Does Google Maps work in China, and what should you do with the map on your site?

Most answers to this question are written for travelers. If you run a website, the issue is different: the map on your contact page may be the thing failing, and you won’t see it from your office.

This guide covers that map, and it’s part of our series on how to put your website in China. For every other Google service, see which Google services fail in China.

What happens to Google Maps on a page in China?

Expect a blank box, or a page that keeps waiting. It depends on how the map loads and which address it calls.

We read GreatFire’s mainland test pages for each address on November 1, 2026.

Address	How your site uses it	GreatFire result	Conclusive tests, 90 days	Last test
maps.google.com, HTTPS	“View on map” links	Blocked 1	3 of 3 failed	Oct 18, 2026
www.google.com, HTTPS	Embed iframe 8	Blocked 5	16 of 17 failed	Oct 30, 2026
maps.googleapis.com, HTTP	Script tags over HTTP	Blocked 2	1 of 1 failed	Oct 30, 2026
maps.googleapis.com, HTTPS	JavaScript API 9	Disrupted 3	3 of 3 disrupted	Oct 30, 2026
maps.gstatic.com, HTTP	Google static files, under *.gstatic.com 32	Intermittent 4	1 of 1 disrupted	Sep 29, 2026

Chinafy describes two outcomes. A map loaded asynchronously leaves a blank area while the rest of the page renders. A render-blocking one can stall the page until the request times out, which Chinafy says can take 30 seconds or longer.⁷

That figure is a vendor’s, with no method published. The mechanism is covered in our guide to speeding up your site in China.

To find your map, open DevTools, go to the Network tab and filter for maps and google.com/maps.

Page builders and store locators often add one without telling you. The WordPress, Shopify and Webflow guide looks at that side of things.

Which fixes don’t work?

Several common suggestions don’t solve this. Some look promising because a test or a table seems to back them.

Idea	Why it falls short
A CDN	It doesn’t proxy third-party domains, says Chinafy. The browser still calls Google directly.7
Loading with loading=async	Google recommends it for performance.9 The script still has to come from maps.googleapis.com.
Switching to maps.google.cn	GreatFire shows it connecting, on 1 test on Aug 26, 2026.6 A 2017 guide recommended it,11 but Chinafy says support ended in February 2020.7
Relying on Google’s coverage table	It rates China’s data highly for several features.10 That’s data quality, not reachability from China.
Apple’s MapKit JS	Developers report 401 errors from mainland networks, from October 2024 to September 2026. Apple staff only asked for a bug report.20
Mapbox	Chinafy says it doesn’t work in China by default, and that Mapbox doesn’t support users located there.21
OpenStreetMap’s public tiles	GreatFire shows tile.openstreetmap.org blocked, on 1 test on Sep 7, 2026.31
Asking visitors to use a VPN	You can’t design a page around it. Chinafy notes most visitors don’t use one.7

What should you put there instead?

For most foreign companies, the best replacement is the address written out, plus a link to Chinese maps. It needs no account, no script and no blocked domain on your page.

Option	Account or key	Page weight	Best for	The catch
Written address in Chinese	None	None	Everyone	Not interactive
Links to Amap and Baidu	None listed for this link 1415	None	Most foreign companies	Opens another page
Baidu share link in an iframe	No API key, says Chinafy 17	Light	A quick visual	Not built for embedding 17
Your own image	None	One image	A simple locator	See the rules below
Amap, Baidu or Tencent API	Yes 131719	Heavier	Store locators, many sites	Entity, terms, maintenance

Think first about what the visitor needs. If your office is in Lyon or Chicago, a Chinese buyer reading your site may just want proof that it exists. A map you can drag adds little to that.

If you make your own image, avoid a Google screenshot. Google asks for attribution on all uses, says not to crop it out, and restricts copying.²⁷²⁸

Google lets you embed a map without permission,²⁷ but the embed is what fails in China.

1. Do visitors need to navigate to you?

   No: written address.

2. Yes, one or a few locations

   Address plus Amap and Baidu links

3. Many locations, with a Chinese entity

   Chinese map API, after reading its terms

How do you add Amap and Baidu links?

Each service has a documented marker address. You build one URL per location and use it as a normal link.

1. Get your coordinates. Use your point’s GPS latitude and longitude.
2. Build the Amap link. It takes position as longitude, then latitude.¹⁴
3. Build the Baidu link. It takes location as latitude, then longitude.¹⁵
4. Declare the system. Both accept WGS-84, the GPS standard, so use that parameter.¹⁴¹⁵
5. Add src. Baidu says service isn’t guaranteed without it, and Amap recommends it.¹⁴¹⁵
6. Test both links. Check each pin on your own screen, then from China.

https://uri.amap.com/marker?position=LONGITUDE,LATITUDE&name=YourCompany&src=yoursite&coordinate=wgs84&callnative=0

http://api.map.baidu.com/marker?location=LATITUDE,LONGITUDE&title=YourCompany&content=YourAddress&coord_type=wgs84&output=html&src=webapp.yourcompany.yoursite

On mobile, Amap’s callnative=1 tries to open the app.¹⁴ The Baidu URL is shown as documented, with http.

That parameter matters. Without it, Amap assumes GCJ-02 and Baidu assumes its own bd09ll.¹⁴¹⁵

Amap and Tencent use GCJ-02 inside China, and Baidu adds its own BD-09 layer on top.⁷¹⁶

Chinafy says plain GPS coordinates can land 100 to 700 meters off if you skip the conversion.⁷

Baidu’s documentation says maps outside China use WGS-84.¹⁶ So a pin in Paris or Toronto shouldn’t need that correction on Baidu. We haven’t tested how either service displays foreign addresses, so check yours first.

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When is a Chinese map API worth it?

An API makes sense when you have several mainland locations, or a store locator people rely on. It’s a poor fit for one contact page, and it’s harder to get than most guides suggest.

Provider	Stated requirements	Coordinates	Documentation
Amap (Gaode)	Developer certification, plus a paid license for commercial use by organizations 12. Chinese phone number, says Chinafy 18.	GCJ-02 7	Chinese only, says Chinafy 18
Baidu Maps	Chinese business license and phone number, says Chinafy 17	BD-09 16	Chinese only, says Chinafy 17
Tencent Maps	Developer account and key. The JavaScript guide we read doesn’t mention entity or phone rules 19.	GCJ-02 7	Mainly Chinese 21

Amap’s terms are the part the guides we read leave out. Section 3.2 says organizations using the service commercially must buy a technical service license first. It defines commercial use broadly, as anything aimed at direct or indirect income, and sends non-commercial use to a ticket with supporting proof.¹²

Section 14.1 says the service is in principle only for developers in mainland China with servers there, and for end users in the mainland.¹²

If you or your server sit outside the mainland, or your site serves users elsewhere, you must notify Amap in writing, and it decides whether to serve you. Use outside the mainland without written permission is at your own risk and liability.¹²

Section 7.7 adds that the map must show it comes from Amap, and that review numbers can’t be removed or hidden.¹²

The terms don’t name URI links, so we can’t say whether the plain links above fall under them. We also didn’t find the equivalent Baidu or Tencent terms, so don’t assume they’re looser.

The technical setup is smaller by comparison. Amap keys created after December 2, 2021 need a paired security code,¹³ and Chinafy advises keeping keys off the website itself.¹⁸

Our guide to working without a Chinese company covers that wider question.

How do you keep Google Maps for everyone else?

You don’t have to remove it worldwide. Keep it on your other language versions, and make sure it can’t hurt your Chinese pages.

1. Separate the templates. Your Chinese pages get the written address and links, with no Google script at all.
2. Load on click elsewhere. Show a static placeholder, and call Google only when someone asks for the map.
3. Add geo-detection only if needed. Chinafy lists this option, and notes you’ll maintain two implementations.⁷
4. Clean up the old links. Replace “View on Google Maps” buttons on Chinese pages, since maps.google.com fails there too.¹

A language-based split is the simplest. It’s easier to maintain, and it doesn’t depend on guessing a visitor’s location.

When you’re done, check your page from China, without a VPN. Then add it to your China-ready checklist.

Can a map on your site cause legal trouble?

In mainland China, yes. For a site hosted abroad, we found no clear answer. Maps are regulated there in a way most Western site owners don’t expect.

The Map Management Regulations set these rules for activity within China:²²

• Review: Maps made public must be submitted for review. Simple ones, such as street and subway maps, are excepted (Article 15).
• Who submits: For a map that isn’t a publication, it’s whoever displays or posts it (Article 16).
• Marking: Approved maps must display their review number (Article 22).
• Ban: No one may display or post a map that breaks national standards (Article 24).
• Penalty: Failing to submit can bring a warning, confiscation and a fine of up to 100,000 yuan (Article 49).
• Simple maps: A map that needs no review but breaks the standards carries the same fine ceiling (Article 50).

Two published cases show how this is applied. Both involve websites of companies operating in China.

Company	Reported penalty	Issue
7-Eleven, Beijing	150,000 yuan, around December 2021 2324	Website map treated Taiwan as a country, with missing islands and border errors
Bright Dairy	300,000 yuan, September 2020 25	Map in a website video ad. The company blamed the third party that made it

Both fines exceed the 100,000-yuan ceiling above, so Article 49 alone doesn’t explain them. Taiwan News says 7-Eleven breached Articles 15 and 37,²³ and Sixth Tone names no legal basis for Bright Dairy.²⁵

We found no case against a foreign company whose site is hosted outside China. That’s not proof that none exists, and we can’t tell you the rules don’t reach you.

Providers themselves face further rules, such as keeping map data on servers in China.²²²⁶ Those are aimed at map services, not at a company showing its address.

See sensitive content on a Chinese website for the wider picture.

The bottom line

Don’t rely on Google Maps for anything a visitor in mainland China needs. Write your address out and link to Amap and Baidu.

Save the full API for when you have a local entity and a real need, and keep drawn maps off your Chinese pages unless someone qualified has checked them.

How Index in China can help

We localize sites into Simplified Chinese and get them indexed on Chinese search engines. Replacing a map isn’t a listed part of that offer. We don’t give legal advice on map rules, and we’ll tell you when your case needs a local adviser.

Book a 30-minute call if you’d like to talk it through.

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