Google Maps goes incognito on Android: Here’s how you can enable it

There are a number of reasons why Incognito mode in Google Maps might prove to be useful. Maybe you're exploring your next holiday destination on a shared device and want to keep a lid on it for now. Maybe you're making a quick jaunt to a nearby cake shop to surprise your significant other. Whichever be your reason, Incognito mode is officially available on Google Maps for Android. And here's how you can go about enabling it:

To enable Incognito mode in Google Maps on your Android device, open the app, then click on your profile picture in the search bar on top, and tap ‘Turn on Incognito mode’. Follow the same steps to turn Incognito mode off. Since Google is rolling out this new feature in stages, there's a chance the Incognito mode feature is still not available on your device. You should see it crop up in Maps in the next few days though. Do note that this feature is available only on Android for the moment.

According to Google's support page on the subject, turning on Incognito mode in Maps disables the following in-app features: Commute, For You, Location History (on the entire device, not just on Maps), Location Sharing, Notifications and messages, Search history, Search completion suggestions, Google Maps Contributions, Google Assistant microphone in Navigation, Offline Maps, Your Places, and Media integration.

“During Maps incognito mode, the Google Assistant microphone isn’t available in navigation, but “Ok Google” will continue to work as expected. Google Assistant is a system feature that isn’t a part of Incognito mode for Maps, so any information you share with it will be saved as usual,” warns Google. Incognito mode was first introduced in Google's Chrome browser. It allows you to browse the internet without leaving a trace of your browsing history on the app. Google hasn't mentioned when iOS users will get this feature in Maps.

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Vignesh Giridharan

Progressively identifies more with the term ‘legacy device’ as time marches on. View Full Profile