Google Gives Free 1TB Drive Storage For ‘Local Guide’ Reviews in Google Maps

If Microsoft’s assault on OneDrive storage tiers has you down, Google has a way for you to start earning some extra cloud storage space — and it won’t cost you a dime in the process. Google is looking to take on the likes of TripAdvisor and Yelp with user-driven reviews via Local Guides for Google Maps, and it is giving away up to 1TB of Google Drive space for your efforts.

Once you sign up for Local Guides for Google Maps, Google simply asks the you help flesh out the service by adding reviews, pictures and other notes of interest on restaurants, tourist destinations, or help fix incorrect information and anything in-between.

You will receive points for each contribution that you make (i.e., writing a review or uploading a picture) and those points can add up to some significant perks. Level 1 (0 - 4 points) will open access to contests to win Google Nexus devices, while Level 2 provides early access to experimental Google products and services.

However, the real magic starts at Level 4 (200 - 499 points). It’s at this tier that Google will give you 1GB of Google Drive storage for free. This is a pretty nice incentive from Google, albeit one that will take a bit of effort and time on your part to accumulate the necessary points to qualify. For those that reach Level 5 (500 points or greater), you can apply to attend the Local Guides summit that will be held at the Google campus next year.

You can easily keep of your progress by checking out the Contributions tab in the Google Maps app for iOS or Android. And while getting freebies is definitely a plus, in the end, every contribution helps to make Google Maps a better tool for the millions of users out there that rely on it everyday.