips?!
Hello to all, i have try iphone 3 g,and 3gs and now i have an iphone 4,but if you whant a reale phone that work when you whant a gps on a mobile phone,than for sure you have to try nokia E71+garmin Mobile Xt 2010,i think is the best way to use gps on a mobile phone;-)
El GPS del iPhone tiene mucho peligro:
http://www.segelsoft.com/2011/04/21/iphone-tracke…
I am trying to increase the volume on my iphone 3GS when I use the GPS Motion-X app. Does anyone know how to increase volume when using this app? Thanks.
You mean something like this? http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/volume-up-sound-bo… I haven’t tested it with the app you suggested though.
That's harsh James. As far as Robin, I think we have listed those apps on iPhoneness too. Marine Apps, Sports GPS apps, Golf GPS, Outdoors GPS, … 🙂
Any app that is equivalent to my tracks app available for android ?
Any app that is equivalent to my tracks app available for android
i just got the iphone 4s .. the gps doesnt talk i dont want to have to read i wanna hear anyone if u can help i would appreciate it thankkksss
I am using navigon europe…its very good!but due to a problem i had to upgrade my baseband to 06.15.00..i read that the gps in that baseband does not work correctly..what are the problems you are facing in that baseband with gps exactly??
android does all this for free. for years now……google maps. ..
I have been using Garmin standalone even before I know about smart phones ! and tried Garmin apps on my phone, and all I can say is "be careful". If you travel a lot, if drive off-road or go to really foreign areas, or you get lost easily, get yourself a real GPS device..
@Hal. Garmin is not exactly our favorite GPS app. Have you tried MotionX or Magellan apps?
What app is most like Google trun by trun for droid ??? I want a gps that works with web searches?? Thanks
I hate motion X I wish there were a cheaper alternative.
Cheaper than MotionX?
Hey guys, Please tell me how to develop GPS application for iPad on windows. I really need it, pls pls reply my comment
you mean what development tools to use?
Does mapquest 4 mobile get up to date traffic information with ETA
it is every 5 minutes from my understanding.
Try GPS toolbox
Try GPS Direction iOS app … Its free.. Just download it https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/gps-direction/id5…
great weblog with plenty of data.awaiting looking at future publish. great time.
Thank you
Don't forget to check oug Rego and Glympse that our sister site iAF has tested on YouTube. [youtube egahPuJbecY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egahPuJbecY youtube]
Google maps is the greatest one and I don’t find any other great alternative however, the point which should be kept in mind is that it depends greatly on your location.
I think it is not as easy as that. We are right now working on a comparison video for all these 10 to show how they perform but it could be different for other locations. We shall see.