Apple has officially launched Ads on Maps, a new advertising platform that allows businesses to pay for greater visibility within Apple Maps, giving them a new way to reach customers searching for nearby places.
Initially available in the United States and Canada, the service enables eligible businesses to promote their locations directly within Apple Maps as users search for restaurants, cafés, shops, banks, supermarkets, and other destinations.
Apple says more than one billion business searches are carried out in Apple Maps every month, with around half of those searches leading to an action, such as getting directions, making a phone call, or visiting a location. The new advertising platform is designed to help businesses connect with customers at the moment they are actively looking for somewhere to go.
Businesses can customise campaigns by setting their own budgets, uploading photos, adding promotional messages, and targeting potential customers based on factors such as location and time of day. Smaller businesses with up to five locations can create campaigns directly through Apple Business Connect, while larger companies and existing advertisers will use Apple’s dedicated Apple Ads platform.
To encourage adoption, Apple is offering eligible businesses that pay by credit card a 15% monthly advertising credit towards the following month’s spend, up to $1,000 per month during the first year, provided they sign up before October 11, 2026.
Apple says Ads on Maps has been built around the same privacy principles as its existing advertising business. The company does not create individual advertising profiles or sell users’ personal data, instead using contextual signals to determine which ads are shown.
Not every business will be able to advertise through the platform. Apple has introduced eligibility rules that prevent certain industries from purchasing ads, including gambling, dating services, alcohol, cryptocurrency ATMs, many medical services, and home-service businesses such as plumbers, electricians, locksmiths, roofers, and pest control companies. The company says Maps ads are intended for businesses with physical locations that customers can visit.