The driving apps that are draining phone battery the most

Most people rely on their smartphones heavily throughout a regular day, however, when driving a person’s phone is often used constantly for hours, whether for navigation or entertainment purposes. 

While the car radio used to be the norm for entertainment on road trips, many people now favour listening to their favourite music artist, or even enjoying the next best-selling audiobook while in the car. 

Additionally there are now hundreds of navigation and travel apps available to use for both drivers and non drivers. However, some apps can drain phone batteries more than others - in case of emergency, it’s important to know which these are. 

With this in mind, we’ve analysed 100 navigation and 100 entertainment apps on the Apple App Store and Google Play to discover which platforms are draining user batteries the most, which navigation apps are proving to be the most popular in different countries around the world, and even which EV apps are leading the way this year. 

Key findings: 

• inDrive is draining phone batteries the most among drivers worldwide.
• UK drivers need to be aware of Back Seat Navigator when it comes to increased battery drain.
• Spotify is the most popular entertainment app to use while driving for both Apple and Android drivers.
• Google Maps is the most used navigation app among Apple and Android phone users.
• iPhone users globally also favour Waze and Park Mobile navigation tools, whereas Android users prefer Uber and Yandex.
• Volta Charging is the most popular EV app in the world, but in the UK, PlugShare is the most popular for locating charging points.

It’s important to note that not all apps drain your phone battery at the same rate - in fact, the more data an app takes from a user, the quicker the battery is going to drain. 

And with an average smartphone having a maximum battery life of 12 hours, it could be that measures need to be taken to limit battery drain (a portable charger is always a good idea when on a long drive).

When looking at auto apps worldwide, one thing is clear - battery drain is extremely common. Whether you need directions on a long drive or are booking a taxi for a lengthy trip, phone battery drain is unstoppable. 

However, our research shows that some auto apps drain a lot more battery than others…

Our research found that inDrive is the auto app that is draining user batteries the most worldwide, with a battery drain score of 20 out of 20. The app is the second largest ride-sharing and taxi app worldwide and operates across 46 countries across the globe. 

Due to the fact that inDrive drains the most battery, it also means the app has access to most user data. A user might not realise that this app actually has access to location, financial information and even photos and videos. While this information is displayed in the official app stores, many people overlook this very important information when downloading an app to their phone. 

Tied for second place with a battery drain score of 16 is the French navigation app, Bonjour RATP, outdoor adventure platform, OnX and UK public transport service, National Express Coach. These apps have access to an array of user data - perhaps most shocking, National Express Coach has access to certain messages, photos and videos and even location data. 

In joint third place are the Russian navigation platform, Yandex, the U.S. cab-hailing app, Lyft, and the UK navigation app, Back Seat Navigator, with a battery drain score of 15. 

This shows that of all of the navigation tools commonly used in the UK (from Google Maps and Waze, to Apple Maps and what3words), Back Seat Navigator is the one that you can expect the most battery drain from while driving. 

If you have an iPhone, our research found that the music streaming platform, Audiomack, is the entertainment app most likely to drain your phone battery while driving, with a whopping battery drain score of 18 out of 20. Spotify is also a big drain on Apple battery (15), as well as SoundCloud (13) and TuneIn Radio (12). 

However, if you have an Android phone, you are most at risk of battery drain from VK: music, video and messenger, which has a battery drain score of 18 on a Samsung or Google device. Other standouts are music streaming platforms Spotify, Audiomack and TuneIn with battery drain scores of 12. 

As a driver or someone looking for a taxi ride or public transport to get you from A to B, it’s important to note which navigation and auto apps drain your battery the least. 

Not only can you use these apps for a longer time, but it also means that you are less at risk of finding yourself in an unfortunate situation without a charged phone.

On the official App Store and Google Play, there are many apps which don’t request access to any of your personal data. 

With this in mind, we’ve done the digging so you don’t have to - the results are in…

Due to the app permissions differing between Apple and Android devices, your experience with battery drain will vary depending on the device you own. 

While there are many navigation apps on the market (and not all of them related to driving e.g. Vessel Tracking and Flight Tracker), there are many that drivers may use safely when behind the wheel. 

In terms of the best map navigation to use while driving, the apps which drain the phone battery the least are GPS and GPS Navigation.

Keith Hawes, Director at Nationwide Vehicle Contracts shares his top tips on how to limit the amount of battery an app can drain while in use. 

1. Play around with your settings

The amount of battery an app drains is directly correlated to the amount of data an app takes from a user. While all of this information is readily available in the Apple App Store and Google Play, many people ignore this information. 

If you are unsure of what an app has access to and want to make some changes, take a look in your phone’s settings - you can turn off any you don’t want. In terms of Google Maps and other navigation apps, we would recommend choosing the ‘only allow location while using the app’ feature to limit battery drain when on long journeys. 

2. Try turning off your screen

The beauty of using Google Maps is that the app isn’t just visual, it’s also a great audio tool. If you are able, try turning off your phone screen and listening to the audio instructions if you notice that your phone battery is decreasing at a rapid rate. 

3. Keep your apps updated

While this may sound simple, it’s not uncommon for people to delay software updates for as long as possible. Yes, it may take a bit of time to update, but apps are constantly getting better and helping to reduce as much of your phone’s battery with each update. If you’re concerned about how much an app is using, making sure it is up to date in the app store should be your first port of call. 

4. Use dark mode

Not only can dark mode help to limit the effects of eye strain while driving, but it can also decrease the volume at which a phone decreases in battery. If your phone allows this feature, it’s always worth trying before setting off on a long drive.

When it comes to usage, we also uncovered the most popular navigation apps in different countries around the world - shockingly, not everybody relies on Google Maps to get them from A to B.

When analysing popular navigation apps used in the UK, there is a real standout - Google Maps. With 9,140,000 Google searches each month, this navigation app is clearly the most popular across the nation. 

However, there are many other navigation and entertainment apps which are proving popular - Trainline is the most popular public transport booking service, receiving 5,000,000 Google searches each month. 

Spotify is officially the UK’s favourite entertainment app, receiving 1,800,000 Google searches each month, compared to talkSPORT at 823,000, YouTube Music at 673,000 and Soundcloud at 550,000.

In the U.S. the most used driving app is Google Maps with 9,140,000 searches each month, closely followed by Spotify with 5,000,000 searches. 

Interestingly, YouTube Music is more popular in the States than the UK, with 1,830,000 monthly searches. 

Once again, Google Maps is the most popular navigation app in Canada and Spotify takes the crown for the favourite entertainment app, with 1,220,000 monthly searches. 

YouTube Music and SoundCloud are also both widely used in Canada, with 673,000 and 201,000 monthly searches respectively. 

While Uber is the most popular cab-hailing app in Canada, it’s interesting to see that Lyft is also in the top ten in Canada, unlike the U.S., with 27,100 monthly searches. 

To gain a better understanding of the entertainment apps being used the most by drivers across the globe, we looked into the specifics. 

We’ve broken down the most popular apps used by both Apple and Android users. 

For those with an Apple device, Spotify proves to be the most popular entertainment app with an index score of 95.1, even beating Apple’s built-in music service, Apple Music, which scored 64.1.

Interestingly, Apple users also favour music subscription service, Pandora, with a score of 69.2, as well as Apple Podcasts and Musi, with scores of 66.8 and 65.7 respectively. 

When it comes to Android phone users, their favourite apps are different to those used with an Apple device - although Spotify reigns supreme with a score of 92. 

In second place is YouTube Music (59.5), closely followed by Samsung Music (51.1) and SoundCloud (47.4). Audiomack also joins the top five, despite the app being one of the biggest battery drainers on an Android device!

There are many EV apps which make navigation and finding a charging point much easier for EV drivers. However, some are clearly more popular than others…

Our data shows that the most popular EV app in the world is Volta Charging. While this app primarily operates in the US and parts of Europe, the app boasts 5,400 reviews on the App Store and an extremely high average rating of 4.8. 

PlugShare, used across North America, Europe, Australia and parts of Asia takes second place, with an average rating of 4.7 from 113,500 reviews on the App Store. 

Electrify America boasts a 4.6 average rating and a position of 21 in the official app charts. Charge Point, EV Connect and Octopus Electroverse also prove to be popular across the globe, with scores of 34.6, 33.9 and 32.6 respectively.

When you’re driving the most important thing is to keep yourself and others safe - always make sure your phone battery is charged before a long drive, or if planning to use navigation apps. However, it’s also paramount to ensure your navigation and entertainment apps are not distracting you from concentrating when behind the wheel. For more advice, check out our motoring guides page. 

Nationwide Vehicle Contracts analysed the top 100 navigation apps and the top 100 entertainment apps on both the Apple App Store and Google Play. The data each app takes from a user is taken from the official app stores and used to create a Battery Draining Score. 

The most popular navigation and entertainment apps are based on global search volume data in the countries identified.