On Pixel, Making Waze the Default Map App Requires Disabling Google Maps

The report said the writer switched to Waze on a Pixel 9 Pro after Google Maps failed to start navigation and its interface had become clunky. Waze had been used before on earlier Pixel phones, but this time the aim was to make it the default mapping app.

According to ZDNet, that is no longer simple. After the August Android update, the Default apps settings no longer offer a way to choose a different mapping app as the default. Locating Waze on the default page and choosing how it opens web links does not make it the default because apps such as Calendar still do not open it by default, the report said.

Opening Waze after installation does not prompt users to set it as the default, and Waze settings do not provide that option, according to the report. The workaround instead requires disabling Google Maps. Users open Settings, tap Apps, tap See all apps if Maps is not listed, select Maps and tap Disable. With Google Maps disabled, Android recognizes Waze as the only mapping app, the report said. Opening an address from a calendar appointment should then launch Waze, and users may be prompted to set it as the default.

For Android Auto, ZDNet said users must add Waze to the launcher. That requires going to Settings, then Connected Devices, Connection Preferences, Android Auto and Customize launcher, checking Waze and moving it up in the list for easier access.

The report presents the method as the way to set a different mapping app as the default on Pixel after the change. It also notes that the older route, installing the app and selecting it in Default apps, no longer works for mapping apps.