We indicate the process that you must follow step by step to find charging points for your electric car using Google Maps.
With the incipient heyday of electric and plug-in cars, it is inevitable that one of the most frequent questions from users who use these vehicles is where to find charging points where they can plug in their cars. Well, thanks to the famous Google Maps application, now finding an answer to this question is very simple. If you want to know how it is possible to find these charging stations near you using one of the most famous navigation systems on the planet, in this article we will explain it to you.
How to find charging points: the new Google Maps option
There are already more than 18,000 chargers and charging points distributed throughout our country and it is that, after an increase of 19% in the registration of electric vehicles in 2022 compared to the year 2021, we cannot go through high that the movement of electrification as a propulsion model is already a reality and not a mere pretense.
As is obvious, given an increase in the demand for electric vehicles in our country, the demand to know where to recharge these vehicles is also increasing, and the famous Google company has taken advantage of this. The North American company, through its subsidiary Google Maps (application that acts as a GPS navigator) has decided to incorporate a search tool that allows users of plug-in vehicles to geolocate all existing charging points.
Map of Madrid showing some of the charging points in the capital
In this way, Google Maps allows its users to draw and devise itineraries in a much more concrete and efficient way, since once this option is activated, the electrolineras will appear marked in the search engine like any other point of interest. In this way we can establish an exact route from point A to point B detailing the exact charging stations where we want to stop to recharge our vehicle. In addition, we will be shown the shortest route to reach them and, as if that were not enough, we will be able to filter the searches depending on the type of plug we need for our car.
And it is that not all plugs are similar, so Google Maps has also introduced a filter for the different plug models that exist. That is why we can choose between all the following plugs that we want to appear, indicated on the map, as well as their power:
-CCS Combo 1 and 2 type plug.
-J1772 type plug.
-Wallbox plug.
-Tesla type plug.
-CHAdeMO type plug.
This new update is a great improvement for the famous Google geolocator, and now the user experience is much better. In addition to being able to search for charging points for our vehicles, it also allows us to save our favorite charging stations for the future. As if that were not enough, we will be detailed the opening and closing hours of the location where the electric station is located, the number of plugs it has, how many of them are in operation and the charging speed of these.
Regarding the recharging points, it is necessary to remind all users that there are numerous locations where our vehicle can be plugged in completely free of charge, in addition to the fact that there are other locations where recharging points are very frequent -and increasingly- , such as supermarkets, department stores, restaurants or in the vicinity of public buildings.
And it is that if you are interested in activating this option, we will explain it to you in the next point of the article, where we will detail step by step how to activate this option.
How to activate this option: process explained step by step
-First of all we must open Google Maps and enter in its search bar one of the following terms: ‘electric car recharge’, ‘electric vehicle charging point’, ‘charging station’ or ‘EV charging’.
-When you press continue, several red icons with a symbol of an electric station will appear on the map of your area.
-On one of the sides you will find a list with each of the charging points closest to your location with more information about them, as we detailed previously. If you still want to know more about a station, you can click on it as you would any other point of interest.
-If you are interested in any of these stations, you can save them by clicking on ‘Save’ in their tab and create a personalized list with them, placing them in the order you choose.
Other functions available in Google Maps: people with reduced mobility
In addition to serving as a search engine and locator for any street, establishment or place on the planet and, in addition, now for electrolineras, Google Maps also has other different functions that are also useful for, for example, people with reduced mobility. And it is that Google Maps is also an ideal tool for people with reduced mobility or with different abilities thanks to the option of ‘Accessible places’. This option is a tool that tries to provide -as much as possible- all the necessary information to those people with reduced mobility or invalids.
In the details we will be told the number of plugs there are, how many of them are in operation and the charging speed of these
In order to activate this tool, we only have to activate the function in the settings menu and, from here, a blue icon with a wheelchair will appear next to the profile of each business to know if it has an accessible entrance, and the same icon crossed out yes As far as driving is concerned, the accessibility indicator also shows whether or not the premises have accessible parking spaces for people with reduced mobility
Other useful applications if you have an electric car
To close this article, we remind you that there are numerous very useful applications for your mobile phone if you own an electric vehicle. These apps range from other geolocators or GPS with a multitude of advantages if you have a plug-in car such as Waze, applications that will help you pay for recharges with your mobile phone such as Waylet or diagnostic applications for your car, as is the case with the interface offered by the Tesla or Infocar apps.