{"slug": "organic-maps", "name": "Organic Maps", "category": "other", "category_name": "Other software", "description": "Open-source offline maps and navigation app for Android and iOS, built on OpenStreetMap data.", "recommenders": 14, "commenters": 21, "warners": 3, "score": 11.275, "rising": -0.6, "first": "2026-01-15", "latest": "2026-10-02", "why": "Liked for fully offline maps and navigation, especially on hikes, long walks, rural trips and travel abroad, and for making it easy to fix OpenStreetMap errors from inside the app.", "why_is_quote": false, "has_verdict": true, "sentiment": {"recommend": 14, "neutral": 4, "compare": 0, "warn": 3}, "spark": [0, 0, 1, 0, 2, 0, 0, 0, 8, 2, 0, 1], "listed": true, "loved": ["Offline use", "Hiking and walking"], "caveat": "Governance concerns", "short_quote": "Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them.", "icon": true, "domain": "organicmaps.app", "github_repo": null, "official_url": "https://organicmaps.app/", "pricing": "open source", "aliases": ["Organic Maps"], "verdict": [{"text": "Liked for fully offline maps and navigation, especially on hikes, long walks, rural trips and travel abroad,", "cites": [{"id": 780740608, "item_id": 48796288, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48796288", "by": "informal007", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "It's a really good experience.", "excerpt": "I had my first hiking in a route without network connection one month ago, that was the first time I used the GPS without network by Organic Maps even I knew I could do it in the past. It showed me the possibility that some feature work well without network. It's a really good experience.", "context": "", "use_case": "offline GPS hiking", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780722704, "item_id": 48795169, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48795169", "by": "NoboruWataya", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "So IMO it's way better than Google Maps for this use case.", "excerpt": "I use OrganicMaps a lot for long walks and it's great. Works perfectly offline if you have downloaded the map of the region beforehand, which is helpful if you are in an area with poor reception or just want to conserve phone battery by turning off data. And being OSM, it is great for showing less prominent paths/trails and other useful info like drinking water sources, picnic benches etc. And supports importing GPX ", "context": "", "use_case": "offline walking navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780767696, "item_id": 48797981, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48797981", "by": "mintyLemon", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I love organic maps. It\u2019s great for hiking", "excerpt": "I love organic maps. It\u2019s great for hiking especially coverage through cities is really good too with small landmarks such as water fountains.", "context": "", "use_case": "hiking navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 791310352, "item_id": 49456897, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49456897", "by": "aguacaterojo", "date": "2026-08-26", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I've been using its predecessor organic maps for years. Maps.me before it. Been great in the outback and rural areas.", "excerpt": "I've been using its predecessor organic maps for years. Maps.me before it. Been great in the outback and rural areas. Seems like Comaps is the open fork https://openletter.earth/open-letter-to-organic-maps-shareholders-a0bf770c", "context": "outback and rural area user", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "Maps.me", "story": "CoMaps: The Offline App That Guided Rescuers Without a Signal in Venezuela"}, {"id": 746107792, "item_id": 46631737, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46631737", "by": "31337Logic", "date": "2026-01-15", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I love Organic Maps for offline navigation and exploration.", "excerpt": "I love Organic Maps for offline navigation and exploration. They even download wiki articles about popular tourist attractions! The other app I use is Briar for communications. It's surprisingly handy. You can use it on existing wifi networks but also mesh your own network with Bluetooth. Joplin to journal my vacation (which then synchs to my home network). Oh, and of course Wireguard!", "context": "", "use_case": "offline navigation while traveling", "switched_from": "", "story": "Ask HN: What travel apps do you use while traveling?"}]}, {"text": " and for making it easy to fix OpenStreetMap errors from inside the app.", "cites": [{"id": 780714096, "item_id": 48794631, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48794631", "by": "eisa01", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic Maps was my go to app for a navigation app where you can fix errors yourself immediately!", "excerpt": "Organic Maps was my go to app for a navigation app where you can fix errors yourself immediately! So much better than having to work for free on the proprietary apps, and hope they accept your edits There\u2019s a fork from one year ago, CoMaps, that is gaining different features E.g., I am adding CarPlay Dashboard support that you can test by joining the TestFlight We are in great need of both more testers and some prope", "context": "", "use_case": "navigation with editable maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780722704, "item_id": 48795169, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48795169", "by": "NoboruWataya", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "So IMO it's way better than Google Maps for this use case.", "excerpt": "I use OrganicMaps a lot for long walks and it's great. Works perfectly offline if you have downloaded the map of the region beforehand, which is helpful if you are in an area with poor reception or just want to conserve phone battery by turning off data. And being OSM, it is great for showing less prominent paths/trails and other useful info like drinking water sources, picnic benches etc. And supports importing GPX ", "context": "", "use_case": "offline walking navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}]}, {"text": " The most common caveat is concern over the project's governance, which has led some users to recommend the CoMaps fork instead,", "cites": [{"id": 781038802, "item_id": 48814925, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48814925", "by": "Freak_NL", "date": "2026-07-07", "stance": "warn", "quote": "if there are significant issues with their governance they are harmful to the broader OpenStreetMap community.", "excerpt": "I don't really think it's primarily the CoMaps devs and contributors warning others about OrganicMaps. It's mostly OpenStreetMap contributors (e.g., mappers) like myself who followed the relevant discussions and events and decided that the community is better off routing around the problem. OrganicMaps could be the best app there is in terms of functionality (it isn't), but if there are significant issues with their ", "context": "OpenStreetMap contributor", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}, {"id": 754796625, "item_id": 47174789, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47174789", "by": "h4kunamata", "date": "2026-02-26", "stance": "warn", "quote": "They forked from Organic Maps project which seems to have gone evil.", "excerpt": "CoMaps is by far one of the best offline navigation map app available. They forked from Organic Maps project which seems to have gone evil. CoMaps calculation is very fast, map update is constant, it is very lightweight, it has a very clean layout, usability is top tier. CoMaps can find places by the business name, there is still room for improvement but it works. I was using EarthMagic before that, it was the perfec", "context": "", "use_case": "offline navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "OsmAnd's Faster Offline Navigation"}, {"id": 780987041, "item_id": 48811690, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48811690", "by": "femto", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "I used to use OrganicMaps.", "excerpt": "I used to use OrganicMaps. When coMaps forked, I changed to it. From my perspective there were no negatives. If anything, coMaps looked to be under more active development.", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}]}, {"text": " and a few find it weaker than Google Maps for finding businesses or say it drains the battery.", "cites": [{"id": 780839488, "item_id": 48802468, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48802468", "by": "ponkipo", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them.", "excerpt": "As a active OSM contibutor with 7k+ changesets, Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them. Only use GMaps for finding businesses. Tried CoMaps, saw no reason to migrate to it at all - why migrate to basically no-name app (in terms of popularity) which is developed by who knows who (not even a Maps Me or OM devs) if Organic is totally good, has updates, stable, wor", "context": "active OSM contributor with 7k+ changesets", "use_case": "offline maps while traveling", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780736689, "item_id": 48796043, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48796043", "by": "cmdoptesc", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "have Organic Maps and regions downloaded for travel and just switch between the two", "excerpt": "> What might make me switch? Google Maps will always have better POI data because they have a larger userbase and they've gamified adding POIs with the \"Local Guides\" badge. The main reason to switch is to have an offline-first experience. Google Maps does not provide offline maps everywhere, e.g. South Korea. And if you've ever tried using the Google Maps app on a weak connection, it's frustrating because it still t", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps for travel", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 752744333, "item_id": 47046520, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47046520", "by": "sandreas", "date": "2026-02-17", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "Organic Maps - Google Maps alternative (not as good)", "excerpt": "I personally tend to own two Phones. One all-day carry GrapheneOS device (Pixel 8) and an older WiFi and at home only iPhone for all payment and ensurance stuff. This is inconvenient in some ways, but at least it is sort of privacy as good as it gets while still being able to run official apps when I need them at home. To de-google the phone, I use F-Droid as primary App store, Aurora as fallback for non-f-droid Apps", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "GrapheneOS \u2013 Break Free from Google and Apple"}, {"id": 781056160, "item_id": 48816010, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48816010", "by": "KomoD", "date": "2026-07-07", "stance": "warn", "quote": "OM drained my battery like crazy", "excerpt": "> make app barely eat any battery > But for now Organic Maps is totally fine and many people like me see no reason to move from it anywhere. In my experience OM drained my battery like crazy (I used it for KML tracks) and after consistently seeing that, I gave up on OM.. I can't speak for CoMaps, as I have never tried it.", "context": "", "use_case": "viewing KML tracks", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}]}], "praise": [{"label": "Offline use", "summary": "Maps and route planning work fully offline once regions are downloaded, which helps in areas with poor reception.", "quotes": [{"id": 780722704, "item_id": 48795169, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48795169", "by": "NoboruWataya", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "So IMO it's way better than Google Maps for this use case.", "excerpt": "I use OrganicMaps a lot for long walks and it's great. Works perfectly offline if you have downloaded the map of the region beforehand, which is helpful if you are in an area with poor reception or just want to conserve phone battery by turning off data. And being OSM, it is great for showing less prominent paths/trails and other useful info like drinking water sources, picnic benches etc. And supports importing GPX ", "context": "", "use_case": "offline walking navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 759903872, "item_id": 47493992, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47493992", "by": "gib444", "date": "2026-03-23", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic Maps is great for offline.", "excerpt": "Organic Maps is great for offline. It even did better directions in Europe recently, because Google Maps does not have an \"avoid unpaved roads\" option. Apple Maps does driving directions way better in general - better visuals, speech etc. It does foreign pronunciations better too IIRC. It's even not bad as a PWA on Android ( https://maps.apple.com ). Google Maps loves to say take eg \"exit Via Emilio Enrico\" on some r", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "Migrating to the EU"}, {"id": 780736689, "item_id": 48796043, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48796043", "by": "cmdoptesc", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "have Organic Maps and regions downloaded for travel and just switch between the two", "excerpt": "> What might make me switch? Google Maps will always have better POI data because they have a larger userbase and they've gamified adding POIs with the \"Local Guides\" badge. The main reason to switch is to have an offline-first experience. Google Maps does not provide offline maps everywhere, e.g. South Korea. And if you've ever tried using the Google Maps app on a weak connection, it's frustrating because it still t", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps for travel", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}]}, {"label": "Hiking and walking", "summary": "Shows small paths, trails, water fountains and other landmarks useful on hikes and long walks.", "quotes": [{"id": 780767696, "item_id": 48797981, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48797981", "by": "mintyLemon", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I love organic maps. It\u2019s great for hiking", "excerpt": "I love organic maps. It\u2019s great for hiking especially coverage through cities is really good too with small landmarks such as water fountains.", "context": "", "use_case": "hiking navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780722704, "item_id": 48795169, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48795169", "by": "NoboruWataya", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "So IMO it's way better than Google Maps for this use case.", "excerpt": "I use OrganicMaps a lot for long walks and it's great. Works perfectly offline if you have downloaded the map of the region beforehand, which is helpful if you are in an area with poor reception or just want to conserve phone battery by turning off data. And being OSM, it is great for showing less prominent paths/trails and other useful info like drinking water sources, picnic benches etc. And supports importing GPX ", "context": "", "use_case": "offline walking navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780740608, "item_id": 48796288, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48796288", "by": "informal007", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "It's a really good experience.", "excerpt": "I had my first hiking in a route without network connection one month ago, that was the first time I used the GPS without network by Organic Maps even I knew I could do it in the past. It showed me the possibility that some feature work well without network. It's a really good experience.", "context": "", "use_case": "offline GPS hiking", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}]}, {"label": "Travel", "summary": "Long-time users rely on it when traveling, and it includes wiki articles about tourist attractions.", "quotes": [{"id": 780839488, "item_id": 48802468, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48802468", "by": "ponkipo", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them.", "excerpt": "As a active OSM contibutor with 7k+ changesets, Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them. Only use GMaps for finding businesses. Tried CoMaps, saw no reason to migrate to it at all - why migrate to basically no-name app (in terms of popularity) which is developed by who knows who (not even a Maps Me or OM devs) if Organic is totally good, has updates, stable, wor", "context": "active OSM contributor with 7k+ changesets", "use_case": "offline maps while traveling", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 746107792, "item_id": 46631737, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46631737", "by": "31337Logic", "date": "2026-01-15", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I love Organic Maps for offline navigation and exploration.", "excerpt": "I love Organic Maps for offline navigation and exploration. They even download wiki articles about popular tourist attractions! The other app I use is Briar for communications. It's surprisingly handy. You can use it on existing wifi networks but also mesh your own network with Bluetooth. Joplin to journal my vacation (which then synchs to my home network). Oh, and of course Wireguard!", "context": "", "use_case": "offline navigation while traveling", "switched_from": "", "story": "Ask HN: What travel apps do you use while traveling?"}, {"id": 780736689, "item_id": 48796043, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48796043", "by": "cmdoptesc", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "have Organic Maps and regions downloaded for travel and just switch between the two", "excerpt": "> What might make me switch? Google Maps will always have better POI data because they have a larger userbase and they've gamified adding POIs with the \"Local Guides\" badge. The main reason to switch is to have an offline-first experience. Google Maps does not provide offline maps everywhere, e.g. South Korea. And if you've ever tried using the Google Maps app on a weak connection, it's frustrating because it still t", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps for travel", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}]}, {"label": "Map editing", "summary": "Users can correct OpenStreetMap data directly in the app, and those fixes benefit everyone.", "quotes": [{"id": 780714096, "item_id": 48794631, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48794631", "by": "eisa01", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic Maps was my go to app for a navigation app where you can fix errors yourself immediately!", "excerpt": "Organic Maps was my go to app for a navigation app where you can fix errors yourself immediately! So much better than having to work for free on the proprietary apps, and hope they accept your edits There\u2019s a fork from one year ago, CoMaps, that is gaining different features E.g., I am adding CarPlay Dashboard support that you can test by joining the TestFlight We are in great need of both more testers and some prope", "context": "", "use_case": "navigation with editable maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780722704, "item_id": 48795169, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48795169", "by": "NoboruWataya", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "So IMO it's way better than Google Maps for this use case.", "excerpt": "I use OrganicMaps a lot for long walks and it's great. Works perfectly offline if you have downloaded the map of the region beforehand, which is helpful if you are in an area with poor reception or just want to conserve phone battery by turning off data. And being OSM, it is great for showing less prominent paths/trails and other useful info like drinking water sources, picnic benches etc. And supports importing GPX ", "context": "", "use_case": "offline walking navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780736689, "item_id": 48796043, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48796043", "by": "cmdoptesc", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "have Organic Maps and regions downloaded for travel and just switch between the two", "excerpt": "> What might make me switch? Google Maps will always have better POI data because they have a larger userbase and they've gamified adding POIs with the \"Local Guides\" badge. The main reason to switch is to have an offline-first experience. Google Maps does not provide offline maps everywhere, e.g. South Korea. And if you've ever tried using the Google Maps app on a weak connection, it's frustrating because it still t", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps for travel", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}]}, {"label": "Simple and ad-free", "summary": "Described as stable, regularly updated, ad-free and easier to use than OsmAnd.", "quotes": [{"id": 780839488, "item_id": 48802468, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48802468", "by": "ponkipo", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them.", "excerpt": "As a active OSM contibutor with 7k+ changesets, Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them. Only use GMaps for finding businesses. Tried CoMaps, saw no reason to migrate to it at all - why migrate to basically no-name app (in terms of popularity) which is developed by who knows who (not even a Maps Me or OM devs) if Organic is totally good, has updates, stable, wor", "context": "active OSM contributor with 7k+ changesets", "use_case": "offline maps while traveling", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 781016128, "item_id": 48813508, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48813508", "by": "ponkipo", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "But for now Organic Maps is totally fine and many people like me see no reason to move from it anywhere.", "excerpt": "I've read both Organic Maps thread https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48794446 (as it's my favorite map app I use for years around the world, and I'm an active OSM contributor as well) which quickly became overrun with CoMaps followers trash-talking about OM, now this thread appears. What I find interesting to see, and I think it's not just me who can see this - that basically every mention of CoMaps and why it is ", "context": "active OSM contributor, long-time user", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}]}], "caveats": [{"label": "Governance concerns", "summary": "Some OpenStreetMap contributors and CoMaps users criticize the project's governance and recommend CoMaps or OsmAnd instead.", "quotes": [{"id": 781038802, "item_id": 48814925, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48814925", "by": "Freak_NL", "date": "2026-07-07", "stance": "warn", "quote": "if there are significant issues with their governance they are harmful to the broader OpenStreetMap community.", "excerpt": "I don't really think it's primarily the CoMaps devs and contributors warning others about OrganicMaps. It's mostly OpenStreetMap contributors (e.g., mappers) like myself who followed the relevant discussions and events and decided that the community is better off routing around the problem. OrganicMaps could be the best app there is in terms of functionality (it isn't), but if there are significant issues with their ", "context": "OpenStreetMap contributor", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}, {"id": 754796625, "item_id": 47174789, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47174789", "by": "h4kunamata", "date": "2026-02-26", "stance": "warn", "quote": "They forked from Organic Maps project which seems to have gone evil.", "excerpt": "CoMaps is by far one of the best offline navigation map app available. They forked from Organic Maps project which seems to have gone evil. CoMaps calculation is very fast, map update is constant, it is very lightweight, it has a very clean layout, usability is top tier. CoMaps can find places by the business name, there is still room for improvement but it works. I was using EarthMagic before that, it was the perfec", "context": "", "use_case": "offline navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "OsmAnd's Faster Offline Navigation"}, {"id": 780987041, "item_id": 48811690, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48811690", "by": "femto", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "I used to use OrganicMaps.", "excerpt": "I used to use OrganicMaps. When coMaps forked, I changed to it. From my perspective there were no negatives. If anything, coMaps looked to be under more active development.", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}]}, {"label": "POIs and businesses", "summary": "Google Maps is seen as better for finding businesses and points of interest.", "quotes": [{"id": 780839488, "item_id": 48802468, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48802468", "by": "ponkipo", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them.", "excerpt": "As a active OSM contibutor with 7k+ changesets, Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them. Only use GMaps for finding businesses. Tried CoMaps, saw no reason to migrate to it at all - why migrate to basically no-name app (in terms of popularity) which is developed by who knows who (not even a Maps Me or OM devs) if Organic is totally good, has updates, stable, wor", "context": "active OSM contributor with 7k+ changesets", "use_case": "offline maps while traveling", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780736689, "item_id": 48796043, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48796043", "by": "cmdoptesc", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "have Organic Maps and regions downloaded for travel and just switch between the two", "excerpt": "> What might make me switch? Google Maps will always have better POI data because they have a larger userbase and they've gamified adding POIs with the \"Local Guides\" badge. The main reason to switch is to have an offline-first experience. Google Maps does not provide offline maps everywhere, e.g. South Korea. And if you've ever tried using the Google Maps app on a weak connection, it's frustrating because it still t", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps for travel", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 752744333, "item_id": 47046520, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47046520", "by": "sandreas", "date": "2026-02-17", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "Organic Maps - Google Maps alternative (not as good)", "excerpt": "I personally tend to own two Phones. One all-day carry GrapheneOS device (Pixel 8) and an older WiFi and at home only iPhone for all payment and ensurance stuff. This is inconvenient in some ways, but at least it is sort of privacy as good as it gets while still being able to run official apps when I need them at home. To de-google the phone, I use F-Droid as primary App store, Aurora as fallback for non-f-droid Apps", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "GrapheneOS \u2013 Break Free from Google and Apple"}]}, {"label": "Battery drain", "summary": "One user stopped using it because it drained their battery while recording KML tracks.", "quotes": [{"id": 781056160, "item_id": 48816010, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48816010", "by": "KomoD", "date": "2026-07-07", "stance": "warn", "quote": "OM drained my battery like crazy", "excerpt": "> make app barely eat any battery > But for now Organic Maps is totally fine and many people like me see no reason to move from it anywhere. In my experience OM drained my battery like crazy (I used it for KML tracks) and after consistently seeing that, I gave up on OM.. I can't speak for CoMaps, as I have never tried it.", "context": "", "use_case": "viewing KML tracks", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}]}, {"label": "Routing mistakes", "summary": "One cyclist felt it made more routing mistakes than CoMaps.", "quotes": [{"id": 781068145, "item_id": 48816759, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48816759", "by": "goobatrooba", "date": "2026-07-07", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "Before that I used also organicmaps and it was fine as well but I think made a few more mistakes in routing.", "excerpt": "Been using Comaps for a while, mainly for cycling, and it works very well. Before that I used also organicmaps and it was fine as well but I think made a few more mistakes in routing. That said, obviously this is not a parallel test but rather successive. Of course the split happened with drama, but I just like the Comaps vibe and am happy with it.", "context": "cyclist", "use_case": "cycling navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}]}], "who": [{"by": "aguacaterojo", "context": "outback and rural area user", "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49456897", "date": "2026-08-26"}, {"by": "nosioptar", "context": "Android user", "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49450111", "date": "2026-08-26"}, {"by": "bentley", "context": "GrapheneOS user", "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48829324", "date": "2026-07-08"}, {"by": "goobatrooba", "context": "cyclist", "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48816759", "date": "2026-07-07"}, {"by": "ponkipo", "context": "active OSM contributor, long-time user", "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48813508", "date": "2026-07-06"}], "tags": ["for hikers", "for travelers", "for OSM contributors", "for GrapheneOS users", "for Android users"], "use_cases": ["offline maps", "privacy-focused maps", "cycling navigation", "viewing kml tracks", "offline maps while traveling", "hiking navigation"], "compared": [{"slug": "comaps", "name": "CoMaps", "co": 22, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 4}, {"slug": "osmand", "name": "OsmAnd", "co": 10, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}, {"slug": "google-maps", "name": "Google Maps", "co": 9, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}, {"slug": "grapheneos", "name": "GrapheneOS", "co": 3, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}, {"slug": "apple-maps", "name": "Apple Maps", "co": 2, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}, {"slug": "f-droid", "name": "F-Droid", "co": 2, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}, {"slug": "wireguard", "name": "WireGuard", "co": 2, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}, {"slug": "spotify", "name": "Spotify", "co": 2, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}], "makers": [], "threads": [{"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48794446", "title": "Organic Maps", "mentions": 8}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48808928", "title": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps", "mentions": 6}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49925261", "title": "Sudo \u2013 A dedicated music player designed around listening to music", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49452671", "title": "CoMaps: The Offline App That Guided Rescuers Without a Signal in Venezuela", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49447222", "title": "Apple Maps Ads Are Here, and There's No Way to Turn Them Off", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47487436", "title": "Migrating to the EU", "mentions": 1}], "sentiment_by_month": {"2025-11": {}, "2025-12": {}, "2026-01": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-02": {"neutral": 1, "warn": 1}, "2026-03": {"recommend": 2}, "2026-04": {}, "2026-05": {}, "2026-06": {}, "2026-07": {"recommend": 8, "neutral": 3, "warn": 2}, "2026-08": {"recommend": 2}, "2026-09": {}, "2026-10": {"recommend": 1}}, "quotes": [{"id": 798955378, "item_id": 49934711, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49934711", "by": "sneak", "date": "2026-10-02", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I can throw Organic Maps on it and keep offline maps handy", "excerpt": "I recently bought an Android-based MP3 player that can use Spotify, including Spotify lossless, and has a microSD slot. The benefits here are pretty substantial. It has a really nice headphone amp inside of it for driving larger headphones at the right volume (and a switch in software for low/medium/high headphone gain, separate from volume). Also I don't have to take up expensive space inside my iPhone for Spotify d", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "Sudo \u2013 A dedicated music player designed around listening to music"}, {"id": 791310352, "item_id": 49456897, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49456897", "by": "aguacaterojo", "date": "2026-08-26", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I've been using its predecessor organic maps for years. Maps.me before it. Been great in the outback and rural areas.", "excerpt": "I've been using its predecessor organic maps for years. Maps.me before it. Been great in the outback and rural areas. Seems like Comaps is the open fork https://openletter.earth/open-letter-to-organic-maps-shareholders-a0bf770c", "context": "outback and rural area user", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "Maps.me", "story": "CoMaps: The Offline App That Guided Rescuers Without a Signal in Venezuela"}, {"id": 791201776, "item_id": 49450111, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49450111", "by": "nosioptar", "date": "2026-08-26", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I use Organic Maps (on android, I assume the ios version is decent too).", "excerpt": "I use Organic Maps (on android, I assume the ios version is decent too). https://organicmaps.app/", "context": "Android user", "use_case": "privacy-focused maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "Apple Maps Ads Are Here, and There's No Way to Turn Them Off"}, {"id": 781269184, "item_id": 48829324, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48829324", "by": "bentley", "date": "2026-07-08", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I use Organic Maps over CoMaps simply because Organic Maps is available in Accrescent", "excerpt": "To be honest, I use Organic Maps over CoMaps simply because Organic Maps is available in Accrescent (which is in turn provided by the GrapheneOS App Store), and CoMaps is not. Both Google Play and F\u2010Droid are just enough of a hassle (and I mildly dislike both of them) to keep me on the map app that doesn\u2019t require either one.", "context": "GrapheneOS user", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}, {"id": 781068145, "item_id": 48816759, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48816759", "by": "goobatrooba", "date": "2026-07-07", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "Before that I used also organicmaps and it was fine as well but I think made a few more mistakes in routing.", "excerpt": "Been using Comaps for a while, mainly for cycling, and it works very well. Before that I used also organicmaps and it was fine as well but I think made a few more mistakes in routing. That said, obviously this is not a parallel test but rather successive. Of course the split happened with drama, but I just like the Comaps vibe and am happy with it.", "context": "cyclist", "use_case": "cycling navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}, {"id": 781056160, "item_id": 48816010, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48816010", "by": "KomoD", "date": "2026-07-07", "stance": "warn", "quote": "OM drained my battery like crazy", "excerpt": "> make app barely eat any battery > But for now Organic Maps is totally fine and many people like me see no reason to move from it anywhere. In my experience OM drained my battery like crazy (I used it for KML tracks) and after consistently seeing that, I gave up on OM.. I can't speak for CoMaps, as I have never tried it.", "context": "", "use_case": "viewing KML tracks", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}, {"id": 781038802, "item_id": 48814925, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48814925", "by": "Freak_NL", "date": "2026-07-07", "stance": "warn", "quote": "if there are significant issues with their governance they are harmful to the broader OpenStreetMap community.", "excerpt": "I don't really think it's primarily the CoMaps devs and contributors warning others about OrganicMaps. It's mostly OpenStreetMap contributors (e.g., mappers) like myself who followed the relevant discussions and events and decided that the community is better off routing around the problem. OrganicMaps could be the best app there is in terms of functionality (it isn't), but if there are significant issues with their ", "context": "OpenStreetMap contributor", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}, {"id": 781016128, "item_id": 48813508, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48813508", "by": "ponkipo", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "But for now Organic Maps is totally fine and many people like me see no reason to move from it anywhere.", "excerpt": "I've read both Organic Maps thread https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48794446 (as it's my favorite map app I use for years around the world, and I'm an active OSM contributor as well) which quickly became overrun with CoMaps followers trash-talking about OM, now this thread appears. What I find interesting to see, and I think it's not just me who can see this - that basically every mention of CoMaps and why it is ", "context": "active OSM contributor, long-time user", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}, {"id": 780987041, "item_id": 48811690, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48811690", "by": "femto", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "I used to use OrganicMaps.", "excerpt": "I used to use OrganicMaps. When coMaps forked, I changed to it. From my perspective there were no negatives. If anything, coMaps looked to be under more active development.", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "CoMaps \u2013 FOSS Offline Maps"}, {"id": 780839488, "item_id": 48802468, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48802468", "by": "ponkipo", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them.", "excerpt": "As a active OSM contibutor with 7k+ changesets, Organic is my favorite map app I use for years traveling around the world, also donated to them. Only use GMaps for finding businesses. Tried CoMaps, saw no reason to migrate to it at all - why migrate to basically no-name app (in terms of popularity) which is developed by who knows who (not even a Maps Me or OM devs) if Organic is totally good, has updates, stable, wor", "context": "active OSM contributor with 7k+ changesets", "use_case": "offline maps while traveling", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780832032, "item_id": 48802002, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48802002", "by": "u8080", "date": "2026-07-06", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "I use OM for a lot of years", "excerpt": ">do the same to OM by equally aggressively ask for money I use OM for a lot of years and never saw any aggressive money ask, could you point me what I am missing?", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780767696, "item_id": 48797981, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48797981", "by": "mintyLemon", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I love organic maps. It\u2019s great for hiking", "excerpt": "I love organic maps. It\u2019s great for hiking especially coverage through cities is really good too with small landmarks such as water fountains.", "context": "", "use_case": "hiking navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780740608, "item_id": 48796288, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48796288", "by": "informal007", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "It's a really good experience.", "excerpt": "I had my first hiking in a route without network connection one month ago, that was the first time I used the GPS without network by Organic Maps even I knew I could do it in the past. It showed me the possibility that some feature work well without network. It's a really good experience.", "context": "", "use_case": "offline GPS hiking", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780736689, "item_id": 48796043, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48796043", "by": "cmdoptesc", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "have Organic Maps and regions downloaded for travel and just switch between the two", "excerpt": "> What might make me switch? Google Maps will always have better POI data because they have a larger userbase and they've gamified adding POIs with the \"Local Guides\" badge. The main reason to switch is to have an offline-first experience. Google Maps does not provide offline maps everywhere, e.g. South Korea. And if you've ever tried using the Google Maps app on a weak connection, it's frustrating because it still t", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps for travel", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780730993, "item_id": 48795687, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48795687", "by": "jraph", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I strongly recommend you to seriously look into comaps or organic maps if you don't know them.", "excerpt": "> It's not fully private if it requires GPS connection though!! How so? GPS is like FM radio: you send nothing, you only receive. Apps like organic maps or comaps let you use the maps fully offline and you can compute itineraries without GPS when your need this (from point A to point B, with as many stops as you wish). I strongly recommend you to seriously look into comaps or organic maps if you don't know them. Now,", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps and routing", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780722704, "item_id": 48795169, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48795169", "by": "NoboruWataya", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "So IMO it's way better than Google Maps for this use case.", "excerpt": "I use OrganicMaps a lot for long walks and it's great. Works perfectly offline if you have downloaded the map of the region beforehand, which is helpful if you are in an area with poor reception or just want to conserve phone battery by turning off data. And being OSM, it is great for showing less prominent paths/trails and other useful info like drinking water sources, picnic benches etc. And supports importing GPX ", "context": "", "use_case": "offline walking navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 780714096, "item_id": 48794631, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48794631", "by": "eisa01", "date": "2026-07-05", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic Maps was my go to app for a navigation app where you can fix errors yourself immediately!", "excerpt": "Organic Maps was my go to app for a navigation app where you can fix errors yourself immediately! So much better than having to work for free on the proprietary apps, and hope they accept your edits There\u2019s a fork from one year ago, CoMaps, that is gaining different features E.g., I am adding CarPlay Dashboard support that you can test by joining the TestFlight We are in great need of both more testers and some prope", "context": "", "use_case": "navigation with editable maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "Organic Maps"}, {"id": 759903872, "item_id": 47493992, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47493992", "by": "gib444", "date": "2026-03-23", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Organic Maps is great for offline.", "excerpt": "Organic Maps is great for offline. It even did better directions in Europe recently, because Google Maps does not have an \"avoid unpaved roads\" option. Apple Maps does driving directions way better in general - better visuals, speech etc. It does foreign pronunciations better too IIRC. It's even not bad as a PWA on Android ( https://maps.apple.com ). Google Maps loves to say take eg \"exit Via Emilio Enrico\" on some r", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "Migrating to the EU"}, {"id": 759742834, "item_id": 47483927, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47483927", "by": "diowldxiks", "date": "2026-03-22", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "OrganicMaps for OSM maps", "excerpt": "I did the switch to graphene on my pixel 9 pro recently and have 0 regrets. it's just a better OS than the google infected android. Here's what I did: * Follow instructions to install graphene on their website: https://grapheneos.org/install/ * Set up a private space which will be used for google play services required apps (bank stuff, etc). Install google play and google play services in the private space. Do not i", "context": "", "use_case": "maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "GrapheneOS will remain usable by anyone without requiring personal information"}, {"id": 754796625, "item_id": 47174789, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47174789", "by": "h4kunamata", "date": "2026-02-26", "stance": "warn", "quote": "They forked from Organic Maps project which seems to have gone evil.", "excerpt": "CoMaps is by far one of the best offline navigation map app available. They forked from Organic Maps project which seems to have gone evil. CoMaps calculation is very fast, map update is constant, it is very lightweight, it has a very clean layout, usability is top tier. CoMaps can find places by the business name, there is still room for improvement but it works. I was using EarthMagic before that, it was the perfec", "context": "", "use_case": "offline navigation", "switched_from": "", "story": "OsmAnd's Faster Offline Navigation"}, {"id": 752744333, "item_id": 47046520, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47046520", "by": "sandreas", "date": "2026-02-17", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "Organic Maps - Google Maps alternative (not as good)", "excerpt": "I personally tend to own two Phones. One all-day carry GrapheneOS device (Pixel 8) and an older WiFi and at home only iPhone for all payment and ensurance stuff. This is inconvenient in some ways, but at least it is sort of privacy as good as it gets while still being able to run official apps when I need them at home. To de-google the phone, I use F-Droid as primary App store, Aurora as fallback for non-f-droid Apps", "context": "", "use_case": "offline maps", "switched_from": "", "story": "GrapheneOS \u2013 Break Free from Google and Apple"}, {"id": 746107792, "item_id": 46631737, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46631737", "by": "31337Logic", "date": "2026-01-15", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I love Organic Maps for offline navigation and exploration.", "excerpt": "I love Organic Maps for offline navigation and exploration. They even download wiki articles about popular tourist attractions! The other app I use is Briar for communications. It's surprisingly handy. You can use it on existing wifi networks but also mesh your own network with Bluetooth. Joplin to journal my vacation (which then synchs to my home network). Oh, and of course Wireguard!", "context": "", "use_case": "offline navigation while traveling", "switched_from": "", "story": "Ask HN: What travel apps do you use while traveling?"}]}