Mental maps are the maps of our surroundings that we have in our heads. We can divide our mental maps into neighbourhood or local maps, and global mental maps, that is, how we imagine what the Earth looks like and where different countries and regions are located. We use neighbourhood mental maps in everyday travel to school, work, and recreation. We use global mental maps to think about other places, other countries, such as when we watch the news, plan a trip, study another country, send an email on the computer, or a letter by regular mail.

Everyone has a different mental map. What your mental maps looks like can vary depending on what is important to you. For instance, a person who plays outdoor soccer in the summer might know where all the outdoor fields are, but a person who is interested in collecting comic books might know instead where all the best comic book stores are and not have a clue as to where the soccer fields are. Because mental maps depend so much on personal values, they are sometimes not as complete or as correct as a real map.