Google Maps

Google Maps begins rolling out estimated toll prices for planned routes

Damien Wilde | Jun 14 2022 - 2:27 am PT

Estimated toll prices for planned routes now appear to be rolling out for Google Maps users on both Android and iOS after being announced earlier this year.

Having already been announced earlier this year, it has taken a little longer than expected for toll prices to arrive in Google Maps. First reported by Android Police, the feature rollout has since been confirmed by the official Google Maps help page post (and Twitter) with 2,000 toll roads in the US, India, Indonesia, and Japan being accounted for.

Google previously stated that more countries will see the feature “soon” but did not specify just what regions will be first in line once the expansion starts. Toll price estimates is a feature that has existed in Waze for some time, but given the ubiquity of Google Maps, this is a solid option for those in regions where toll roads are a common occurrence. This is in tandem with the existing feature that allows you to avoid toll roads entirely when route planning.

For the planner friend: this new feature is for you. 🙏

Now when you’re planning trips big and small, you can check estimated toll prices before you pick a route—and spend what you save on road snacks. pic.twitter.com/Lfy8s2TXQU
— Google Maps (@googlemaps) June 13, 2022

You’ll see the estimated toll price to your destination before you start navigating thanks to trusted information from local tolling authorities. We look at factors like having a toll pass or not, what the day of the week it is, along with how much the toll is expected to cost at the specific time you’ll be crossing it.

The pricing data is directly sourced from local tolling authorities. Maps then factors in the outright cost of using a toll pass, specific payment method charges, daily toll rates, along with how much the toll is expected to cost at the specific arrival time to give you an estimate when mapping out a potential route.

You will have the option within settings to show toll prices with or without having a toll pass–as in many geographies the price changes based on the payment method you use. You will also still have the option to avoid routes crossing toll roads entirely, if possible, by selecting ‘Avoid tolls’ within settings.

While this is a great move, it’s worth noting that Google Maps is not yet capable of showing individual toll road prices. Instead, you’ll only get a “full” estimate for a complete route. There are also no options to select things such as vehicle type nor add-in discount passes if they exist for certain transit methods. Either way, this is a great step in the right direction, and it would be great to see Google develop it further with more fine controls and pricing data.