User muscle memory
Store locators, trip planners, and consumer apps often convert better when the map already feels like Google.
Why Google Maps
Ubiquity as a feature
Google Maps is what most users already know how to pan and search. I reach for it when product familiarity and Places data outweigh MapLibre-style open tiling.
Places & POIs
Rich place data and autocomplete save months of gazetteer work — when licensing fits the project.
Routes & mobility
Directions and distance matrix APIs pair cleanly with product backends and mobile clients.
Know the tradeoffs
Closed styles and pricing tiers push some GIS workloads elsewhere. This lab documents when Google is — and isn't — the right call.
Built with Google Maps
Playground projects
Product-map patterns that contrast with MapLibre/MapTiler — especially when Google’s POI graph is the point.
After Powder
After the Powder
Lodging, parking, and hospitals around Rockies resorts — companion to Mapbox ski drive-time. Same product, Places strength.
Open demo →Drive Time
Ski drive-time (Mapbox)
Road-network reachable sets — the “can I get there” half of the After the Powder story.
Open Mapbox demo →Arena
Map Agent Arena
Cross-vendor agent rubix — Google can take a seat when Maps Platform keys land.
Open arena ↗Platform labs
Same pattern, more stacks
Mapping and cloud playgrounds — each hub explains why I use the platform and links demos as they ship.