Look Around (Apple)

Parts of this article (those related to Refine Location) need to be updated. The reason given is: The feature was taken off the Feature Availability site, indicating it might have been discontinued. Won't remove it until confirmed. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (July 2023)

Look Around

A street in New Jersey with a look at Look Around in the Apple Maps app on the iPad Pro
Initial release	September 19, 2019; 5 years ago (2019-09-19)
Platform	iOS, iPadOS, macOS
Available in	Multiple languages

Look Around is a technology featured in Apple Maps that provides interactive panoramas from positions along a number of streets in various countries. Look Around allows the user to view 360° street-level imagery, with smooth transitions as the scene is navigated. Look Around was introduced with iOS 13 at Apple Worldwide Developers Conference in June 2019. It was publicly released as part of iOS 13 on September 19, 2019.^[1]

In early 2015, vehicles equipped with twelve cameras and lidar sensors were seen in a variety of locations in the United States. These vehicles were owned by Apple and were also seen in places like the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, and Sweden. In June 2015, Apple stated on its website that the vehicles were collecting data to improve Apple Maps. Also, Apple claimed to secure privacy by making faces and license plates unrecognizable. In 2018 Apple confirmed in an article that it was rebuilding Apple Maps, with the first results rolled out in California.^[2]

In 2017, Apple started surveying Spain, Portugal, Croatia, and Slovenia. A year later, in 2018, Apple started collecting imagery in Japan.

In May 2019, Apple announced plans to begin collecting data for Apple Maps in Canada.^[3]

Overall in 2019, Apple started collecting imagery in Andorra, Canada, San Marino, Germany and Australia.

During WWDC on June 22, 2020, Apple announced its new maps would be coming to Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Canada later in the year.^[4]

Overall in 2020, Apple started collecting imagery in Monaco, Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland, Norway, Israel, New Zealand and Singapore.

During WWDC 2021 on June 7, 2021, Apple announced that Spain and Portugal would receive the new maps that day, with both Australia and Italy getting them later in the year.^[5] On September 10, 2021, Apple published new map data in Andorra, Italy, San Marino, and Vatican City.^[6] Apple began testing its new maps in Australia on October 19, 2021, publishing the new data on December 9, 2021.^[7]

Overall in 2021, Apple started collecting imagery in Hungary, Hong Kong, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Poland, Czechia, Austria, Switzerland, and Taiwan.

On March 7, 2022, Apple started collecting imagery in Greece. On March 4, 2022, Apple began testing its new map in Germany and Singapore. On April 21, 2022, Munich and most of Singapore received Look Around alongside the new maps.^[8] On May 14, 2022, Apple started collecting imagery in Denmark. On May 29, 2022, Apple began testing its new map in France, Monaco, and New Zealand, with the maps launching on July 7, 2022.^[9] On June 3, 2022, Apple announced a first round of imagery collection in Mexico, which began in August 2022. During Apple's WWDC event in June 2022, it was announced that eleven new countries would receive the new maps by the end of the year, including Belgium, Israel, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Palestinian Territories, Saudi Arabia, and Switzerland.^[10] The Look Around feature was enabled in all of Germany on July 25, 2022.^[11]

Apple started testing its new map data in Israel, the Palestinian Territories, and Saudi Arabia on August 5, 2022. In September 2022, Apple announced the start of image collection in Thailand, which began in October 2022. On November 2, 2022, Apple started testing its new map data in Belgium, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. The new data was released on December 15, 2022, alongside Israel, Palestinian Territories, and Saudi Arabia.^[12]

Overall in 2022, Apple began collecting imagery in Greece, Denmark, Mexico, and Thailand.

On January 23, 2023, Apple began testing its new map data in Austria, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. On March 2, 2023, the new maps were launched in Finland, Norway, and Sweden.^[13] On March 10, 2023, Apple began testing its new map data in Austria, Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Poland, and Slovenia.^[14] The new maps were released on April 6, 2023.^[15] On April 17, 2023, Apple began surveying the United Arab Emirates. On May 2, 2023, Apple began testing its new map in Hong Kong, Slovakia, and Taiwan.^[16] The new map data was published for these countries in June 2023.^{[citation needed]} On July 31, 2023, Apple began testing its new maps in Denmark and Greece, with the map data officially launching on October 12, 2023.^[17][18]

As of July 2023, Look Around covers around 80 areas, including parts of the United Kingdom (which includes the overseas territory of Gibraltar), Ireland, Canada, Japan, Andorra, Spain (including the Balearic and Canary Islands), Portugal, Italy (including Sardinia and Sicily), San Marino, Australia, Germany, Singapore, France, New Zealand, the United States, Israel, Belgium, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, Taiwan, Austria, Greece, Denmark and Hong Kong.

Overall in 2023, Apple began collecting imagery in Brazil, India, Malaysia, and the United Arab Emirates.

In January 2024, an Apple Maps car was spotted in USJ 20, Malaysia, with the text Koleksi Imejan Apple Maps (English: Apple Maps Image Collection) emblazoned on the car.^[19]

Overall in 2024, Apple began collecting imagery in Cyprus, Bulgaria, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Vietnam.

In iOS 14, Apple released a new feature called Refine Location in Apple Maps: if the app cannot otherwise get precise location information, it prompts the user to scan the surrounding area. This uses Look Around data to improve the accuracy of the current location.^[20] As of May 2021, the following areas have received the Refine Location feature:

Locations with Refine Location^[21]

Country	Location
Australia	Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney
Austria	Graz, Innsbruck, Salzburg, Vienna
Belgium	Antwerp, Brussels
Canada	Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Quebec City, Vancouver, Vancouver Island, Winnipeg
Croatia	Split, Zagreb
Czechia	Prague
Denmark	Copenhagen
Finland	Helsinki
France	Bordeaux, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Paris, Reims, Rouen, Toulouse
Germany	Berlin, Bonn, Bremen, Cologne, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Essen, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, Stuttgart
Greece	Athens
Hungary	Budapest
Ireland	Dublin
Israel	Jerusalem, Tel Aviv
Italy	Bologna, Catania, Florence, Genoa, Milano, Naples, Palermo, Rome, Venice
Japan	Fukuoka, Kyoto, Nagoya, Osaka, Sapporo, Tokyo
Luxembourg	Luxembourg
Mexico	Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterrey, Tijuana
Netherlands	Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague
New Zealand	Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington
Norway	Oslo
Poland	Kraków, Warsaw, Wroclaw
Portugal	Lisbon, Porto
Singapore	Singapore
Slovenia	Ljubljana
Spain	Alicante, Barcelona, Bilbao, Cordoba, Granada, Madrid, Málaga, Murcia, Pamplona, Seville, Valladolid, Zaragoza
Sweden	Malmö, Stockholm
Switzerland	Bern, Geneva, Zürich
Taiwan	Taichung City, Taipei
Thailand	Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Pattaya, Phuket, Udon Thani
United Kingdom	Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, London, Manchester
United States	Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Buffalo, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale, Houston, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Louisville, Maui, Memphis, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Nashville, New Orleans, New York, Oahu, Oklahoma City, Orange County, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Raleigh, Riverside, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa, Washington, D.C.

In iOS 15, Apple released a feature called AR Walking Directions in Apple Maps, where the user scans the surrounding area and will show directions. Much like Refine Location, this feature makes use of the surrounding area and improves the accuracy of directions. As of July 2023, the following areas have received AR Walking Directions:

Locations with AR Walking Directions^[22]

Country	Location
Australia	Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney
Austria	Vienna
Belgium	Brussels
Canada	Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg
Finland	Helsinki
France	Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Paris
Germany	Berlin, Cologne, Dortmund, Dusseldorf, Essen, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, Stuttgart
Hong Kong	Hong Kong
Ireland	Dublin
Israel	Tel Aviv
Italy	Florence, Milan, Naples, Rome, Turin, Venice
Japan	Aomori, Chiba Prefecture, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Hyogo, Kagoshima, Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanazawa, Kawasaki, Kitakyushu, Kobe, Kumamoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Maebashi, Nagoya, Niigata, Okayama, Osaka Prefecture, Sapporo, Sendai, Shizuoka, Takamatsu, Tokyo, Yokohama
Liechtenstein	Liechtenstein
Luxembourg	Luxembourg City
Netherlands	Amsterdam, Rotterdam
New Zealand	Auckland, Wellington
Portugal	Lisbon
San Marino	City of San Marino
Singapore	Singapore
Spain	Barcelona, Bilbao, Granada, Madrid, Malaga, Murcia, Seville, Valencia
Sweden	Gothenburg, Stockholm
Switzerland	Basel, Geneva, Zürich
Taiwan	Taipei
United Kingdom	Belfast, Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bradford, Bristol, Cardiff, Coventry, Edinburgh, Gibraltar, Glasgow, Kingston Upon Hull, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Oxford, Reading, Sheffield, Wakefield, Wigan, Wirral
United States	Akron, Albany, Albuquerque, Amarillo, Anaheim, Anchorage, Atlanta, Austin, Bakersfield, Baltimore, Baton Rouge, Billings, Birmingham, Boise, Boston, Buffalo, Cedar Rapids, Charleston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Colorado Springs, Columbia, Columbus, Corpus Christi, Dallas, Dayton, Denver, Detroit, Duluth, El Paso, Eugene, Fargo, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Fort Wayne, Fresno, Greensboro, Greenville, Green Bay, Harrisburg, Hartford, Houston, Indianapolis, Jackson, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Knoxville, Lansing, Las Vegas, Lincoln, Little Rock, Los Angeles, Louisville, Lubbock, Madison, Memphis, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Mobile, Montgomery, Nashville, Newark, New Haven, New Orleans, New York, Norfolk, Oahu, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Portland, Providence, Raleigh, Rapid City, Reno, Richmond, Rockford, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco Bay Area, San Juan, Savannah, Scranton, Seattle, Sioux Falls, Spokane, Springfield, St. Louis, St. Paul, Syracuse, Tallahassee, Tampa, Toledo, Topeka, Tucson, Tulsa, Virginia Beach, Washington, D.C., Wichita, Winston-Salem

#	Release date	Major locations added
1	September 19, 2019[23]	Las Vegas, Oahu, San Francisco Bay Area, Santa Cruz
2	September 30, 2019[24]	Los Angeles, New York City
3	November 18, 2019	Houston
4	February 19, 2020[25]	Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C.
5	April 20, 2020[26]	Chicago
6	June 29, 2020[27]	Seattle
7	August 4, 2020[28]	Kyoto, Nagoya, Osaka, Tokyo
8	October 1, 2020[29]	Edinburgh, London Dublin
9	October 7, 2020[30]	Phoenix
10	December 4, 2020	Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Takamatsu
11	December 10, 2020[31]	Southern Canada
12	December 16, 2020[32]	Denver, Detroit, Miami
13	February 3, 2021[33]	San Diego, Portland
14	May 12, 2021[34]	Atlanta
15	May 17, 2021[34]	Kanazawa, Sendai
16	June 7, 2021[5]	Spain Continental Portugal Gibraltar
17	September 10, 2021[6]	Italy San Marino
18	October 29, 2021	Andorra
19	December 9, 2021[7]	Australia
20	April 21, 2022[8]	Munich Singapore
21	May 18, 2022	Frankfurt, Stuttgart
22	May 27, 2022[35]	Niigata, Sapporo, Shizuoka
23	June 16, 2022	Cologne, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Essen
24	June 30, 2022	Berlin, Hamburg, Leipzig
25	July 7, 2022[9]	Metropolitan France New Zealand
26	July 25, 2022[11]	Rest of Germany
27	December 15, 2022[12]	Belgium Israel Liechtenstein Luxembourg Netherlands Switzerland
28	March 2, 2023[13]	Mainland Finland Norway Sweden
29	April 7, 2023[15]	Croatia Czechia Hungary Poland Slovenia
30	May 20, 2023	Himeji, Kitakyushu, Maebashi, Okayama
31	July 27, 2023	Dallas, Minneapolis, Tampa Bay
32	September 26, 2023	Austria Taiwan
33	October 12, 2023[18]	Denmark Greece
34	October 20, 2023	Hong Kong
35	November 2, 2023	Sacramento
36	December 10, 2023	Jacksonville, Orlando
37	February 8, 2024	Kumamoto, Utsunomiya
38	February 15, 2024	Charlotte, Raleigh
39	March 28, 2024	Austin, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, and several areas in California
40	May 17, 2024	Monaco
41	August 15, 2024	Åland

Locations with Look Around

Country	Region
Andorra	Full coverage
Australia	Full coverage
Austria	Full coverage
Belgium	Full coverage
Canada	Full coverage (excluding territories)
Croatia	Full coverage
Czechia	Full coverage
Denmark	Full coverage (excluding Faroe Islands and Greenland)
Finland	Full coverage
France	Metropolitan France
Germany	Full coverage (excluding smaller German islands)
Greece	Full coverage
Hong Kong	Full coverage (excluding Sai Kung East & West Country Park, Ma Wan and Discovery Bay)
Hungary	Full coverage
Ireland	Carlow, Cavan, Dublin, Kildare, Laois, Longford, Louth, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow
Israel	Full coverage
Italy	Full coverage
Japan	Fukuoka, Himeji, Hiroshima, Kanazawa, Kitakyushu, Kumamoto, Kyoto, Maebashi, Nagoya, Niigata, Okayama, Osaka, Sapporo, Sendai, Shizuoka, Takamatsu, Tokyo, Utsunomiya
Liechtenstein	Full coverage
Luxembourg	Full coverage
Monaco	Full coverage
Netherlands	Full coverage (excluding Caribbean territories)
New Zealand	Full coverage
Norway	Full coverage (excluding Svalbard)
Poland	Full coverage
Portugal	Continental Portugal
San Marino	Full coverage
Singapore	Full coverage
Slovenia	Full coverage
Spain	Full coverage (excluding Ceuta and Melilla)
Sweden	Full coverage
Switzerland	Full coverage
Taiwan	Full coverage
United Kingdom	Edinburgh, Gibraltar, London
United States	Anaheim, Atlanta, Austin, Bakersfield, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Fresno, Houston, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, Monterey Bay, New York City, Oahu, Orlando, Palm Springs, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, Raleigh, Riverside, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco Bay Area, San Luis Obispo–Morro Bay–Paso Robles, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Seattle, Tampa Bay, Washington, D.C., Yosemite Valley

According to the company, Apple's vehicles and pedestrians have visited, or are scheduled to visit, the following countries and territories:^[36]

Locations visited by Apple Maps Image Collection team

Country	Vehicle	Pedestrian
Brazil	North Region, Northeast Region, Central-West Region, Southeast Region, South Region	N/A
Bulgaria	Burgas, Dobrich, Haskovo, Pernik, Pleven, Plovdiv, Ruse, Shumen, Sliven, Sofia Province, Stara Zagora, Varna	Backpacks: Sofia Province
Cyprus	Larnaca, Limassol, Nicosia, Paphos	Backpacks: Nicosia, Paphos
Estonia	Mainland Estonia, Hiuu Island	Backpacks: Harju, Tartu
Iceland	Capital Region, Eastern Region, Northwestern Region, Southern Peninsula, Southern Region, West Fjords, Western Region	Backpacks: Capital Region
India	Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal	Transit (iPhone/iPad): Delhi, Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, West Bengal
Japan	Aichi Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, Ehime Prefecture, Fukuoka Prefecture, Gunma Prefecture, Hiroshima Prefecture, Hokkaido, Hyōgo Prefecture, Ibaraki Prefecture, Ishikawa Prefecture, Kagawa Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefecture, Kumamoto Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, Mie Prefecture, Miyagi Prefecture, Nara Prefecture, Niigata Prefecture, Okayama Prefecture, Osaka Prefecture, Saitama Prefecture, Shiga Prefecture, Shizuoka Prefecture, Tochigi Prefecture, Tokyo Prefecture, Yamanashi Prefecture	Backpacks: Aichi Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, Fukuoka Prefecture, Hiroshima Prefecture, Hokkaido, Hyōgo Prefecture, Ishikawa Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefecture, Kumamoto Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, Mie Prefecture, Miyagi Prefecture, Nara Prefecture, Okayama Prefecture, Osaka Prefecture, Saitama Prefecture, Shizuoka Prefecture, Tokyo Prefecture iPhone/iPad: Tokyo Prefecture
Latvia	Courland, Latgale, Riga, Semigallia, Vidzeme	Backpacks: Riga
Lithuania	Alytus, Kaunas, Klaipėda, Marijampolė, Panevėžys, Šiauliai, Tauragė, Telšiai, Utena, Vilnius	Backpacks: Vilnius
Malaysia	Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, Kuala Lumpur, Labuan, Malacca, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Putrajaya, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, Terengganu	Backpacks: Johor, Kuala Lumpur, Malacca, Pulau Pinang, Selangor
Malta	Central Region, Gozo Region, Northern Region, South Eastern Region, Southern Region	Backpacks: Central Region, Northern Region, South Eastern Region, Southern Region
Mexico	Aguascalientes, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila de Zaragoza, Colima, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Lower California, México, Mexico City, Michoacán de Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Yucatán, Zacatecas	Backpacks: Ecatepec de Morelos, Jalisco, Mexico City, Nuevo León, Puebla
Palestine	Bethlehem, Hebron, Jenin, Jericho, Jerusalem, Nablus, Qalqilya, Ramallah, Salfit, Tubas, Tulkarm	N/A
Romania	București - Ilfov, Centru, Nord-Est, Nord-Vest, Sud - Muntenia, Sud-Est, Sud-Vest Oltenia, Vest	Backpacks: București - Ilfov
Serbia	Belgrade, Bor District, Braničevo District, Central Banat District, Jablanica District, Kolubara District, Mačva District, Moravica District, Nišava District, North Bačka District, North Banat District, Pčinja District, Pirot District, Podunavlje District, Pomoravlje District, Raška District, Rasina District, South Bačka District, South Banat District, Srem District, Šumadija District, Toplica District, Zaječar District, Zlatibor District	Backpacks: Belgrade
Slovakia	Banská Bystrica Region, Bratislava Region, Košice Region, Nitra Region, Prešov Region, Trenčín Region, Trnava Region, Žilina Region	Backpacks: Bratislava Region
Thailand	Bangkok, Central Thailand, Eastern Thailand, Northeastern Thailand, Northern Thailand, Southern Thailand, Western Thailand	Backpacks: Bangkok, Eastern Thailand, Northeastern Thailand, Northern Thailand, Southern Thailand
United Arab Emirates	Dubai	Backpacks: Dubai
United Kingdom	Full coverage in Channel Islands, England, Gibraltar, Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales	England, Scotland
United States	Full coverage in all 50 U.S. states (including Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands)	Backpacks: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Washington DC, Wisconsin iPhone/iPad: California, Texas
Vietnam	Central Highlands, Mekong River Delta, North Central Coastal, Northeast, Northwest, Red River Delta, South Central Coastal, Southeast	N/A

Note: While the new map covers the Palestinian Territories, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, and Vatican City, these countries lack the Look Around feature.

• Flyover (Apple Maps)
• Google Street View
• List of street view services