Maps SDK for Android Utility Library

Description

This open-source library contains utilities that are useful for a wide range of applications using the Google Maps SDK for Android.

As of version 5.0.0, the library has been rewritten in Kotlin and split into focused submodules so you can depend only on what you need. If you are upgrading from 4.x, see the migration guide.

• Marker animation - animates a marker from one position to another
• Marker clustering — handles the display of a large number of points
• Marker icons — display text on your Markers
• Heatmaps — display a large number of points as a heat map
• Import KML — displays KML data on the map
• Import GeoJSON — displays and styles GeoJSON data on the map
• Polyline encoding and decoding — compact encoding for paths, interoperability with Maps API web services
• Spherical geometry — for example: computeDistance, computeHeading, computeArea
• Street View metadata — checks if a Street View panorama exists at a given location

You can also find Kotlin extensions for this library in Maps Android KTX.

Requirements

• Android API level 23+
• Sign up with Google Maps Platform
• A Google Maps Platform project with the Maps SDK for Android enabled

• An API key associated with the project above ... follow the API key instructions if you're new to the process

Installation

dependencies {
    // Utilities for Maps SDK for Android (requires Google Play Services)
    // You do not need to add a separate dependency for the Maps SDK for Android
    // since this library builds in the compatible version of the Maps SDK.
    // The aggregator artifact transitively pulls in all submodules below.
    implementation("com.google.maps.android:android-maps-utils:5.0.0") // x-release-please-version
}

Alternatively, depend only on the submodules your app needs:

dependencies {
    // Base utilities: PolyUtil, SphericalUtil, collection managers, Street View metadata
    implementation("com.google.maps.android:android-maps-utils-core:5.0.0") // x-release-please-version
    // Marker clustering
    implementation("com.google.maps.android:android-maps-utils-clustering:5.0.0") // x-release-please-version
    // KML and GeoJSON import
    implementation("com.google.maps.android:android-maps-utils-data:5.0.0") // x-release-please-version
    // Heatmaps
    implementation("com.google.maps.android:android-maps-utils-heatmaps:5.0.0") // x-release-please-version
    // Marker icons and animation
    implementation("com.google.maps.android:android-maps-utils-ui:5.0.0") // x-release-please-version
}

Sample App

This repository includes a sample app that illustrates the use of this library.

To run the demo app, ensure you've met the requirements above then:

1. Clone the repository

2. Add a file secrets.properties in the root project (this file should NOT be under version control to protect your API key)

3. Add the following keys to secrets.properties:

   • MAPS_API_KEY: Required. Your Google Maps API Key. Ensure it has the Maps SDK for Android enabled.
   • PLACES_API_KEY: Optional. Required for demos using the Places API (e.g., Heatmaps with Places). Ensure the Places API is enabled.
   • MAP_ID: Optional. Required for demos using Advanced Markers or Cloud-based Map Styling.

   For example:

   MAPS_API_KEY=YOUR_MAPS_API_KEY
   PLACES_API_KEY=YOUR_PLACES_API_KEY
   MAP_ID=YOUR_MAP_ID
   

4. Build and run the debug variant for the Maps SDK for Android version

Setting up the Map ID

Some of the features in the demo app, such as Advanced Markers, require a Map ID. You can learn more about map IDs in the official documentation. You can set the Map ID in one of the following ways:

1. secrets.properties: Add a line to your secrets.properties file with your Map ID:

   MAP_ID=YOUR_MAP_ID
   

2. strings.xml: Alternatively, you can set the Map ID in the demo/src/main/res/values/strings.xml file:

   <string name="map_id">YOUR_MAP_ID</string>
   

3. XML Layout Files: You can also hardcode the Map ID directly in the XML layout files where a map is defined, by setting the map:mapId attribute:

   <androidx.fragment.app.FragmentContainerView
       map:mapId="YOUR_MAP_ID" 
       />
   

Documentation

See the documentation for a full list of classes and their methods.

Full guides for using the utilities are published in Google Maps Platform documentation.

Usage

StreetViewUtils.fetchStreetViewData(LatLng(8.1425918, 11.5386121), BuildConfig.MAPS_API_KEY,Source.DEFAULT)

Internal usage attribution ID

This library calls the addInternalUsageAttributionId method, which helps Google understand which libraries and samples are helpful to developers and is optional. Instructions for opting out of the identifier are provided below.

If you wish to disable this, you can do so by removing the initializer in your AndroidManifest.xml using the tools:node="remove" attribute:

<provider
    android:name="androidx.startup.InitializationProvider"
    android:authorities="${applicationId}.androidx-startup"
    android:exported="false"
    tools:node="merge">
    <meta-data
        android:name="com.google.maps.android.utils.attribution.AttributionIdInitializer"
        tools:node="remove" />
</provider>

Contributing

Contributions are welcome and encouraged! If you'd like to contribute, send us a pull request and refer to our code of conduct and contributing guide.

Using AI

This repository provides an official Gemini Skill and an llm-integration-prompt.md to help AI agents navigate the codebase and provide assistance. Refer to the contributing guide for more details on AI usage.

Terms of Service

This library uses Google Maps Platform services. Use of Google Maps Platform services through this library is subject to the Google Maps Platform Terms of Service.

If your billing address is in the European Economic Area, effective on 8 July 2025, the Google Maps Platform EEA Terms of Service will apply to your use of the Services. Functionality varies by region. Learn more.

This library is not a Google Maps Platform Core Service. Therefore, the Google Maps Platform Terms of Service (e.g. Technical Support Services, Service Level Agreements, and Deprecation Policy) do not apply to the code in this library.

Support

This library is offered via an open source license. It is not governed by the Google Maps Platform Support Technical Support Services Guidelines, the SLA, or the Deprecation Policy. However, any Google Maps Platform services used by the library remain subject to the Google Maps Platform Terms of Service.

This library adheres to semantic versioning to indicate when backwards-incompatible changes are introduced. Accordingly, while the library is in version 0.x, backwards-incompatible changes may be introduced at any time.

If you find a bug, or have a feature request, please file an issue on GitHub. If you would like to get answers to technical questions from other Google Maps Platform developers, ask through one of our developer community channels. If you'd like to contribute, please check the contributing guide.

You can also discuss this library on our Discord server.