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So Google Maps basically doesn't work in the city?
Damn arrow was skating all over the map a… Just spent a frustrating lunch break using G maps for cycling route guidance to Leadenhall Market after which I walked back to my office (also using G maps).
Damn arrow was skating all over the map and the app was really struggling to find where I was. For example, the arrow was suggesting I was two streets away from where I actually was.
nah google maps is fine for driving or walking but cycling in london is a whole different beast. the tall buildings mess with the gps signal especially around bank and leadenhall where everything's narrow and old. try citymapper for cycling routes, it handles the one-way streets and bike lanes way better and actually shows you where santander cycles are if ur into that. also the arrow drifting is normal near the gherkin and cheesegrater, those glass facades reflect the satellites or something
honestly the issue is less google maps and more the fact that london's old streets are basically a gps nightmare. those narrow alleys around leadenhall and the bank junction block satellite signals like crazy. if you're cycling try komoot instead, it's built for bikes and actually routes you through quiet backstreets like st mary axe rather than shoving you onto bishopgate. also make sure your phone's compass is calibrated by waving it in a figure 8, sounds dumb but it fixes the skating arrow thing for me
Yeah, nah, mate. Google Maps is fine in London, it's just London that's... less fine. Try using the Tube map instead. Good luck.
What are some innovative ways to anonymously compare rental prices in a city?
SpareRoom's "rooms wanted" ads are underrated for this. people post what they're currently paying alongside what they want next, so you can scrape a rough sense of going rates by postcode without anyone knowing you looked. it skews young and flatshare heavy tho, so not much use if you're after 2-beds in zone 2.
Another one is just the depozit or tenancy deposit scheme data. not public-facing, but your council's housing officer can tell you median rents from deposit registrations if you email them under FOI. takes weeks, but its proper anon and nobody clocks u.
Rightmove and Zoopla only show asking rents, which are often 10 to 15 percent above what a place actually goes for, so they're a poor benchmark. The trick I've used is the ONS Price Index of Private Rents, which breaks things down to borough level and is genuinely anonymous since it's aggregate data, no listing or account needed. For something more granular, the London Renters Union runs a rent reporting tool where you submit what you're paying with your postcode and it maps it against others nearby, though the coverage is patchy outside the inner boroughs.
the openrent "rent check" thing is decent for zones 3-4 where the unions tool barely reaches. also worth checking the london.gov.uk planning portal for new build applications, they list "affordable" and market rent figures per unit in the viability assessments, which is basically the developer telling the council what they expect to charge. bit of a faff to dig through but its public, anonymous & nobody knows ur looking
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