Apple Maps is launching ads on iPhone soon, here’s what to expect

iOS 26.5 arrived this week and brought an Apple Maps pop-up informing users that ads are coming soon. Here’s what to expect when they officially launch this summer.

Ads will launch in Apple Maps this summer and you’ll see them in two places

Apple announced earlier this year that ads would run on Apple Maps in the United States and Canada. This week, iOS 26.5 brought compatibility for ads, but they won’t actually launch until this summer.

When they go live in Apple Maps, users will find them in two places:

At the top of search results
In the “Suggested Places” of the search panel

You’ll see an ad at the top of search results and another included in the new “Suggested Places” feature in iOS 26.5.

Apple says these are the only two places ads will appear in Apple Maps.

Ads will be outlined with a subtle blue background and explicitly labeled with the word “Ad.” Examples of what this will look like can be seen below.

Apple touts strong user privacy protections for its ad rollout. According to the press release:

Ads on Maps build on Apple’s broader, privacy-focused approach to advertising and maintain the same privacy protections that Maps users enjoy today. A user’s location and the ads they see and interact with in Maps are not associated with a user’s Apple account. Personal data remains on the user’s device, is not collected or stored by Apple, and is not shared with third parties.

Ads are integrated into the recently revamped Apple Business platform. So, if you run a business and want to promote it in Apple Maps, you can do so through your Apple Business account.

Take from 9to5Mac

I suspect no one is excited about the arrival of ads on a formerly ad-free app, myself included. But hopefully Apple Maps becoming a revenue generator means it will benefit from more consistent investment from the company. I’m already a big fan of Apple Maps, but Google Maps definitely has an edge.

What do you think about the ads coming to Apple Maps and the planned implementation in the app? Let us know in the comments.