The Great British love affair with maps
Press Office
It’s official – the British public just can’t get enough of maps with over half saying they are an important part of everyday life.
New research carried out by Ordnance Survey (OS) ahead of National Map Reading Week, running from Monday 14 July to Sunday 20 July, found 52% of the public believe maps are vital.
Getting from A to B (55%), discovering new places we wouldn’t have otherwise known (48%) and helping us explore the outdoors safely (45%) were the top three reasons why maps remain relevant.
OS also found that the nation feels confident in its map reading skills, with 84% of adults claiming they could read maps well, and a further 83% expressing confidence in their overall navigation abilities.
"Maps have always been more than just tools for navigation. Not only do they look beautiful and intriguing when hung on a wall, but they are also gateways to adventure, discovery, and connection with the world around us. Whether you’re using a paper map or a digital one, there is such joy in exploring new places and understanding your surroundings. They are the key tool that makes venturing out around the country fun, accessible and safe. It’s why we run National Map Reading Week every year – to celebrate that love and help more people feel more confident in their navigation skills. "
National Map Reading Week survey results
Map users in the East of England and the South East stated they were most confident, while those surveyed in Northern Ireland and Wales felt the least self-assured using them.
Londoners valued maps the most (66%), followed by people in the West Midlands (59%). At the other end of the scale, 29% of people in Scotland claimed they were unimportant.
Across the age ranges, 76% of 25- to 34-year-olds felt maps were the most important, while 34% of over 65s said they were not.
In a digital world, it’s easy to assume paper maps could be relics of the past, but that’s not the case. 43% of respondents admitted to owning one or two paper maps at home, and 58% stash them away for future use.
27% keep them as souvenirs, and 14% even collect them as a hobby.
That said, digital maps are popular – with almost half of respondents (48%) using at least one digital app (such as OS Maps) and over a quarter (27%) using two.
Younger people (18- to 24-year-olds) are the most likely to use digital maps (67%), while only 2% of that age group regularly use paper maps.
In contrast 18% of those surveyed over 65 said they used digital maps compared to 27% who prefer to use paper maps.
Furthermore, 41% of users would only revert to a paper map if they had poor mobile signal, and 32% if their phone ran out of battery.
Of course, the benefits of maps, whether digital or paper, go far beyond not getting lost – they can support exercise and help explore the great outdoors.
Top of the list for the reasons map users go walking include exercise (34%), checking out parks or nature trails (34%) or discovering new places in the local area (26%).
Are you Britain’s biggest map lover?
To celebrate National Map Reading Week, OS is on the hunt to find Britain’s biggest paper map lover.
OS wants to know why you can’t get enough of your OS paper maps and why you deserve to be crowned the country’s number one map fan.
Please send a bit of background about yourself and the reasons why you’re OS's biggest map lover to PressOffice@os.uk.
National Map Reading Week runs from 14–20 July with free resources, challenges, and tips available at getoutside.co.uk or via X and Facebook.
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