Local maps gain popularity, but leave foreigners unsatisfied

From left, a screenshot of the Dongdaemun night market search result in the Korean version of Naver Map, the English version of the same search on Naver Map and a screenshot of KakaoMap displaying only the English address / Captured from Naver Map and KakaoMap.

Local map apps like Naver Map and KakaoMap have seen a surge in user numbers, but many non-Korean users remain dissatisfied with the services, citing issues with language support and search functionality — despite the platforms’ ongoing efforts to improve accessibility for foreign travelers.

Posts complaining about the navigation apps were common on foreign online forums and communities, with users struggling to find the correct names of the places on the map. Other issues include being unable to search using the English version of the address or by keywords like "night markets in Dongdaemun" and "Myeong-dong."

“I have been checking out places I want to visit (in Seoul) on the Naver map. It works when the name of the store is pasted in Korean but struggles to identify the English name when typed in,” a user wrote. “Struggling to locate the hotel I’m staying in using Naver. I also tried a copy-paste of just the address on the maps and no luck.”

Another user wrote: “(I never) try anything with an English address. They’re a mess, and the maps never pick them up because you have to be exactly right with the order, and it’s just bad map app design for the English.”

These complaints come even as the apps hit record user numbers. According to Mobile Index, a data analysis service by industry tracker IGAWorks, Naver Map and KakaoMap have recorded their highest user numbers in March since they started collecting the data.

Naver Map reached 27.05 million monthly active users last month, surpassing its previous record of 26.99 million in August last year, while Kakao Maps recorded 11.71 million monthly active users last month, an increase of 10.8 percent or 1.14 million users compared to the previous month.

They have been seeking to accommodate foreign users, especially with the growing number of tourists in the country, rolling out foreign language versions, including English, Japanese and Chinese. Naver Maps recently launched a campaign targeting foreigners, "BE LOCAL,” to introduce trendy spots across the country.

A poster for Naver Map's BE LOCAL campaign / Courtesy of Naver

However, these efforts appear to be falling short for many non-Korean speakers, who particularly cite difficulties with searching for places.

American Ariel Schudson, who has lived in Korea for five years, said she has often experienced difficulty finding places in Korean or English on the maps.

“It’s really difficult to use map applications here. They’re not user-friendly. When you try to do directions to or from, it doesn’t always find the place you need, even though you can find it in a Google search. And that makes no sense,” she told The Korea Times.

“Then you have to work backward so it takes so much more time and it’s very frustrating. Add to it the fact that if you don’t have the exact name or if it’s not updated, you’re in a sticky situation.”

Canadian Lisa Carman said inconsistencies in search results have been a source of frustration when using local map apps.

“It's not always consistent in what it wants. Sometimes, I look in Korean and nothing, then put it in English, and it finds it. Sometimes it's the other way around,” she said.

When asked about the issues that foreigners face, Kakao said it is dealing with complaints on demand.

“KakaoMap's place information is provided through various channels, including user reports, store owners and content providers, and is corrected immediately when requests to fix incorrect information come in,” a Kakao official said.

“There may be cases where place names or location information in English is not standardized. We will continuously improve to ensure users don't experience inconvenience in various service usage situations.”

Naver also explained that it is making constant efforts to minimize the gap between Korean and foreign languages in translation, noting the ongoing progress might not be fully up to international users' satisfaction.

"There are many areas where English data hasn't been properly established yet, like for building and place names or even public transportation information. Since we need to translate and provide this information in multiple languages ... we are carefully assessing ways to provide accurate translation for the elements — not just the business's name but the information it provides, like operating hours or parking — to benefit both foreign users and business owners. So in this process, from the user's perspective, this may feel inconvenient," a Naver official said.

"Because there are various factors and issues to consider, we're continuously working on improving translation quality and enhancing the precision of multilingual searches."