Create Custom Map in Google Maps with landmarks and routes

You can create a custom map in Google Maps by following the procedure in this post. In this map, you can create personal landmarks, routes, etc. There is no paid subscription required as you can do that on the official website of Google Maps for free!

What is a custom map in Google Maps

By default, any Google Maps user can add a landmark, shop, business, hotel, etc., on the map. When another user searches for a direction, Google Maps shows the route as usual. Sometimes, you might need a shortcut, or all your landmarks are unavailable on Google Maps. At such a moment, you can create a custom map, which will be visible to you only, and you can get directions to your desired landmarks on that map only.

A custom map is helpful when you do not want to go through all the existing names and want to create something according to your requirements. It is also handy when you are going on a trek and need to print the map with some custom landmarks so that you can understand the route correctly.

Create a map free in Google Maps

To create a custom map in Google Maps, follow these steps-

Open the official website of Google Maps in your browser.
Click the three horizontal lines on the left side.
Select Your places option.
Enter your Gmail username and password to sign in.
Switch to the MAPS tab and click the CREATE MAP button.
Click Untitled map text and write down a name.
Add map layers by clicking the Base map button.
Click on Add layer option and start adding landmarks and routes.
Click the Preview button to check a preview.
Click the three-dotted button.
Select Embed on my site or Print map.

To know more about these steps, read on.

Visit www.google.com/maps and enter your Gmail username and password so that Google Maps can save all the changes in your account.

If you do that successfully, you will find some tabs on your screen. You need to switch to the MAPS tab and select CREATE MAP button.

Now, you can name your map. To do so, click on the Untitled map text and write down a name and description.

After that, you can start adding layers. Layers help you to differentiate among all the elements you are going to add in your map.

To add a layer, click the Add layer button.

After that, it is time to choose the appearance of the map. For that, click the Base map button, and select an appearance or theme that you want to use.

Now is the time to start adding your landmarks, routes, etc. To add a custom landmark, click on the Add marker button, select a location on the map, and click on it.

Following that, you can write down a name for that landmark. If you want to add a custom route from one place to another, click on the Draw a line button, select the type of road, and click on it.

Then, you can select your router on the map.

Reminder: Remember to create a new layer for each router and landmark so that you can easily remove your mistakes.

If you are done with all the editing, it is time to check the preview.

For that, click the Preview button. It should open a new browser tab where you can find the map that you created. If you are okay with it, you can click the three-dotted button visible next to the map name.

Here you can find some options like Open a map, Embed on my site, Print map, etc.

If you want to open the custom map, click on the first option. If you embed the map on your website, you should select Embed on my site, copy the code, and paste it on your site. The best thing is the Print map option, allowing users to print and carry the map with them. The only problem with this custom map is that you cannot download maps for offline use.

Read: Best Google Maps alternatives for everyday use

In the future, if you want to open your custom map: