This page walks through an example of how to add a basic 3D map to an Android
app using the Maps 3D SDK for Android. The instructions on this page assume that you
have already completed the steps in the
Setup page and have the
following:
A Google Cloud project with the Maps 3D SDK for Android enabled
An API key configured to use with the Maps 3D SDK for Android
An Android Studio project set up to use with the Maps 3D SDK for Android
For more information about these prerequisites, see
Setup.
Part 1: Update Layout File (activity_main.xml) to add the Map3DView component
The Map3DView component is the view that renders the 3D map within the app.
The following steps add the component and configure the initial state of the
map, including the camera position and related attributes:
Open your main activity's layout file, which is usually located at
app/src/main/res/layout/activity_main.xml.
In the root ConstraintLayout (or your root layout element), add the map3d
XML namespace:
In the onCreate method, after setContentView(...) and the
ViewCompat.setOnApplyWindowInsetsListener block, initialize the map3DView,
call its onCreate lifecycle method, and request the map asynchronously:
Override the onMap3DViewReady method. This callback is triggered when the
map is ready to be used:
overridefunonMap3DViewReady(googleMap3D:GoogleMap3D){// Interact with the googleMap3D object herethis.googleMap3D=googleMap3D// You can now make calls to the googleMap3D object, e.g.,// googleMap3D.cameraController.flyTo(camera { ... })}
Forward lifecycle events from your Activity to the Map3DView by adding the
following overrides to the MainActivity:
Now that you've updated your app's layout and activity, you can build and run
the app to see the 3D map view.
To sync your project with Gradle, select File > Sync Project with Gradle Files.
To build and run your app on an emulator or a physical device, select
Run > Run.
If everything is configured correctly, you should see a 3D map displayed in your
app, centered near the coordinates specified in your activity_main.xml.
Next steps
Now that you've added a basic 3D map to your app, you can explore more advanced
features of the Maps 3D SDK for Android, such as
camera path animations,
3D markers, or
polygons.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-08-28 UTC."],[],[],null,["# Add a 3D map to your app\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\n| This product or feature is Experimental (pre-GA). Pre-GA products and features might have limited support, and changes to pre-GA products and features might not be compatible with other pre-GA versions. Pre-GA Offerings are covered by the [Google\n| Maps Platform Service Specific Terms](https://cloud.google.com/maps-platform/terms/maps-service-terms). For more information, see the [launch stage descriptions](/maps/launch-stages).\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\nSelect platform: [Android](/maps/documentation/maps-3d/android-sdk/add-a-3d-map \"View this page for the Android platform docs.\") [iOS](/maps/documentation/maps-3d/ios-sdk/add-a-3d-map \"View this page for the iOS platform docs.\") [JavaScript](/maps/documentation/javascript/3d/get-started \"View this page for the JavaScript platform docs.\")\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\nThis page walks through an example of how to add a basic 3D map to an Android\napp using the Maps 3D SDK for Android. The instructions on this page assume that you\nhave already completed the steps in the\n[Setup](/maps/documentation/maps-3d/android-sdk/setup) page and have the\nfollowing:\n\n- A Google Cloud project with the Maps 3D SDK for Android enabled\n- An API key configured to use with the Maps 3D SDK for Android\n- An Android Studio project set up to use with the Maps 3D SDK for Android\n\nFor more information about these prerequisites, see\n[Setup](/maps/documentation/maps-3d/android-sdk/setup).\n\nPart 1: Update Layout File (`activity_main.xml`) to add the `Map3DView` component\n---------------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nThe `Map3DView` component is the view that renders the 3D map within the app.\nThe following steps add the component and configure the initial state of the\nmap, including the camera position and related attributes:\n| **Note:** The steps in this section assume that you have created and configured your Android Studio project using the process described in [Setup](/maps/documentation/maps-3d/android-sdk/setup), or that you have added a new View activity to an existing project. If you create a new Android Studio project without adding a View activity, your project won't contain an `activity_main.xml` file.\n\n1. Open your main activity's layout file, which is usually located at\n `app/src/main/res/layout/activity_main.xml`.\n\n2. In the root `ConstraintLayout` (or your root layout element), add the `map3d`\n XML namespace:\n\n xmlns:map3d=\"http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto\"\n\n3. Delete the default `\u003cTextView\u003e` that displays \"Hello World!\".\n\n4. Add the `Map3DView` component to your layout. You can customize the camera\n position and other attributes:\n\n \u003c?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\"?\u003e\n \u003candroidx.constraintlayout.widget.ConstraintLayout xmlns:android=\"http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android\"\n xmlns:app=\"http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto\"\n xmlns:map3d=\"http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto\" xmlns:tools=\"http://schemas.android.com/tools\"\n android:id=\"@+id/main\"\n android:layout_width=\"match_parent\"\n android:layout_height=\"match_parent\"\n tools:context=\".MainActivity\"\u003e\n\n \u003ccom.google.android.gms.maps3d.Map3DView\n android:id=\"@+id/map3dView\"\n android:layout_width=\"match_parent\"\n android:layout_height=\"match_parent\"\n map3d:mode=\"hybrid\"\n map3d:centerLat=\"38.544012\"\n map3d:centerLng=\"-107.670428\"\n map3d:centerAlt=\"2427.6\"\n map3d:heading=\"310\"\n map3d:tilt=\"63\"\n map3d:range=\"8266\"\n map3d:roll=\"0\"\n map3d:minAltitude=\"0\"\n map3d:maxAltitude=\"1000000\"\n map3d:minHeading=\"0\"\n map3d:maxHeading=\"360\"\n map3d:minTilt=\"0\"\n map3d:maxTilt=\"90\"\n app:layout_constraintBottom_toBottomOf=\"parent\"\n app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf=\"parent\"\n app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf=\"parent\"\n app:layout_constraintTop_toTopOf=\"parent\" /\u003e\n \u003c/androidx.constraintlayout.widget.ConstraintLayout\u003e\n\nPart 2: Update MainActivity.kt\n------------------------------\n\nThe following steps initialize the `Map3DView` component added to the\n`activity_main.xml` file in Part 1 and manage component lifecycle events:\n\n1. Open your `MainActivity.kt` file, which is usually located at\n `app/src/main/java/com/example/yourpackagename/MainActivity.kt`.\n\n2. Add the necessary imports for the Maps 3D SDK for Android:\n\n import com.google.android.gms.maps3d.GoogleMap3D\n import com.google.android.gms.maps3d.Map3DView\n import com.google.android.gms.maps3d.OnMap3DViewReadyCallback\n\n3. Modify the `MainActivity` class to implement `OnMap3DViewReadyCallback`:\n\n class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity(), OnMap3DViewReadyCallback {\n\n4. Declare variables for `Map3DView` and `GoogleMap3D`:\n\n private lateinit var map3DView: Map3DView\n private var googleMap3D: GoogleMap3D? = null\n\n5. In the `onCreate` method, after `setContentView(...)` and the\n `ViewCompat.setOnApplyWindowInsetsListener` block, initialize the `map3DView`,\n call its `onCreate` lifecycle method, and request the map asynchronously:\n\n override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {\n super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)\n enableEdgeToEdge()\n setContentView(R.layout.activity_main)\n ViewCompat.setOnApplyWindowInsetsListener(findViewById(R.id.main)) { v, insets -\u003e\n val systemBars = insets.getInsets(WindowInsetsCompat.Type.systemBars())\n v.setPadding(systemBars.left, systemBars.top, systemBars.right, systemBars.bottom)\n insets\n }\n\n map3DView = findViewById(R.id.map3dView)\n map3DView.onCreate(savedInstanceState)\n map3DView.getMap3DViewAsync(this)\n }\n\n6. Override the `onMap3DViewReady` method. This callback is triggered when the\n map is ready to be used:\n\n override fun onMap3DViewReady(googleMap3D: GoogleMap3D) {\n // Interact with the googleMap3D object here\n this.googleMap3D = googleMap3D\n // You can now make calls to the googleMap3D object, e.g.,\n // googleMap3D.cameraController.flyTo(camera { ... })\n }\n\n7. Forward lifecycle events from your Activity to the `Map3DView` by adding the\n following overrides to the `MainActivity`:\n\n override fun onStart() {\n super.onStart()\n map3DView.onStart()\n }\n\n override fun onResume() {\n super.onResume()\n map3DView.onResume()\n }\n\n override fun onPause() {\n map3DView.onPause()\n super.onPause()\n }\n\n override fun onStop() {\n map3DView.onStop()\n super.onStop()\n }\n\n override fun onDestroy() {\n map3DView.onDestroy()\n super.onDestroy()\n }\n\n override fun onSaveInstanceState(outState: Bundle) {\n super.onSaveInstanceState(outState)\n map3DView.onSaveInstanceState(outState)\n }\n\n override fun onLowMemory() {\n super.onLowMemory()\n map3DView.onLowMemory()\n }\n\nPart 3: Sync Gradle and Run\n---------------------------\n\nNow that you've updated your app's layout and activity, you can build and run\nthe app to see the 3D map view.\n\n1. To sync your project with Gradle, select **File \\\u003e Sync Project with Gradle Files.**\n\n2. To build and run your app on an emulator or a physical device, select\n **Run \\\u003e Run**.\n\nIf everything is configured correctly, you should see a 3D map displayed in your\napp, centered near the coordinates specified in your `activity_main.xml`.\n\nNext steps\n----------\n\nNow that you've added a basic 3D map to your app, you can explore more advanced\nfeatures of the Maps 3D SDK for Android, such as\n[camera path animations](/maps/documentation/maps-3d/android-sdk/custom-camera-paths),\n[3D markers](/maps/documentation/maps-3d/android-sdk/add-a-marker), or\n[polygons](/maps/documentation/maps-3d/android-sdk/add-polygons)."]]