Google Maps is a key app to install on iPhone and Android devices, whether you need directions while driving, walking or cycling. It’s also a convenient way to explore a new city and discover local points of interest. Google updates the app regularly, releasing new Google Maps features generally available on both mobile platforms. Although the application may grow in size and take up more local storage, it should not cause excessive storage usage. Sporadic reports from some users over the past few years have shown that Google Maps storage can reach tens of gigabytes, which can be a significant amount on devices with just 64GB or 128GB of storage. In most cases, this behavior is not normal and a data caching issue may be causing problems. There are ways to fix storage issues, including a hidden setting that lets you eliminate extra data by clearing the cache.
But it’s not just a software bug that can cause Google Maps storage to increase. Some legitimate features may consume more data. For example, users who prefer to download maps offline to reduce costs associated with cellular data usage while navigating will use more of the phone’s storage space when downloading maps. On top of that, users who want to keep Google Maps location history active (the Timeline feature) will also use local storage, as Google moved location history data from the cloud to the phone in late 2023. In what follows, we’ll look at solutions that address all of these separate issues.
Offline Maps and Timeline functionality
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Launched in late 2015, the offline maps feature is available on iPhone and Android devices. Downloading maps for offline use increases storage consumption, with each additional map using more space. Maps will include map and location data, as well as route information used for offline navigation. Google Maps settings allow the app to automatically update offline maps before they expire. Some offline maps can use several gigabytes of storage, as shown in the Google Maps screenshots above.
To manage offline maps, open Google Maps, tap your profile picture in the upper right corner and find the Offline Maps menu. This menu shows how many maps you have downloaded and how much storage space they take up. You can delete cards you don’t need here. The Offline Maps menu also has a settings icon in the upper right corner. You may want to disable two features in this menu to prevent Google Maps from downloading additional map data. These are “Auto Update Offline Maps” and “Auto Download Recommended Maps”.
The Timeline feature uses storage independently. To view, open Google Maps, go to your profile and select Your Timeline. The storage used by the Timeline feature varies by user. One Reddit user said his 9-year Timeline data used 82MB of compressed storage space and 1.3GB of uncompressed storage. Users can and should back up Timeline data when troubleshooting Google Maps storage issues. This will allow you to back up your Timeline data before you need to remove Google Maps from the handset and will also allow you to measure how much data the Timeline information uses.
How to clear Google Maps cache data
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Once you have determined that offline maps and timeline data are not responsible for high storage usage on your iPhone or Android device, you may be facing a caching issue. Google explains in a support document that the app uses storage for various information, including shared and saved locations and map tiles. According to Google, the cache may also include your search suggestions and navigation directions, as well as page content.
Deleting and reinstalling the app can fix the problem, but before taking such drastic measures, you should try clearing Google Maps cache data from the phone using a hidden feature of the app that you may not know about. On iPhone, open Google Maps, tap your profile icon, then tap Settings. Go to About & Terms and tap the Clear app data menu item. This button will clear cache data and offline maps. This will also reset the app’s cookies. On Android, go to the phone’s Settings app, open Google Maps, tap Storage, then Clear Cache. A Clear Data button is also available in this menu. In both cases, clearing the cache can solve your storage problem.
After trying the fixes above, consider restarting the iPhone or Android device and then checking how much storage Google Maps is using. If the amount is still large, you may need to delete the app and reinstall it. To keep things in perspective, the Google Maps app for iPhone is 475MB at the time of writing. The Android version will also use a few hundred megabytes of storage, although the Google Play Store listing doesn’t specify the actual size.
