External routing

External routing

The original version of this document is located at https://docs.qfield.org/how-to/navigation-and-positioning/external-routing

External Routing

Calculate itineraries or open external navigation applications (such as Google Maps or Apple Maps) directly from feature attribute forms in QField.
Configure attribute fields with dynamic hyperlink expressions in QGIS to open routing and mapping services in external mobile applications.

Configuring External Routing in QGIS

🖥️ Desktop preparation

Direct Navigation Directions

Configure an attribute field to open driving directions to feature coordinates in Google Maps.

Workflow

  1. Open your project in QGIS and add a text attribute field (such as routing_url) to your vector layer.
  2. Navigate to Vector Layer Properties… > Attribute Form.
  3. Select your routing attribute field and set Widget Type to Attachment.
  4. Enable Display a hyperlink for document path (read-only).

  5. Set Default Value to the following navigation directions expression:

    sql concat( 'https://www.google.com/maps/dir/?api=1&destination=', y(transform($geometry, layer_property(@layer, 'crs'), 'EPSG:4326')), '%2C', x(transform($geometry, layer_property(@layer, 'crs'), 'EPSG:4326')), '&travelmode=driving' )

  6. (Optional) Enable Apply default value on update to recalculate routing links automatically when feature geometries change.

Feature Location Preview

Configure an attribute field to open and highlight feature coordinates on external maps without initiating active turn-by-turn navigation.

Workflow

  1. Follow steps 1–4 from the navigation directions workflow above.

  2. Set Default Value to the following location preview expression:

    sql concat( '[https://maps.google.com?q=](https://maps.google.com?q=)', y(transform($geometry, layer_property(@layer, 'crs'), 'EPSG:4326')), '%2C', x(transform($geometry, layer_property(@layer, 'crs'), 'EPSG:4326')), '&zoom=19&t=h' )

  3. (Optional) Enable Apply default value on update.

Accessing External Navigation in QField

📱 Fieldwork

Workflow

  1. Open your project in QField and tap a feature on the map canvas to open its attribute form.
  2. Locate the routing attribute field inside the feature form.
  3. Tap the hyperlink text to launch your device’s native browser or external navigation app.