We have done a complete overhaul of the Map Store to make the searchability more user-friendly and accurate, introduced a new way to see and view maps, as well as new ways to search using filters and keywords.
This article will help walk users through the following:
- Map Store Account
- Accessing the Map Store
- Searching for a map
- Viewing map details
- Purchasing a map
- Purchasing/Downloading a Map Bundle
- Accessing previously purchased maps
- Updating maps
To purchase maps from the Map Store, you are required to have a Map Store account for users on Android devices. For our iOS device users, users are strongly encouraged to create a Map Store account and sign in, to ensure their map purchases are linked to their account. If you haven’t created this already, you can do so by tapping at the top of the screen from the My Maps, or Map Store tabs, and choosing the option to Register. Once you have your account created, you can go ahead and purchase maps from the store. Maps purchased while logged in with your account can be accessed on up to 5 devices by logging into your account. You can also use this account to purchase maps directly from our website (avenzamaps.com).
To access the Map Store in the app, all you need to do is tap in the lower right corner of the main toolbar. Alternatively, from the My Maps tab, you can tap
(Android), or
(iOS) and select “Get a map from the store”.
Once you are in the Map Store, your current location will be automatically detected, and maps for that area displayed either on the list view, map view, or both (depending on the device you are using). From here, you can begin searching for a map using a series of gestures (panning the map, zooming in and out), or by using keyword and filter searches.
Once you are in the Map Store you can begin searching for a map. As mentioned earlier, depending on your device, you have the option to view maps as a list, on the map view, or if you are using a large-screen device (tablet) you will see both options at the same time. For smaller devices, you can toggle between the map and list view by tapping "Explore on a map" in the store welcome page or "View on map" after a search query, as well as the back arrow at the top of the screen (available only when you are in the Map view).
You also have the option to change the base map view between a Google Earth topographic view (with and without labels), and street view (with and without major roads displayed) by the tapping .
To search for maps, you can pan around the map, as well as zoom in and out on the desired area. The compass () can be used to zoom to their current location and search for maps nearby. If the results do not update right away, you can tap the “Search this area” tab in the upper right corner to prompt the search of the desired area.
Alternatively, you can also search using keywords and locations. To do this, tap the search bar at the top of the screen where you can then enter the desired location, and/or keywords that you wish to search for.
If you would like to filter your search results further, you can tap in the upper right corner of the Map View, or the List View. You can narrow your results by category (e.g. recreation, topographic, etc.), activity (e.g. hiking, hunting, etc.), price range, product type, and how you want to order the results. If you are having difficulty finding the specific map you are looking for, please be sure to check that your search terms and/or filters are not too narrow that you might be excluding the map you want.
If you are using the Map View, you may notice a few new icons on the map. The dark circles that have numbers inside them indicate how many maps fall within that area - please tap on this icon to zoom in further. The green icon that looks like a folded map, indicates a single map product or bundle - tap on this icon to see more information for that map.
iOS
When you find a map that you might be interested in, there are a couple of options to view the map details.
Selecting the map title - This will show you all the details regarding the map, including title, description, category, size, language, when it was published, what version it is, as well as the map store ID. From here you can also select the purchase/download the map.
“Map Extents” button - This will show you a footprint of the map extents (the rough area the map covers) on the overview map. Please note that while the map extents do give an idea of the area that the map covers, some maps with a border or other non-map area may make this extent inaccurate (i.e. the extent is for the entire map document regardless of the actual map space).
“Preview” button - this will allow you to view a sample of small snippets of the map you are interested in in order to help determine if the map suits your needs (e.g. labels, detail, etc.)
Once you have found the map you wish to purchase or download, you can do so by tapping on the price icon (or “Free” if it’s a free map), and proceeding with the steps provided. If the map you are wanting to download/purchase is a paid map, you will need to ensure that you have a valid payment option set up in your Google Play account as all purchases made through the app are handled through Google for our Android users. For our iOS users, you will need to ensure that you have a valid payment option set up in your Apple App Store account as all purchases made through the app are handled through Apple for iOS users. Once you have purchased your map, it will automatically be downloaded to your My Maps list and will be linked with your Map Store Account.
Purchasing/Downloading a Map Bundle
In our Map Store, we also offer Map Bundles, which are a series of maps that the Map Vendor will publish altogether, allowing you to have a series of maps related to the area you're looking for! In our Map Store, these are labelled with a yellow tag, indicating that when purchasing (or downloading if it's free) this Product, you will be downloading a Map Bundle.
You are also able to be selective with what Maps you'd like to download from the Bundle itself, allowing you to choose specific Maps within the Map Bundle you'd like to download. You can do this by tapping on "Show All Maps" when previewing the Map Product, which takes you to a pop-up menu, allowing to select which Maps from the Bundle you'd like to download. If you don't select any and simply purchase the Map Bundle, Avenza Maps will download all the Maps within the Map Bundle!
Please note that currently, as of Avenza Maps 5.2, you are required to pay the full price of the Map Bundle, even if you only select certain Maps from the Map Bundle. If you are looking for a specific Map within the Map Bundle and it is not available individually on the Map Store, please submit a Map Request here.
Accessing Previously Purchased Maps
If you have switched devices, or want to access your purchased or free maps on another device, you can do so by logging into your Map Store account on the other device. To do this, open Avenza Maps > tap at the top of the screen and log in with your account details. Once logged in you have the option to change any of your account details (email or password), as well as see your purchase history, where you can select which maps you wish to download. Users are also able to search and filter their purchased maps so that you can find the map you are looking for more efficiently.
Map Publishers (formerly referred to as Vendors) now have the option of providing map updates for maps that you may have purchased. These updates, which include an updated map, can be offered for free, or for a discounted cost. To check for any updates that may be available, tap (iOS) or
(Android) available from the My Maps tab near the top right corner, and select "Check for Map Updates". If an update is available for a specific map that you have installed, you will see the update option available below the title. Tap on this to go to the Map Store listing for the map, where you can see what changes were made, as well as to download (or purchase) the update. Please note that not all Publishers choose to participate in this versioning system, and some may still provide a completely new map listing which would need to be purchased separately if desired.
Comments
1 comment
Please explain how to purchase the pro version
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