How to Open Google Maps Saved Places in QGIS

The first time a Google Maps list opens in QGIS, it can be slightly underwhelming. You get a scattering of plain points and a gray entry in the Layers panel. Then you open the attribute table and the reason for doing it becomes clear: the map and the data are finally in the same place.

From there you can label every point, filter restaurants above a chosen rating, group customer locations by region, measure distances, join another dataset, or build a printable map. None of that is comfortable inside a Google Maps saved list.

The clean route is Google Maps → GeoJSON → QGIS. GeoJSON keeps each place's coordinates as geometry and carries available details such as name, address, city, category, rating, and website as fields.

Why GeoJSON is the better QGIS starting point

QGIS can read KML, GPX, CSV, and GeoJSON, so there is more than one workable path.

Use GeoJSON when you want the richest ready-made layer. ExportMyMap writes a Point feature for each place and keeps the enriched values as structured properties. QGIS turns those properties into columns in the attribute table.

Use KML when the same file also needs to open in Google Earth or My Maps. The ExportMyMap KML is intentionally lightweight: name, coordinates, and an optional note.

Use CSV when a human will edit the rows before mapping them. QGIS can build points from longitude and latitude columns, but you must choose the correct fields and coordinate reference system during import. GeoJSON removes that setup step.

Step 1: Export the Google Maps list as GeoJSON

Open Google Maps in Chrome, Edge, Brave, or Arc on a computer.

1. Install the ExportMyMap Chrome Extension.
2. Sign in and open Saved.
3. Choose the list you want to analyze.
4. Launch ExportMyMap and wait for the scan to finish.
5. Select GeoJSON and download.

Include notes only if they belong in the QGIS project. A private comment copied into GeoJSON becomes an ordinary, readable attribute.

The free version covers the first 10 places; a paid plan is required for the full list. For a Starred list that stops at roughly 200 places on desktop, use the Google Takeout workflow first.

The GeoJSON export guide lists the fields and explains why the coordinate order is longitude, latitude.

Step 2: Add the GeoJSON layer

Open an existing QGIS project or create a blank one. Then use either method:

• drag the .geojson file from your file manager onto the QGIS map canvas; or
• choose Layer → Add Layer → Add Vector Layer, select the file as the vector dataset, and add it.

QGIS documents this workflow under Opening Data. The exact icon can move between versions, but Add Vector Layer has remained the useful menu phrase.

Right-click the new layer and choose Zoom to Layer. This is the fastest cure for the common “it loaded but I see nothing” problem. A list spread across Europe may be present while your project is still looking at one street.

Step 3: Check the attribute table

Right-click the layer and open Attribute Table. Each row should be one saved place. Depending on what Google supplied during the scan, columns can include:

• name, address, city, region, and country;
• category, rating, and reviewCount;
• phones, website, and hours;
• placeId, googleMapsUrl, and plusCode;
• note, if notes were included.

Some cells will be empty. That is normal: a mountain viewpoint rarely has opening hours, while a business may not publish a phone number.

Sort by name and inspect a handful of recognizable places. Use QGIS's identify tool to click those same points on the map. This catches a wrong source list before you spend half an hour styling it.

Step 4: Add useful labels

Open the layer's Properties, choose Labels, switch from no labels to single labels, and select the name field.

Do not label all 2,000 points at every zoom level and expect a readable map. Start with a modest text size and use scale-dependent visibility if the points cover a large area. For a print map, label only the filtered subset that matters.

If names overlap heavily, QGIS has placement and conflict controls. A halo or buffer around the text often does more for readability than changing the font.

Step 5: Style or filter the points

A single symbol is fine for checking coordinates. For analysis, choose a field that answers a real question.

• Categorize by category to separate hotels, restaurants, and attractions.
• Categorize by city or country for a multi-region list.
• Use a graduated style for rating, while remembering that missing ratings are not zero.
• Apply a filter to show one category or region at a time.

Categories come from Google and may be inconsistent or more specific than you want. Clean a copy of the field or create a new grouped category rather than manually restyling dozens of individual values.

For travel planning, a useful next step is a buffer around stations, a distance calculation from accommodation, or a join with a boundary layer. For business data, group points by sales territory or count them inside administrative areas. QGIS becomes valuable once the saved list meets another dataset.

Step 6: Save it as a real project layer

GeoJSON is excellent for moving data between tools. It is less convenient as the long-term home of a layer you plan to edit repeatedly.

Right-click the layer, choose Export → Save Features As, and save it into a GeoPackage. A GeoPackage handles field types, editing, indexes, and multiple layers more comfortably. Then save the QGIS project itself.

Keep three separate things:

1. the untouched GeoJSON export;
2. the editable GeoPackage;
3. the QGIS project containing labels, styles, and layout choices.

The layer file and the project are not the same. Emailing only the QGIS project to someone else does not necessarily send the data it references.

Troubleshooting

The layer has zero features

Open the file in the GeoJSON validator. If it is valid but empty, the selected places may not have contained usable coordinates or the wrong selection was exported.

Points appear in the ocean or on another continent

An edited file may have latitude and longitude reversed. GeoJSON coordinate pairs are longitude, latitude. The original ExportMyMap download already uses the correct order, so compare it with the edited copy.

Text fields look like lists

Properties such as phone numbers can contain arrays rather than one plain string. QGIS preserves the data, but some expressions or export formats may need you to join the values into text before use.

You need KML, CSV, or Excel afterward

Export from QGIS, or use the local GeoJSON to KML, GeoJSON to CSV, or GeoJSON to Excel converter. Converting a copy keeps your original layer intact.

Remove private fields before publishing

A QGIS project often begins as personal analysis and ends as a web map, PDF, or file sent to a colleague. Before publishing, inspect every attribute. Your own notes, customer addresses, phone numbers, and Google Maps URLs may be useful privately and inappropriate publicly.

Make a publication layer with only the fields the audience needs. That habit is much safer than hiding columns in the table and assuming they disappeared from the underlying data.

Export a QGIS-ready GeoJSON from Google Maps →