Parking was one of those annoying parts of driving I had to deal with.
I’d look for a spot, try to remember where I’d left the car, and occasionally wander around a parking garage wondering which floor I’d parked on.
Then I discovered Google Maps has several small parking tools that can take much of that hassle off my hands.
A few hidden features changed how I deal with parking, and I no longer rely on my memory nearly as much.
I stopped trying to remember where I parked
Maps keeps track of it now
I used to rely on my memory to remember where I’d left my car.
I’d try to remember the floor, the section, or which entrance I came through, only to find myself wandering around the parking lot later, trying to reconstruct the moment I left the car.
Then I started letting Google Maps remember it for me.
After parking, I open Google Maps and tap the blue dot showing my current location.
From the menu that appears, I tap Save parking. Maps places a parking marker at my current location and keeps it there until I remove it.
That’s all I need to do before walking away.
When I come back, I can open Maps, tap the search bar, select Parking location, and tap Directions to navigate back to the saved spot.
It’s such a small habit that I wish I’d started using it sooner. Instead of trying to remember where I left my car for the next few hours, Maps can remember it for me.
I started saving the details my GPS can’t know
Knowing my location wasn’t enough
Saving my parking location solved one problem, but I realized a GPS pin couldn’t tell me everything I needed.
If I parked in a multi-level garage and walked into an elevator, Maps could show me where my car was, but it couldn’t tell me which floor to get off on.
And when I stepped out of the elevator, I could still be staring at a sea of identical cars with no idea which direction to walk.
So I started adding those details to the parking location in Google Maps. After saving my spot, I can tap the Parking location entry, open More info, and add a note like Level 3, Section C.
I stopped worrying about the parking meter
Maps counts down my parking time
Parking somewhere with a time limit used to mean doing mental math before I walked away. If I had an hour and a half left on the meter, I had to remember when I needed to return.
However, if I was distracted by shopping, dinner, or whatever else I was doing, that information was easy to forget.
Google Maps helps me keep track of the time remaining on the meter. I don’t need another separate timer or reminder cluttering up my phone. I can attach the countdown to the place where I parked.
After I’ve saved my parking spot, I can open the Parking location card and tap More info.
Along with the other parking details, there’s a Time left option where I can enter how much time remains on the meter, in hours and minutes.
I can share my parking spot with a few taps
I stopped giving directions from the parking lot
If I’m meeting someone in a large mall or parking lot, saying “I’m near the entrance” isn’t helpful when there are several entrances and hundreds of cars.
Maps lets me share my saved parking location. After I’ve saved the spot, I can open the Parking location entry, select More info, and tap Share. I can send that location to someone through any messaging app.
That means I don’t have to describe where I am or drop another pin manually.
It’s particularly useful when someone is coming to meet me at the car, or when I’ve parked somewhere large and want a friend to find the exact spot without a phone call full of confusing directions.
Parking became one less thing for me to remember
I used to think parking was one of those small inconveniences I had to deal with. I had to remember where I left the car, which floor I was on, and how much time was left on the meter.
Google Maps can manage much of this for me if I take a few seconds to save the information when I park. I can also add the details I might forget, and even share the saved location with someone else.
