this post was submitted on 26 Oct 2025
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i just wish OSM was more complete… it’s fine for big cities, but when you live in small rural areas it’s practically useless. my village only has its roads mapped, nothing else.
(and yes i know you can edit the map. and that it’s the entire point of OSM. i know that. but it takes a ton of effort, and it’s an ongoing effort because cities change!)
OSM contributors, you are amazing and cherished and your work does not go unappreciated. i just wish there was more of us…
I know of a few rural places that have far more information on OSM than Google. Especially if those areas have a lot of hiking trails. Looking at the logs, it's typically a small handful of people adding things over significant time. It's worth keeping both on your device, and making edits on occasion. Rural areas change pretty slowly typically.
Funny thing, over here, OSM actually got weird rural stuff for a couple of rural towns I visited frequently about a year before Google Maps (and other proprietary services) was usable there. I think it had to do with some open-data drop from the government.
And seeing the services grow side by side also kind of gave away what their priorities were. Google: putting the local businesses and services on the map. OSM: document every single cool and convenient foot and bike trail.