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5 tips for Google Earth Pro

5 tips for Google Earth Pro
Softonic Editorial Team

Softonic Editorial Team

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For most people, the regular version of Google Earth is robust enough in terms of its feature set and rich imagery. So why bother with Google Earth Pro, Google’s supercharged, highly customizable version? The Pro version is an essential tool for land developers, city workers, and others who need to create highly customized maps.

But even if you’re not a real estate developer, there are some neat features in Google Earth Pro that don’t exist on Google Earth or Google Maps. Check them out and see if you want to try it for yourself. Here’s a bonus: it’s free!

Create your own customized maps

Google Earth Pro lets you create customized maps with a lot of extras. Not only can you draw lines and define areas on your map, but you can also add images and other types of files that represent different areas or points. So when you scroll over a point on your customized map, you can display multiple images, media files or other types of content.

Source: Google Earth Pro

You can also add roads, pipelines, and paths to your map. A legend at the top right of the screen helps readers of the map understand what each graphic and line means. When you’re done creating your map, you can easily share the map with others via email.

Source: Google Earth

Measure land easily

Don’t bother going out with a tape measure to measure the size of a patch of land; simply use the Google Earth Pro measuring tool. Draw a line from one point to another and see the distance between the two points, or draw any shape on your map to find the dimensions. This is especially helpful if you are buying land or planning a project.

Source: Google Earth

See plot plans and tenures

Google Earth Pro pulls information from databases all over the world to give you access to very detailed information on land ownership – plot plans, tenures, plot areas, and more. So if you’ve ever wondered about the history and ownership of that haunted house down the street, now’s your chance to find out! Just zoom into the desired area to access more detailed information about a location.

Source: Google Earth

Add more info to Google Earth for your convenience

There’s a wealth of other information you can add to your maps, perhaps the most useful of which is GPS data. The GPS function may be especially handy if you want to capture hiking or walking trails that are not shown on the map. You can import waypoints, track routes, and adjust altitudes to ground height if you wish.

Source: Google Earth

Use the elevation tool to plan hikes

Speaking of hikes… Let’s say you’re planning on taking a hike and don’t want to sign up for more climbing than you can handle. Or maybe you are looking at land and want to know if it is low enough to be a flood risk. These would be good uses for the Google Earth Pro elevation tool. As you can see in the image below, you can view the elevation across a defined line.

Source: Google Earth

So what do you think? Are you enough of a map nerd to try out the Pro version, or will you stick with the regular Google Earth? Tell us in the comments.

Related:

5 things you didn’t know you could do with Google Earth

Softonic Editorial Team

Softonic Editorial Team

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