When it comes to media contributions on Maps, each day we’re seeing more and more Local Guides contributing awesome videos, sharing their experiences so that others can get a much better appreciation and make better informed decisions about visiting the places they enjoy. This post is about such videos. More specifically, it’s about showcasing the “best” videos taken by Connect Local Guides from all over the world. In the absence of a better metric, we use the number of views that a video has gained as a measure of that video’s “quality” and we refer to the video having the most views as being our star video.
The post includes leaderboards for different Local Guide levels and in this way, whether you are a level 10 or a level 5 Local Guide, if you have contributed video on Maps, you can join in to showcase your star and it’s simple to do. To join the fun, sharing and learning about video contributed to Maps simply hit this link or leave a comment below and someone will help you get started.
So what can you learn from the *Star Videos* Leaderboards?
By sharing our video contributions and achievements we can learn a lot about how to improve the quality of our videos so that we can achieve even better outcomes in terms of video views and the impact that they have on our communities. We have been doing this successfully with photos over many years and we can do the same with videos so join in and let’s see if together we can learn what type of videos work “best” on Maps.
Are you new to the Leaderboards?
If you’re new here then you may not be aware that this post forms part of a series of leaderboard posts each covering different aspects of the Maps contributions made by Local Guides. To see an index to these different leaderboard posts and all posts associated with them, simply hit this link
Readme - How to Read the Star Video leaderboards (February, 2026)
Briefly, this is what you need to know about the leaderboards in this post. For more details see the leaderboard documentation and the Leaderboard System’s online context-sensitive help information.
1. The leaderboards in this post present details about the star videos of participating Local Guides from all over the world. If you have contributed videos on Maps then you will have a star video, it’s your video that has the most views and we call this, the star video.
2. As well as an overall leaderboard, you will see leaderboards for different Local Guide levels which provide you with direct comparisons of your star video’s performance with that of your peers. Finally, there’s a leaderboard ranking the top 100 star videos by average star views per day which gives an indication on how good your star video is. To be included in this leaderboard, your star video’s views must have been updated in each of the last 2 consecutive months.
3. The average star views per day is calculated by dividing the star views by the life of the star video expressed in days. The life of the star video is equal to the number of days between when you first uploaded your star video on Maps and the date that you last updated the star views and thus, will be different for each participating Local Guide. Therefore, for accuracy of the information it is important that you enter the correct dates. When it comes to the date that you last updated the star views, point #2 above is very important.
4. As well as the star views and the date uploaded onto Maps, each listing on the leaderboards shows the Maps Category, and a description (e.g. Storefront, Building or Park) of the respective Local Guide’s star video.
5. If the Maps Category of a star video is shown as a link and if the name of the relevant Place of Interest was provided by the respective Local Guide, then hovering over that link will show you the name of the place and selecting that link will take you to a screenshot with details of that place as stored on the Local Guides, 2026 Star Videos post, a “star video album” if you will, of star videos.
6. If the Maps Category of a star video is shown on a colored background then that star video has been selected as one of the best that meets the formatting requirements as specified in the star video album post. Select that star video’s category and see why it has been rated as one of the best and read more about that star video on the “star video album” post.
7. Preceding some of the leaderboards, you may see a number of screenshots of featured star videos. If so, these are a selection from those that best meet the requirements as detailed in the “star video album” post.
8. Clicking or selecting any of the featured star video images shown will take you to where you can view the Local Guide’s video.
9. Where shown, around leaderboard sequence numbers [ ] indicate that this is the first time that the Local Guide has participated on the Top 100 Local Guides leaderboards.
10. Where shown, ( ) around leaderboard sequence numbers indicate that this Local Guide levelled up/down onto this leaderboard.
11. An asterisk (*) shown after a Connect Username indicates that that Local Guide is a Connect Moderator.
12. Double asterisks (**) shown after a Connect Username indicates that that Local Guide is a Googler.
13. Hovering over a Local Guide’s username will display the integration number that integrates that Local Guide’s details on the Leaderboards System and Connect; the umbilical chord if you will between the two disparate systems.
14. Selecting a Connect username will take you to either that Local Guide’s Connect Profile or to their HUB.
15. If a number shown in small gray circle is displayed following a username, that number indicate the number of times anyone has selected that username to visit the respective Local Guide’s Connect profile or HUB.
16. Local Guides suspended or who have left the Local Guides program as well as those who have hidden their Maps profile are excluded from the Leaderboards.
17. If you have changed (a) your Connect username, or (b) your Maps profile name or (c) your Maps profile status from public to hidden or vice versa then you may not appear on one or more of the leaderboards. If so then you must provide the details in a comment on this post.
18. A ? or the words “Not set” in a cell indicates that the respective value cannot be determined or hasn’t been provided by or for the respective Local Guide.
19. The data for the leaderboards in this post was read at 0240 on Monday, March 9, 2026 (UTC).
20. Local Guides included on the leaderboards must check their entries for any errors. If you should find any errors or omissions, please add the details in a comment on this post. Regarding omissions, please note point 18 above.
With what’s on my plate lately, this month’s leaderboards are running very late however, at long last, here are the February star video leaderboards.
Well done to those whose star video has gained views and even more so to those that have increased their average views per day. Also, congratulations @tony_b for finally making it to Level 10. That’s a BIG achievement in a small country like Barbados.
Has your star video had an increase in views? What about it’saverage views per day?
Thanks very much @AdamGT. It took a determined effort after I missed the December 31st target and recalibrated for February 14th. I made it on Feb 11th.
Yes, my Star Video continues to increase in views, quite unlike my Star Photo which is about to celebrate 2 years of zero growth. The Star Video Average Views per Day were climbing steadily until January but showed a decline in February. A bit disappointing because it was growing so rapidly, I expected it to eventually exceed the views of my Red Star Photo. Based on where we are today, it looks like growth in March will be as low as February, which was only 20% of the average Star Video delta for the preceding three months.
Happy to see my name in the Top 100 on the February leaderboard! Proud to be pushing boundaries and helping Google Maps users every day.
Gratitude to @AdamGT sir
Thanks a lot for the new leader board and choosing my photo as the banner @AdamGT!
It is an example, what we should not post to Maps (and I did not). Instead, its context can tell something about the region:
First frost after the oak leaves had just fallen to the ground.
The Umbria region in the center of Italy is characterized by hills, high mountains of the Apennin, valleys, historical towns and thick forests, many with oak trees. Some species of oak trees are evergreens, the one where this picture was taken didn’t loose its leaves until late December. The photo was made on December 27, 2025 early in the morning as one of the first with my new Galaxy S24 FE.
Proud to be pushing boundaries and helping Google Maps users every day.
