Google Maps seems to be missing a very useful feature for some

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Users report the popular in-app music controls have vanished from the latest Google Maps update.

Google Maps navigation
(Image credit: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)

What you need to know

  • Google Maps has removed in-app music playback controls for some Android users.
  • The feature that allowed control over streaming services like YouTube Music and Spotify is nowhere to be seen in the latest app version.
  • It's unclear if this is a bug or an intentional removal since it's still available on the iOS version.

We all know that Google Maps is one of the most popular navigation apps, be it on Android phones and iOS handsets, allowing users to connect to their favorite music streaming apps like YouTube Music and Spotify for easy access while navigating. The handy controls gave users the ability to play/pause music and skip or go to previous tracks. Having the music playback controls while navigating is one such convenience that Maps offers, which surprisingly has gone missing in the latest update.

9to5Google now finds that the handy controls, normally found under the Navigation settings of the Maps app, have seemingly been removed, along with the toggle to “Show media playback controls.”

Additionally, the option to set the music streaming service is missing from the latest version of the Google Maps app. It seemingly applies to the latest v25.28 version alongside the beta 25.29 version. I couldn’t find the same, as I also checked on my Galaxy S24 Ultra running the same stable version of Google Maps.

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Google Maps without playback controls settings
Google Maps without playback controls settings.(Image credit: 9to5Google)

Some Android Central staff also saw that the controls are still on certain devices, while missing from others. It remains unclear whether the removal of the most popular feature from Maps was a deliberate decision or an unintended bug. The feature, however, as 9to5 notes, is still available on the latest iOS version of Google Maps.

If it isn't a bug as anticipated and is intentional, it will follow the recent removal of Assistant Driving mode. It was removed as part of the Gemini transition, and it also featured the media control bar similar to what Google Maps offers now.

However, with the Assistant Driving mode discontinued, having playback controls on Google Maps became handy. Well, that might not be the case anymore until the next update for the app rolls out, hopefully bringing back the popular feature.

Vishnu Sarangapurkar
Vishnu Sarangapurkar
News Writer

Vishnu is a freelance news writer for Android Central. Since 2018, he has written about consumer technology, especially smartphones, computers, and every other gizmo connected to the internet. When he is not at the keyboard, you can find him on a long drive or lounging on the couch binge-watching a crime series.

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