What is the Best Way to Plan a Route with Multiple Stops?

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When you get in your car for a work trip, a meeting, or to run an errand, the journey is never as simple as going from point A to point B. You usually have points C, D, E, F, and sometimes G too. To make matters even more complicated, the route you choose may make a massive difference in terms of the time and money you save.

You can use Google Maps to plan a route with multiple stops, but it isn’t easy to set up, and there’s a chance you’ll encounter fake listings. Additionally, Google tracks your every move and collects data on you. Therefore, you may want to look at some alternative route planner. Let’s check out some of the best options for planning a route with multiple stops.

-Maptive

Maptive’s multi-stop route planner lets you view multiple route options to get you from point A to point B while hitting all the other points in between. This means that you can compare the best ways to get somewhere, thereby optimizing your route for efficiency. You can create a route of over 20 locations and add up to 70 stops. You can also drag and drop stops on your route, and you get turn-by-turn navigation. Additionally, you can calculate the shortest route, find the distances between locations, and estimate your projected travel time.

Badger Maps

Available on MAC, PC, iOS, and Android, Badger Maps is ideal for field salespeople. This application makes it possible for users to plan a route with multiple stops optimized for time and efficiency. It also features check-ins and lead generation. This makes it possible for salespeople to save time on their daily planning, optimize their drive time, find new business opportunities, maintain relationships with clients and close more deals.

RouteXL

RouteXL is ideal for delivery drivers who work for small businesses because it makes it possible for them to plan road trips with multiple destinations efficiently. All the user has to do is input a series of stops, and then RouteXL arranges the driving route, so each location is reached in the quickest order. In other words, they automatically optimize the route. Destinations can be input manually or uploaded via a spreadsheet. Additionally, it’s free to use for the first 20 destinations.

MapQuest

As one of the oldest names in the road trip planning industry, MapQuest remains a reliable option for planning a trip with multiple stops. This application lets you create routes, find businesses like restaurants, grocery stores, and gas stations, and even allows you to book hotels within the app. However, users can only add a limited number of stops if they want to create an optimized route. That being said, MapQuest is available on MAC, PC, iOS, and Android.

Waze

A popular mobile app, Waze uses the most sophisticated mapping technology to create driving routes. What sets Waze apart from the other apps on this list is that they use real-time data from other users to keep drivers informed of road conditions. In this way, they can provide shortcuts and live traffic updates, ensuring drivers get where they need to go as efficiently as possible. Users are limited in the number of stops they can add to their routes, but the routes are automatically optimized.

My Route Online

Ideal for truck drivers and delivery persons, My Route can map up to 350 stops per route. My Route will automatically optimize routes for either time or distance, and then the route can be exported to your GPS or mobile device. This application also allows users to save an unlimited number of routes for repeat use. Additionally, users can assign territories and balance workloads.

Conclusion

There are many options for planning routes with multiple stops, and each of them serves a different purpose. The best application for you will depend on your particular needs or the profession you’re in. Fortunately, most route planners offer a free trial so that you can take them for a test “drive.”