Getting Started

When you open the Guru Maps application on your device for the first time, an onboarding process will guide you through configuring the app for future use.

Download a map

Downloading Maps for Your Current Location

When you grant permission for Guru Maps to access your location, the app prompts you to download the map for your region for offline use. This ensures that you have access to maps even without an internet connection.

Downloading Maps for Other Regions

You can easily download maps for other regions by browsing and zooming directly on the map or by opening the Download Maps menu in the app settings. This gives you offline access to maps beyond your current location, making it convenient for travel or exploration.

Highlighting Downloaded Maps

To enhance visibility, all map areas that have been downloaded for offline use are highlighted in purple. This visual indicator makes it easy to spot which areas are already available offline.

Navigate the Map

The Guru Maps app provides standard and familiar options for interacting with the map. Here's how to perform common actions:

• Moving the Map: Drag the map in the desired direction using your finger.
• Zooming In: Double-tap on the map or spread your fingers apart (pinch gesture) to zoom in.
• Zooming Out: Tap the map with two fingers simultaneously or pinch your fingers together to zoom out.
• One-Finger Zoom: To zoom with one finger, double-tap the map and hold the second tap, then drag your finger up or down to zoom in or out.
• On-Map Zoom Buttons: If you prefer dedicated zoom buttons on the map, enable them in the app settings: "Main Screen" > "Zoom Buttons".
• Rotating the Map: Use a two-finger gesture by holding the map with two fingers and dragging them in a circular motion to rotate it. Tap the compass icon to reset the map to its north-up orientation.

Pressing and holding the map brings up a pop-up menu with available options (from left to right):

• Save this location,
• Save your current location,
• Navigate to a point.

Show Your Current Location

To zoom the map to your current location, tap the "Location" button. When you are stationary, your position is displayed on the map as a blue circle . When you are moving, it is displayed as a blue arrow .

info

If your location cannot be determined precisely, a blue circle also appears around the location marker. The size of the circle indicates accuracy: the smaller the circle, the greater the precision.

Whenever you see this icon , it means that your GPS cannot currently obtain accurate information about your location. It may also appear when Location Services is disabled on your device.

Enable "Location Services" on your device and grant the Guru Maps app permission to determine your location for accurate positioning.

Tracking Mode

To enable tracking mode, tap the "Location" button once:

→

The map will be oriented to the north, and the app will track your position as you move. The map stays centered automatically. To exit tracking mode, move the map.

Driving Mode

To enable driving mode, tap the "Location" button twice:

→ →

The map will be oriented in the direction you are currently moving.

Compass Mode

To enable compass mode, tap the "Location" button three times:

→ → →

The map will follow the compass and rotate as you rotate your device to reflect your actual environment.

Choose the Right Map Style

Guru Maps offers various map styles and online sources to optimize the map view for your needs. Tap the "Map source" button in the top right corner of the map to switch to the ideal map style. Options include offline map styles for city navigation, cycling, and hiking, as well as multiple online map sources.

Please see Map Sources for more information on the various map sources and layers available in the Guru Maps app.

tip

Quickly switch between your two most recently used map sources by double-tapping the map source button.

View Information About Map Objects

The Guru Maps app's vector map is designed to be interactive and provides comprehensive details about places. Tap any point of interest (POI) or location on the map to access more information about it:

Tap the icon in the bottom menu to build a route to this location.

Tap the icon in the bottom menu to save the place to My Collections for easy access later.

Pinpoint a Place

To pinpoint a spot on the map, tap and hold until a pop-up appears, then tap the marker icon (the first icon in the row):

The app saves the marker to the My Collections list.

Record a Track

To record a GPS track, tap the REC button on the map; it turns red to indicate recording:

— track is not recording,

— the track is recording.

Tap the REC button again to stop the recording.

If you have previously recorded a track, you are prompted to continue the last recording or start a new one.

While a GPS track is being recorded, a numbered badge appears in the upper-right corner of the app icon on the Home screen:

Get a Route

To get a route, tap and hold the location on the map you want to use as the destination. In the pop-up menu, choose the route icon:

Guru Maps then calculates and displays the route to your selected destination.

Read more about navigation in Guru Maps here: Navigation.

Map Scale Bar

The map scale bar is positioned at the bottom of the map and provides a visual representation of the relationship between distances on the map and actual distances on the ground. Use it to estimate the distance between two points on the map:

tip

To display coordinates below the map scale bar, go to Main Screen in the app settings and enable the "Coordinates" option.

Map Ruler

To measure the distance between two points on the map, tap your starting and destination points simultaneously and hold to trace the path. A dashed line appears along with the estimated distance:

The map ruler stays in place even as you zoom the map. To remove the ruler, simply move the map.

tip

To turn off the distance ruler on the map, go to Developer options in the app settings, and uncheck the "Distance gesture" option.

Trip Computer

The trip computer panel provides trip statistics while you are moving. It displays useful information such as current speed and altitude:

When recording a GPS track, it will also show distance traveled and trip duration:

tip

To hide the trip computer panel from the map view, go to Main Screen in the app settings, and uncheck the "Show Trip Computer" option.