Product Profile: Apple Maps
INDUSTRY
transportation
Category
mapping and directions services
products Profiled
Apple Maps
H-Score
60
ranked 10th of 18 within the transportation industry
ranked 20th of 76 overall
product descriptions
Apple Maps is a full-featured mapping and directions service, enabling search, directions, and real-time turn-by-turn directions. It offers directions for using cars, public transportation, walking, cycling and ride hailing. It includes real-time transit info throughout the U.S. and features tourism guides and 3D flyovers for major cities. Apple Maps also offers “nearby” search by different categories (e.g. “food nearby”).
product use
Apple Maps is available for use as an app for the MacOS (desktop), iOS (iPhone and iPad) and watchOS (Apple Watch) operating systems. It is also available through automobile infotainment systems that use Apple CarPlay. It is not available as a standalone website or on other operating systems such as Windows or Android. Users launch the app and can search for a type of destination (e.g. “food nearby”), or a specific destination. Once a destination has been determined, users can ask for directions, which will be offered for the users’ default transportation mode, unless the distance would suggest an alternative mode. Once a user selects a destination and a route, they can execute directions and the app will offer turn-by-turn directions though both visual and aural cues.
who’s affected
Apple Maps is primarily used by iPhone users, which are broadly representative of the US population, although the iPhone users tend to skew younger and more affluent.(1)
influence on health-related behaviors
EATING
neutral influence
Building H consumer research shows that 51% of mapping and directions app users use the apps to find a place to eat sometimes (34%), usually (10%) or always (6%),(2) so the apps influence eating to the extent that their search results lead users to healthy vs. less healthy food options.
If you search for nearby food on Apple Maps, you will get a list of restaurants and grocery stores, which you can filter by categories such as “Open Now,” “Takeout,” “Delivery.” You can search explicitly for “healthy food.” (3) It’s not clear how Apple determines which restaurants and stores are healthy.
Apple has a prominent, pre-loaded search for “fast food.” Researchers have found 70% of meals served at fast food restaurants to be of poor nutritional quality.(4) Apple Maps also offers a less prominent pre-loaded search for “Grocery Stores,” which could be a healthier option.
- Work across the industry to pursue options to rate food establishments on the basis of how healthy their menus are and then integrate these ratings into search results. Options for this integration could include using the ratings to filter search results or to raise healthier establishments higher in result lists; or displaying the ratings in the results lists.
- When presenting directions, encourage people to stop and pick up fresh food by highlighting fresh food outlets that are on their way.
PHYSICAL ACTVITY
neutral to slight positive influence
The influence of Apple Maps on physical activity stems from the degree to which its use leads to more adoption of active transportation modes -- cycling, walking, and, to a lesser degree, use of scooters and public transportation -- instead of automobile transportation.
In Building H consumer research, strong majorities of Americans say that mapping and directions apps do not lead to increases (74%) or decreases (84%) in their use of any transportation modes. However, 15% do report increased automobile use, versus only 5% who report decreased auto use.(5) The impact on usage of other transportation modes -- biking, walking, scooters and public transit -- was reported as neutral.
Apple Maps allows users to select (in app’s settings) their preferred travel mode -- driving, walking, transit and cycling. Driving appears to be the initial default setting, but Maps will prompt a user to change the default if it recognizes a pattern of mode preference.(6)
Apple Maps facilitates the use of automobiles by excelling at driving directions. It offers smooth experiences for both route planning and then driving, through turn-by-turn navigation. It also eases parking stress through a partnership with SpotHero to identify and reserve parking spaces.(7)
To facilitate walking, Apple offers augmented reality (AR) turn-by-turn directions, in which users can point their phone in front of them and have directions superimposed on the screen. Apple has also added details such as crosswalks to their maps. Apple enables users, in settings, to express preferences for avoiding hills, busy roads and stairs.
Apple also offers cycling directions and enables users to express preferences for avoiding hills and busy roads. It also offers voice guidance and haptic feedback on the Apple Watch to enable real-time, turn-by-turn directions that don’t require looking at a map.
Apple Maps provides transit directions and facilitates the transit experience by including real-time updates on departures times from each station and prompts to disembark when you are arriving at your stop. You can also easily search for nearby public transit stations and pin your favorite routes for easy schedule access. Apple Pay, although it can be used independently of Apple Maps, facilitates public transit use by enabling contactless, easy payments for access to subway systems in six US cities.(8)
- Use defaults and recommended travel modes to shift social/behavioral norms toward greater use of active transportation modes, e.g. walking, biking, for trips of short distances (subject to weather conditions, individual abilities and other factors).
- Continue to improve the walking, bicycling, scootering and public transit user experiences.
- Offer experiential options such as “scenic route,” “nature route” or “social route” for walking and biking directions, as alternatives to the fastest routes.
Sleeping
neutral influence
Apple Maps has no obvious direct effects on sleeping, although to the extent that it influences physical activity and time spent outdoors, it could indirectly influence sleep as both of those behaviors are positively correlated with better sleep.
- Integrate neighborhood nighttime noise level information into maps.
Engaging Socially
slight positive influence
To the extent that Maps facilitates people leaving their homes by making it easier to get to places, it could lead to casual social interactions.
Apple offers nearly 1,000 curated “Guides” that offer suggestions for places to eat, meet friends, and explore in many cities. These guides could encourage people to get out of their homes and be social.(9)
- Create “social route” option (see above) that would increase casual social interactions among walkers and spontaneous drop-ins with friends.
- Social routes could be constructed from, for example, users’ contacts’ addresses or locations of popular gathering spots.
- Experiment with offering opportunities to provide feedback on public transportation rides, e.g. by rating experiences or reporting harassment or safety concerns.
- Experiment with offering opportunities to provide feedback on safety of walking and biking routes.
Getting Outdoors
slight to moderate positive influence
One could argue that mapping services by their very nature facilitate the action of leaving one’s home and going outside (with the significant exception of door-to-door car trips from one indoor experience to another).
All of the features that facilitate walking, biking, and (to a lesser extent) public transit facilitate spending more time outdoors.
Apple Maps has pre-loaded searches for nearby walking and hiking trails, nearby parks, and biking trails, It has recently enhanced its trails offering to include more detail, such as time, difficulty and elevation.(10)
Apple’s Guides could encourage people to get out of their homes and get outdoors.
- Pursue opportunities for alternative routes (see above) that would encourage longer walks or bike rides.
Notes
Tajammul Pangarkar. iPhone Users Statistics: Insights into the Dominance of Apple's Ecosystem. Market.US Scoop. August 9, 2023.
Steve Downs. A Survey of Modern Life: Mobility. Building H on Medium. January 12, 2022.
Based on Building H user testing, November 2023.
Junxiu Liu et al. Quality of Meals Consumed by US Adults at Full-Service and Fast-Food Restaurants, 2003–2016: Persistent Low Quality and Widening Disparities. The Journal of Nutrition, Volume 150, Issue 4 (April 2020), pp. 873–883.
Downs (2022).
Based on Building H user testing, November 2023.
Lauren Forristal. Apple Maps teams up with parking app SpotHero to give users access to 8K parking options. TechCrunch. January 9, 2023.
Where you can ride transit using Apple Pay. Apple website, accessed November 30, 2023.
Maps. Apple website, accessed November 30, 2023.
Apple previews new features coming to Apple services this fall. Apple Newsroom website. June 7, 2023.