How To Rotate Google Maps

Google Maps is a very important navigational tool for many people. However, one of the problems with Google Maps is that it always presents maps oriented towards North. This can be quite annoying when you’re navigating, and you need to rotate your map, so you know which direction you’re facing! 

When you’re in a new city and need to find an ATM, for instance, you might want a map that’s oriented in a direction that’s most intuitive to you. For example, if your native language reads left-to-right (as English does), it makes sense to orient the map so north is at the top of the screen.

You can rotate Google Maps on both Android and iOS devices by following certain key combinations. The method may be slightly different depending on which device you’re using, but rotating the camera should be easy enough if you know what combination of keys to press before opening Google Maps.

How To Rotate Google Maps On An iPhone or iPad

If you open Google Maps and use it without rotating the view manually–i.e. you use it as if the camera is pointing directly south, even though you’re holding the phone at an angle–your map will appear sideways or upside down.

If this happens, 

Here’s how to rotate Google Maps on iOS devices:

1. Open Google Maps and press the volume up button on your device once. This will set your rotation lock to ‘on’. You’ll know it succeeded because a sound effect will play, and Google Maps’ status bar will display an orange icon that looks like a lock with arrows around it.
2. Now open Google Maps again and press either of the volume buttons on your device twice. This should rotate the map so north is at the top of your screen.Google Maps on an iPhone should appear oriented properly when north is at the top of the screen.
3. To set rotation lock back to ‘off’, open Google Maps and press either volume button once more. Another sound effect will play, this time indicating that you succeeded in turning off the rotation lock.

How To Rotate Google Maps On An Android Device

If you’re using an Android device, here’s how to rotate it manually:

1. Open Google Maps and tap three times anywhere on your current map or search results page. If you want to rotate the view but don’t know exactly where you are yet, make sure you do this before moving anywhere on the map.
2. Press the recent apps button (generally located below your device’s volume buttons) and swipe away Google Maps to close it.
3. When you re-open Google Maps, rotate your device left or right until you see north at the top of your screen (i.e., facing in the direction you were previously holding it). Rotating back with a left-to-right swipe will generally put things back as they were when you closed out of Google Maps last–but if not, just tap three times again and repeat this step.
4. Once you have your view set up the way you want it, tap the compass in the top-right corner of Google Maps and select ‘My location’ to recenter your map’s view on where you’re standing. The compass in Google Maps is at the top-right of your screen.

That’s all there is to rotating Google Maps! This method only applies to phones, though – if you’re using a tablet, chances are it has an accelerometer that can easily rotate your screen for you without following any complicated key combinations.