Getting a restaurant or trailhead onto a Garmin should be easy: it is a name and two numbers. The confusing part is that “Garmin” can mean a watch, an outdoor handheld, a cycling computer, a car navigator, the Explore app, or BaseCamp — and those products do not all use the same import screen.
The safest general route for compatible outdoor devices is Google Maps → GPX waypoints → Garmin Explore → device sync. For an older handheld or a setup that does not use Explore, BaseCamp is the dependable desktop alternative.
One warning before you start: a list of saved places is not a course. The file should contain waypoints only. Importing it will give you destinations to find later; it will not build turn-by-turn directions between every pin.
Before you choose a method
Open Garmin's device documentation and confirm whether your model syncs with Garmin Explore. Many outdoor watches and handhelds do, but support is not universal. Garmin recommends the Tread app for the zūmo XT2, zūmo XT3, and Tread series, for example.
Use one of these routes:
- Garmin Explore app: the easiest option for a compatible paired device and the method used below;
- Garmin Explore website: convenient on a computer, with a documented limit of 500 waypoints per import;
- Garmin BaseCamp: useful for compatible outdoor handhelds connected by USB or for checking the GPX before transfer.
Garmin's own Explore import instructions cover the mobile flow. The app documentation says there is no limit on waypoint count in an imported GPX, but your Garmin device may still have a model-specific storage limit.
Step 1: Export the Google Maps list as GPX
On a computer, open Google Maps in Chrome, Edge, Brave, or Arc and sign in to the correct account.
- Install the ExportMyMap Chrome Extension.
- Open Saved and select the list you want to move.
- Launch ExportMyMap and wait for the scan to finish.
- Choose GPX.
- Download the file.
The free version covers the first 10 places; a paid plan is required for the full list. If Starred places stops around 200 entries on the desktop page, use the Google Takeout workflow before you create the GPX.
ExportMyMap writes each place as a waypoint with its name and coordinates. Address, a Google Maps link, and an optional personal note can also appear in the GPX, but names and coordinates are the fields to count on across Garmin products.
The broader GPX export guide explains the file structure and the difference between waypoints, routes, and tracks.
Step 2: Put the GPX where the phone can reach it
Move the file from the computer to the phone running Garmin Explore. Cloud storage, email, AirDrop, Quick Share, USB, or a shared folder all work. Save a second copy outside the app; that original is your fallback if a sync or collection edit goes wrong.
On iPhone, start with Garmin Explore's in-app importer in the next step rather than assuming the Share sheet is the main route. Garmin warns that Copy to Explore may not appear in the iOS Share sheet for every user. If that shortcut is missing, continue with the in-app import flow described in the next step. On Android, opening the GPX with Explore is another valid route.
Step 3: Import it into Garmin Explore
Inside the Garmin Explore app:
- Open Map.
- Tap the plus button.
- Choose Import .GPX.
- Select the file.
- Choose Add To Collection or finish the import.
Create a collection with the same useful name as the original list — Scotland trailheads is better than Imported 4. Collections make a large library manageable and let you control what is synced or shown.
Because the file contains waypoints, you do not need to decide whether lines are tracks or courses. There are no route or track lines in an ExportMyMap saved-place GPX.
Step 4: Sync to the Garmin device
Importing into Explore puts the data in the app and account. It does not prove that the waypoints have reached the hardware.
Make sure the device is paired and connected, run a sync in Garmin Explore, and wait for it to complete. Then check the device's Saved Locations, Waypoints, or equivalent menu. The name varies by product.
Open at least three points:
- one in a city, where nearby places can be confused;
- one far from your current location;
- one with a non-ASCII name, such as an accented character.
The coordinates should match even if the Garmin basemap uses a different business name or shows less place detail than Google Maps.
The Explore website route
If you prefer doing the import on a computer, sign in to the Garmin Explore website, open Map, use the import button, choose a collection or library, and upload the GPX. Garmin's website instructions document these current limits:
- 500 waypoints per import;
- 200 points per route;
- 10,000 points per track.
Only the first limit matters here because the file contains waypoints. Split a list larger than 500 into smaller selections before exporting, or use the Explore mobile app, whose documentation does not set a waypoint-import limit.
Garmin also says that waypoints with attached notes will not import into the Explore website. ExportMyMap stores the address and optional note in the waypoint description, so the mobile app is the safer first choice for this file. If the website refuses the waypoints, import through the app or pass the GPX through BaseCamp and re-export it. Do not make a trip depend on a description surviving; keep an Excel copy on your phone when those details matter.
The BaseCamp route for a handheld
For a compatible Garmin outdoor handheld, BaseCamp provides a wired workflow:
- Open BaseCamp on Windows or Mac.
- Choose File → Import and select the GPX.
- Connect the handheld by USB.
- Select the imported waypoints or list.
- Send the selection to the device.
Garmin publishes the detailed BaseCamp import and transfer procedure. Use it when Explore does not support your model or when you want to inspect and organize the data on a larger screen before transferring it.
What transfers, and what does not
The reliable part of the move is the point itself:
- name;
- latitude and longitude;
- membership in the Garmin collection or list you choose.
Do not expect Google ratings, reviews, photos, live opening hours, or Google categories to become native Garmin fields. Garmin's map data comes from a different source, so the surrounding place card may look different even though the waypoint sits at the correct coordinate.
Notes and long descriptions are inconsistent across Garmin software and devices. If a note matters — a gate code, reservation reference, or warning about seasonal access — verify it on the actual hardware before leaving.
Troubleshooting a bad import
Nothing appears after selecting the file
Run the file through the GPX validator. It should report waypoints and zero routes or tracks. If it contains no waypoints, you may have selected the wrong file or the source places lacked coordinates.
The points appear in Explore but not on the device
That is a pairing or sync issue, not a GPX conversion issue. Confirm device compatibility, Bluetooth connection, the Garmin account used in both places, and whether the collection is enabled for sync.
The website rejects a large list
The 500-waypoint web limit has been reached. Export the list in smaller selections, use the Explore app, or organize and transfer it through BaseCamp.
You need a visual map rather than device waypoints
Garmin is a good destination for navigation, but not the easiest place to edit hundreds of attributes. Open a GeoJSON copy in QGIS if you need filtering, styling, or spatial analysis before deciding which points belong on the device.
Keep the GPX after the sync
A collection can be deleted and a device can be reset. The original GPX is the portable part of the process. Store it with the date in the filename, and keep separate files for separate source lists. If you replace the Garmin later, you will not have to scrape the places out of the old device one by one.