How to drop a pin on Google Maps from your desktop or mobile app

Google Maps has made it so easy to navigate that it has become an indispensable tool for getting around town (and has been amusingly name checked in pop culture).

Finding almost any address is as easy as typing it into the search box, but there are times when that won’t quite work.

If the location you’re trying to go to doesn’t have an address or the address is wrong, you might want to drop a pin on the map instead. Likewise, if you don’t know the exact address, it might be fine to just drop a pin in the general vicinity.

That’s a straightforward process on both a desktop computer and your mobile device.

Drop a pin on your iPhone or Android phone

The process for dropping a pin on the Google Maps mobile app is the same no matter which phone you use.

1. Open the Google Maps app.

2. Find the location on the map where you want to drop the pin, and zoom in as far as you need to see it clearly.

3. Tap and hold the spot where you want to drop a pin until you see the pin appear under your finger.

Now you can use the pin. For example, you can tap “Directions” to get directions from your current location to the dropped pin.

If you prefer, you can save this pin for later. To do that, tap “Label” from the oval options on the pin and give it a name. Afterwards, you’ll always be able to find it in Your Places. (Note that the Android and iPhone versions of Google Maps work slightly differently. Both apps let you save and label dropped pins, but to see the Label button on Android, tap the info box at the bottom of the screen to see all of your options.)