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I am looking for a navigation app for Android:

  • Preferably gratis, or sub $20
  • Open Street maps, or anything non-Google
  • Offline maps – preferably stored on SD card
  • Voice guidance
  • Lane guidance
  • Search by post code for European countries
  • Search by street name and house number
  • The usual other features, POI (at least fuel & parkin), time/distance to destination, avoid toll roads, etc

Nice to have
- Traffic condition updates (including rerouting when underway)
- Radar trap warnings (willing to pay)
- Knows times of ferry crossing Europe/GB

Here WeGo doesn’t have lane guidance, which is a must for me (https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2136883/three-best-offline-map-apps-road-trips-and-gps-navigation).

Navigator forces me to drill down through country, city, street; won’t accept post codes and doesn’t seem to accept street numbers

TomTom seems perfect feature-wise, but I don't like the idea of a big company tracking me.

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    Not sure if it fits all your requirements: but have you already checked OSMAnd~ at F-Droid?
    – Izzy
    Aug 2, 2018 at 10:04
  • Doesn't seem to have traffic/roadwork's warnings, otherwise perfect. I am considering paying for TomTom, which seems to meet my needs, is highly rated and cheap-ish (Eur15 or so per year). Gratis/open is always better, but sometimes I don't mind paying :-) Let's wait & see if anyone else posts. Meantime, I have installed osmand and will try it out Aug 2, 2018 at 10:20
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    Not sure if it might have addons for traffic/roadwork warnings? Traffic warnings are mentioned multiple times in their issue tracker at least.
    – Izzy
    Aug 2, 2018 at 15:14
  • Still not there yet, it seems. I do want to be notified of unexpected traffic jams when driving. TomTom seems perfect feature-wise, but I don't like the idea of a big company tracking me (I particularly don't like "Machine learning studies your driving habits and makes suggestions for your next destination"). But, I can't go for a solution that won't want me of unexpected traffic conditions and reroute me. Without that, I can drive into an avoidable jam and never be rerouted out of it, so, alas, osmand is out :-( Aug 3, 2018 at 6:28

4 Answers 4

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OsmAnd is one of the closest options.

  • free, but with in-app purchases
  • based on OpenStreetMap
  • offline maps
  • turn-by-turn voice guidance
  • lane guidance
  • search destinations by address, by type (e.g.: parking, restaurant, hotel, gas station), or by geographical coordinates
  • a lot of other features
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  • Thi[ page](retiredtechie.fitchfamily.org/2016/01/17/…) says "While turn lane information can be sparse in OSM, when it is available it is nice to know what lane you want to be in when coming to complex intersections". That puts me off any OSM solution, alas Aug 4, 2018 at 9:16
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    It would be interesting if you can find more recent reviews. This one was written on 2016. Aug 4, 2018 at 18:51
  • A valid point (+1). As of today, the official site says "Optional lane guidance", with no clue as to how mcuh guidance there is. LEt's search firther. Meantime, I Will use it on my regualr commute and see if it offers any Aug 5, 2018 at 7:03
  • I tried it today on my 50km commute to work and got no lane guidance. I will have to try it tomorrow with another and compare. But, why bother? By coincidence, there was a major accident with two jack-knifed lorries (and free Coke for all, strewn across six lanes), with 4 lanes on my side reduced to one - and osmand knew nothing of it. I can scratch this one off my list :-( Aug 7, 2018 at 7:55
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Free GPS Navigation seems to do what I want:

  • Preferably gratis, or sub $20 Free, but "Offers in-app purchases"
  • Open Street maps, or anything non-Google I doesn't say, I need more research. At least it's not sending data direct to Google
  • Offline maps – preferably stored on SD card ✔ first thing that happens when you launch it is that it asks whether to install internally or to SD card ✔ Offline – no internet connection needed. With offline maps you save mobile data at home and abroad
  • Voice guidance ✔ Voice – drive with voice in your language. Hear precise turn by turn instruction with clear voice chosen by you. Navigate with navigation that talks!
  • Lane guidance ✔ Lane guidance – do not miss a turn, you will know what road line is the best for you
  • Search by post code for European countries ✔ Navigation – see route and navigate to address, map location, GPS coordinates or even to a photo
  • Search by street name and house number ✔ Navigation – see route and navigate to address, map location, GPS coordinates or even to a photo (plus, I checked for post code in a few countries)
  • The usual other features, POI (at least fuel & parking), time/distance to destination, avoid toll roads, etc ✔ all of that - and more

Nice to have

  • Traffic condition updates (including rerouting when underway) ✔ Traffic information – live and accurate traffic information about situation on the road which updates every 2 minutes. Danger alarms, traffic jam information, closures and more
  • Radar trap warnings (willing to pay) ✔ Speed camera alarms – see police traps and avoid paying fines
  • Knows times of ferry crossing Europe/GB I haven't checked this yet, but don't hold my breath. I was ***a lot*** to hope for :-)

a few bonus features:

✔ HUD – with Head up display you can project navigation onto windshield of your car. Great for safe drive at night
✔ Dashcam – allows you to record the road ahead. Share video of your drive with family and friends. In case of emergency the video is automatically saved
✔ Great search – with powerful search you can easily find your target location
✔ Travel book – see all your routes and trips in one place not sure how I personally feel about this; I don't like the thought of "Big Brother" seeing where I have been

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    The app link is not working anymore Nov 17, 2020 at 22:26
  • Sorry, I only just noticed your comment. I have fixed the link. Thanks for pointing that out (+1) Jun 15, 2021 at 6:19
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Maps.me has almost every point

  • free, but contains ads
  • based on OpenStreetMap
  • voice guidance
  • lane guidance (not 100% sure by the time of writing)
  • advanced search
  • and other features, described here and here
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  • lane guidance (not 100% sure by the time of writing) I am 100% sure - it doesn't have it, and thus is no good to me Aug 4, 2018 at 9:16
  • Upvote, though, as it does look quite goo Nov 16, 2020 at 21:07
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There are several but 'Here WeGo' by Here (formerly Navteq) seems to be one of the most advanced, with free offline maps and a decent navigation app.

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  • Does it have lane guidance & the other requested features? Nov 16, 2020 at 16:43
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    No it doesn't have lane guidance. I thought it did, but I have checked and it doesn't. It seems to have the other features requested. Nov 16, 2020 at 20:50
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    I have tried it before, a few years back, and liked it very much. But, I really would like the lane guidance in foreign cities :-( Upvote, though Nov 16, 2020 at 21:06

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