3 hidden Google Maps settings you should turn off right away

Published Sep 6, 2026, 6:00 AM EDT Akshay Bhalla was the former game guides editor for Screen Rant and the technology editor at MensXP. He has previously written about smartphones, apps, streaming, gadgets, and games for print, digital, and TV media outlets. When he isn’t writing about tech, he can often be found playing JRPGs, listening to music, or playing with his three dogs. You can reach Akshay at bhallanator @ proton dot me. Google Maps has been my default navigation app since it was released in the mid-2000s. It has nifty features I cannot live without, and I keep coming back, even though I've tried switching to Waze and other navigation apps. But some unnecessary features don't need to be active, even though they are turned on by default. Some of these features can affect your phone's battery backup, while others can consume quite a bit of data. Here's what I turned off. Timline/Background location tracking A privacy liability Credit: Lucas Gouveia / Android Police | Mulevich / Shutterstock One main feature I turn off immediately due to privacy concerns is Google Maps' background location/timeline tracking. This setting is turned on by default, and like many users, I didn't have this turned off. The feature logged every location I visited, how long I stayed at each, and every route I took daily, continuously. I don't know about you, but I'm not comfortable with an app knowing everywhere I've been. Not only is this feature a privacy liability, but it also burdens my phone's storage. Since Google Maps stores Timeline and location history on the device, it consumes unnecessary storage space. While I appreciate that the data remained on my phone, it still collected data I wasn't comfortable with. Especially if my phone is stolen or lost, that crucial data can be accessible by others. I turned off the feature by tapping my Profile Icon, selecting Your Timeline, tapping Location & privacy settings, then Timeline, and finally selecting the Turn off option. As you can see, Google buried this option in the settings, making it hard to find or turn off. Turning off Timeline/Background location tracking isn't linked to other activity controls, such as Personalized recommendations. But if you're one of those users who like to use this feature, I still recommend toggling one setting. Follow the steps above, but instead select the auto-delete to 3 months option. This way, Google Maps doesn't log your entire history; it only logs some recent data. Automatic offline map downloads over a cellular connection Conserve battery life Credit: Lucas Gouveia / Android PoliceCredit: Lucas Gouveia / Android Police | alexgo.photography / Shutterstock Using offline maps in Google Maps is now an essential feature that everybody should utilize. It comes in handy in areas with patchy network connections or when visiting a new country on vacation. Without offline maps, I would have been stranded in the middle of a road, not knowing what to do next. But there is one setting every user should turn off to preserve their phone's battery life. While keeping offline maps up to date is recommended, there's no need to update them over cellular data. Google Maps auto-downloads recommended apps and updates offline maps over data unless you've changed one setting. By default, the app has the Wi-Fi + mobile data option turned on for automatic map downloads. This can drain your battery, fill up storage, and use a lot of data you can easily avoid. I've set offline maps to download only while connected to Wi-Fi, and so should you. I use this same feature on music streaming apps, and Google Maps is no different. To change this setting, tap your Profile, select Offline Maps, tap the gear icon, and turn off Auto-update offline maps and Auto-download recommended maps. Additionally, change the download preference to Wi-Fi only. Personalized ads based on visual search A navigation app really needs this? Google Maps has one feature that has absolutely no place in a navigation app. I know Google loves to incorporate ads into everything, but Maps shouldn't be one of them. Google Maps can use your location, activity, or even visual searches to serve you ads within the navigation app. While it isn't as intrusive as traditional ads, it still isn't needed. You may have come across ads such as Promoted Pins that look like logos or square icons. These ads are served to you based on your personal data. I noticed these ads rely on my current location and my search history, which I wasn't comfortable with. These personalized ads also pull data from other Google apps, such as YouTube and Search. I don't know about you, but I didn't really need all these ads while I was driving during my daily commute. Turning this feature off isn't as straightforward because it is linked to your main Google account's Web & App activity controls. I turned off this feature by following the steps below: Open your Google Account and go to Data & Privacy. Select Web & App Activity. Find and uncheck Include Visual Search History. Optional: Turn off save search inputs and recommendations. Google Maps can't help itself from tracking you Like every Google product, Maps tracks your activity to serve ads. While certain features, like automatic downloads over cellular for offline maps, can be easily changed, other settings are intentionally buried. Even so, many Google Maps features are helpful, while others should've never been incorporated in the first place.