GPS Coordinates Locator Map

Review by eFreeware

GPS Coordinates Locator Map is built for people who care about the numbers behind a location rather than the route to it. If you hike, work outdoors, handle site paperwork or simply want to note exactly where a photo was taken, the app's job is to put your position on a map and spell it out in the coordinate systems your work or hobby uses. Firehawk's app has been on Google Play since December 2019 and sits in the Maps & Navigation category, with more than 10 million installs and a 4.6 average from 73,722 ratings.

What makes it interesting is the spread of formats. Rather than one latitude and longitude readout, it covers DMS, UTM, MGRS, Plus codes and Geohash, which means the same spot can be expressed the way a particular map, GPS unit or colleague expects. A direction compass and satellite tracking round out the location tools, and a maps history feature keeps a record of places you have been.

It is free to download and supported by ads, with in-app purchases available. The app carries an Everyone content rating, and the most recent update, in December 2023, was a bug-fix release.

Reading a position in the format you actually need

The core of the app is a map with your current position on it, paired with the coordinate values for that spot. For anyone who has copied a latitude and longitude pair out of a phone's default map app and then had to convert it by hand, the appeal here is having several notations available in the same place. DMS gives the familiar degrees, minutes and seconds; UTM and MGRS express position on a grid; Plus codes and Geohash use short alphanumeric strings that are easier to pass on than a long string of numbers.

That range is what separates a dedicated coordinate tool from a general map app. Search and directions are not the point; knowing precisely where you are, and being able to state it in a form someone else can use, is. If your work involves grid references, or you trade locations with people who use a different convention, having those formats together saves a conversion step.

The developer pitches the app at professionals as well as casual users, and the format list is the reason that pitch makes sense. A hiker noting a trailhead, a surveyor recording a marker and someone tagging a favorite cafe all end up with a coordinate they can write down or send, even though they want it for very different reasons.

Keeping a record of where you have been

Maps history is the feature that turns the app from a one-off lookup into something you return to. Instead of reading your position once and forgetting it, you can track the places you have visited and find them again later. The developer describes this as useful for revisiting old favorites as well as discovering new ones, and for anyone who spends time in the field, a running record of locations is often more valuable than a single reading.

The tool pairs naturally with the coordinate formats. A saved place is only useful if you can identify it precisely, and a history entry backed by a grid reference or a Plus code is far easier to relocate than a pin dropped roughly on a map. Whether you are logging survey points, campsites or restaurants worth returning to, the combination does the job.

There is also a sharing angle. The app is designed to display your location to friends and family, so a coordinate can be sent on to someone who needs to meet you or follow the same route. That is a modest but genuinely useful role for an app like this, particularly when the person on the other end is working from a paper map or a handheld GPS unit rather than a phone.

Compass, satellite view and the map layers

Beyond coordinates, the app includes a direction compass and GPS satellite tracking, so orientation and signal information sit alongside the position readout. For walking a bearing or checking that you are facing the right way before setting off, a compass in the same app as your coordinates removes the need to switch between tools.

The map itself can be displayed in eight styles: standard, satellite, terrain, retro, dark, night, aubergine and silver. The satellite and terrain options are the ones that matter most for outdoor use, since they show ground features and elevation that a plain road map hides. The darker styles are there for low-light conditions, and the retro and silver options are largely a matter of taste.

Having that many layers is a small thing, but it means the map can be matched to the task. Reading a grid reference against satellite imagery is a different exercise from reading one against a road map, and the choice is yours rather than fixed by the developer.

What you need before you start

There is not much to set up. You install the app, and it displays your position on the map along with the coordinate values. The developer also lists an offline coordinate locator, which matters for anyone working outside reliable mobile coverage, though you should treat that as a feature of the coordinate lookup rather than an assumption about how the maps themselves behave.

The app is free to download and carries ads, and in-app purchases are available. It is rated for Everyone, so there is nothing in the content rating to restrict who can use it.

The most recent update arrived in December 2023 and consisted of bug fixes.

Who gets the most from a coordinate-first app

This is a tool for people who already know which coordinate format they need. Hikers, surveyors, geocachers, search and rescue volunteers, field researchers and anyone whose work involves grid references will find the format coverage more useful than a general map app's single latitude and longitude line. The compass and map history add to that case by supporting repeat visits to the same places.

It also suits the casual user who wants to note where something is and pass that information on accurately. Tagging a favorite cafe or recording a trailhead does not require professional training, and the app is simple enough for that kind of use. The offline coordinate locator is a further argument for anyone whose plans take them away from a signal.

Where the app is less compelling is for navigation in the ordinary sense. It is not presented as a routing tool. If your need is to get from one address to another, a conventional maps app will serve you better. This one answers a narrower question, and answers it in more depth.

A dependable pick for grid references and location logs

GPS Coordinates Locator Map does one job well: it tells you exactly where you are and expresses that position in whichever of several coordinate systems you happen to need.

The trade-offs are modest but real. It is ad-supported and offers in-app purchases. If you want coordinates, formats and a record of where you have been, it covers that ground thoroughly.

I would suggest it to hikers, surveyors, field workers and anyone who regularly writes down or shares precise locations. It is free to try, well established, and the format coverage is broad enough that most users will find the notation they already work in.

What's new in version 3.1.0

Bug Fixes