Google Maps in China is a haunted app: it opens, shows your blue dot, and then betrays you. Chinese law requires map data to use a coordinate system (GCJ-02) that's deliberately offset from the global standard (WGS-84). Google doesn't license corrected Chinese data, so pins land 50–500 metres off — and walking/driving navigation simply doesn't work.
What actually happens
- Restaurant pin appears on the wrong side of the river. It's not you; it's the offset.
- Walking and driving directions: unavailable or nonsensical.
- Transit directions partially work in big cities (metro lines are simple geometry).
- Search barely works — place names often need Chinese characters to match.
Use these instead
- Amap (高德地图) — the locals' choice. Has an English interface, accurate pins, works offline after you download city maps. Available on international app stores.
- Apple Maps — surprisingly decent in China (it licenses local data). Pins are correct; walking directions work. iPhone users' easiest option.
- Baidu Maps — full-featured, more Chinese-only than Amap.
- For metro-only navigation: the 'Metro Man' or city-specific metro apps are excellent.
Practical workflow
Most experienced travelers run Amap for navigation plus an internationally-routed eSIM so Google Maps keeps working for looking up what things are (photos, reviews, opening hours), while Amap gets you there. Also note: DiDi's in-app destination search is excellent and understands English names in big cities.