You remember the times in the past when we had to stop every now and then to ask directions from passers-by to locate a place? Well, those times are long gone and we have Google maps to our rescue, and this app has been something of a life-saver in the last two decades. That is why it is quite a worry if you discover that your Google maps are not showing street names.
Some people also ask ‘how do I turn on street names in Google maps’ particularly for cases when your map says turn left and you notice that there are three streets on the left quite close to each other. This means that you need the map to tell you the exact street so that you do not end up last. In the next couple of minutes, we will show you what to do when your Google maps are not showing street names, in order to fix it.
First off, ensure that you have zoomed in enough. Some street names will not show on the map unless you zoom in enough. This is because Google maps do not allow the street labels to overlap so the space for the street name can only be enough if you zoom right in. If your Google maps are not showing street names after zooming in, then you have an issue to fix.
What to do if my Google maps are not showing street names
Do you have to understand why this is happening on your Android device?
To answer this, we have to understand exactly what the issue is for your Google maps application. Why is it that your Google maps are not showing street names? Is the Google maps app also not showing names of places or it is not showing city names? Was it working perfectly fine before you woke up one day and discovered the google maps street view is not working?
Well, as we discuss the solutions to fix this problem on Google Maps, we will mention what issues you should take note of.
If you woke up one morning to discover that your Google maps are not showing street names, or it started after a recent update of your Android software of the Google maps application, then you can start by clearing the Cache.
How to clear the Cache on your Google Maps application
Clearing the cache helps to get rid of recent bugs in your application, or usage history which may be clogging up your memory. To do this;
- Go to Settings menu > Tap on Apps & Notification > Click on App Info > Navigate down to Maps and tap on it > Tap on Storage and Cache
- Tap on clear storage and when you are done, also tap on clear cache. This should free up some space and allow your Google maps to function optimally.
- Give it a minute to refresh everything and then open the map. Type in a location to see if it shows the street names as it should.
If it still does not work in giving you directions, then move on to the next step which will be to force stop the application.
How to Force Stop the Google Maps application
Go to Settings > Navigate down to Apps & Notification and tap on it > Click on App Info > Scroll down to Maps and tap on it > Tap on Force Stop
Also, give a minute before opening your Google maps to try it again. Type in a location and try to get directions.
How to Uninstall updates on Google map
If after trying the first two steps, it happens that your Google maps are not showing street names still, then the problem might have to do with your application updates. To fix this, we have to uninstall all updates, then reinstall updates from Google Play.
- Go to Google play store
- Type Google maps in the search bar and search for it.
- From the results, select the Google maps app which you have installed on your phone.
- Click on uninstall. Because this is one of the preinstalled applications on your android phone, the application cannot be uninstalled. So you will see a dialogue box asking if you want to ‘uninstall all updates to this Android System App’. Tap okay.
- When it is done uninstalling, close the play store.
- Open the Google play store again and search the application. This time, click on update and allow the application to install all updates.
This should resolve the problem and now you should be able to see street names when you zoom in on the app.
How do I turn on street view on Google maps?
If after reinstalling the updates, the Google maps are not showing street names, then it might be that your street view is turned off.
There are different views in your Google maps settings such as Public Transit which gives you directions as though you were taking public transit to your destination, Traffic which tries to give you the least busy route to your destination, and others.
If Google maps are not showing street names in Nigeria, for instance, it could be that your street view is turned off. Here is how to turn it back on.
- Open the Google maps application
- At the top right of the application, you should see two icons. Click on the one which looks like two diamond shapes resting on each other. If you don’t see these icons right away, try to navigate up or down the map, the search bar disappears temporarily showing you the two icons.
- Tap on the street view to turn it on. If it on, the street view icon will turn to blue color.
- Tap back on the map to take away this dropdown menu.
- Now search your address again. Google maps will give you a street view this time.
If your issue with the Google maps app has to do with the app simply telling you ‘turn left’ rather than voicing the street name, then it should get fixed after you clear the cache from the app. If it still doesn’t get fixed then you can just try these steps in addition. This has worked specifically for Samsung phone users.
Go to ---I fixed mine by changing my Galaxy's text to speech settings from Samsung's voice to Google's.
On the last note, if it still does not show you a particular street name that you want to see, then it is possible that Google Map does not have the street name in its database especially if it is a really small street, is not publicly accessible or has weak internet use. You can help by submitting the information to help Google map label the street.
