Waze is not better than Google Maps, and I’m tired of people pretending it is

Waze is not better than Google Maps, and I’m tired of people pretending it is Credit: Brady Snyder / MakeUseOf By  Brady Snyder Published May 29, 2026, 6:00 PM EDT Brady is a technology journalist for MakeUseOf with years of experience covering all things mobile, computing, and general tech. He has a focus on Android phones and audio gear, and holds a B.S. in Journalism from St. John's University. Brady has written for publications like Android Central, Android Authority, XDA, Android Police, iMore, and others. He has experience reporting on major events held by Google, Apple, and Samsung, as well as trade shows like Lenovo Innovation World and IFA. When he's not writing about and testing the latest gadgets, you'll find Brady watching Big East basketball and running. Sign in to your MakeUseOf account Add Us On follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap Google makes two of the most popular navigation apps: Waze and Google Maps. Waze is a more focused navigation app completely centered around the driving experience, placing a greater emphasis on crowdsourced incident reports. Google Maps, meanwhile, is the more versatile navigation platform. It has support for walking and cycling directions, immersive and live views, satellite maps, and detailed business and place cards. I've used both, and there's no question — Google Maps is the superior navigation app , and it's not particularly close. Back in the day, Waze offered things Google Maps couldn't . While the Waze user base is much smaller than the Google Maps equivalent, Waze users are more engaged. They report incidents like road hazards or speed traps, and work together to provide real-time traffic and route updates. However, there's an important detail many Waze users completely forget about. Waze crowdsourced data and incident reports are integrated