Apple Maps switches to ‘Lake America’ for some users
A screenshot from Apple Maps showing that the name for the easternmost Great Lake has been changed to Lake America for users in the U.S. (Submitted)
Apple has changed the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America in its popular Maps app, but only for users in the United States. The new name began appearing for users on Tuesday, just a day after the Trump administration revealed that it appealed directly to the tech giant to make the switch.
Big picture view:
Not everyone will see Lake America, however. Apple confirmed to Reuters that the new name is being shown to U.S. users, explaining that the change was made to keep Maps in line with the name used in the U.S. Geographic Names Information System. Users in Canada, meanwhile, will see "Lake Ontario," while those elsewhere will see both names.
As of Tuesday night, the changeover appears to still be ongoing with some users seeing the new name, while others in the U.S. still have the Lake Ontario name on the body of water. The information card for the lake is reflecting change.
A screenshot from an Apple Maps user in the U.S. on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, showing the name Lake Ontario still on the body of water, but an information card that reads Lake America for that location. (Submitted)
The location-based naming mirrors the system Apple used when the Trump administration redesignated the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. It also matches how Google handled the name change when it made the switch over the weekend.
The backstory:
During an appearance on Fox’s "Mornings with Maria," Interior Secretary Doug Burgum explained that President Donald Trump reached out directly to Apple to urge the Cupertino, California-based company to use the Lake America name. Last week, Trump had signed the order that directed Burgum’s agency to change the name of the easternmost Great Lake as the United States’ trade war with Canada continues.
RELATED: Few Americans support 'Lake America' name, poll finds
The president, however, does not have the authority to change the name of the lake outside of the U.S. On the northern side of the border, officials in Canada blasted the idea, as did the leader of the Seneca Nation, who said the new name violates a 225-year-old treaty and shows "blatant disrespect" to the Indigenous people who originally named the lake.
The other side:
Not every mapping company is on board with calling it Lake America. MapQuest came out against using the new name or multiple names. In a Facebook post, the Denver-based company shared a picture of a lake labeled "Lake Ontario" and wrote, "We’re not changing it." Its stance has offered a boost to MapQuest, which has shot to the top of the list of navigation apps in Apple’s App Store and currently sits fifth overall on Google Play.
The Source: Information for this article was based on reviews of the Apple Maps and Google Maps apps, Reuters, The Associated Press, and a MapQuest statement.