iOS 18.4 will allow Google Maps to be the default mapping app on iPhone instead of Apple Maps
Apple has shared a document outlining the steps it’s taking to comply with the Digital Markets Act, including allowing users to set apps other than native apps as defaults in Maps and Translator. That means Google Maps could replace Apple Maps in the spring of 2025.
The document suggests that this possibility will arrive in the spring of 2025, so it is possible that we will see it with iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4. A release that will not only include this possibility, but also include Apple Intelligence support for users and other languages.
This change, driven by the Digital Markets Act, is already starting to appear in the beta versions of iOS 18.2, which will be released during the first week of December and will include a dedicated section in Settings, where we can change the default apps on our iPhones and iPads. For now, you can change Phone apps, Messages, or Passwords.
The possibility of changing the default navigation and translation apps is not new; Apple has already announced that it will allow this change in a future update to its operating systems, but without specifying dates. Now, we already have an estimated availability date: Spring 2025.
What does all this mean? Pretty simple. When iOS and iPadOS versions that allow it are available, users will be able to change navigation and translation apps like Google Maps or Google Translate as default apps instead of Apple Maps or Apple Translate. This also means that all links will open in Google Maps, for example.